Mother's Day Necklace with Martha Stewart Crafts

I was SO excited to be able to participate in Plaid's Mother's Day campaign featuring Martha Stewart craft projects!! Check out all the wonderful goodies I was sent to craft with!!!


So many great options to choose from!!! I really had a fun time opening this box up :) What really caught my eye was this liquid gilding.  You can paint over any surface - plastic, wood, etc. with it and it will have a beautiful bronze coating. 

I remembered some old ugly wood beads I had from back when wood beads were in...hah. 

I used some of the Martha Stewart paint brushes to paint the old ugly beads with the gilding. 

After two coats they were no longer ugly wood beads, but pretty new beads with a bronze finish!

My mom really likes necklaces in brown/tan colors, so I decided to use these beads to make a necklace for a mother's day gift!

I gathered up some coordinating beads

I decided to make this necklace using links.  I grabbed an eyepin 

And added on some accent beads and my new bronze wood bead. 

I finished off the eyepin using a simple loop

I did the same for a stone bead.

I made a bunch of these links and connected them together by connecting the simple loops

And squeezing shut with needle nose pliers

After I had added all my links I added a toggle clasp on to the end. 


Here's the finished product!


I think my mom's going to love it :) 

PS: If you still need a gift for your mom (or yourself!) I also made another necklace that's in my etsy shop.

So what do you think? I'm in love with this gilding. I can't wait to see what ugly things I can paint with gilding  to give a brand new look to!!

You can buy any of the items in the The Martha Stewart Crafts program in any Michaels in the US or Canada!

 I'll be linking up to these parties:

#CoronaRita? I'll have two thanks.

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Chili’s Grill & Bar for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

On my 21st birthday, the very first drink I ordered was a margarita.  A very large margarita. Mmh, was that tastey.  Ok, I'm a sucker for all girly fruity drinks, but I do love me some margaritas especially :)
So when I heard about Chili's new drink made with Jose Cuervo Especial Tequila and Coronita...the CoronaRita Margarita (man that rolls off the tounge nice)... I was just all like....yes please!
CoronaRita sm.jpg
With summer right around the corner I am giving you all the excuse to drag the hubby or the gals out for a nice night at Chili's with plenty of CoronaRita's all around. If you need more of an excuse....Cinco de Mayo is nearly here too! (Any holiday that gives you an excuse to grab some margaritas in celebration is a good one in my book!!) What a fun night out it would getting some yummy food from Chili's and trying out the new special drink.
Since all my girlfriends are still out at college (boo) I think I would take the hubby out for a nice little date night.  I would get the bacon ranch quesadillas (yum) and hubby would probably get something a little more spicey like the jalapeno smokehouse bacon burger. I think the CoronaRita at Chili's would go excellently with either of these dishes. The perfect mix of ice and alochol to cool off our tastebuds after a nice warm meal!! It would be a lovely night out celebrating Cinco de Mayo...two full months of married bliss...summer coming soon...many reasons :)
Ok, I'm getting REALLY hungry writing this post now.  Is it dinnertime yet??? What would you order from Chili's and what do you think about the fun new CoronaRita!!??
**You must be 21 years or older to drink alcoholic beverages and as always, please remember to drink responsibly**
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Sponsor Love: Little Miss Monogram


I'm so happy to introduce you all to my newest sponsor, the Little Miss Monogram Shop!

The Little Miss Monogram shop sells a variety of gifts that are all personalized with names or monograms.  Little Miss Monogram specializes in bridal and baby shower gifts! Monogrammed gifts always make a gift a little more personal and just a little more sweet I think :)

Little Miss Monogram
Here are some of the fun items they have available:


PSA Essentials Stamps - Remember these from my review & giveaway just last month? Love these stamps! They actually have a mothers day sale on PSA Essentials going on RIGHT NOW! Now through May 1st,  if a you order a personalized stamp (on-sale for $30, regularly $40) - you can get a FREE Rosetta Peel & Stick stamp set ($15 value.)  That's $55 of PSA for $30. Talk about a deal!!
Image of Abby Personalized Stamp

Preppy Tumblers - so many different colors & patterns of these available!
Image of Preppy Tumblers for All Ages 49 Patterns Available

Black Floral Welcome Matt - very classy 
Image of Black Floral Welcome Mat

Fireworks Lunch Box - I'm sure any kid would love having such a fun lunch box!!
Image of Fireworks Lunch Box

Funky Dots Apron - So colorful! Perfect cooking accessory
Image of Funky Dots Apron

Black Leather Flask - for those men in your life! (Unless you would like one too, they do have a pink version!)

Side note: it's funny actually - hubby and his best man actually took a swig from their own flasks from another wedding gift right before we entered the reception of our wedding. Hah!

