DIY: Makeup Brush Holder

I managed to clock off work a little early today, so I came home and had a little bit of a crafternoon. I fell in love with this paisley material when I went to the market earlier in the week and I really wanted to make something with it that I will actually use. I travel quite a lot, with going home to see my parents and visiting friends, so this little padded brush case will come in very handy. It rolls up neatly and, I think, looks really cute. I did a bit of research on how to make this, as we had a lot of ideas flying around, and found this video in the process. It is a really concise tutorial on how to make what I have made above. One of the best things about this DIY is that you don't actually need much to make it, and the things you do need will probably be around the house or in your craft box anyway. 


If you give it a go, let us know how it goes! Love Kendall xx

DIY: Wall Hanging

I have had a day off today (woohoo!) so I thought I would treat myself with a bit of crafting. I decided to make a wall hanging with a nice positive message printed on it to keep moral high during this stressful exam period. The material I used was actually from an old pair of curtains and I think it turned out rather well. I'm not going to lie, it did take me a rather long time to get this right. But I think it was worth the work :)

You will need:

Material

Sewing machine, or needle and thread.

Acrylic or fabric paint

Card

Printer

Scissors

A long stick, or a straw. I used a wooden BBQ skewer. 

Cotton

Step 1: Create your image that you want on your hanging on the computer. Make sure you use a font that isn't too thin or tricky to cut out. Bolder the better. Print out onto card.

Step 2: Draw out the shape of your hanging onto your material. Make sure it is big enough to fit your image on. Once you have done that add 2cm around the outside for seem allowance. At the top add on another 5cm, as this will be folded over to make a tunnel for your stick to go though.

Step 3: Cut out your shape.

Step 4: Double hem all of your edges so that they are nice and neat and sew on a sewing machine, or by hand.

Step 5: Fold over the extra material you have at the top of your shape and stitch along the bottom so you form a tunnel at the top of your hanging.

Step 6: Cut out the letters of your image to make a stencil. This can be a little fiddly, but take your time and make sure it is neat and tidy.

Step 7: Tape your stencil onto your material and get paining!

Step 8: Peel off your stencil and leave to dry.

Step 9: Thread your stick through the material tunnel and attach either end of your cotton onto the ends of the stick.

And you're done! 

What do you think? I really want to make some more with other nice phrases on. What would you paint on yours? 

Love Kendall xx

DIY Paper Garland

After a long long week of horrible revision, I couldn't wait to make use of the short window of spare time I have between exams to get stuck into some crafting (after all we are up for a Company Award for Best Crafty Blog!). This garland, made from old magazines, was so easy to make and, even better, hardly any mess! It's a cute little make to inject some colour and fun into your home without costing a penny. You can use this technique and make a whole range of decorative pieces, it's so versatile. I've made smaller chains to have hanging down like a string of colourful hearts. This is a great DIY to recycle those old magazines that pile up collecting dust and put them to good use. Plus its really handy as the paper is already double sided so your garland is colourful inside and out!

All you need is a magazine, scissors and a stapler. (I think that's the shortest 'you will need' list I've ever written!)

And here's how to make it...

Cut your magazine into strips about an inch in width. Hold the bottom of two strips together and bend round each strip, in opposite directions, so the top meets the bottom. Staple together the bottom to fix the shape you've created. Repeat this process of creating a heart-like shape from two strips. Before stapling the bottom, place it in between the rounded top of the first shape. Position it nicely in place and staple. And that is it! Keep repeating this process of stapling the heart shape to the one below to build up your chain. 

Voila! An easy peasy make that looks so effective!

Why not make smaller chains and hang them in threes as an alternative decorative piece...

Hope you like this little make! Its definitely an easy, no-thinking-required, no-fuss task to do perhaps whilst unwinding in front of the telly.  

It's a busy time in the TWB household with exams and deadlines looming. Kendall has done an amazing job of holding down the fort blog wise whilst we've been chained to our desks for what feels like a lifetime. Feel so good to find a little extra time to do a blog post!

As you may or mot not already know, Trends With Benefits has been shortlisted for a Company Magazine for Best Crafty Blog! We are simply over the moon about this amazing news and cannot wait to attend the awards night which is only a couple of weeks away now! Thank you to everyone who voted and for your support. What an incredible way to end our final year of university!!

Lots of love 

Kate xxx

Vanilla Cupcake Yankee Candle

This is the newest addition to the TWB household... and I think we are all a little bit in love. Yankee Candle got in touch with us recently and very kindly sent us a special limited edition candle to celebrate them reaching 1million fans on Facebook. What an achievement! The limited edition flavour is Vanilla Cupcake and it smells good enough to eat. It smells sweet and delicious and we can't get enough. It is being moved between our three bedrooms, so the upstairs of our house is smelling delightful :)

To thank all their fans, Yankee Candle have set up a Facebook competition to win a trip to America, to visit the home of the Yankee Candle. To enter click HERE for your chance to win this amazing prize!

To get your hands on a limited addition candle you can head over to their website :) 

xxx

DIY: Indoor Den

This may seem like a bit of an odd DIY to include on our blog, but it was something I did a few weekends ago and thought it was a bit of fun and that I should share it with you all. We all like to save a bit of money, so making this little den is a great cheap date night idea as you can make it together. We had so much fun making it and it was super comfy! I am lucky to have a big bedroom at uni and this little beauty stayed up for a about a week! We were too proud of it to take it down :)

What you will need: 

A Mattress, or lots of cushions.

Four bed sheets or large blankets.

 Lots of pegs

String

 Nails and a hammer 

Fairy Lights

Step 1: You need to put 4 nails in the wall (one on each of the 4 walls, so two are facing each other) just below your ceiling so when the string is attached it will form a cross shape.
Step 2: Measure how much string you will need. You will need two long pieces. You need the string to not be too tight, so let it slack a little. Tie it to your nails. This will form a cross shape and the crossover should be in the centre of the room.
Step 3: Put your mattress under your string.
Step 4: Drape your blankets over the string and secure with pegs. Tuck your sheets under the mattress if you have a bit of excess material.
Step 5: Decorate with fairy lights if you have some and fill with cushions and duvets.

And your done! Hope you enjoyed our creative date night idea :) What do you think?

xx