Gettin Crafty: Crayola Magic

Project #1 is completed!
I bet you all are curious cats wondering what in the world I did (well, at least I hope you are.) I made some canvas art, but not with paint or charcoal. Nope, I used good ole Crayola Crayons! Shout-out to my friends over at Crayola, still making the best craft supply known to man, the crayon! If they ever quit making crayons, the world will end directly after. Anyway, so it's a canvas with just crayons on it? Haha, no sillies. MELTED crayons. I got my inspiration via Pinterest from this wonderful artist on Etsy, check her out *here*. As most of you know, I don't like to buy things that I can make. It just turns out more personal and interesting when you get inspiration and do something yourself. Hence my DIY craze (I do believe I get that from both of my parents, thanks guys). So, here's how I did my crayon art. Personally, I like them better than her's, but that is because I put my time and creativity into them. Believe me, it's SO much fun and SO cool too. It can match any decor you've got!

Ingredients:
-Crayola crayons (no off brand, you want some good ones)
-Canvas board, size depending on the amount of colors you have (I found the canvas with the hardback is a better/sturdier choice than the canvas with the profile)
-Hot Glue Gun with HOT TEMP glue sticks (don't worry, mine didn't melt off the canvas)
-Heat Gun

Steps:
1) Lay out your colors the way you want them to be, any order is fine but I just preferred for mine to be in rainbow order.
2) After you've got the design set, hot glue each crayon to the canvas with a strip of hot glue going all the way down the crayon's back. I chose to have my crayons with labels saying "Crayola" out, but you can do whatever, this is your creativity at work!
3) After you have glued your crayons down to the canvas, prop the canvas at an angle (I slanted mine about 2 or 3 masonry bricks high on the wall, so the drips wouldn't just run off as soon as they melted).
4) Get your heat gun and blow at the tip of the crayon down towards the blank part of the canvas. Do not get too close and set it at the lowest setting...because you will burn your crayons or canvas. The burn may turn into an awesome effect, but let's keep it safe for now :)
5) Just keep the heat gun going across the canvas and then let the wax dry for a few seconds, it doesn't take long at all. Go back over it a few more times to get the right amount of build-up, runs and puddles that you want. Then, Ta-Da!!! There's your fresh, new, AWESOME piece of artwork.
Be careful handling the canvas. After the wax dries again it becomes brittle! I'm going to put a frame around mine and probably make some homemade shadow boxes to keep the dimension showing, but to protect the wax from breaking off so easily.
Here are some pictures of my process! Please, comment and let me know if you did this project. It was SERIOUSLY some fun. I mean, obviously...I did 3!

Costs:
2 boxes of 96 count Crayola crayons: $3.97 (Walmart was having a Back to School sale!)
3 pack of canvas board: $10 (I'm guessing, my moms has the receipt)
High Temp hot glue sticks: $3
I already had the glue gun and heat gun so I don't know how much those would be :)
Total Cost: $16.97+taxes. Not bad for 3 canvas pieces!
That's all for today! I'll be back later with more crafty goodness!

