Hustle & Bustle

I'm always surprised at just how much busier I am during the Holidays. This year I am even busier than ever! I picked up a seasonal job at Paper Source, my Etsy shop is doing great, and I'm making as many Christmas presents as possible. I've also started conspiring with fellow Seattle blogger, Bella, of The Citizen Rosebud to host a big giveaway. Check back in on Friday for more on that topic!

That's all fun-busy. I'm also lame-busy with my property management job. How many sewage problems can one building have? That's all I'll say about that.

Here's what else I've been up to...

I made a Christmas town! It's my pride and joy. The roofs have been dusted with "snow" since I took this picture. If you want to make your own Christmas town, I have a set of little paper houses for sale in my Etsy shop.

Speaking of Etsy, that place is so full of wonderful things! I'm really hoping Santa puts a pair of these neon coral earrings in my stocking.

I want to make these beautiful paper lanterns! I just need to find big enough pictures of castles...

I usually like to post gift guides this time of year, but I just haven't had time! Have you posted one? You should share it on IFB!

If you're in need of a gift guide, then head on over to my favorite lifestyle blog, Cup of Jo, for guides tailored to fit everyone on your list.

I've eaten nearly all the hungarian goulash I made last night. I loooove soup with dumplings. Here's a similar recipe that looks delicious!

So what have you been up to? I hope your season has been festive and bright so far!
♠

DIY: cheap + chic packaging

Here in Seattle, I'm lucky to have access to shops like Zenith Supplies and Packaging Specialties, both purveyors of nice packaging supplies. I realized, though, that not everyone has access to shops like these and may be at a loss as to wear to find packaging for their homemade gifts and Christmas presents. So last month I set out to find bottles, labels, jars, etc. fit for gifting. I'm happy to report I only had to make one stop at Target to find all I needed!

I turned the above bits and pieces into the festive vessels you see below.

Products I used:

Jars, bottles, and containers (usually found with the travel sized stuff)

Decorative tape or stickers (scrapbooking/crafts aisle)

Good pens (scrapbooking/craft aisle)

White address labels (office supply aisle)

Also useful:

Markers, ribbon, pencil, good eraser, ruler, scissors

I filled my jars with lip polish (get the DIY recipe here) and plan to mix up some bath oil to fill the bottle. Here's a good recipe if you want to make bath oils and here's a recipe for bath salts. I recommend storing bath salts in a bigger container than the ones shown in this post, simply because you use more of it. A recycled jelly jar works perfectly!

Use the tape and stickers to decorate and seal your containers. For the labels, you can either hand-write them or design a label on your computer. The package of labels should have directions on setting up your printer to correlate with the labels. If you like the look of my labels, use your scissors to carefully cut the shapes. This is where a ruler and pencil might come in handy.

If you have any questions on how I did something or where I got a product, please leave a comment and I will get back to you :)