Bow-Badly: Trying the Bow Square

It's not as easy as it seemed.

 I took an attempt at the seemingly easy bow square I posted about this Sunday, I had all of my supplies ready, I was going to use a basic white cotton for the underneath and four different fabrics that I had gotten in a fat-quarter packet I had bought.





 Everything seemed like it would go pretty smoothly and so I set it all up and got right to cutting not giving it any thought really, before I knew it everything was cut out and ready to be sewn together! Super Easy!



I had the squares of the basic cotton, the centers of the bows cut, and the squares that will make though and I was ready to get sewing. I sewed all of the pattern squares to the cotton squares and was ready to pull the center together and make the cutest bows you'd ever seen.

 HOWEVER, when I tried to make a bow it just wasn't budging no matter what it wouldn't come together it would pull everything together crumpling up all of the fabric rather than just the first layer like it was supposed too. It was then that I realized my simple and very very silly mistake. In order for theses bows to have worked and pulled together correctly the base square and the pattern square couldn't be the same size. It's easy to realize and understand that when you actually sit and think about it but me being me, got very excited and did not think. I just acted, and so I had a bunch of awkward squares lying around that could technically be fixed but in a time of frustration were useless. I did not take a picture of this stage sadly because I was over the project and I was ready to make something good out of my ridiculous mistake rather than fix it.

So after some time of these pieces just sitting there, I finally figured out what to do with them and put them to use. 

I've been turning them into little envelope bags (or another word I can't seem to remember right now), they're the perfect sizes for pencils or as a cash keeper, so even though they weren't what they were supposed to be, all hope was not lost and at least they are still cute. 

I'm ready to set sail (and possibly lay off the 'easy' blocks for a while),

                                                                                                     Ms. Sinking Ship

Best Book(ish) Apps Right Now,

Other than the obvious nook, kindle, dc comics, apps as such, there are few apps that are actually decent when it comes to trying to find good stories, mangas, comics, the whole shebang to read. So here are apps for each category that are ensured to feed your book hunger.

1. WattPad 

I have talked about WattPad before, but it is an incredible sources to read story from thousands of authors, plus you can comment and be apart of group discussion on the books as they are being written. The book selection is very wide as well from well known classic to ridiculous fan-fictions they have it all in all genres so really can't ever go wrong. 

2. Manga Bird

I've used plenty of Manga sites and Apps but this one is so far the best, hands down. They have an incredible selection and an ridiculous amount of chapters for each manga you find, they even have some pretty rare ones that I haven't been able to find any where else. If you are looking for manga, download this app before any of the others it will save a ridiculous amount of time.

3. Tapas

I found Tapas recently and they are absolutely adorable, they are very similar to Wattpad, but they have a much stricter policy on who they choose as authors, but they have a very wide variety and all of the stories I have read so far are amazing, and the comics are beautiful and adorable every time. If you love the goofy comics you see all over the internet you will love the comics on Tapas.

These are the three so far I have found to always save the day when I'm in need but never fear I'm always on the look out for apps that help me read on the go.

Ready to Set Sail (and keep reading),

                                                 Ms. Sinking Ship

DIY Color Block Clipboard

                    

I have loved color blocking and I have for a while now, I've been wanting to do a tutorial on it for almost a year now and I finally found something to do it with finally! 

This clip board has been through all kinds of disastrous remodeling (you should have seen the 80's stickers from my mom that I had to scrape off of the back) and it is once again time for a change, and this time one for better not worse. 

To do this I used:

• My clipboard (obliviously)
• Something to put my paint on
• Paint
• A paint brush (the bigger the better because it covers more space and makes more evenly distributed)
• I didn't use anything for this but if you need help making a straight line or are using another color on the other side, some type of tape to tape off the edge.

          

This is what the clipboard looks like before I did anything to it, it was covered in duct tape from that put duct tape absolutely everything you own then from a few years ago.

If you have anything on the clip board (or surface if you are just using this as a basic color blocking tutorial)  you are redoing make sure to remove it.