And that is just a small sampling of all the goodies they have available!

Head over to the shop and take a peek around for yourself. What do you like best??

Also, if you find anything you like, take 15% off your order with code "GIRL"

Lookout for a giveaway later in May!

Your Whims Wednesday #56 {And Features}

Time for another Your Whims Wednesday party!


Your Whims Wednesday



 Here are some of my favorite link-ups from the past week:

Closet Craft Space by Rustic Living

How to Organize Bobbins by Stars & Sunshine
 Tiffany Blue Dress by Welcome to the gOOd Life

Checkbook Cover by Craptastic


 Thanks to all who linked up! Grab a button if you were featured :)

Featured on My Girlish Whims

Now... onto this weeks party!

I show off my girlish whims weekly on my blog, and now I want to see yours with 
Your Whims Wednesday!

Guidlines:
1. Link up as many projects as you would like: as long as it is one of your girly ways, you can link it! I'd love to see crafts, recipes, style posts, etc. Anything and everything feminine :)
2.Please add my button (code at the top of this post) to either your blog post or somewhere on your blog. 
3. Take a quick moment to comment on at least one other entry. We we all love comments!! 
4.I'd love if you would follow me as well :)


Jewelry Lessons: How to Create a Simple Loop and DIY Wedding Earrings


I'm back with another Jewelry Lesson!

Today I'm going to share one of the most important techniques (well at least I think) in jewelry making: how to make a simple loop.  And it really is simple to do - here it is in five easy steps!


Put your bead onto a head pin.  Bend it at a 90 degree angle right above the bead using needle nose pliers.  Trim most of the wire off using wire cutters, leaving only a short tail.  Grab the end of this tail using round nose pliers, and then bend the wire around the pliers into a circle.  Now you have a beaded charm ready to use to make jewelry!

You could also put more beads on the head pin and use it to make simple earrings like I showed in a previous jewelry lesson. 

For this situation though, I wanted a bunch of little bead charms to put on chain to make into earrings for my friend Caitlin to wear on her wedding day!


Pretty! (Want your own pair? I also have them for sale in my etsy shop)

 Here's a quick tutorial for how to make your own:

Supplies
8mm Pearls, 6mm Pearls, 6mm crystals, chain, earring hooks, head pins, needle nose pliers, round nose pliers, and wire cutters.

Steps

Step 1: Put all of the beads onto heads pins and make into charms as shown above using the simple loop technique. 

Step  2: Cut a piece of chain about 2 inches long and attach it to the earring wire.  To do this, open up the loop on the bottom of the earring wire using needle nose pliers, put the chain on the loop, and close the loop back up with the pliers.


Step 3: Attach your bead charms to the wire by putting the simple loop through the chain links.

Step 4: Close the simple loop back up using needle nose pliers. 

Step 5: Keep attaching beads on the chain until it is all filled up, and they will end up looking like this!


A very pretty pair of wedding earrings if you ask me! So what do you think, will you give the simple loop a try??

 I'll be linking up to these parties:

Avocados for Breakfast!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Avocados from Mexico for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

 

I have only recently discovered that I actually do like avocados in some recipes.  I think the green meat of the avocado really threw me off as a kid, but I've grown to really like them. 

I've traditionally used avocados for a lunch or dinner meal, and never really thought about including them in breakfast until I came across this yummy recipe! 

 

AVOCADO TOAST RECIPE 

Avocados From Mexico IZEA Blogger Outreach - Wake up a Winner.doc (Read-Only)

Ingredients:

• 1 fully ripened avocado from Mexico, halved, pitted and peeled 
• Salt 
• Ground black pepper 
• 2 large slices bread, toasted 
• Optional: 2 slices bacon, cooked and halved or 2 tablespoons chopped tomato

Preparation: 
In a bowl, coarsely mash avocado with a fork; season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide avocado onto toast and spread to cover; cut each slice in half.

If desired, tuck a piece of bacon into avocado on each toast half or slice tomato over top and serve

Now i've got you jonsing for some Avocados for breakfast...right? Well how about some Avocados from Mexico!

WakeUpAWinner_logo IZEA.jpg

Avocados from Mexico is sponsoring a GREAT sweepstakes.  Enter the Wake Up a Winner Sweepstakes for a chance to win a daily prize of a $200 grocery gift card (now that could buy a LOT of avocados) and a GRAND PRIZE trip to a luxurious Bed and Breakfast in Napa Valley, CA.

​To enter the sweepstakes visit Avocados From Mexico on Facebook between April 4th and May 6th to enter the sweepstakes. 

 

Visit Sponsor's Site