Blogger Secret Santa

Merry Christmas!

I love being a part of gift exchanges! Who doesn't love giving and receiving gifts, right? This year I joined in on Maiedae's Gift Exchange and Jersey Girl Texan Heart's Blogger Gift Exchange.

I'm one of those people that likes to find the absolute perfect gift for someone, but I have to admit that it was hard to find that perfect something for Abby of Face The Mountain because I've never met her. We exchanged gifts through Maiedae's Gift Exchange, and tried to glean as much as I could about her from the questionnaire we all answered and her Instagram account.

I got Abby a fox mug (she loves hiking), an eos lip balm (it's cold out there), red lipstick (her favorite color is red), and a floral notepad (she loves writing).

For Monica's Blogger Gift Exchange, I got Simone of Fashion Runs the World. I've met her a few times now in the city at a few blogger brunches, so I had an idea of what I should get for her. She's a fierce fashionista who loves the color pink and reviewing beauty products, so I got her a very soft pink scarf, an eos lip balm, and a three-pack of NYX butter glosses. 

These are almost all of the gifts that I was given through either gift exchanges or friends. From Abby I got a monogrammed mug, a candle (which smells so amazing!), and A Christmas Carol. From Diane of Style Context I got this adorable "Literature is my boyfriend" necklace, which is so true.

From my friend Brittany I got yummy treats (chocolate truffles and granola) and a clock journal from my friend Lauren. I got the iHome after playing Chinese Grab Bag with my coworkers. I originally had a $25 gift card to a movie theater, but it was "stolen" in the game. Have you played it before?

My blogger friend Naomi of Starry Eyes + Coffee Cups gave me this beautiful Tangled print by Alice Zhang that was on my December wishlist.

Thank you so much everyone for the wonderful gifts! I'm a lucky girl!

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DIY Blog Hop + Giveaway!

I'm going to start by putting this out there: I'm terrible at sewing. I've never really used a sewing machine, but I was all ready to use my mini red sewing machine for this project when I discovered that the batteries inside had corroded. I couldn't get it open to put in new batteries. So all of the stitch work you see is done by hand, but I'm still happy with what I created and proud of myself for doing it. 

Now that that's out of the way, I wanted to join this DIY sewing blog hop because I want to get better at sewing and hemming my pants and maybe even make make a skirt or two for myself. It all starts with one project and I can only get better, right? 

In case you didn't know September is National Sewing Month! So if you're thinking of getting your sewing machine out, now is the time to do it! Not only can you get inspiration from the other bloggers in this link up (Literate & Stylish, October June, The Modern Austen, and Syntaxx Errorrr), but Kristin's company Create by the Yard is letting everyone get 30% all fabrics with the code bloghop0914! 

Create by the Yard has a large selection of high-quality fabrics, including organic and recycled fabrics, that can't be found in large retailers. She has reliable customer service and super fast shipping (I got my fabric in just a few days). Kristin wants her store to be seen as a fun and trendy place to shop, and I completely agree with that!

For this project, I decided to create a mini travel case. Something that I could both pop into my purse to keep everything organized, and for when I travel. 

Tutorial:

Materials Needed: Two coordinating fabrics, thread, needle, ribbon (two different colors if you want), paper, pen, stray pins. Optional: Crayon fabric marker (the white thing in the picture) and music. 

1. Make a rough outline on paper of how big you want your travel case to be. I liked the size of this notebook, so I used that to help make the outline. Then cut out the outline. 

2. Cut your interior fabric using your outline as a guide. Be sure to cut the fabric half an inch all around than you want, just in case you need to make adjustments. You can always cut it later. I double up on the fabric to make it thicker. 

3. Using more of your interior fabric, cut out your pockets to the size that you want. As you can see, I doubled up the fabric too, and then sewed the top over to make a nice edge. Unfortunately, I didn't think the sew over the sides of the pockets, so they have a raw edge. 

4. Sew the pockets to the rest of the interior fabric you cut out before. One pocket I left alone, so that it's one big pocket, but the other I sewed lined down here and there, so that I could have a place for lip balm or other small things. 