       

Then take your paint and put it on your plate/palette/or anything you decided to use to put paint on and then get plenty of the paint on your brush

                              

This is the part where if you need to tape down to keep your line straight you do so, then make a line half way across the tape half way on your clipboard. 

If you aren't using tape to make a straight line draw a line straight across where you want the line of color to be everything below that line will be filled in. Then you fill it in. You may have to do multiple layers of the paint to get the color you want, if you o say make sure to wait until the paint is completely dry before you paint another layer or you will just end up rubbing paint around and making the overall painting very spotty. 

                                                       

I ended up doing multiple coats but this is the first finished layer I did, I did the back as well where the checkered ductile was as well however it is not on here because I had to scrub Hannah Montana and other varies sticker collages off the back before I could paint it, but I follow the same process on the back if you plan to do so as well. I hopes this helps in any of your color blocking endeavors, again I;'m exciting to be back writing again!

Ready to Set Sail (and do stuff that is soon to be revealed!),

                                                                                 Ms. Sinking Ship

 

Blogger Tips From Someone who Blogs: Best Blogging Sites!

From someone who not only reads blogs but keeps one up as well, I am constantly on the look out for the best websites to keep my blog up on (other then maybe having your own domain) because the worst thing in the world is having to try to make the best out of something you can't stand using because you can't find anything else. 

I have tried a decent amount of them, and I've come to conclusions about which ones are the most fun and efficient to use, for me any ways.  I'm making this today to help any one else that also seems to have the worst of luck finding something that fits well with them and their blog starting from the 

best-ish to the worst-ish. 

                                                                                                                

1. Blogspot

 I have had problems with Blogspot, it is not always the greatest thing ever but it is reliable and very customizable, along with that there aren't any hidden fees or anything and there are ways to make money off of your blog as well. The  only downsides I've seen are complications with coding when it comes to customization, it takes some time to get used to and figure out how to do those things but it is nothing a little problem-solving can't fix. 

2. Tumblr

The only reason this isn't number one is because it's more of a social media site than a blogging site, but I made one early today because it was the only think I hadn't tried but I constantly hear awesome things so I decided to try it out before I made this post and I love it. It's a little bit difficult to navigate right at first but once you get this gist of it, it is really easy and pretty fun. Above is mine and you can follow me on there as well as mssinkingship of course, I'll probably do a decent amount of blogging on there as well. It is pretty customizable and there is tons of things to work with, if you're looking for something not quite so serious for a blog this is definitely the first place you should try.

3. Wix

So I tried this site the other day and it is pretty interesting, there are quite a few downsides though and it ends up getting complicated. For one, there isn't a trash can so you are unable to get rid of anything that was on the original template you might not have wanted. Also, it does have an apps section where you can add all kinds of cool things to your blog, but a decent amount of them you have to pay for and if you are on a budget you can't always afford all of that. 

The only other downside is that for your domain name it gives you it lists their site before yours and that can seem less professional the other way around. Wix has some cool things to use like some of the templates they have and animation effects, things like that etc, but it the long run there is more hassle than anything else when it comes to this site.

4. Weebly

For those of you that have been reading my blog for it's pretty close to entirety, you will most likely know that it originally started out on Weebly. This site is perfect for a blog just starting out, if you just want to dip your toes into the whole thing, or if you're unsure you really want to commit to any type of thing that's this nature. It is fairly easy but really isn't all to customizable. Weekly isn't the worst but it really isn't something you would hold a blog at for a long period of time.

5. WordPress

I had always heard that if you want your blog to be successful use Wordpress, so eventually a few months ago I had been irritated with bloodspot and I thought it might be a good time to give it a try. I was so frustrated with all of it after the first 10 minutes I have never gone to the site again. I'm sure it's a lot easier and customizable if you buy the packages for your websites from them BUT not everyone (me included) has the money to drop $50 on a website so I can change the layout. That is ridiculous for one and two I've done decently well on Blogspot and never had to shell out large amounts of money to do so. I know people who use it and love it so this one is purely biased as most of these are but for someone who can't spend a bunch of money and want something to be even the slightest bit personal, I wouldn't use Wordpress. 

