Teacher Appreciation

My son's class already gave his teacher a big teacher appreciation gift and have collected money for an end of the year gift as well, but I like to write his teacher's a heartfelt note and add a little something to it. She's taken care of my son all year long, I feel like just a little something to express my gratitude is the least we can do. Here's a few DIY ideas and some small tokens to buy:

1. Bow Tie Paper Clips Tutorial from How About Orange
2. Apple Sweater by Rachel's Hands, $7
3. Postage Stamp Coasters Tutorial via DesignSponge
4. Glass Magnet Tutorial by Oh My! Handmade Goodness
5. Mini Journal Notepads by Campfire Designs, $4

DIY Jewelry Organizer

*Sorry these pics aren't the best, its a gloomy day here so not a lot of natural light to be had!

I've always struggled to find a cute, practical way to store my necklaces. I had a cute big hook for the wall, but my necklace's always got tangled (and I always seemed to want the one in the very back). Jewelry boxes were never big enough for my bigger necklaces, and the jewelry rarely actually made it back into the box. More often then not my necklaces ended up spread out on my dresser or bathroom counter. Not exactly ideal. Then I went to my parent's house and found that my dad (Mr. Martha Stewart himself, seriously, I should just start a post of the week of various projects he does) had made my mom a jewelry organizer with an old frame, some sheet metal for screens and 's' hooks. Simple, easy, cute. I immediately demanded one of my own and asked nicely that it be an oval shape if possible. As usual, good old dad came through. Now all my necklaces have homes, and it looks adorable on my bathroom wall (the rest of my bedroom/bathroom is fairly gender neutral, leaning towards masculine, so I love how this ornate frame juxtaposes that). I can move the hooks around to accommodate longer necklaces, and my earrings can hang on it too. Perfect! :)

ReadyMade Magazine

I'm a firm believer in DIY when it comes to most projects, so one of my favorite Christmas gifts this year was a subscription to ReadyMade. Its always full of amazing DIY projects, yummy recipes and fun articles with some great designers. I'm loving the projects in this month's edition, submitted by readers for the ReadyMade 100 contest. I'm itching to make these bell jars (so perfect for Easter decorations!!) and I love the look of the paper lamps! Check out all the winners here.