D.I.Y. Glass Bottle Centerpiece

Hello beautiful people!

Here's hoping you're all fine and groovy in your part of the world!

We've been in the middle of a bummer blizzard for the part three days, and I do mean bummer... as in, business closures, road closures, accidents, and shoveling... lots and lots and lots of shoveling. The snow is literally over my head in some places out there!

So what does a boho hippie chick do when she's trapped inside? Create beauty, what else! This little springtime-themed centerpiece is the perfect contrast to the gloom outside, and it's SO easy to make! I completed it in a about an hour once I had all my supplies on hand!

Here's what you'll need to recreate this beauty.

1. A clear glass bottle (I used a clean Jones Soda bottle... I love Jones because they are made with cane sugar instead of refined white sugar, and they come in glass bottles instead of plastic!)

2. A sheet of scrapbook paper or decorative paper in the pattern of your choice (the more colorful the better in my books!)

3. Scissors

4. A ruler

5. Wire cutters/snippers

6. Glue

7. Goo-gone or any "sticky" remover

8. Raffia/twine/yarn/something to tie a bow with.

9. Any other decorations you decide to use.

Making your centerpiece is easy! Just use your ruler to measure and cut a strip of paper approximately the same size as the bottle's label would be. It's okay for the edges of your paper to overlap a little; you want at least a centimeter of overlap to allow you to glue the two ends of the paper together. I didn't even bother to use Goo-gone to remove the glue remnants from the label... it just helped to stick my new "label" in place!

You can decorate the bottle any way you want... use glass paint to change the color of your bottle! Use the raffia/twine to tie a bow, like I did. Or, glue sequins, buttons, or beads onto the "label" or the bottle itself.

Then, you can fill your bottle.... use artificial flowers like I did (this is February, after all!), or use real ones if the season is right. You can also fill the jar with wheat or barley stalks for a more country look.

I just bought some cute fake flowers at the dollar store (you could try making some from fabric or tissue paper) and cut them apart with the wire snips (don't use regular craft scissors as you will dull the blades). I had to cut the stems apart because they were too thick to fit into the mouth of the bottle and made the arrangement too crowded. I also pulled the thick leaves off the "tulip" for the same reason... too much foliage and not enough space!

I hope you like this cute "hippie" centerpiece... let me know in the comments below if you decide to make it!

Love and Peace!

Don't Hold Back Your Hippie

I know that, with the creation of this blog, people are asking themselves, "Why hippie? Of all the things she could have chosen, why that?"

The answer is, I didn't wake up one morning and say, "Fudge this, I'm gonna be a hippie." It goes much deeper than that.

See, people have certain preconceived notions about hippies. Maybe that they were all drug users, or that all they ever did was have sex, or that they were lazy, or one of a dozen other ideas. But what is I were to tell you that there is a little hippie in all of us?

Wikimedia Commons image

There is a fascination with hippies these days; some derogatory, some positive (though misinformed). Do an internet search for, "How to be a hippie" and you will find thousands of websites, Wikihow articles, Pinterest pages, Youtube videos; everything from satire to seriousness. How to dress, how to style your hair (or not style it), what to eat, where to shop, what music to listen to.

What people fail to realize, is that being a hippie means just being yourself. You don't HAVE to grow your hair long or go barefoot or listen to Jimi Hendrix unless you really want to. If tie-dye is not your thing, don't wear it. If you want to be vegetarian, that's your choice. If you want to eat meat, that's your choice too. The hippie ideal is to be anti-conformity and anti-establishment. That means NOT doing what the vast majority is doing. But of course, if you happen to enjoy something that the vast majority also enjoys doing, do it! You have to be yourself.

For me, I enjoy hippie/boho style because it gives me a sense of freedom. I don't wake up in the morning devastated because my hair is squished on one side and won't straighten out. I don't pack makeup on to hide what I see as imperfections. I don't worry about my clothing being perfectly pressed or pulled together. I don't even worry about matching colors a lot of the time. I wear what I want to wear, what looks good to me, not what's necessarily in style.

