DIY Nursery Wall Letters

Ever since we found out I'm pregnant, I have been on Pinterest like crazy finding ideas for the nursery.  One thing that I kept seeing was having the baby's name on the wall above the crib, and I really liked that idea. I'm going with a nautical theme for my nursery, and I saw several places that I could buy letters that were customized to my theme.  But after lots of looking and being the craft loving person that I am, I decided to make the letters myself.  Besides that, I made these for about $30 cheaper than buying them, so that was a plus!

Here's how I made my letters.

Things you'll need:

• Wooden letters
• Designer/scrapbook paper or card stock
• Mod Podge
• Paint brush
• Decorations (buttons, wood/cardboard/foam shapes, ribbon, ect.)

The first thing that you want to do is trace your letters on the paper.  You will want to make sure that you are looking at the back side of the paper and the letter.

After tracing, turn the letter facing the front side and apply a coat of Mod Podge to the surface.

Next, place the paper tracing decorative side up on top of the letter.  Use your fingers to press the paper into the letter, smoothing out any bubbles as you go.  After the paper is smooth, apply a coat of Mod Podge over the surface of the paper.  Do the same to the other letters and move to the side to let dry completely.

I wanted to add some anchor appliqués to my letters, so while the Mod Podge was drying I painted them.

After the Mod Podge is dry, the letters are ready to decorate.  I used ribbon, buttons, and the anchors to decorate my letters.  I used hot glue for a quick and easy finish.  Here was my final product.

All in all, I spent about $20 at Hobby Lobby for all of my materials.  The project was also quick and super easy! I'm extremely happy with how they turned out, and I can't wait to hang them in the nursery.

This is just the first of a long list of crafty projects I want to do for baby boy's nursery, so stay tuned!

Race Recap: Race 13.1 Charleston

Follow my blog with Bloglovin It has been such a looooong time since I've written on my blog!  But as the title states, I've been really busy finding out what makes me {happy}.  And one of the things I've been really involved in since I've blogged last is running.

On Halloween this year, I participated in the Race 13.1 Half Marathon in Charleston, SC. This was a great learning experience for me, and overall, I had a great time in this race!

{via}

First of all, I have to say that I decided to run this race after I had already registered to run in the Rock 'n' Roll Savannah Half Marathon the following weekend.  But this race was on Halloween and look at that medal!  Can you blame me?!

In the training leading up to this race, I ended up with shin splints.  This was not a good thing when you're looking at 13.1 miles!  I used KT tape on my shins and took the two weeks prior to the race off from running.

Because of my shin injuries, I decided to visit Fleet Feet in Mt. Pleasant, SC, which was a great experience! I'm not a beginner runner by any means, but I haven't had enough experience to know why I would have shin problems this time during training, so I gave them a try. I'll have to blog about my experience there another time, but if you're ever having problems reaching your goals in running, I would highly recommend them or another running specialty store near you that can give you some pointers.

Anyway, a few months of training in and two weeks of rest later, I found myself at the starting line of Race 13.1.  The race took place in the beautiful Middleton Place in Charleston, SC.  

And since it was Halloween, of course I dressed up!







The hard part about this race was not the costume.  It was the terrain!  During all my training, I had run on asphalt, but this entire race took place off-road on trails.  It ended up being very muddy due to the flooding that Charleston had a few weeks prior to the race so the course was a little difficult due to areas of thick mud.  This was my first off-road race, so now I know a little more about what to expect for next time!  The important thing is I finished.  My race time ended up being 2:36:32.  Not at all what I expected or what I had hoped for, but considering the terrain and the unexpected injuries, I was pretty happy with that!







I'm not sure that I would make trail running a regular thing, but it was a good experience to have.
Stay tuned to hear my recap of Rock 'n' Roll Savannah!

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How To Make A Tutu (For Running)

I am SO excited to be running the Electric Run in Charlotte, NC in just over a month!

It's a 5K run/walk that takes place at night with tons of light displays, glow sticks, and music.

