Instax Post: The American Museum of Natural History

A few months back I went to the Museum of Natural History for the first time. The museum is one of the most famous NYC museums full of fossils, a planetarium, ocean life, bones, and a gigantic (fake) blue whale. It was really cool to see all of the dinosaur fossils and walk around the exhibits, but the AMNH is a really old-fashioned museum. It feels like some of the exhibits haven't been updated since the 1950s... and as a huge Mad Men fan, that's okay too. :) I will say that I think Chicago's Natural History Museum is a bit better. :)



I definitely recommend lying on the ground and looking up at the big blue whale. Kind of feels like you're in the ocean.

DIY Agate Statement Necklace

In terms of my DIY fashion projects, lately I've been really into making these time-consuming bib necklaces. (Like this one I made over the holidays.) :) I started this necklace in January after I got my For the Makers box. One of the projects inside was to make these really awesome agate meteor magnets. When I got my box, one of my little agates was broken. I sent For the Makers an email and they emailed me back saying that they'd get me another agate right away. Well they sent me three more. (So incredibly generous!) When I was playing with all of the agates, I noticed that they fit together in the perfect shape of a bib necklace. So I decided to make one of those instead.


Necklace 1 | Necklace 2 | Necklace 3

What you need:
-E6000 super glue
-Ribbon or lightweight material for the tie
-Suede piece (Repurpose some thrift shop leather or find it in a craft shop!)
-Agates, or here (Or you can find them on Etsy.)
-I used these square beads
-And glass beads


To make the statement necklace you should trace out the shape you want your necklace to be. I used one of my roommates necklaces as a base, but you can make it whatever shape you'd like.


Once you've got a nice shape, you can trace it on your suede and then cut it out. Since the agate has such a natural, earthy feel, I wanted to use a taupe-colored suede and earthy beads to go with the natural vibes of the .


Lay out your design...


And glue it on! Be careful that you don't get too much glue on the outside of the agate or it will squish everywhere.


Let the glue dry overnight and then gather your beads.


And stitch the beads wherever you'd like. I wanted to cluster the square steel-looking beads and fill in everywhere else with the glass beads.


I wanted to have a way to finish the edges of the suede so I chose to do a blanket stitch all the way around. Watch this video for a tutorial. (It's super easy.) :)


To make the straps, I used some spare fabric that I had and stitched long rectangular tubes, leaving one end open. I snipped the excess fabric and then flipped the tube inside out so that the seam hides inside the tube. Then I stitched the ends of the tube to the top of the necklace.


And that's it! So thankful for the extra agates from For the Makers. I think it's made me a little bit obsessed with rocks as DIY supplies.

Prints and Patterns Around the Apartment

Just a few details from around the apartment. Like the triangle lamp shade.


Wine + St. Germain + Pomegranate


Some of Sean's records.


Polaroid.


Bitters.


Antlers.


Never enough triangles. :)

DIY Nautical Knot Headband

A few weeks back, I was in Anthropologie and they had all of their gift wrapping supplies from Christmas on super clearance. Pretty papers, cards, and some incredible cording-- some awesome stuff. I couldn't let the cording pass by, so I bought it and let it sit around until I came up with a good enough idea to use some of it. It seems like every year around February there is all this nautical inspiration floating about as soon as the first spring break bathing suits make their way into stores. Since I'm not going anywhere warm this spring, I decided to make a little nautical headband instead. :)


Whale. Necklace. Schooner. Lighthouse.


One for me, some for friends.

To make the nautical knot necklace, you need two pieces of cording that are equal length. I'd measure against your head and give a little bit of extra cord. You also need a few inches of elastic, a needle and thread, and some scissors.


Some tips-- make sure to stitch your knot in place after your're done tying it up. This will ensure that nothing looks out of place when you're wearing it. Also, mess with the knot a few times when you're tying it. It takes a little patience, but once you see how it works, it will come together perfectly. :)


And that's it!

NYC Must-See: The Transit Museum

A couple weekends ago, Sean and I went to the MTA Transit Museum in Brooklyn. We found the Transit Museum on Atlas Obscura, this awesome site where you can find obscure and curious spots around the world. (This site is amazing. The night Adele and I discovered it, we spent 4 hours looking at every site in New York and making weekend plans. :))


The New York Transit Museum is in an old train station. The first level is full of the history of the subway with pictures, video, and little artifacts.

Like these slugs that people used to avoid payment before there were Metrocards. (Did you know that the subway fares didn't cost a dollar until 1990? Now they are 2.25. The MTA was just bleeding money when the fares were lower.)


While the historical stuff was cool, the best part of the whole museum was the old trains. It's so crazy to see how things have changed and evolved.


In Mad Men, Peggy talks about how she is spending a fortune on panty hose because the wicker on the subway seats kept tearing them up. (Why they ever made seats out of wicker is beyond me.) :)


And the term "straphanger" that is used to describe commuters who use the subway comes from actual straps that people clung to instead of poles and rails.


And no AC??? So glad I wasn't riding the trains back then.


Where they used to keep the dimes from the train fares. So crazy that these things would be FULL of coins.






I definitely recommend this little weekend adventure. It's definitely a lot better than some of the other museums that are advertised to NYC visitors. :)

DIY T-Shirt Infinity Scarf

Somehow, I always end up with a surplus of t-shirts. Enough to make a t-shirt quilt, a t-shirt halter top, and a t-shirt flower dress... to name a few. Last week I added another t-shirt project to the list, a t-shirt infinity scarf! Go check it out over on Scarves Dot Net. :)

Sean's Great Lakes Topographic Map

A few months back during Hurricane Sandy, we were cooped up for a few days in our little apartment. We were some of the (very) lucky ones who didn't lose power, (or our home for that matter). So because we couldn't do anything, we just sat around, cooked meals, read, and crafted. (Le sigh.) :) Sean definitely had the best craft of the storm with his Great Lakes topographic map.


I originally saw this map on Fab and showed it to Sean. Until Sean was 6, he lived on the North Shore of Chicago, so the Great Lakes are really meaningful to him. (This is also the meticulous, tedious kind of project that turns out miserably when I attempt it so I'm quite glad Sean took it on.)


To make the topographic map, you need 5 layers of different colored papers. The first two need to be card stock or poster board. We got ours at this little craft shop nearby. (Why a craft store was open during Hurricane Sandy, I have no idea. Sometimes you just don't question New York and love it all the more.) You also need an Exacto knife, Mod Podge, and some glue sticks.


To trace the outlines of the lakes, Sean used a few Great Lakes maps from an atlas I bought at a thrift shop on the UWS, but you can just print off outlines online. (Make sure they are the same scale.


Sean traced each lake and then pieced it together.


And then cut the lakes out with an Exacto knife.


Then place your first layer underneath the cut-out lakes.


And trace your next layer.


And cut out again.


Keep repeating this process until you go deeper and deeper into the topography of the lake. Sean also used a teeny bit of Tacky Glue to keep the layers together.


What the back looks like. A mixture of glue and masking tape.




Sean then sealed the whole map with Mod Podge. Make sure you do very thin layers of Mod Podge so that the poster board doesn't wrinkle with the moisture.


Funny story about the frame we are using-- Adele and I actually found this frame sitting on top of trash on one of our morning runs. It was totally broken and disheveled-looking. We bleached+409'ed the heck out of it, glued it back together, Mod Podged a layer of glossy Mod Podge on top to seal anything we didn't kill with our thorough bleaching, and the frame looks great!


Sean's Great Lakes art now hangs above our door. It really fits in with the maps and fauna vibe we've got going on in the apartment and it was a really great project to work on while cooped inside. :)