These are the blogs I've used and the major pros and cons I've had with them.  A lot of the factors in this has to do with customization because that is a big part of blogging and creating a brand for your self, I hope this gives any one who is thinking of starting a blog or wanting to switch from the site they use now.

Ready to Set Sail (and keep playing with my Tumblr),

                                               Ms. Sinking Ship

Tips To Bloggers From Some One Who Reads Them,

I read a lot of blogs, I see them as an inspiration to get me going and also as a hopefully someday peer or something like that, I also read blogs as a way to make my blog better, because if you are trying to do your best at something you have to try to see it from all sides not just one. I read blogs in hopes to see what does and does not appeal and things like that. Something I have seemed to notice over the past few weeks is that there is something to a blog that will always make it seem of more importance than others and I will share this something with you all, 

This something is pictures. Good Pictures to be a little bit more specific, something that might not have something specifically to do with what is being talked out but something that might have words written over it or something with a pretty background, possibly an image that helps add to the post or just something that has really good lighting. These pictures are always what grab the attention more than anything else. They are how you begin to draw the attention of the audience and how you continue to keep it until they are attached through some kind of connection or enjoyment with your blog. 

I have found that these pictures are a large pieces to the whole blogging thing and that they are in every way, shape, and form helpful, so,  use those pictures like there is no tomorrow. The worst thing that could happen is that they might become just slightly misleading if you do not use them carefully. 

I hope you guys find this helpful in some way or another if you like the advice let me know because I could always use some as well, and one more thing, what do you guys think blogs that have multiple pages? that's one of those things that I've never seemed to figure out when it comes to how helpful there are or not so I would love to here it from you.

Ready to Set Sail (and search for more tips),

                                                        Ms. Sinking Ship

Tutorial Tuesday? Back to school make up,

Hey Guys! So, today I wanted to try one of the new ideas I have for the blog, and I figured a great way to do it would be to throw it in with all of the other awesome back to school stuff I'm going to be doing over the next four weeks leading up to the beginnings of school, if it all goes well I'll most likely keep doing them because it was pretty fun to make. I do however want to apologize for the video already because I was having some problems with my allergies when filming it so I sound gross and also pause mid way through every sentence. There's already a lot of things I want to do to improve the following next three (and hopefully more) videos that will follow this one, so just bare with me while I try to figure out the best way to get these going for you guys. With out further adieu,

Back-to-School Make up tutorial: Color Pop Smokey Eye (I'm still working on the names too, don't judge me)

This video can also be found on our Youtube channel (We have one of those?!) Along with more of the videos to come and maybe some other cool stuff I might try out in the next few months for the blog. As for all of the products used: 

Base Shadow: Smashbox Pop Studio Ultimate Palette - Frost

Crease Shadow: Smashbox Pop Studio Ultimate Palette - Fizz

Above Crease Shadow: NYX Avant Pop Art Throb Palette - Purple 

Eye liner: Smashbox Gel Liner - Deep Black

Mascara: Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes - Black

Blush: Smashbox Pop Studio Ultimate Palette - Passion

Lips: Tarte Lip Surgence - Light Color? 

That's it for this tutorial, I hope you guys like it there will be at least three more, if you guys have any specific looks you want me to do for back to school or have any feedback at all on the video I'd love to hear it and if not I'll see you guys later this week for more back to school fun,

Ready to set sail (and keep the fun coming), 

                                                             Ms. Sinking Ship 

Making Elastic Headbands,

Headbands can sometimes be ridiculously expensive, and so I decided to make my own. 

