Versatile Blogger Award

Hello friends! (Or acquaintances/enemies/random internet people whom I love.) There are exciting things happening here in Wonderland!

Last week I was nominated for the versatile blogger award! I’m brand new to all this but so excited that my baby blog (it’s almost 2 months old!) is getting some love! Actually, this whole award is an awesome opportunity to spread a little internet love around, and give credit to some other fabulous bloggers! Also, I’ve been meaning to share some nonsense about myself and this is an awesome opportunity to do that!

So let me explain le rules:

1) Thank the person(s) who nominated you.

2) Include a link to their blog(s).

3) Write seven facts about yourself.

4) Nominate up to fifteen bloggers to pass the award along to.

First of all, I was nominated by the lovely namesake of Courtney’s Little Things! This girl really seems to have her life together and shares some awesome posts about blog organization, journaling and college/life survival in general. And of course some just for fun stuff too, like a DIY popcorn bar! Yes please! (Although I would argue that organizing is a bit of a personal party for myself.) Thank you so very, very much Courtney, and not because I have to say that. (Psssst, say thanks for me by checking out her blog.)

And now for the facts! Hmmm…

1) I prefer skirts and dresses over pants!

I’m not totally sure why, but if I could wear a dress every day I probably would, especially in cold weather! There’s something about putting on a pretty, twirly skirt on that makes any day a little better.

2) I’m a middle child.

I am in a sister sandwich. And yes the older one raises the bar really high and the little one is the most spoiled. But I love them so much—I can’t complain all that much about these beautiful girls!

3) I was a band geek for seven years and miss it a lot.

I played the trumpet from sixth grade through senior year and recently gave it up to make room for college nonsense! So I’ve decided to become a concert band groupie (the coolest kind of band groupie) and go to all their concerts! Hopefully that’ll work or I might just have to start playing again…

4) I’m an Aggie!

Now before you freak out, worried that I’m going to go all “red-ass” on you, know that I am not territorial over my college football or anything like that. There are so many good colleges in Texas and I happened to fall in love with this one! As I said though, I do love it here! If you have any questions about this school (or fiery accusations perhaps), I would be happy to tell you more about my new home!

5) Currently, my dream job is a pediatric, neo-natal, or labor and delivery nurse.

I am known for “mom-ing” people (especially my trumpet babies) and am really excited to hopefully learn how to do it right! I also adore kiddos and the beauty of new life!

6) I love me some Jesus music.

Nothing calms me down when I’m freaked quite like some Praise and Worship music. My all-time favorite songs and Oceans by Hillsong and Alabaster by Rend Collective! (By the way, are any of y’all interested in a playlist of this genre?! Future Saturday playlist perhaps?)

7) Rom-com anime is a common date night plan for me.

I never watched anime until I started dating my current boy and I honestly love it! We usually watch cheesy ones where people fall in love (because I’m a cheeseball) but there’s action, magic, food, and other fun stuff, so not to worry! Clannad forever has my heart and I just finished Charlotte—so good! (My heart is weeping in the best kind of way.)

Now that you know some more about me, it’s time to introduce you to some other bloggers!

I nominate:

Delanie from Dallas to Dixie

Destinee Nicole from The Girl in Sequins

Darby from The Blogueuse

Jess from Following Lightning

Madison of Minnie Muse and Standout Girl

And the lovely trio behind Style Lyfe Blog

As I said, we are all about spreading the love with this thing, so click through their blogs as well if you have a moment!

And about those facts—any coinkidinks?! (That’s coincidences if you didn’t get that!) Let me know in the comments what the foundations of our new friendship will be!

Stay lovely,

Monday In Wonderland: Down in the Dumps

Happy Monday! Look at me all on time today!

For starters, this #MondayinWonderland is stolen from a lyric from one of my favorite bands, Walk the Moon. This also happened to be my favorite doodle that I’ve done so far, so the vibes right now are good!

While jamming out to the song and creating the free downloadable above (cough cough), I got a little introspective. I mean, it’s only natural when you are slightly sleep deprived and resonating with the “poppy, art-rock” vibe of this song! (Thanks, Google, for the words I didn’t know described this.) Now this is NOT my passive aggressive way of calling out anyone in particular. Instead, this got me thinking about the preventable sources of negativity in my life, one of which being an environment I recently left behind—high school.

