On Being "Single" (Again)

Chin and I have been living apart for a total of 5 days now.

Yep, five days and I've turned into a psycho who hates everyone who holds hands with their spouse on campus... Or tweets about how much they love their "hubby" (oh wait I already hated that). 

It's funny how being alone, even for a short period of time, makes you resort to your old single habits so quickly. 

For example: 

+I do not sleep. I mean I do, but for the life of me I can NOT motivate myself to power down and go to bed at a decent hour. I've already noticed my lack of sleep taking a toll on me, and have no idea how I pulled all-nighters and stayed out till 4 a.m. freshman year.

+I am a royal mess. I've never been an especially tidy person (clean and hygienic, but not tidy by any means), but having a husband living with me helped me keep our apartment tidy since Chin is all about tidy. But now, my bed looks like a lion slept in it, my jewelry is sprawled across my dresser, and you'd think my shoes had attacked my room and left no prisoners. 

On a brighter note, even though I miss Chin so much I can barely see straight, some good things have come from being "single" again that I hope to continue when Chin and I reunite in December.

+My scripture study has improved immensely. It sounds strange, since Chin has only boosted my love for our particular religion since we've been married, but for some reason, my study of the scriptures (I'm currently re-reading the New Testament) was struggling. I've had a lot of time to myself being husband-less and I've really been trying to focus on boosting my spirituality. 

+Eating healthy is easy and do-able. I don't blame Chin for my bad eating habits in the past, because for the most part Chin is a VERY healthy eater (I'm always the one begging for sweets). But, having my own eating agenda and grocery list has made it a lot easier to choose healthy options. Plus, trying to feed a man who eats enough for 10 men doesn't help portion control, so now I'm eating less too.

So overall, I'm not dead yet. I'm trying to have a positive attitude and am counting down the days until I get to see Chin for a long weekend at the end of September.

Also, I chopped off all my hair. That was fun.

a bun the size of the sun

today i did a sock bun (yes there is a sock in my hair don't worry about it).

it makes me feel like i have a beehive on my head.

i'm relatively aware that i look ridiculous, but i'm okay with it.

Old Navy Blouse, Banana Republic Sweater, Gap pants, Forever 21 bangles, Forever 21 necklace, Fossil Watch

DIY flower hair clips

the next couple months are wedding central for me.

no no no Chin and I are not getting re-married or renewing our vows or anything cool like that.

I have lots of friends getting married, it seems as though every 20 year old girl at BYU suddenly just up and got engaged!

not a bad thing, but a little overwhelming.

so consequently, i have a wedding cake to make, a bridal shower to plan, and several flower hair clips to make.

and i am not complaining.

i love everything about weddings, and DIY projects are encompassed in that.

i made these hair clips for a friend who is getting married in about a week and a half. her colors are blue and coral, and she wanted hair pieces for all of the girls in her wedding party.

so this is what i came up with!

Flower Hair Clips:

what you'll need:

a glue gun

fabric* (see note)

alligator clips- i found mine at Sally's Beauty Supply

plastic pearls (or buttons or something to put in the middle of the flowers)

a candle/extended lighter

*Note: you will need fabric that is synthetic. like polyester or something with plastic. anything acetate or cotton = no good. I used polyester fabrics and polyester lace. 

For one flower:

1. Cut two 4-inch circles and two 3-inch circles of fabric. This will give you four layers for your flower clip. Cut the circles by tracing circles with cups on the fabric. 

*I cut one large circle of fabric and one large circle of lace, and did the same with the smaller circles. i alternated the fabric and lace, leaving the lace as my top layer. 

2. Light your candle, and melt and crinkle the edges of your fabric . Hold the circles 1-2 inches above the flame, rotating the circle so the fabric doesn't catch fire. don't burn yourself! 

3. Once all the circle edges are melted and crinkled, place a dot of hot glue one of your two larger circles, and place the other large circle on top, glueing them together. glue and layer the small two circles on top of the large circles, until all the layers are glued together.

4. Add a dot of glue to the top layer, and place pearls or buttons on top, creating the center focal point for your flower.

5. Take your alligator clip and hot glue the flower to the top part of the clip. Let dry completely.

the finished product!

ignore how terrible my hair looks...

i hope my instructions make sense. they really are quite simple to make and add a great accent to your hair.

enjoy :)

hairography

earlier this afternoon i headed down to Spanish Fork to have my hair done by Brooke Knecht.

i discovered her from Mandy, who gets her hair done by Brooke. 

a couple weeks ago i entered to win Brooke's spring hair giveaway, and i won!

okay, am i the only one who never wins anything? but i actually won, and i was so excited to get my hair done by her, because i've heard so many great things about her.

i am so impressed with Brooke. she did a fantastic job, and did everything that i wanted her to with my hair, including styling it perfectly. she brightened up my blonde for spring but still made my hair look natural and fresh.

i love the color, and my hair feels great, and i'm pretty sure i'll never be able to mimic the amazing styling job she did.

talk about a great weekday afternoon.

my friends, Brooke is so amazing! If you're in the Provo area, you have to go see her. she's a miracle worker.

AND

she has great deals! 

if you go in to see her and tell her that Hayley sent you, you get this amazing deal:

$50 dollar color, cut, and style

or buy 1 get 1 free hair cut!

do your hair a favor and go see her.

thanks so much for a great afternoon Brooke!