You will need : 

Elastic 

Ribbon

Hot Glue Gun

Glue

(1) First you need about a 4-inch piece of elastic then (2) you need a long strand of ribbon, for the easiest way of measurement wrap it around your head and come to right behind your ears for the best fit. (3) After you have these pieces you will take the glue gun and put a decent amount of glue on the edge of the elastic, (4) next you will place the ribbon in the spot where the glue is, let it set for a second and then press down, because of the materials that are in the two pieces the hot glue seems to create a seal when you look at it. You'll want to  repeat steps 3 and 4 on the other side before continuing. (5) Following that cut 2 2-3 inch pieces of ribbon, (6) these you are going to you use to cover the ends giving your headband a more clean and finished look. Add glue to the end section wear  your ribbon and elastic meet, set one end of the ribbon on the glue and press, after holding for a  second continue to put glue on the opposite side of where you just were and wrap the ribbon around the section. Then add a tiny bit more glue to the front and finish the wrap. (7) Finish this section by cutting off any extra that might be there and them repeat steps 5-7 on the other side. Your finished product should look like step 8 above. If the headband doesn't turn out how you planned or you don't want to make your own I always have mine on sale 3 headbands for $6 on my Etsy shop. Link below.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/221859975/

If they do turn out and you post them on Instagram or Twitter use the hashtag 

#mssinkingship

and I can see all of the different ways you made yours work.

                  Well, I'm ready to set sail (and finish up other post for the week),

                                                                                  Ms. Sinking Ship

5 reads for the first Friday: January 2015

The year is starting and that means a fresh slate for any adventure you want to take on, for those adventures I have picked my 5 reads that I am currently reading or have read hat will help you in any incredible journey you want to take on for this new year. They are not in any specific order, other than alphabetical of course.   

1. Handmade to Sell by Hello Craft's Kelly Rand, Christine Ernest, Sara Dick and Kimberly Dorn
    ( hellocraft.com)

At the moment I am a quarter of the way through this book officially, I few months ago I found this book on a shelf  in a Barnes and Noble and fell in love the second I began reading, I quickly found a spot on the floor in-between two shelves to read to my hearts contempt, sadly at the time,  I had only gotten half way through and had to leave without the book being to broke to afford the book; but the book found its way back to me in a package clothing box Christmas Eve. and I have been reading it since. This book is written for people looking to start their own businesses in the craft industry, it is fully of hardy and helpful advice on how to get started and set up a proper foundation to built your business on along with tools for working at craft shows, and presenting your self online. If you are looking to go further with you craft this year I would suggest reading this book before and during the process of growing your craft into a business.

2. Hello Giggles (hellogiggles.com)

Hello Giggles popped up on my newsfeed about a year ago and it seems like the articles were better and better with every post I read, the stories are impacting and hilarious. They are all very pro-women and know exactly what to say when it needs to be said. They report on everything from news to your daily life and all of the articles written leave some kind of mark on you or will enlighten you on something that is going on in the world. On top of that, you as the reader can submit stories that they'll post to the public from the public. To them your opinion matters, so not only will they inform you they'll listen to you too. This year if you need empowerment for your journey or you want to be heard look to Hello Giggles before anywhere else because they always have something to say.

3. Mollie Makes Mag. (Molliemakes.com)

I first found Mollie Makes US Edition in a Walmart around 2 in the morning back in August. I read it all through the store, then bought it, took it home, and read it again when I woke up the next day, after that I looked into the magazine and found the original Mollie Makes along with a few others. Sadly, the US edition is no longer in print, but Mollie Makes is still going strong leaving me excited every month to see what they talk about next. This magazine will inspire any crafter (or anyone honestly) to make, create, travel and explore to their hearts desire. They write articles on everything a crafter might need to know for business, on keeping up with fashion, or on just another crafter it would be fun to look into. Mollie Makes has created the base for an incredible community all over the world, if you ever get the chance this year, just reading one issue will take you on an interesting journey with plenty of patterns and pictures along the way.

4. Nylon Mag. (Nylon.com)

I don't exactly know when or how I found Nylon but I have been reading them consistently for about two years now. They are on here for any adventure you have in fashion, beauty, scrapbooking or art wise. 'Scraping-booking you say? That doesn't fit in with the rest' is most likely what you were thinking and  I know.  The lay out of Nylon is something that makes them so great all in itself, it is put together almost as if it's an artists inspiration book or something, giving it a very edgy but also home-like feel to it every time you look through an issue. It is also a go-to guide for every trend or idea that comes with fashion there is, and on top of that it has awesome articles about a variety of artists and up-and-coming music to give your creative side a different outlook on things. This year if you're looking for ideas on a new direction or maybe just a little change to spice your life up, reading, if only, one issue of Nylon will do the trick.

