Apr 21, 2016 | DIY
FTC Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary bouquet of my choice from ProFlowers.com to create a DIY tutorial. The below opinions are my own. I have not been otherwise compensated for this post. This post may contain affiliate links, wherein if you click through and make a purchase I receive a small percentage of the sale. My full Disclosure Policy is here.
With the Weekend 2 of Coachella coming up, you’re probably prepping your floral crowns and boho headdresses right now – or even trying to reuse what you had from the first weekend. By now perhaps your flowers have withered or maybe you want to go for an entirely different look the second time around. Why not try a handmade leaf and crystal crown and stand out from the crowd? Here’s how:
DIY Music Festival Leaf and Crystal Crown (for Coachella, Bonnaroo, etc.)
I received a beautiful bouquet from ProFlowers.com, reviewed here – and wanted to try something a little different with the included greenery.
You Need:
crystals (preferably drilled) – mine are C-grade Quartz Crystal Points / thin brass jewelry wire (20ga+) / wire cutting pliers / gold-tone headband with decorative piece (mine is from Target) / green leaf stalks and/or flowers
How To:

1. Thread one of the crystals onto a long piece of cut wire, and place onto the flat design element of your headband. Start wrapping one end of the wire around the headband wire, leaving a couple inches at the tail end.

2. Secure the crystal by continuing to wrap.

3. Add another crystal on, and wrap the wire around the headband base again to secure. Keep adding crystals on in this manner, in a row.

4. When you are satisfied with the number of crystals secured to your headband, wrap the wire around the headband base a few times to secure, leaving a couple inches at the tail end.

5. Now is when those couple inches of wire come in handy. Place a green leaf stalk near the crystals, and wrap the wire end around the stem to secure. Wrap any sharp ends underneath so they don’t stick out.

6. If needed, add another piece of wire to wrap the stalk to the headband. Cut the stalk about 2″ shorter than the end of the headband, and secure with wrapping the wire around it.

7. Once your greenery is secure, you can add flowers to fill in gaps if you like.

Pretty easy!

And pretty!

In order to preserve your crown until you’re ready to wear, keep in a cool, dark place (like your fridge!) Enjoy-and feel like a woodland queen for your next festival or Summer gathering.
Happy DIY’ing!
xo
Carly
P.S. The weight of the crystals and stems is pretty hefty, which is why you need a strong base. There are other flower crown tutorials out there using dead-soft jewelry wire or elastic, but I wouldn’t recommend either because they would bend or get weighed down. Using a finished store-bought metal headband (made of tempered hardened metal) will provide a strong enough base – and it is ideal if you can find a headband that is 2 wires with a space between them (like this one). I couldn’t find one like that, so went with a headband that had some wire detailing in an area that would work well to wire some crystals on to. (Plus, you can remove the wire and floral elements and just wear the headband once your greenery dies!)
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Aug 15, 2013 | DIY
Hello lovely readers!
Today all the DIY projects I created for M&J Trimming’s Third Annual DIY Challenge are now live on their blog. Please click on over to check them out!
Thanks so much to the team at M&J Trimming – I had a blast working with all your wonderful supplies!
xo
Carly
FTC Disclosure: I received a box of trims and supplies courtesy of M&J Trimming, to create step-by-step DIY tutorials for their DIY Challenge. I have received a $100 M&J Trimming Gift Card as compensation for my submissions. My official Disclosure Policy is here.
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Oct 26, 2012 | DIY

Now that the weather’s cooling down, I want a cute little hat to wear – not something chunky and heavy just yet, but something that adds just a little bit of warmth. Something polished, and maybe even a bit kitschy.
And I just LOVE me some kittehs! I am such a crazy cat lady. I used to volunteer in Hawaii trapping feral cats and adopting the kittens out to loving homes. Then I got Cat Scratch Fever. True story. Anyway.

Cat-themed merch was all over the runways and is now in stores for Fall (check out this lovely printed Wildfox sweater
and Romwe’s knockoff oh-so-similar version). So, inspired by berets I’ve been seeing in my Japanese magazines, I decided to create my own Kitty version. And it’s my first foray into wet wool felting and hat-making. So stick with me and I’ll show you how!
You Need: (more…)
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Sep 19, 2010 | DIY
In the home stretch now, everyone! Another one of my submissions for Style Sample Magazine and New York Design Shop’s Create Couture Challenge back in early August.
Materials:
*White Sweater Style Stretch Trim
*Gold Circle Studs
Additional Tools/Materials:
*thin headband
*sewing machine + needle for knits (optional)
*hand-sewing needle
*matching thread
*hot-glue gun
How to:
1. Sew the Stretch Trim into a tube down its long side. (I sewed it on the sewing machine but you can hand-stitch it if you prefer.) Turn right-side out.
2. Cut into 3 pieces: 1 longer for the large flower, and 2 shorter for the two smaller flowers.
3. Hand-stitch the two ends of the long piece of Trim together, to form a circle.
Make 5 loops in the circle and push inwards to the center, stitching through the center area.
4. Pull the thread tight to gather the loops.
5. Sew a few times more all the way through the center to secure.
6. Repeat Steps 3) – 5) for the two smaller flowers. I made only 4 loops (4 petals) for each.
7. Dab some hot glue in the center of each flower, and glue down a Circle Stud.
8. Hot-glue each flower to the top of a thin headband. (For more security, I’d recommend hand-sewing the flowers on, looping the thread around the headband.)
And that’s it! This of course can be accomplished by using any scrap fabric or ribbon you have – though it works particularly well with “puffy” fabric like this sweater stretch trim because it creates a tube-like appearance to the flower petals.

Everything’s in bloom during the summer!
xoxox
Carly
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Aug 3, 2010 | DIY

Louis Vuitton runway photos by Roberto Tecchio and Gianni Pucci, Style.com
That title was a mouthful!:-)
Rabbit-ears have infiltrated the fashion fray since Marc Jacobs threw them down the Louis Vuitton runway for Autumn/Winter 2009-2010. Though the black lace version has been donned and DIY’ed in numerous reincarnations since then, the scarf headband (with a little wire inside to hold its shape) is the grown-up version of this enduring trend. Take a favorite cotton handkerchief and make your own in a few simple steps right at home, and hop on outta there in style.

You Need:
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