5. Grab your exterior fabric and cut it out to make the size and shape of the interior fabric. Then cut your ribbon to the length you want, pin it to the middle of the back, and sew a small rectangle to keep it in place. 

6. I decided to use my burgundy ribbon to create a nice, smooth edge. I pinned it in place one side at a time. The 7/8" thickness was perfect for folding it over and sewing it around the edge. If you don't want a ribbon edge, you could just fold it over and sew it in place. 

7. All done! Now you can your mini travel case to keep your lip balm, USBs, lipsticks, small notebooks, iPhone, and whatever else you carry around with you. 

Giveaway!

This giveaway runs until 9/29 and is open internationally. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Have you sewed anything lately?

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Writing Blog Hop

I usually don't do blog hops (though funnily enough there's another one coming next week), but I had to do this one when I was tagged by Amy of Ten Penny Dreams (read her post). This blog hop is all about writing and since I like to think of myself as a writer (who's been slacking on the writing however) I wanted to participate.

What am I working on/writing? 

I'm working on two novels, though I like to think of one as "currently being written" and the other as "on hiatus." The first one I don't like to talk about too much because I'm protective of the plot (though you can read a little about it in this post and this post), but whenever anyone finds out that I'm writing a novel and ask what it's about I say it's an alternative history murder mystery.

The other story I'm working on is a YA/NA fantasy story about a young woman in New York City who realizes that she can manipulate all of the objects around her and turn them into anything she wants. Not only that, but there are more people who can do the same. There are two main groups of these people and when she discovers that the man who murdered her mother belongs to one group, she joins the other. There's more to the story than that, but that's the general gist of it. 

How does my work/writing differ from others of its genre?

With the first novel, my writing differs because it's more lighthearted. Murder mysteries are usually very gritty and dark, but since it's more about the two main characters friendship it's not a dark, fast-paced thriller. I want to say it's more like an adventure story. 

The second novel is different than other YA (young adult) stories because I would also call it NA (new adult, which is for twenty-somethings). The main character, Morgan, is in college and I don't shy away from sex and violence, but in a way that caters to feminism. Morgan knows what she wants and goes after it. She has sex and doesn't feel guilty about it. There are fight scenes between men and women and it's not a big deal. I haven't seen that in other YA, but I haven't read every YA book.

Why do I write what I do?

I started writing fantasy because it's what I love reading. I love the escapism and writing it also an escape for me. Who wouldn't want to get caught up in a world similar to ours but still different? Both of the stories I'm writing have strong elements of that. One is based in reality and one is fantasy, but they are both our world with differences.  

The first novel is a departure from what I normally write and read, but it's an important story to me and something that I think should be written and read. That probably sounds really arrogant. If I went into more details about it, I'm sure most of you would agree. Guess you'll just have to wait until I've finished it. *insert winking emoji here*

I write the second story because I like the plot and the characters and I find it fun to write. 

How does my writing process work?

To be honest: slowly. Though that's no one's fault but my own. I started the fantasy story back in my sophomore year of college, so that's seven years ago. Granted, it's been on hold for several years now because I started the murder mystery in my last year of college (four years ago). 

In terms of actual writing, when I sit down to write I'll read over the last few paragraphs of what I just read to get back into it and the notes I left myself. (At the end of a writing session, I jot down what I need to write next.) Then I'll start writing. If I'm feeling really inspired I'll just keep writing and writing, but if I'm having trouble with it then I might edit sentences as I go. Sometimes just staring off and "writing" the narration in my head helps. 

I enjoy writing with pen and paper at times because I don't feel like it has to be perfect. Something about writing on a computer makes me want all of my writing to be instantly amazing and it never is. 

After writing several chapters or after getting past a certain part in the plot, I like to print it all out and edit it with a colorful pen (usually purple or green). It's easier to spot mistakes when it's physically in front of me.

I tag:

My Life as a Teacup and Sonya Cheney!

Are any of you writers?

What do you write and what's your process?

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