4. Rookie Mag. or Yearbook 1 and 2  (http://www.rookiemag.com)

I found Rookies second yearbook in a very similar way to how I found 'Handmade to Sell'. The only difference in the story is that this time I finished the book, I sat out in the isle, and when I left I bought the second yearbook along with the first one as soon as I got home. Rookie is laid out similarly to Nylon in a very cute scrapbook type way but, it is also a little different from the rest of the books on this list, Rookie is created as a teenage and young women magazine. Unlike most other magazines for that specific age group though, rookies stories aren't based on how to make a guy love you in a month or filled with 'how to look skinnier with these special tricks' articles. Rookie is created to empower with pro-women articles, interviews with real people, and some awesome snacks recipes for when you get the munchies. Rookie also uses all kinds of girls of all kinds of ages for all of their photo articles. They are a good read for almost any situation and unlike most magazines they are primarily online and post articles daily like a blog, at the end of their year (which is in may) they put together all of the articles and issues and publish them as yearbook, so you can find them in stores as well if you perfer the paper feel of book and they just released their third yearbook if you looking for a book to last you year round. 

I hope you find something intriguing in at least one of these books this year, 

Ready to set sail (and get back to reading), 

                                               Ms. Sinking Ship

Socks On Sunday,

Yesterday night I spent a few hours playing around with my yarn and what came out of it was great a cute pair of purple fuzzy crocheted socks. I've always found the best things happen when you're not stressing over creating anything, and it's true. I have been stressed for weeks about getting more products out on the market for the KNITche and when I finally stopped stressing out about it and just starting working, things worked out. I hope to get out a step by step Picture crochet pattern soon (because I'm really bad at explaining them, or just reading them for that matter) for you all to use and for those that don't crochet and want a pair they are already up for sale on the Facebook page. Facebook.com/theknithchebycherish

Ready to set sail (and keep my feet warm),

                                                   Ms. Sinking Ship

Finding Inspiration Every Where You Go,

  This weekend I took a trip to Tulsa and while I  was in the city I went on a few mansion tours and to the aquarium, photographing anything I thought might provide even the slightest of inspiration, and some of it did. The usage of the space provided even in mansions was incredible, and the color palettes I found in the aquariums were very influential in a few ideas I have for items I hope to be posting soon.
                             Inspiration is every where, you just have to look for it.
                                               Ready to set sail (and put this inspiration to work),
                                                                                  Ms. Sinking Ship

Woman Crush Wednesday 11.12.14,

This weeks Woman Crush Wednesday is going to be short and sweet similar to the woman nominated. Today is my mothers birthday so I dedicate this week to her, she has been there for me and helped me through so much these past years, I am so great full to have such an empowering woman like her as a role model and a mother. She is constantley busy volunteering and helping people, She is a woman who is always there for people are rarely asks for anything in return as well as running around doing things to help me and the rest of my family all day, for this and for her birthday she, this week, is my Woman Crush Wednesday.

The best way to find things,

As a creative person, I often go looking for things : inspirations, marketing tips, learning how to do things and so on. People will always tell you to go to youtube that's the one place you'll always find things, I disagree. Youtube is great for many things but, finding exactly what you need in a timely manner not always so much. I've found that the best place to find things for a creative mind is Pinterest, it identifies key words, almost always has multiple options for what you are looking and 95 percent of it is more reliable that gritty video you've spent 10 minutes trying to watch because you couldn't find the better version (because it has give you the best youtube version there). Youtube is definitely a great source and a last resource go to for everything but always try Pinterest first, it saves time and frustration, which if you are like me could use a lot less of.
                     Ready to set sail (and help you save those 10 minutes),
                                                                      Ms. Sinking Ship