Living life in letters (and crayons),
Jennifer

Starkville and Crafting

I've got good news...I'M NOW A KEY HOLDER TO 1546A ST. ANDREWS :) I don't think you guys understand my excitement. Living in a dorm is good and all, but I get my OWN room, my OWN bathroom, my OWN closet...a kitchen...some pretty decorations...FURNITURE! Oh man, I've never been so excited! I'm also excited about living with 3 of the funniest, most precious friends. Let me just say, if you are weary about dorm life and living with a stranger, don't be(whomever is reading this that MIGHT be going to college soon). I cannot be more thankful for having the awesome Kelsey as a roommate last year and this year...and probably more years to come (since we both will NEVER graduate). She's my perfect match. I mean, I can't complain, I've had some good roommates in college, Lauren was my first and she was absolutely hilarious and fun to live with (her random thoughts that just came out of her mouth were usually the highlights of my days in freshman year). I'm hoping this year will be just as great! Anyway, my parents and I went last Thursday to get the electricity set up for our house, then we went to the office at the Highlands and I got my key and the ONLY garage door opener (that's right...pumped) right then and there! We went down to the empty house and I was just so excited about all the potential that sweet little yellow house has! Even if it IS across from the most redneck bar in Starkville (and that's saying something).
I had another trip to Starkville Saturday with the boyfriend. We went and visited our precious city because our even more precious bearded friend was there! Justin Coulter, if you don't know him, is most definitely my number one guy friend, other than David but we don't count him anymore due to the boyfriend status. David and I got to Starkville and ran by my house (how could I not have run by there...I have a key...I just had to look again) and then went to meet up with Justin at our favorite little joint in town, Grumpy's. You wanna talk about some De-LISH food? Just, whoa. It's good. We sat for a few hours and ate and talked and talked some more. Then we went to Bop's, yet another guilty pleasure of ours. Justin talked us into going to see a movie (it didn't take much talking into, actually) with him and our friend Roxy joined! It was just so good to be back with friends from school. I seriously don't know what I'm going to do this year without Justin and a few others that have already graduated. Looks like I'll have to find a new Monday Open Mic Night partner (Jonathon Giuffria has already stepped up to the plate for this one, ALRIGHT!).
Anyway, I have seriously been crafting like crazy. Getting ready to move into a house is hard work! I won't show you what I've got so far, because I want to do blogs later on about my work and give step-by-step tutorials on them. So far, I've got a freaking awesome coffee table made from an old electrical wire roll. I also am working on an old desk. I purchased it this weekend and will be painting it to give it a new, more Jennifer-styled life :) Think coral and Tiffany blue. I'm coming up with awesome ideas for wall art too. I've been working pretty much all week and weekends for the past few weeks, so going furniture/decor shopping in Birmingham is proving impossible. I'll be alright, money is needed for SURE. I'm hoping I'll be able to find a job in Starkville, even if it is just a little one (haha, yeah that's what all 20,000 students at Mississippi State want...a JOB!).
I'll be back in a few days with HOPEFULLY a completed project for you guys to see!

Living life in letters,
Jennifer

Forgive me

It seems that I have been slacking in the blogging area lately. I do apologize for not entertaining all of you to the fullest.
I missed last week's blog time because of Super Summer. I had my computer there but didn't have the time (or energy) during free time to write about life and its happenings. Again, forgive me! I was VERY blessed by my Super Summer experience this year, which doesn't shock me because every year I am blown away by the love and grace that is poured onto the students by God. Being a Team Leader is beyond amazing. You get to see firsthand what it takes to bring Super Summer together and you get to be that person that all the students look up to! Here's a brief history (through family group pictures) of my 6 years at Super Summer:
Silver School 2006

Brown School 2007

Lime School 2008

Green School 2009

Blue School as a TL 2010

Silver School as a TL 2011


It is so strange to see all of these pictures consecutively. I've spent the past 6 summers preparing for my favorite week of the summer, and these pictures represent it. Super Summer holds some of my dearest memories. I have met some of my best friends through Super Summer and I have strengthened my faith and leadership through it. There is just so much good that comes from it!!! Seriously, if you don't go...something is wrong with you.

I'm going to share with you the most eye-opening thing that a speaker has ever made in my life. It is just a simple definition from a few verses of scripture that makes our faith so rock solid and strong that I read it at least a hundred times during the worship after Greg spoke. Here's the passage:
Romans 3:21-26 "But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for fall have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus."
The word that is in bold is the word that we should focus on. This word is only written in the ESV translation of the Bible, but the Greek word "hilasterion" is used in the original manuscript of Romans 3:25. This one word changes how we view God's grace and ultimate sacrifice. In other translations, verse 25 says "sacrifice as atonement", which we view as a big deal. A sacrifice of (by definition of atonement) reconciliation. BUT, the definition of hilasterion was not just a sacrifice, the hilasterion is the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant. It is where the blood was placed during a sacrifice. This was where God and man met for forgiveness. After Jesus gave up his life for everyone else to be forgiven, the blood sacrifices weren't needed anymore. Why? Because of his propitiation. There are two kind of atonements, Expiation and propitiation. The definition of expiation is to pay face amount of what is due. The definition of propitiation is an offering that removes wrath. When we look back at verse 25 with the new term defined, we see that it reads "...whom God put forward as a offering that removes wrath by his blood, to be received in faith." The wrath that would come to us for our sins was COMPLETELY removed by the blood of Christ. Umm, hello...that is AMAZING. I don't know if that was as awesome to you as it was to me, but I sat in awe and gratitude thanking God for his great mercy.

