417 Favors Gifts Decor {Product Review}

Hey, guys! Another review for you.

This one is a notebook. Notebooks are cool, right? I think so. But, I'm a writer, and writers love notebooks, even if they never write in them.

 

It's a custom made notebook. It's very lovely and compact. Not too big. Big enough to fit in my medium-sized purse.

 

 

AND THE PEN CAN BE A HIGHLIGHTER. AND A PEN.

HOW COOL IS THAT?!?!?!

All you have to do is push the little black lever-thingy on the side and the pen clicks open.

It's really cool. I am in LOVE with it. It's customizable, just tell the very nice lady (Whose daughter's name is also Katelyn. HOW COOL IS THAT?) how you want it.

You can check out the store HERE.

You can check out the product HERE.

It really is awesome. If you like notebooks, you need one of these.

 

Easy Crochet Scrunchie {craft}

Please don't let the word "crochet" make you want to run away! I use the word crochet in the title and post because the technique is technically a crochet stitch. However, hopefully even if you are not a crocheter you will still be able to do this!

The Craft:
Easy Crochet Scrunchie
 

{thanks to my little sister for being my model!}

The Purpose:

To turn an ordinary hair elastic into a fabulous little scrunchie! My little sister likes to put her hair into a braid or ponytail every night before bed and I thought I would brighten her elastic up a bit.

The Materials:

A pair of scissors

Some yarn - any color works, and you probably want a medium thickness {I used some cheap acrylic yarn that my sister had}

A hair elastic - again, any color works, and you might not want to use a thin one unless you were using a thinner yarn

A crochet hook {I used a size G}

An embroidery/crochet needle

The Instructions:

Tie a slip knot around the elastic, leaving a long tail. With this one, I didn't make a very long tail and so it left the finished product looking a little uneven - next time I will try to leave a tail long enough to go all the way around the scrunchie.

Hold the two strands of yarn between your fingers and use the crochet hook to go through the elastic and grab the two strands, pulling them through the elastic to make a loop next to the slip knot. Then do a yarn over. {if you don't know what that means, click here}
 

Congratulations, you've just done a crochet stitch! Now repeat over and over all the way around the elastic, occasionally pulling the stitches closer together so you can get as many on there as possible.

Once you're finished, leave a large loop, pull out the crochet hook and snip the yarn, leaving a tail about about 5-6 inches long.

Use your embroidery needle now, threading the yarn through it. Pull the needle through about 1/4 of the new scrunchie for one "stitch"...

and then pull it through again in the opposite direction.

If you have any remaining yarn, snip it off, and then enjoy your new scrunchie!

Enjoy! I hope the instructions were easy to follow - let me know if you have any questions and I will do my best to answer them.

Until later,

Summer Accessory Haul #2

 

Good afternoon, ladies!

Time for a second summer accessory haul. We have some fabulous items today!

 

Firstly, a pair of gorgeous hand crafted earrings from Maya & Ruhi.

 

The mail somehow got the package mixed up and the earrings came months later than originally anticipated, but it was actually alright because I was worried that they were lost somewhere and wouldn't come at all. So it was even nicer a  surprise to see the Maya & Ruhi package in the mail!

 

I just love these earrings. They're the largest hoops I currently have, and I don't think I've ever had a pair quite like them.

 

They're beautiful.

 

I love the size, it makes them very noticeable, and because they draw such attention I could wear nothing else jewelry wise and it would still look dressier/fancy. Very nice when one doesn't feel like donning a ton of accessories but still wants to look more put-together!

 

While I'm not typically fond of bronze/copper for jewelry, the color combination of these earrings is really quite perfect. The white beads match with just about anything, and offer a fresh pop of color, which, like I said, can go with basically my entire wardrobe.

 

Oh, and I like the boho look of these. I'm really into that kind of style, and so these definitely have me liking them in that aspect.

 

Want to see some other cute jewelry pieces similar to this? Check out Maya & Ruhi for yourself.

The prices are a bit high, but since it's handcrafted quality jewelry, and knowing the prices of beading materials these days, I think that's just a given. You get what you pay for!

 

 

 

 

Next up, a cute pair of vintage espadrilles from Kat's Cache .  

Unfortunately, they didn't fit *my* feet. But that's pretty typical, given the fact that my feet are HUGE. Seriously. When looking for a pair of winter boots earlier this year, the only thing that would work was a pair of size 13s. I just bought myself some new kicks the other day, and they're size 11s.

 

So yeah. That was disappointing, but I guess I was getting too hopeful.

 (what can you expect though when you've gone barefoot 99 percent of your life?)

 

They really are cute though. I love the little peep-toes and small wedge heels. If my feet were smaller I'd totally be wearing these everywhere. One disadvantage of being a country girl!

 

*sigh*

 

I think I'll give them to a friend with small feet.

 

 

 

 

Ah, and now, last but not least an adorable handcrafted charm necklace from A Charmed Life Designs.

 

Let me just say that I adore this piece.

 

I've been wearing it everywhere ever since it arrived, and that's not much of an exaggeration.

 

It's so light, feminine and dainty, and the little chain charms almost tinkle when they move.

 

The color scheme is beautiful. I love the silver/pearl/light blue combination. It's very classy and elegant.