For the past four years, I was constantly in competition with myself and others. This applied to the ridiculousness of GPA’s (they were crazy-competitive), my desires to be accepted into social groups, and even my safe haven from it all—band. I loved band and it was my family, but the stakes were and always will be high. It’s part of being a member of a successful group. And while I loved it (still do) and am so grateful for the hard work it inspired within me, I often pushed myself too hard or remained blind to any progress I was making. There were times that the overall environment and the voices in my head were completely toxic to me. I brought so much stress and sadness upon myself by trying to be perfect and please everyone else. And I can also admit that some of that toxic mentality follows me even now I've left that environment behind.

The difference now is that a lot of what I’m facing is new. And as my first college semester winds along I need to keep in mind that I am the one who determines my attitude. I determine how much people’s opinions matter to me and have the freedom to nurture the relationships and hobbies that matter to me. (And now, and A is an A, so no more stress between a 90 and a 105! Yes, it was that crazy.) I now have the opportunity to grow my current friendships and make new ones that push me towards joy rather than trying to impress people who wouldn’t be the friends I need anyway.

The experience of being somewhere new and in the midst of something new is revitalizing. I don’t have to be anyone else and I don’t have to let frivolous things drag me down. I’ll be rocking out to this song for the next few months and I’m going to try to not let the little stuff affect me. I mean, yeah, I’m going to feel like I fail at times, because some of that perfectionism becomes ingrained.

But every moment I can choose to work towards becoming more of the happy person I want to be. I’m moving toward the career of my dreams, can see the beautiful expanse of the undetermined future before me, and have the luxury of time, so it’s okay if I mess up a little.

I know it’s not the same for everyone. I’m at a very blessed and flexible time in my life. Despite that, I would bet that much of the same goes for you. No matter if you are in the midst of high school itself, a college newbie, about to graduate, or in your job for years already, every second of your life you have the opportunity to recognize what lifts you up and what brings you down (or maybe who). You have your whole future ahead of you, so hold on to those things that inspire you and throw off the rest. You deserve it. You deserve to be joyful.

On a lighter note, you also deserve to jam out to the song that inspired this post. Have an awesome week!

Stay lovely,

Saturday Playlist: Girl Power

I have a little playlist for you today featuring some fun, new-ish female artists. So dance along a bit and have an amazing weekend!

 Click here to jam out! And let me know who's on your weekend playlist!

Stay lovely,

Speedy DIY: Metallic Doodles Wastebasket

Hello there! 

I'm keeping today's post pretty simple with a quick, cute DIY to maybe spruce up that dorm room that’s already feeling a little drab! All you need is a simple plastic trashcan (that you probably have) and some metallic paint pens. Just doodle a pattern or pun and then you’re done. (Hey, that rhymed!)

It only takes about 15 minutes per can, and now every time I throw something away I see a little creativity and personality! Because yes, it is okay to doodle on everything and make it cute, especially when all it holds is trash. 

Now a couple disclaimers: I wouldn’t use this in any trash bin that might get really gross, because I can’t say how well it the paint pen will hold to harsh cleaners. For me this trashcan is just paper scraps, clothing tags, and things of the like.

You also have to careful when doodling because the paint does take a minute or so to dry, so watch that you don’t drag your hand over your design while it’s still smudgeable.  If you do mess up, you can quickly save the spot with a slightly damp Magic Eraser. After this particular brand dried for me though, it won’t easily rub off, even with Magic Eraser.

So, that’s all folks. (*cough cough* Looney Tunes are perf *cough cough*) Paint pens are great little tools and will almost always stick to the surface and make it a little prettier! So leave me a comment about what I could fancify with metallic paint pens next, or maybe a link to a quick dorm project you’ve done yourself!

Stay lovely,

P.S. If you're looking for more procrastination and room decoration, click through the rest of my DIYs! (Also under "crafty" above!)

Monday in Wonderland: Just Keep Going

Good evening all! Sorry this is a little later in the day than usual! College and exams are a thing now...

