Brace Yo'self Brides, It's Christmas With Your In Laws!: Pulling Off Your First Christmas At Your Place! (Part 1)

       No less than the two weeks after we got back from our honeymoon my husband and I were hosting Mothers' Day at our place. Within the span of a few short days we found furniture, planned a menu, decorated and stocked our fridge. Needless to say, 10 months later, everyone was quite surprised at the contrast at Christmas when our place was in much better shape for hosting. Now fortunately, my in laws were very gracious and forgiving of the state of our place that first holiday, but I still felt like I had to compensate come Christmas time. Between general in-law tensions, the seemingly insurmountable amount of cooking required, and the stress of decorating on a budget, hosting your first Christmas can be a very scary task indeed. Thus, we're running a series of holiday-inspired blogs to help you from start to finish. If you  are so grateful for the help you feel compelled to thank us with Christmas presents, we like diamonds, ponies and anything with a dead president's face on it.

     Step One: Decorating
As a chronic Planet Earth junkie, I am always quite entertained by the Bird of Paradise's compulsion to fill its nesting space with shiny things. Come December 1st, I find myself doing the very same thing. Here are some fun sparkly things you can DIY that'll trick your M.I.L. into thinking you've received a hefty Christmas bonus.

 

Spray paint long pretty branches with silver paint and then a spray adhesive, then roll them in chunky glitter, drop them in a cool vase and you have a beautiful centerpiece.

I love the juxtaposition of rugged and earthy branches and pine cones with really sparkly ornaments and votives. Most of these materials can be found on a walk around the neighborhood, but the vases and frames can be found at a nearby Ross or TJ Maxx, and little ornaments can be found in any Dollar Store or Target.
Need more sparkle? Try out these mason jars, light bulbs, or wine bottles!
Now maybe you haven't caught the sparkle bug, and though I pity you for missing out on its awesomeness, I still believe you can pull off a pretty amazing look in your house. If shiny metallics aren't your bag, try a softer (literally) look with these felted goodies:

Cut circles, hearts, snowflakes or whatever your fancy is and hot glue them in layers over a styrafoam cone. Add little pearls, buttons, or beads to the centers of each shape for an added touch!

This is a bit more time intensive (I know because I'm currently 3/4 the way through one) but they're very easy if you have time. Just follow the tutorial and hot glue them to a cardboard cutout or a wreath form. For more open roses (like in the picture) start rolling from the inside of the circle instead of the outside.
If sparkle is too gaudy and felt is too foofy, you may need a more classic and understated look. Here are some ideas for those who prefer to appreciate (and in this case raid) the simplicity of nature and create more natural looks.

Hot glue the backs of pine cones to a styrafoam ball and dust with white spray paint, or just embellish with a plaid ribbon. These cute little balls make for really cool alternative centerpieces if you hang them low over your table.

A little bit of shrubbery and some raw cranberries (or holly berries) thrown in a mason jar full of water make for a beautiful centerpiece. Add a floating candle to illuminate the room, or throw a few small pretty branches in the jar for a more vertical look.

This is so basic and straightforward but I LOVE the look of the actual socks hanging in the really rustic house....although, if you want to impress your in-laws, I suggest you buy new socks instead of rooting through your laundry pile.
Brides, with these handy and easy decorations your apartment will look so gorgeous that your mother-in-law may even be too distracted by all the beauty to pull out her white glove and wipe down your surfaces! Tune in next time to learn how to keep the distraction going with delicious appetizers and easy meals!

-Christina.

"Another flask with my initials? Thanks Pal!"; Some Good Alternative Bridesmaid Gifts.

Maybe it is because I've been a bridesmaid enough times to shame Katherine Heigel, or maybe it's because if I receive another thing with my old initials (C.R.Y) on it I'll claw my eyes out, but I feel slightly passionate about this issue. Here's the thing, brides: with the exception of your surly 2nd cousin or your old friend from elementary school that you had to ask because you made a blood pact to be in each other's weddings, your bridesmaids are all probably pretty awesome. Also, they have probably spent several hundred dollars on planning all your showers, teas, engagement parties, mixers, and let's not forget, buying that god-awful, peach, taffeta dress that you swear they'll wear again. Thus, you should thank them with something thoughtful and personal. Look at this as an opportunity to be creative and individualistic. Consider your friends, your wedding, and what you'd enjoy getting. Whether you want to go the sentimental, the practical, or the quirky route is entirely up to you; but here are some ideas to help you along.