Living life in letters,
Jennifer

Goodies

Monday was a fun day in the life of me! David and I went to Memphis to do some shopping. If ya didn't know, I'm not the only musical one in this relationship. He's a pretty great guitar player! Anyway, he's been working on building a pedal board and I must say, he's gotten some pretty cool stuff. IF I played the guitar like him, I would be pumped about all the goodies he's going to be getting in the mail soon (but, I don't play like him...I can only hope). So our goal for Memphis was for me to get some nice apartment things and for him to get some pedals and MAYBEEEE an acoustic guitar. We both accomplished some of our tasks, YAY!!!! The Memphis area JUST SO HAPPENS to be where my sweet roommates live! We spent all day together and my, oh my, how I've missed those girls!
Here's us, plus our boys and friends, aren't we precious?!

So David and I got to Kelsey's house around 11 and Kayla came over. We all headed out to get some lunch and then the shopping began after that! We went to Guitar Center first and then to the Wolfchase. I hate to admit this on the internet in front of millions, but I cheated on my job! My girls and I wanted to run into Aerie (American Eagle's undies store). I bought underwear from a place other than VS...I didn't feel bad though, because these are cheaper and cuter :) That store is seriously my new favorite! Then we ran by Forever 21 and I did a quick run around the store to find some good purchases. We had a mission, we had to get to Midtown's Urban Outfitters before it closed at 6! So I did a quick sweep, got two super cute tops and we made a mad dash for Urban! If any of you DON'T know me, you don't know my obsession with UO. I seriously can't get over the amazingness that is them. I walked into the store and sighed in excitement. I didn't even know where to begin. I ended up only purchasing 3 things (2 being the awesome 2 for $30 shoes I'm IN LOVE with). I couldn't break the bank in that store...even though I could have. There was this dress that I've been eying online and they happened to have it in store...I tried it on and it was HOT, but I couldn't bring myself to buy it for $59.00 so I left with slight sadness/joy because of my sweet deal on a $13.99 boyfriend fit shirt. After that we went back to Guitar Center and David got some necessities for his pedal board before they closed at 6 (we were told they closed at 9...good thing I didn't spend too long in UO, I would've had a perturbed boyfriend). Then, we went to Target........my FAVORITE STORE IN THE WORLD. I got some cute things and an awesome shower curtain for my bathroom in the house! YAY! Then we had an American style dinner at Corky's (we couldn't NOT do that...it was the 4th of July for goodness sake!) and then some fantastic Sheridan's custard. Then David and I said our goodbyes to our friends (who happen to live near Memphis but don't know their way around it AT ALL) and headed home. On our way back we saw over 10 different firework shows, quite the ending to a fun day!
I know this is a pointless blog, but I don't think you people know my obsession with shopping (bargain shopping though, I hate buying full price)!
That's it folks!
Living life in letters,
Jennifer

Relaxed

I woke up this morning at a crazy 5:30. If you know me, you know that I don't like to wake up at hours with single digits. I did this morning, though, and it was worth it! My parents, my cute boyfriend and I all headed to Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, to go to the Amish villages. My parents and I are like this, we love going on adventures and doing random things that most people my age wouldn't want to do (like go antiquing, etc). We took the Trace the whole way up and it was a beautiful ride. We listened to some beautiful music courtesy of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and...of course, Lucy Schwartz. When we arrived to Lawrenceburg, we got some breakfast at McDonald's (we couldn't find a place that looked local). That wasn't really blog-worthy, but it was part of my day! We went on down the road and grabbed a map of the homes and toured ourselves for hours around the countryside. It's absolutely stunning to me that the Amish live without the things we call necessities. I love watching all of the children run around the yards and play. It was also really cool to see the men in the fields farming only with true horse power. The simple life they have isn't really simple, it's a hard working life. We got some great deals on some veggies and, of course, peanut brittle and other various sweet treats. I also got a steal on a cute little rug...you'll see it pictured below in a few :)
We were on the hunt for bedroom furniture for my house this fall. I found some AWESOME things, mainly a really beautiful secretary desk. It was a dresser/desk/cabinet and it was amazing. The craftsmanship that they put into the furniture is shocking. My dad and I lusted after a HUGE cedar picnic table that was only $165 (really a table that would go inside, it's so beautiful it'd be a sin to put it out). We came across some really great furniture finds, but ended up not getting anything. It was still a really great day! I most definitely enjoyed my first Saturday off in while!
Here are some pictures of my Tennessee adventure:
This is one of the many houses. They all pretty much looked the same, but I love them

Here is a fun little sight we came upon, piggies in a mudhole. It was quite comedic! They were buried in mud!

