DIY Gold Dipped Candles ... Guest Post by Katelyn from Learning, Creating, Living

Hello everyone, I'm so excited to be here at Put A Bird On It! Daniela is one of my very good blogger friends & I was so thrilled when she asked me to guest post on her blog. My name is Katelyn and I blog over at Learning Creating Living, where you can find easy & inexpensive diy projects, fun crafts & tasty recipes. Today I'd like to share with you a simple & easy diy project.

I purchased a package of emergency candles at the Dollar Tree. The package came with seven candles but sadly one broke in the making, who likes an odd number anyways? ;) I then used painters tape and taped the part of the candles I didn't want gold.

Simple Ways to Add the Pantone Color of the Year "Radiant Orchid" to Your Life in 2014 ... and a HUGE GIVEAWAY!

Who are the Pantone people and why do they get to decide what color is "IN" this year?! This question always baffled me. I read the Wikipedia page (cause of course that's where all knowledge comes from, ha ha), and I guess a group of colorfully important people meet together at a secret location in Europe and decide which hue will determine fashion, home & design shades for the following year. I guess WHO they are doesn't really matter - just WHAT shade they pick! And this year, it is RADIANT ORCHID.

AKA - purple! I think I own one purple shirt and ... well ... it stops there. When I saw that Radiant Orchid was the color for 2014, I kind of was like "what you talking bout willis?!" Purple? Really?! I just put it out of mind and decided I would wait for next year's color and hope the Pantone peeps didn't mess up again in 2015. But it kind of nagged at the back of my mind, and I decided to give this pleasant purple a chance. So I turned to Pinterest. A simple search of those two colorful words brings up a MASSIVE WORLD of pretty purple that I immediately fell in love with! I am all about Radiant Orchid now! 

photo credit: HauteLook

Now, we all can't go around painting and wallpapering our homes per Pantone's annual color palette, even if it is very pretty. But - there are some simple ways you can add the Pantone Color of the Year to your life, without drastically changing anything or spending lots of money. Simple touches here and there are all it takes to add this pretty purple to your life this year. AND - stay tuned until the end of the post - I have a huge giveaway for you with over $100 in Radiant Orchid items you could win!

Bridal & Romantic Hairstyles for Valentine's Day ... Guest Post by Becky from Babes in Hairland

Hi everyone and Happy Valentine's Day! I'm so excited to be guest posting here on Put a Bird On It. My name is Becky & I blog over at Babes in Hairland. I've been blogging for over 5 years, and as a result our blog has hundreds of hairstyle tutorials. We are all about hair, and having only girls, that means I get to do a lot of hair!

Our blog has a wide range of hairstyles (for babies and toddlers, to prom & bridal styles, and everything in between) and since it's Valentine's Day today we thought it would only be right that we share with you some of our gorgeous updo's and styles that are perfect for a wedding or a romantic night on the town!

Don't let some of the pictures deter you from trying these out. I'm not a professional stylist, so if I can do these, (and if you are a bit hair challenged) with a bit of practice you can do these too! Some of my tutorials are in video format, others are step-by-step pictures to show you how I achieved the look. Just click on the name of the hairstyle and it will take you right to it!

#1 - Elegant Half-Updo 

I actually was just messing around when I came up with this style - but it turned out great so I shot a video showing how we did it. I can totally see this at a wedding or prom.

Link'n Blogs #12

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Welcome to Link'n Blogs {#12} !

A place to link up your projects and make new friends. We are all about visiting links and following new bloggers here at Link'n Blogs. Remember to leave comments and PIN PIN PIN!

Cause sharing is caring.

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I am sharing my DIY Glitter & Gold Heart Sleeves that I made using my Silhouette Cameo and homemade fabric paint. It is SO easy - you should definitely check it out!

DIY Glitter & Gold Heart Sleeves made with Homemade Fabric Paint ... And A Silhouette Studio Tutorial

I am SO EXCITED about this tutorial. I've been anxiously waiting to post it, because it is one of my most favorites ever, and I've been wearing this cardi every day for five days. Yep. I am quite obsessed with gold + sparkles right now. Plus, add HEARTS on top of that, and you can safely use #SWOON. I love the look of elbow patches, but girl can't sew, so I had to  come up with a different way to get the look. I decided to use homemade fabric paint {I have a tutorial for making your own fabric paint - check it out HERE}. I absolutely love making my own fabric paint. It is SO inexpensive, and I never seem to run out. I used acrylic GLITTER paint for the first time. I was nervous, because I didn't know if it would work well as a fabric paint. I was over the moon happy with the results. The glitter paint worked out beautifully.

