DIY: Flower Headband

I know I gave you a headband DIY last week, but I just couldn’t help myself from posting this one. It’s so easy and so versatile! You can make one as a gift for your best friend’s birthday or for your bridesmaids to wear on your wedding day. You can wear it to the supermarket or you can send your little lady off to her first day of school wearing one. It’s magical, really.

Seriously though, it takes about 15 minutes and is super inexpensive. Why wouldn’t you make one? Here’s what you need:

• headband (I used a plain silver one but you can pick up any color your little heart desires at just about any drug store)
• silk flowers
• felt
• glue gun
• needle and thread
• if you want to be all fancy like, you can also add a vintage brooch or sparkly beads (I ended up ditching the brooch because it interfered with the petals of my fluffy little dahlia)

First, take your flower apart. Remove the stem and all of the little plastic pieces holding it together. Don’t be afraid to really pull at it. Those little pieces can be stubborn, but fret not; you won’t tear the petals.

Once it’s all disassembled, sew a few stitches through the middle to keep all of the layers together. Don’t worry about messiness on the underside. It will be covered.

If you’re going to add anything sparkletastic, now is the time. You can sew a few beads in while securing your petals.

Once your petals are nice and secure, break out the hot glue gun and attach a patch of felt to the bottom of your flower. Make sure the piece of felt is a decent size. It will help anchor your flower to your headband.

Next, attach your headband. Put some hot glue on the felt that’s on the flower then push the headband into the glue before applying another piece of felt over both the headband and the felt that is already attached to the flower. Push down on the felt firmly to make sure everything sticks nice and securely.

That’s it! Once the glue has dried you can put it on and prance around the house with a goofy look on your face thinking you’re the bees knees (what the hell does that even mean?). Or, you can put it on your daughter’s head and wonder aloud how you gave birth to such an adorable little creature.

Handmade Haven: Floral

I promised a new column and here it is!

I’m a little obsessed with handmade items. They’re unique and one-of-a-kind and made with so much love. I also love to support small businesses, so it only made sense to start a column that celebrates handmade pieces.

Each week I’m going to choose a word and showcase handmade pieces related to that word. This week, I’ve got flowers on the brain so it’s all about floral.

1 Hopeless bra and knicker set :: 2 After Images iPhone case :: 3 Blue Birds Fly Boutique turban :: 4 Lana Stepul dress :: 5 Kailo Chic clutch :: 6 Jamie Lundberg stationery set :: 7 Kristin Larson Jewelry necklace

Next week’s word: summertime. If you have handmade pieces that relate to the word in any way email me at jennifergarrydesigns@gmail.com for a chance to be featured in next week’s spotlight!

90s Fashion Like Woah.

Is it just me, or do you see 90s-inspired fashion just about everywhere lately? I’d be lying if I told you I didn’t like it. In fact, aside from the floral jeans, I love it!

Sienna Miller now. Cher and Dee then.
Kelly Kapowski then. Minka Kelly now.
Rachel Bilson and Mary Kate Olsen now. Angela and Rayanne then.

I dressed more like Angela and Rayanne in the 90s than any of the other girls here. Over-sized flannels were my go-to piece, mostly because I hit puberty before most of my friends. I was desperately searching for something to hide the breasts that had suddenly sprouted and earned comments like “I see you’ve done a lot of growing this summer” from male classmates. Oh yes. That happened. And yes, I was mortified.

To this day I’m still drawn more to the flannel trend than any of the other 90s comebacks (although I do love the dark, flowy floral print dresses and skirts!).

What about you? Were you high fashion like Cher and Dee? All American like Kelly? Or grungy like Angela and Rayanne?

I Don’t Get It: Floral Pants

I know I’ll get some flack for this one, but I’m not really on board with this whole floral pants trend. I don’t want to plaster something that looks like the pattern of my grandmother’s couch across my butt.

Also, there’s nothing about this trend that screams destined to be a classic to me. I understand that that’s not something that’s important to everyone. But if I’m going to invest in something, I want to be able to wear it for more than a season or two. I don’t see floral legs as having much staying power.

Granted, I may very well eat my words. I’ve been known to loathe a trend hardcore and then suddenly, magically fall in love with it (hello, oxfords!).

Are you on board with floral pants?