Here's my awesome rug I got!!! YAY!!!!!!


Thanks for listening in on my awesome day! If you haven't been to an Amish village...go...tomorrow! Well, they are all closed on Sundays, so maybe Monday :)

Living life in letters,
Jennifer

Facelift: Blog Style

Yes, that's right, my blog has gotten a facelift! I hope you enjoy it, because I sure do! Of course, I've gotten into the whole Chevron print trend, and when I saw this print I just had to apply it to the blog. I LOVE it! I needed a good facelift, I don't like things looking the same for a while!
I also changed the name of my blog to something a little more personal. I wanted something that represented life to me. Today, I was listening to one of my favorite songs by Lucy Schwartz (she's amazing...if you don't listen to her, you should!). It's titled "Life In Letters". I love the song, but today it's as if the lyrics just slapped me in the face. I thought "Wow, those are some strong words!" So, I thought more and said, "You know...Life In Letters would be the PERFECT name for my blog, seeing as how I type away about my day and life in general" So, the blog's new look began. Here's the music video to Lucy's song, you will absolutely love it (because I do, and I have the best taste in music...duh).

It's absolutely a stunning song. I just get chills when I hear it now.
Told you it was good :)
I saw Lucy live with The Civil Wars in Birmingham, AL, on Feb. 4th. Honestly, I can say that was the BEST concert I have ever been to. I was with some great, amazing friends listening to my favorite duo (if you haven't heard The Civil Wars, I suggest you do...I've gotten all of my friends HOOKED), and Lucy opened for them. She had a great show full of lots of technical difficulties (WorkPlay doesn't really have the best sound technicians). She was still stunning to watch and listen to; it was such a treat!
Tonight, I had dinner with our good friends, The Backstrom's, again. Leslie, Paul, Briley and Miles are all a joy to be around and it was so much fun to get to sit, chat and eat while enjoying their fun company! It was a wonderful night!
Anyways, kids. I just wanted to inform you of the new look, what it meant, and where it came from. I'll be blogging this weekend about my adventures Saturday...we're going to the Amish village in Tennessee! SO excited! I'll be back with goodies to show and tell!
Living life in letters,
Jennifer

It's a "Twiddling my Thumbs" Kind-of Summer

Well, boys and girls. I'm officially bored with summer. I haven't worked in 4 days and I'm feeling it. I need a fun trip, a hiking day, a canoe in a river...I need something that tells me it's summer! My sweet boy left this afternoon to go to the beautiful Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. That's our dream place to live. I hope he's going to be scouting out some houses for us to live in when we grow up ;)
Speaking of that cute boy that I love extremely much, he and I celebrated our 3 years worth of dating Monday. We went out to eat at Old Venice and went back to my house like old people and took a cat nap. He's seriously the best thing ever. He puts up with my silliness and loves me, that's a miracle in itself! Here's to a few more years of dating, and maybe moving onto the next level of the relationship, graduating ;) Haha
I found out yesterday what school I am in for Super Summer. Needless to say, I'm extremely pumped! No matter what school I'm placed in as a Team Leader, I know I'm going to have a blast and enjoy the heck out of myself. I am in Silver School this year, which is a good flashback to my very first year of being a student at Super Summer. I was a year late in attending this camp, so I was in Silver School. I honestly cannot tell you that I am sorry for skipping the first year of Super Summer. It was the best decision of my life! I have met some amazing friends through that first year of Super Summer in Silver School. One in particular has made me who I am today.
Super Summer, as you can tell, is one of my biggest passions! It's the ONE thing I've been looking forward to all summer. I may not be a student anymore, but I sure enjoy being a Team Leader! Last year, when I was in Boomin Blue School, I learned: 1) Being a TL is harder than it seems. 2) Just how much preparation and PRAYER goes into Super Summer every year 3) What you pray for, God will give you (pray for a group that will be open, they will talk your head off) 4) Being a TL is even more of a blessing than actually being a student at SS. I'm already getting antsy about the next few weeks in preparation for this awesome camp! Donations of duct tape will be accepted, it's pretty much the only thing you can decorate with that is silver!