Anyway, here's the #MondayinWonderland for this week! (download free) And because you know I love a good start-of-the-week pep talk, I have a little one of those for you too! (I figure you probably need it as much as I do.)

 

There are times in life when it's good to relax. There are times where it's okay to be defeated and take a step back and assess. There are are times when an all-day Netflix marathon and some ice cream is exactly what you need to make you human again. (Shout out to the magic of Blue Bell!)

And then, there really are times where you just have to push through with that elusive end goal in sight, times when you just gotta keep up some positivity even with that mounting pile of work growing by the minute. That's my goal right now as I work through my first exam week of the semester!

So whether you're in the midst of studying for an exam, training for a marathon, or just participating in the good ol' everyday, keep up the good work! You are heading somewhere great and it's going to pay off.

I know I have huge dreams that will be worth all these silly tests! I hope you can find something like that to focus on and enjoy your upcoming week to the best of your ability, hard work and all. <3 (I know, apparently this is middle school and emoji's don't exist, but I still love you and needed to make a heart...)

Stay strong and lovely,

Eat Me: Cake Mix Cookies

College is quickly getting into full swing for me and I’ll admit, it’s a little insane. In fact, I have my first tests of the semester next week (three of them to be exact) so naturally I’ve been procrastinating a little. My method of procrastinating is a little different than most people’s though…

I have this tendency to “procrastibake,” meaning I make all the baked goods instead of studying! Lucky for my GPA though, I hit the gold mine back in high school with this one very simple, very versatile recipe that doesn’t hinder my studying for hours, but still yields a yummy snack: cake mix cookies!

I love this recipe because it is very inexpensive, you only need 4 ingredients, you’re done in 30 minutes flat, and your flavor possibilities are essentially endless. You can use cake mix as wide ranging as red velvet or mango (yes they make that), and add anything from candy bars or chocolate chips to gummies to mix it up! And I promise, they are delicious.

Cake Mix Cookies

Makes 2-3 dozen

You will need:

1 box cake mix

2 eggs

Canola oil

1/2-3/4 cup of some crazy mix-in

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine the cake mix and eggs and stir. Then, add your canola oil until the dough reaches a good consistency (usually 1/2-2/3 cup, but it depends on the cake mix). You should add just enough oil that that all powder gets incorporated into the dough.

At this point you can cut down your mix in to approximately chocolate chip size and add it in! I usually go with approximately 3/4 cup but it just depends on what you want your cookies to be like.

And finally, plop your dough onto the cookie sheet in rounded tablespoons. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until browning around the edges. 

Congratulations! You have now cut down your procrastibaking to only 30 minutes and have some delicious snacks to eat when you actually do get to studying. As I said, you can use essentially any flavor combo you want and they are super cute to customize in color and taste for holidays. (I even made these in 5 different colors for my Disney’s Up themed graduation party!) Just be aware that the cookies do brown a little while baking, which will alter the external color.

The batches pictured are watermelon cake mix with Sour Patch watermelon candies, and your classic white cake mix with chocolate chips of 2 sizes. It seems whatever wild stuff I put in there though, these cookies always come out delicious!

So go crazy and go make some cookies. And then let me know about the cookies you made! (Because there's obviously some more procrastinating that needs to be attended to.)

Stay lovely (and hungry),

DIY Metallic Confetti

I love to create things. Whenever I finish a project, I get this lovely sense of joy (especially if the trial and error process was particularly heavy on error). In fact, part of the reason I started this blog was for a motivation to keep creating! Every finished project is like a little celebration! 

Speaking of celebration, most of my finished projects are photographed with a backdrop of metallic confetti! (It brings the party and makes it more whimsical.) In honor of this, I thought I’d put together a little tutorial of how to make your own, for party-time and photographs alike!

You will need:

 Metallic scrapbook paper

Paper cutter (optional)

Scissors

Spray adhesive

To begin, cut your scrapbook paper in half. Coat the back of one half thoroughly with spray adhesive, and wait until I gets tacky (about a minute). Then glue together your paper halves with metallic sides outwards. This makes your confetti double sided so you can throw it in the air, do a little dance, and not care what direction it falls!

