Color Me Christmas

Seasons greetings!

With Christmas around the corner, I wanted to share some of my colorful and diy holiday decor in my NYC apartment.

Holidays can get expensive, so I was determined to have a frugal festive season, and that included the decor. I bought a little tree for only $12 at Duane Reade (Walgreens) stacked it on coffee table books for extra height! I love over-the-top wrapping and big bows, but didn't want to waste the dough on something that would just get thrown away, so I utilized my hair bows, scarfs, belts and pins in association with some great vintage bow finds to embellish the presents! I also created a advent calendar with candy and suggestions on how to add color to the holiday season, such as "treat yourself to tea" ... which I did! After a few lights, and a pinch of glitter, all that was left was to put a bow on it; I added bows to my dinning chairs, candy canisters and even my wall to finalize the festive feel. 

Now that you have seen the merry make-over, check out my apartment 6-6, to see the rest of my NYC apartment without the festive feel.

Waffles and I hope your holidays are merry and bright, I'll be taking the next few days off for some time festive fun, but will get back to blogging towards the end of the week. Until then, stay fabulous!

Holiday DIY

Happy DIY Friday!Today I'm sharing some seasonal crafts to get you in the spirit without breaking the  bank.

I'm so over Ugly Sweater parties! I've been at least one every year for the past five years ... bor-ring; and worn every ugly sweater under the sun (including one that light up ... pretty epic. But in New York Ugly sweaters can get expensive (especially in the west village!), so when I got invited to an ugly sweater party, but didn't want to spend $30+ on one, I found a literal loophole. With a little glitter glue and a $8 pull over from Old Navy, I was able to create an "ugly" sweater for under $10!

All you need is a pull over and glitter glue! I opted for washable glitter glue so I could remove the "ugly" after the party, but any glitter glue will do. I also turned my sweater inside out for the same reason. If you want to un-ugly your sweater post party, simply soak that sucker in hot water and hand wash it. All of my glitter glue came off with a 30-min soak, and I used a lint roller to removing any clinging sparkle specs. 

My pink ampersand is one of my favorite pieces of wall decor in my apartment (thank big thanks to my amazing friend Katrina who made this for me a few years back, I'm obsessed!). So for the holidays, I paired it with DIY "mix" and "mingle" signs to give it a festive twist!

All you need is a little paint or glitter glue and two canvases, frames or a mix of the two. You might also want to add gold stickers (see mingle) finish your art with a layer of modge-podge to give it that special shine. This project will cost about $10 per piece.

To add a layer of whimsy to your holiday outfit, try using a ornament as a quirky statement earring!

 Simply string a stud through the wire of a small ornament and ta-da, you'll be trim-tastic and ready to go! Oh, and this was the final touch for my Ugly Sweater outfit! I only wore one ornament to compliment my asymmetrical bob, but a set of two works just as well!

 

holiday highlights

although christmas has come && gone i wanted to give you a little peak into what went on in the colorful world of courtney during the past few days

blair flair w// uptown tulips

today's post is a special treat: i'm teaming up with the fabulous bree of uptown tulips for a crazy amazing collaboration! together we're delivering three seasonal style spotlight post style stalking some of our favorite fashionistas to create hot holiday looks, starting with Queen B!

feast-worthy fashion

today, we're getting trendy for turkey day with five feast-worthy looks to drool over.