ANY WAY,
I saw this fun questionnaire on Lauren Guy's blog, which I've read EVERY SINGLE TIME she posts. She's kind of an addicting blog writer. New career?
Matchbook Questionnaire:

•Tea or Coffee: Is this even a legit question? Coffee. I'm saving up this summer to buy house decorations...and Keurig!

• I collect: Underwear. I have a serious problem with buying underwear. We wonder why I work at Victoria's!

• Favorite city: It's a tie between Wears Valley, Tennessee and Loveland, Colorado; both have undeniably beautiful mountains.

• Spring or Fall?: Fall is beautiful. I'm a clothing freak, and layering is my favorite thing to do.

• Bloom of Choice: Baby's Breath and white Peonies

• Style Icon: This girl, right here, is my MUSE.


• Fragrance: My boy has an obsession with my Burberry Brit, so I wear that whenever I see him. I like to wear Daisy by Marc Jacobs in the spring/summer. He doesn't get why you should wear fragrances at different times of the year. Boys ;)

• China Pattern: Homer Laughlin-Gold Crown (Vintage 1950s china)


• I’m lusting after: *sigh* This gorgeous vintage engagement ring. My dream ring, for real.


• Most prized possession: My guitar, even though she's not been played very much since I started studying music (weird, should be opposite, but that's music education for you).

• Girl Crush: Jessica Biel is seriously the hottest girl ever. I tell my boyfriend all the time that I want to be her so bad. I mean, LOOK at this girl!


• Boy Crush: Yep, it's true. All these Louisiana trips have gotten to me. I think Jacob Landry is a HUNK. You may know him from Swamp People.



• On weekends: I like to go on adventures. Memphis, Birmingham, trails, canoes, etc. Something fun!

Alright ladies and gents, I'm done here. I should probably blog more often, because much more happened this week than just what I said. Maybe I'll do more than one a week now? Who knows. I'm going to go do some Pinning (yep, still obsessed)!
<3Jenn

Padre's Day

Today is Father's Day, so happy father's day to all of those dads out there that rock at what you do! My dad has always been awesome. There's never a dull moment in my house with that guy. He's hilarious and one of the best role models a girl could ask for. Everyone calls me Linwood Jr. because we're pretty much the same person, I'm just a few years younger....and a girl ;) Our personalities are carbon copies. He's the bomb!

Livin' the Good Life

I've been working like crazy lately, which means something good will come of that....a wonderfully plump paycheck! I seriously love my job! What is not to love about working in an extremely girly store though?! Honestly, a blast! Tuesday I worked the early shift, so I was able to go eat dinner with my family and sweet family friends, The Backstrom's. These people are seriously some of the best people I know! We went and grabbed some Mexican food at a local place and got the secret authentic Mexican menu that I never knew about. Talk about yummy! After that we went to the Backstrom's house to have some amazing homemade ice cream. Mr. Paul makes the best homemade ice cream you could ever imagine. We sat out in their backyard until almost 9:00 just talking and enjoying the pretty and peaceful night.

We just talked and enjoyed the time together like we always do!
I've been hanging out with friends from home lately and it's so, so good to be back in Tupelo. I've really missed my high school friends!
It's time for bed. I have work tomorrow! Gotta make money, beautiful furnishings aren't going to buy themselves!

Unemployment No Longer

That's right. I'm no longer unemployed! Let's give a big hooray to Victoria's Secret for that beautiful hire! I'm beyond excited about my new job. Lately, I've been doing the same thing every single day since the summer began:
-Sleeping too much
-Staying up too late
-Pinning on Pinterest like there's nothing else to do
-Laying out
-Working out
-Practicing piano (not everyday...trying to work on that)
-Finding new adventures
-Preparing deco for my new home
-Making headbands *See below

I now can add making money to that lovely list of things! That's it. I don't hate it at all, really, I've just been getting a little bored with the repetitiveness of it. I've gotta go visit my sweet friends and future roommates in Memphis.
Aren't we a pretty group of individuals?! :)

I've been missing my sweet girls, and boys, all summer. There's this funny thing about college at Mississippi State. There's honestly NOTHING to do in Starkville, MS; but when I'm away I just crave being there. I just miss being around all of my friends and doing nothing there is much more fun than doing nothing here in Tupelo. It's going to be weird in the fall not having my graduated friends there. I wish we didn't have to grow up...that'd be the life!