Then just cut the paper into small shapes. I started by cutting the double sided piece in half again, then did this three ways:

Circles

Use a good ol’ fashioned hole punch to create small circles. To do this, go all the way around the border, snip the excess edges, and repeat.

Rectangles and Triangles

Cut strips about 1/8”-1/4” wide. For the rectangles, just snip straight across the strip at whatever width of rectangle you want. Triangles are similar, except you cut at diagonals. Alternate between right and isosceles triangles to mix it up! (Yes, I am nerdy about my geometric shapes.)

"Sprinkle" pieces (They totally look like Jimmies, right?!)

Cut strips as thin as you can, then snip across the strip every quarter inch or so to create long, skinny rectangles.

From there, it's all up to you! The ratio in my confetti was about 1 border of circles, 2 strips of rectangles, 2 strips of triangles, and 4 sprinkle strips, but do whatever makes you happy--making it your own is half the fun! You have cute, small punches? Use them! Like glitter metallic instead of shiny metallic? Yes please. Need a special color palette or theme? Go for it! (I can't be the only one who's thinking Valentine's Day, right?)

It does take a bit of patience, but 1 sheet of scrapbook paper yielded a hefty handful of confetti for me!

So does anyone out there get as celebratory over crafting as I do? If so, let’s throw a party! Metallic confetti included.

Stay lovely,

Monday in Wonderland: When Life Gives You Lemons

Why hello there!

All I have today is a little doodle to help you cheer up and perhaps bid summer a tearful farewell (if you live somewhere where fall is actually a thing). And if you really like it, download it free! (More on the "Happy" page linked above!)

Have an amazing week full of sunshine or lemonade or whatever makes you smile!

Stay lovely,

Update: I revamped this doodle here! Hope you enjoy :)

DIY Shabby Chic Restroom Sign

Alright so awkward situation time: You are at a friend’s house or apartment for the first time, maybe it’s even a housewarming party, and after an hour or so of socializing you need to use the bathroom. The hostess directs you “oh just down that hallway.” No biggie except that there are a million doors down said hallway and you end up in the broom closet or basement somehow and have to walk back to the living room blushing, saying, “umm, which door?”

Now my tiny new home isn’t really that complicated, but on that chance we entertain, I wanted to avoid this uncomfortable fate for any new friends. I decided to create a classy, cute little sign to label the water closet, and it ended up with an adorable rustic/vintage vibe! Care to replicate it?

You will need:

A square wood canvas (mine was 8” x 8”)

Cardstock

White acrylic paint

Clear varnish

Flat artists brush (any width will do)

Small detail artists brush

Ruler

Scissors and/or craft knife

Gold foil transfer sheet*

Transfer adhesive

*We used iCraft DecoFoil and adhesive (not sponsored, just at our local craft store). Using it as instructed here, it gives a rustic, vintage look. However, if you want a cleaner look with this product, they also make an adhesive foam that you might be able to adhere to the wood. There are also a TON of gold foil products out there. Let me know how your favorites work!*

Step 1

Mix the white acrylic paint with a small amount of clear varnish to thin it out slightly. Then, using long strokes in the same direction as your wood grain, paint the canvas. The thinned paint and a pretty small brush give the canvas a whitewashed, rustic look, but feel free to paint the canvas as you please. You can even go back in with a few strokes here and there to make it appear more natural and random.

Step 2

While your canvas dries, measure out the size of your canvas on the cardstock and cut a square to match. Sketch out the design for your sign or use the free template I made! Then, using an craft knife, cut out your silhouettes to create a stencil. You will want to cut carefully and leave the borders of the figures intact. You can also do this for the letters if you use a wide block font.

Step 3

Tape your stencil to the wood canvas along the edges or using tape rolled up on the back side of the stencil. Fill in the silhouettes with a thin layer of transfer adhesive, being careful not to push it under the edges. Remove the stencil and let dry fully (about an hour for this particular product). You can also paint over your borders and text with adhesive at this point. I drew these out with a pencil straight onto the wood, then covered them fully with the adhesive.

Step 4

Place your foil over the design and rub thoroughly to adhere. Then just peel off! If you missed any spots, just go back and rub again. You may also need to use another coat of adhesive in certain areas.