Since this is a FUN run, I decided to have a little fun with my outfit this time and make a bright tutu for the race!
I've seen a lot of people wear a tutu for races like these, so I decided to try to make one of my own
because, well
I'm crafty, and I thought it would be more fun than buying one.

It was really easy and a lot of fun to make!
So here's my tutorial for how to make a tutu!


What you'll need:

• Tulle: I used three different colors of tool.  Each spool was about 6" wide and 25 yards long.
• Elastic: I used 1/2".
• Measuring Tape
• Needle and Thread
• Scissors
• Binder clip or Safety Pin

First, you want to measure your waist or hips, wherever you plan to wear your tutu.
You want to make sure you measure yourself with clothes on similar to those you will wear on race day since you will be wearing the tutu over clothes.
Cut the elastic the length you measured.

Next, cut your tulle.
I cut each strip of tulle at 20 inches giving me a 9 inch tutu after tying.
If you want a different length, take the length you want (9 inches), and then multiply two (18 inches).  Then add 2 inches to that to make up for the tying (20 inches).

I used all the tulle for each spool, so depending on your waist size, you may need more spools than I used.

Now you're ready to begin tying!

Take a cylinder, clothes hanger, or whatever you can secure your elastic around to begin tying.
I used a massage bolster and a binder clip to hold my elastic.
Just make sure not to stretch the elastic too much!

Take one strip of tulle from each color and put them together.

(Can we talk about how tan I look in this picture?! The lighting was very good to me here!)


Thread the tulle through the elastic and tie a knot with equal amounts of tulle on each side.
This is different than a lot of tutorials, but I found that this made a much fuller tutu.
I was looking for something with a lot of fluff!

Keep tying around the elastic.

The tulle will be stuck together, so you can start pulling the layers apart to fluff it out a bit as you go if you'd like.

After you get most of the elastic covered with tulle, stretch the elastic and wrap the tutu around you to fit.
You will need to cut off some of the elastic so that the elastic will stretch when you wear the tutu to hold it in place.
I ended up cutting about 3 inches off.
After you make sure your tutu will fit,
sew the ends together.
I did this by hand.

Continue tying tulle until the rest of the elastic is covered.

And that's it! You have your tutu!
Super easy and cute!

You can go on to decorate your tutu further if you'd like.
I decided to add a ribbon to mine.

Here's how to add a ribbon:


What you'll need:

• Ribbon
• Alligator hair clip
• Hot Glue Gun

First, tie your bow.

Secure an alligator clip to the back of the ribbon using a small amount of hot glue.

Slide the clip through a loop of tulle around the elastic.

And that's it!
You have a tutu for race day!

Of course, this tutu could be made using the same steps for children and other things that don't involve running.
But I'm pretty excited to run my 5K in it!

100 Happy Days: Days 8-14

Here are my posts from last week's 100 Happy Days!

Day 8:

I don't have cable, so getting to watch one of my favorite TV shows The Big Bang Theory was exciting!

Day 9:

I finally got my bathroom put together the way I wanted it.

Day 10:

I got the tulle I need to make my tutu for Charlotte's Electric Run I'm doing in August!
Tutorial coming soon!

Day 11:

I started my journey into a Paleo/whole30 diet.
I may need to do a few rounds to get it right!

Day 12:

My mom and I spent a lovely day at the pool.

Day 13:

My fur child is precious :)

Day 14:

Thankful for a gorgeous day at Isle of Palms!

Hope everyone has a great week!

What I Wore for the Fourth of July

I hope everyone has had a great week so far!

Today I'm linking up with The Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday.

Since I've still been unpacking from my move,

I didn't dress up much this week.

But I did get a picture of what I wore for the Fourth of July!

Shirt: Old Navy

Shorts: American Eagle

Shoes: Jack Rogers

My sister and I went down to Riverfront park in Charleston and spent the day.

We had lunch, listened to the bands perform, and watched the firework show.

Caffeine Molecule Necklace: Made with Molecules

I hope everyone has a great rest of the week!