At the same time, I find a festival/flower child look appeals to me. I love bright colors. I love long hair. I love tribal prints, handmade beads, and flower crowns. I love bare feet and loose, flowing skirts. I love wood and leather and turquoise and tie-dye and peace signs. This is who I am. Why would I try to hide it? For that matter, why would anyone try to hide who they are?

For me, the clothes I wear represent what my heart is on the inside. When I dress like I just stepped out of Vogue, I find I constantly worry. "Is this wrinkled? Is this straight? Is too much of this showing? WHY doesn't this match?!" When I dress like I just arrived from Woodstock, I feel happy. I feel free. Let it be wrinkled.... let it show... let it be a crazy mix of colors... let it be weird enough that people turn around to stare at me when I walk down the street.

It's liberating.

Maybe you're thinking, "Well, that doesn't apply to me. I have a certain style that I wear, and that's it."

Do you hear me? You do you! Yes, you are a hippie. Do you care about the environment? Do you care about animals? Do you enjoy music? Are you spiritual? Do you love spending time in nature? Do other people's opinions not matter to you? Do you believe in a world where love and peace are possible, and where hate and war are distant memories? If you are any of those things, than you are a hippie... the purest ideal of one. You are yourself.

Don't hide your inner hippie. Don't hold it back, smother it, strangle it, ignore it, pass it off as something else, or be ashamed of it. Let your flag fly.

We are the beautiful people.

We are the Hippies.

A Craving for Color

There are a few things in this world, that we humans cannot live without. Oxygen is one. Water is another. Love and close human contact.... definitely. But there is one other thing that this boho girl can't live without...

Color.

Ever since I was a child, I sensed that colors have deep emotional meanings. Certain colors made me feel certain ways. I change the desktop background on my computer, not according to what pictures I like, but according to what their color schemes are. Greens make me feel sleepy and safe (how I feel in nature). Blues make me feel awake and refreshed. Orange makes me feel happy and over-excited. Dark reds make me feel exotic, but bright reds get exhausting after a while. Yellow in any shade makes me angry, irritated, and annoyed. Purples make me feel calm and thoughtful. I don't like a lot of black, but touches of it make me feel strong and confident. White can be calming in conjunction with other colors, but by itself, it makes me feel numb. And grey makes me feel hopeless, defeated, and dead on the inside. I hate grey.

For years, I think I baffled my parents. Everything was "not colorful enough." Forget themes and matching shades... I want a rainbow of bright colors surrounding me all the time. If I walk into a room that's filled with vibrant colors, I immediately take a deep breath, as if to absorb the energy. Colors make me come alive in a way that's hard to describe.

Which is why, when I first discovered bohemian style, and found out that there were other people exactly like me, I almost cried. I had always liked Victorian style decorating, but detested the dark colors and austere fixtures that seemed too stiff, formal, and stuffy. But when I started looking at pictures like the one below... I laughed out loud and realized that I'd just found a piece of my soul.

And that is how this blog got started. I've been blogging for quite a while actually... about my personal life, my church involvement, and mostly my sponsored children. But this blog is a place for my hippie soul to call home. A place for peace-loving, colorful, snowflake children to laugh, and think deeply, and embrace themselves. I plan to share items out of my boho closet, some natural beauty tips, travel stories and adventures, lots of good music, spirituality, good vibes and positivity, and, of course, color... maybe even some D.I.Y. projects.

I also plan to write about my journey to embracing myself as an INFJ HSP empathic boho hippie anti-conformist with anxiety, depression, and other things that simply make me, me.

So for those of you just joining me on this journey, welcome. For those of you who are new readers, welcome. For those of you already familiar with my writings, welcome. For the hippies, the bohemians, the wanderers, the lonely, the beautiful, the seeking, the flower children, the colorful, the beatniks, the free spirits, the artists, the freaks, the loners, the oddballs, and the visionaries.... welcome. Welcome to your tribe, your village, your own personal Woodstock.

Welcome home. And let the peaceful revolution begin.