To give a rustic look, I used the corner of an old gift card to scrape against the foil in the same direction as the paint and wood grain. This also helped me not miss any spots!

Then all that’s left is to hang your cute little sign!

And alas, you no longer have to worry about your guests wandering around the wrong corner, at least while looking for the bathroom! You can also class up your water closet a smidge! (No go back and read the last sentence with a British accent. Do I sound fancy yet?!)

I personally love the vintage appeal of white and gold, but select your colors as you please! This brand of foil comes in many colors, and is pretty inexpensive, especially when you buy online.

Have fun making your bathroom entrance a little more attractive and distinguishable! And fill me in on your foiling tips if you have any!

Stay lovely,

Monday in Wonderland: You Are More

A couple weeks ago I posted a little pep talk for myself, and this #MondayinWonderland runs along the same lines. I am quickly finding that all those people who told me college was going to be tough weren’t crazy—and I’ve only been through a week! The textbook chapters are long and the lectures are fast and I can foresee the nights getting late. This “pep talk” is for the resulting feeling of panic. (Click here or on the photo to download free!)

Blog Inspiration: Style

I’ve been regularly reading blogs for about 4 years now and I find it odd that it took me this long to actually start one of my own. But since I’m a newbie to the blogging world, I thought it would be fun to share a few of the blogs that have inspired me to actually get here!

First up to bat is fashion and style blogs, because this is really where it all started for me. As an awkward high school freshman with no experience in clothing outside of jeans and graphic tees, a couple of these blogs in particular pushed me to branch outside my comfort zone and develop a style that wasn’t like everyone else’s. Even now in college, I’m finding that I still stand out a little as part of the minority of girls that isn’t crazy about wearing athletic shorts and a t-shirt every day. I love a little vintage flair, wearing dresses for no good reason and all the high-waisted bottoms you could ever dream of. And I’m 100% okay with being a little different with my style partially because of these lovely ladies.

Curious Natalia

I’ve only recently gotten hooked on this blog, but this girl does vintage-inspired absolutely flawlessly! I love all the knee-length skirts, cute rompers, and fun patterns collected here! Every outfit is so colorful and well put together!

Skunkboy Blog

Although fashion isn’t the only focus of this blog, I absolutely adore the outfits Katie puts together. They are honestly just really unique, fun, and adorable! There are also some pretty cute kids and fantastic sewing/DIY projects here too in case you don’t obsess over pretty dresses as much as I do!

Rachel Lately

Another recent find of mine, this Texas-based style blog does both casual and dressed-up really well. I also find the individual pieces of each outfit to be a little more accessible to a broke college student like me! And this girl is frequently pretty hilarious, so reading the blog is fun too.

Someone Like You

This is probably one of the blogs I’ve been reading the longest for a lot of reasons. Not only are the outfits always cute, but Lauren’s style is constantly changing and evolving which I totally love! Her honest writing and ability to personally connect with readers is something I greatly admire too. It’s style and outfit inspiration minus a façade of perfection and with an emphasis on being yourself and growing as a person. Pretty perfect if you ask me!

I do have a few style posts in the works so you’ll be able to see what all this inspiration is going into soon! Until then though, do y’all have any other recommendations of fabulous style blogs for me? I probably follow too many on Bloglovin’ already, but I have no problem making room for more!

Stay lovely,

DIY Elastic Journal Closure

This, my friends, is my journal, appropriately titled “The Journal of Corin (Volume 1?).” It started a month or so before my blog did and is home to all my little ideas and plans for my internet wonderland. It’s also full of doodles because, as my Instagram will show you, I’m constantly sketching and doodling. It goes with me basically everywhere so if inspiration hits, I can jot it down.

I bought this baby for probably $5 at Barnes and Noble and I love its simple appearance. The only problem is that it tends to flap open all the time and get bent corners and ratty pages and then my heart is sad because my baby is damaged! I’m not the only one with this problem, right? (I did search the internet for ways to do this, but many very good tutorials like this one involved punches and grommets that I didn’t really trust myself with.)

So because I did not have the foresight to buy a journal with an elastic band, I put this precious beauty at risk (after lots of testing) to add one.