1. Accessory Kit: Instead of buying a pair of earrings or a necklace that they can only ever wear at your wedding, make it a fun project. Buy your girls scarves, earrings, bracelets, headbands, textured tights, clutches or whatever strikes your fancy! The nice part about this idea is that you can really tailor each kit to each girl. If you have a bridesmaid who loves herself some bling then buy her more earrings and sparklies while you give your plainer, surly, second cousin more practical things like cute mittens, and classic studs. The sky is truly the limit with this gift. You can go as expensive or inexpensive as your budget requires. Got the dough? Throw a Tiffany's bracelet in there! Broke like a joke? Raid the antique stores around you to find some really cool old broaches, or the Internet for some awesome handmade stuff. Just be creative!

2. Gadgets: If you're the kind of gal that gets goosebumps over Gs instead of glittery things, then don't force it. (Enough alliteration, I promise!) Get your bridesmaids an ipod shuffle (or touch if you've got the cash), or a really awesome automatic wine opener, or accesories for their favorite gadgets like an iphone cover or a case for the laptop. Your friends will love being spoiled with the cool new technologies that they haven't discovered or bought yet!

I love the new Rabbit and I don't even drink wine!

3. DIY Masterpieces: To say you have to spend a lot of money in order to give your maids something cool is pretty much absurd. If you've got a limited budget, don't spend so much on the girls that it'll leave Ramen and Tang on the menu! Instead, consider stretching your creative muscles and making something totally fun. If you can use a pair of knitting needles or a crochet hook consider doing something like this knitted coffee sleeve paired with a Starbucks giftcard:

If you can't cable, you can garter stitch and add cool buttons or felt flowers instead!

Or if you sew, make the girls awesome ear-warmers:

Make sure to get creative with your designs!

Or an awesome clutch like this one! 

You can use different patterned fabrics for each girl!

The point is, with sites like etsy and pinterest, you have no shortage of available ideas.  Sure the knot.com is awesome for most of your planning but, dear betrothed friends, do not limit yourself to its store for gift ideas! Now get out there and thank your girls right now! 

How-to Beauty: fresh and dewy

Susan here!

Here is a tutorial I've created for that fresh, dewy, natural looking makeup that is so now. Listed below are all the products I used to achieve this look (and links to find them online!). Check it out and let me know what you think :)

1. Neutrogena's Oil-Free Acne Wash: Even though I'm lucky enough never to have had have acne, I'm still in love with this product. It lathers up nicely, and smells very clean and fresh.

2. Neutrogena's Visibly Even Daily Moisturizer SPF 30: Brightens up and evens out the skin tone while using the perfect amount of daily SPF. 

3. Bare Escentuals - PRIME TIME: I love this stuff. There are a lot of foundation primers that really work out there and I've used them all, and recommend many of them. This is what I used today.

4. REVLON ColorStay Mineral Mousse: (in number #50) Can be a bit heavy since it's a mousse so feel free to use a tinted moisturizer or lighter foundation in place of this. 

5. stila illuminating liquid foundation: (in 10 watts) One of the best light-weight liquid foundations... plus it has that sheer shine we're going for.

6. Bare Minerals - mineral veil: Great finishing powder. Very sheer - no color coverage.

7. Bare Minerals - bronzer: One of my favorite bronzers... though be careful, bronzer is a slippery slope! lol

8. LORAC Blush: (in desire) This blush is fantastic, and this particular pigment has some sheen to it... which I love.

9. Bare Minerals - illuminating mineral veil: I can't talk any more highly about this product. It helps create the sheen on the cheekbones and browbone that we really want. 

10. Urban Decay - NAKED eyeshadow palette: This is probably the most used product I have. There is a wide range of colors so it's versatile for any look you're trying to achieve. Invest in this guy... you'll use it every day!

11. Bare Escentuals - BUXOM lash: Wow. just wow. 

12. Lip Fusion XL: Plumps up those puckers! 

13. smashbox - the nude lip pencil: (in fair) Great color, soft and easy to apply.

14. smashbox - lip enhancing glass, sheer color: (in pop) The sheer color is lovely. My only complaint is that because it's a brush, it frays after a few uses (from pushing it back into the tube!) and can turn out looking like a dandelion after a while (but I still love it).

15. OLAY age defying intensive nourishing night cream: So when you make your way home after a long night out and are ready to crawl into bed, smooth some of this over your skin and thank me in the morning.

--Susan.