 

And of course how can we forget the highlight of the necklace, the "Sing, Dance, Dream" pendant?

 

*happy sigh* I love that. It's very me, as I love to sing and dance... and of course dreaming just comes as second nature!

 

I'm not usually huge on super-girly looking jewelry pieces, but this is one I can honestly say that doesn't apply to. It's extremely girly and feminine but that's actually what makes it so perfect!

 

All in all this is a lovely necklace and I would highly suggest taking a peek at the A Charmed Life Designs shop further. There are loads of other pieces similar to this one, and in many different color schemes and styles! And it's all quality, handmade!

 

 

Well, that's it for today's haul!  Hope everyone is having a blessed week!

Note: I was provided these items in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed remain mine and mine alone, and I never employ flattery or falsehoods in my reviews.

 

Peer Pressure

 Saturday my brother graduated, and yesterday we had a "Back to school bash" at my church. My siblings and I have been homeschooled since we started, and now I'm the only one yet to graduate- next year. I really think homeschooling is a wonderful thing, but I know it's hard for a lot of people to be able to do that. So this post is aimed toward public schoolers, but homeschoolers can glean from it as well.

 One of the things discussed was peer pressure.

 Peer pressure is something I'm sure a lot of you might come into contact with. I'm homeschooled, and I've suffered peer pressure.

 Peer pressure is defined as: Influence from members of one's peer group.

 A peer is someone that you spend time with, like a friend or classmate. Sometimes your peers want you to do things you know are not right.

 So this is a post for all of you experiencing peer pressure, or for those of you who might experience it in the future. Stand strong. For even if you have all these trying to convince you to do wrong, there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. This friend is God, and he can get you through anything. So whenever you are being pressured to do something, think about the Lord, and ask for his strength.

 Another way to combat peer pressure, is to have godly friends. With godly friends, you will find yourself stronger when fighting this battle.

 I hope this short post was a blessing to you. I'll probably go into more details on all of these posts I'm writing in the future.

 Guess what? In a few weeks... aiming for September... something special will be starting. It involves Pinterest, and me. I'm sure you all are smart enough to think of what it could be. ;)

 God bless!

 

Windows

Looking into someone's eyes, changes the entire conversation.

I read this quote today and it made me think.  It is very true, the way we perceive another person changes when we can look them right in the eyes.  On the internet, it is so easy to say things that we would never say in person...I think because the person we're talking to is not quite as "real".  We can't look into their eyes and see that they are human too, that they cry, they laugh, they love.  We can't see that they too are made in the image of Yah and He loves them.  It's good to remember that and be sure to have plenty of real life relationships as well as online and when we interact online...remember that is a person on the other end.  A human being just as flawed as yourself.

Photo Source

How to Say "No" To Hand-Me-Downs {Alyson's Thrift Corner}

 

 Let’s face it; half of the time, we receive clothes from our grandmas. And, I will be the first to admit that I do not like most of the things she gives me, even though she loves it. It is always an awkward moment when your grandma says, “Oh, it looks perfect on you,” and you just stand there thinking no, not really. I also have an aunt whom I love getting clothes from, but there is always something that I won’t wear.

Be honest, but be kind. You don’t want them thinking that you liked something and expect to see you wearing it.  Nothing hurts when you smile and say, “I really appreciate the thought, but this really isn’t my style.” Plus, it’s always nice when things don’t fit and you can just say that.

 Your Grandma or Aunt know that you still love them even if you don’t have the same taste in clothes.

Tea-riffic Encouragement Card {craft}

Hello everyone! My name is Hannah Grace, and I am honored to be a contributor for A Pinch of Classy! A little bit about me - I am a 20 year old Christian, Homeschool Graduate, writer, nerd, big sister, and so much more. 

I will be bringing you all weekly posts featuring different crafts, easy to make fashion accessories, and even fun hair styles.

The Craft: “Tea-Riffic
” encouragement card.

The Purpose: A happy little homemade note card that you can send to a friend to brighten their day!

The Materials:

1 sheet of cardstock paper

Scissors

1 tea bag (I used a round one, but you could play around with the picture you draw and use any shape)

Glue dots

Crayons

Sharpie Marker

Pen

Someone to give the finished card to!

The Instructions:

First, take your piece of cardstock and cut it in half. I did this to make a card that would easily fit into an envelope, but if you wanted to make a bigger card you can skip this step. Once you’ve cut the paper (or not), fold it in half, classic card style.

Then you get the tea bag…

…and use the Sharpie Marker to transform it into a happy tea bag!

 

I used glue dots to attach the bag to the front of the card, so I am really not sure how it would turn out if you used regular glue. Frankly, glue dots are one of my favorite crafting supplies in the whole world so I am slightly partial to them.

 

Once you have attached the tea bag to the card, make a picture! I used yellow and orange crayons to make my tea bag into a sun:

 

Other ideas would be to add a stick figure body using the tea bag as the head, draw a mug around the bag, or turn it into the center of a flower.

Tell your friend to have a tea-riffic day, add a personal note on the inside, and voila!

This card is sure to bring a smile to any tea loving friends – you might even want to slip a tea bag inside the card that they can actually brew.

Have a tea-riffic week!

In Christ,