This project was SO EASY, I can't stress the EASY factor enough here. I made it in about 20 minutes the night before Build Your Blog Conference, because I wanted to wear this cute cardigan to the conference. I definitely wore my heart on my sleeve that day. :)

Here's what you'll need to make your own cute heart-on-my-sleeve shirt:

The Goods
Shirt {I used a cute cardi I got on sale at Target}
Heart Stencil {I cut mine out of vinyl using my Silhouette Cameo}
Fabric Paint {2 parts acrylic paint + 1 part fabric medium}
Foam Brush

Here is the tutorial for making a stencil using a Silhouette Cameo. I just LOVE my Cameo, guys. I use it almost every day. It's rare for me to make a project without using it in some way. I thought it'd be helpful to show how to make a heart stencil out of vinyl using the Cameo and designing it in Silhouette Studio. If you don't have a Cameo {yet!}, you can skip this part and go to the next part about painting on your shirt. You can make a stencil out of freezer paper or buy a heart stencil from the store. After seeing how easy it is with a Cameo, though, you might be headed out to get one for yourself.

*I know it seems like a lot of photos, but I swear it is SO easy. Don't let the photos scare you - I just like taking photos, ok?! ;)

My Love Monday ... Recipe for How to Make a Perfect Dirty Diet Coke

Imagine it. You're drinking a diet coke. Everything should be perfect, correct? Wrong. Something is missing. A bag of peanut butter M&M's perhaps? Maybe. A Chris Pine look-alike sitting next to you? I suppose. But none of those things hit the spot. Then you realize what's missing: COCONUT & LIME. Yum. My friends, I am about to open up your mind to a whole new world of tropical coke bliss. The Dirty Diet Coke. Which is the star of today's My Love Monday. My recipe for the perfect dirty diet coke.

Now, when I posted on my Facebook that I was drinking my first dirty diet coke on Ava's birthday at 2:00pm, some of my friends got a little confused. In fact, it looked a little something like this:

As you can see in the comments, my dear friends thought their good girl Mormon friend, Dani, had finally come to her senses and was enjoying a little mid-afternoon pick me up, ha ha. But, no, I am still holding true to my LDS faith and enjoying a little su'm su'm different that makes my Cokes dirty.  No alcohol here. ;) {want to know why I choose a different kind of "dirty"? you can learn more HERE}

A dirty diet coke is quite simple. quite delicious. and quite addicting. i LOVE it. You can dirty up a Coke or a Dr. Pepper too, which I've tried, and personally only enjoy it with a diet coke. Enjoy your carbonated tropical getaway. I can only hope the Chris Pine part comes true for you, too.

pour 2 tablespoons coconut syrup into a glass

add ice 3/4 full

pour in one 12oz can diet coke

squeeze in 1/2 FRESH lime & add to glass

insert stripey straw

DONE!

That last step is especially important. ;)

I've read versions adding half & half, but I don't prefer it, so guess what? You don't get it in my recipe! The hub and I usually use a ginormous mason jar, which is probably twice the amount of this recipe, and now just estimate all our additions. Which makes it fun to get a little more coconut or lime each time. Like I said earlier, we are addicted, and you will be, too. It will definitely become your new LOVE. See you in dirty diet coke therapy. {oh and bring those peanut butter M&M's!}

tips

where to get coconut syrup | most grocery stores {in Utah: Orson Gygi in Salt Lake City, Harmon's, Macey's, World Market in Park City}

don't want the guilt while getting dirty? | use sugar free coconut syrup {where to buy? World Market!}

put the lime in the coke you nut and drink it all up | less is more! start with less coconut syrup & lime. remember - you can always add more, but you can't add less.

This DDC is hanging out with my Hand Painted Burlap Coasters, which you can find the tutorial for by clicking HERE!

I would love to hear how you like your DDC. Have you ever tried DDC before? Do you make other drinks dirty? What's your sweet drink addiction? Leave me a comment!

xo

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Valentine's Day Etsy Faves ... Guest Post by Carissa from Carissa Miss

I have yet to have ANY heart/love/red decor for my new house so I thought it would be appropriate to focus on that for my Etsy faves round up this month. 

Seriously, though, I'm not a big fan of red, but I'm totally loving this wreath!

  this garland

a bright pink pillow

 frame this chalkboard heart art

 "happy hearts" on an easel or hung up in the kitchen

 glitter and heart? definitely need this print

 I love the idea of a tassel garland. You could totally switch out the banner for the different holidays

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Thanks, Carissa! I love all of those ideas. Especially the chalkboard print. I swoon over anything chalkboard. I wonder if that will ever go away?!

Here are a couple of my favorite posts from Carissa Miss:

Maple and Pear Cobbler

DIY Painted Wooden Spoons

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