The Decorista Chronicles//DIY Wall Decals!

It's been a while since I did a sassy wall art tut here at Craft A Doodle Doo but this was invented at the request of a very special friend who said she wants some decorspiration for her room. This is so easy, looks as in vogue as they come and is made with one basic material. On top of that, it's removable so you can change 'em up anytime and you see why we are not doing stencils here? I'd love doings stencils on my walls, but then the paranoia drops in that the future me would probably indulge in some other design. This one's a no-mess peel off and that makes it all the more cooler!

This of course doesn't mean you have to make a jewelry niche too, headboard decals are the thing I say but I have a pretty su-weet headboard already. The best bet would be doing this under a shelf (or on the top of it). Also consider hanging a grand oval mirror over your vanity and having the decal as the frame of the mirror. Endless options I tell ya.

Start away already you tell me. buuuuuut I can never start without this brilliant piece of inspiration.

Materials:

1.Adhesve sheet in any color you'd like and in any texture (You know, the peel-off back ones. I'm using my trusty velvet textured adhesive sheet in deep red)

2.Masking/scotch tape,X-acto (craft knife) and a pair of large and small scissors

3.A ruler to level the decal onto the wall.

4.A cutting mat or any surface as such

5. One whoppin' pattern you'd like to decal. Look around for lots of inspiration. My friend loves damask so that is what I chose.

How-to:

1.Start by printing out a template of your design. Make sure you print it out the right size. My damask corner patterns are about half of an A4 sheet (just so that you get the idea). 

Cut out the adhesive sheet to be double the area of your template and slightly larger and fold it in half. 

2.Tape all the edges of your pattern onto the folded adhesive sheet so everything is tightly secure in place and won't more when you're cutting out the pattern.

3.Using a craft knife and the different sized scissors, cut the pattern out. A good tip is to not start out with a too complicated pattern.

Here's the two damask corners for each side of my "shelf" decal.

I then cut out a long strip and two smaller ones (for the damask corners) measuring the width of the wall/space I wanted to put my decal on. This long strip was supposed to go on top of the damask corners.

4.Use a ruler (or probably the leveling app on your Iphone,lol) to make sure you have the alignment right when you place the decal. Peel off and smooth it onto the surface. Since it comes off mess free, even if you have those annoying 'wrinkles' you can peel back off and smooth it over again.

And that's it!

As you see mine is fashioned liked a little jewelry alcove. So I used transparent command hooks to hang in pretty jewelry.

If you're wondering where the jewelry from my faux Vintage China wall display went (I took it out so that it shouldn't compete with the jewelry under the decal in the photographs :D )

This looks so much more stunning in real life than in the pictures (one of those see to believe pretty kinda things!). A showstopping impact ladies!

So are your walls bare? Dying for a classy makeover, maybe lookin' for a pop of elegant color? Or maybe you've just been on the plain and straight quest for the easiest way to do homemade decals.

Now you know ;)

If you liked this nifty idea, pin and share it with other people you know. You can also be pals with me on Pinterest, Facebook and follow for some glamorous new decorhacks!

Meanwhile, if you'd like to lay those pretty eyes on more of my DIYs, you can drop in to tour my DIY gallery here!

Have a great day,

Nash

INSPIRATION COLLAGE PHOTO CREDITS:

http://www.houzz.com/photos/6617422/Chandelier-Wall-Decal-modern-decals-

http://www.houzz.com/photos/6616204/Riviera-Giant-Peel---Stick-Applique-modern-decals-http://www.houzz.com/photos/6617239/Cherry-Blossoms-Wall-Decals-modern-decals-

Beauty In A Nutshell//DIY Face Primer!

First it was DIY concealer and now it's DIY Primer! I've been hearing about people going gaga on primers for ages now and so far I've only tried the Loreal Studio Secrets one which I quite fancied (until the sample got over that is) and have been on the fence about investing money to get one. I mean they do work wonders, right?

In case you are new on the bandwagon, a primer is a face product base that helps the foundation go on smoother, makes your skin look more even (prior to foundation usage), takes away shine thus mattifying that pretty face and most importantly helps your look stay on longer taking away the risk of melting. There are primers developed to solve special skin problems too, but today we are going to make a potion for the basic primer that does the above mentioned tasks.

DIY Face Primer:

Ingredients:
1.Store bought Aloe vera gel   >> Mattifies
2.Water based moisturizer >> To help your foundation go on smoother
3. A couple of drops of foundation >> For light coverage
4. Sunblock (optional)
5.Face Powder >> Prevents shine
6. A jar to blend in the contents and a tiny spoon

Instructions:
1.Begin by pouring in a blob of the aloevera gel (I'm using a combination of aloe and cucumber because that's what I had). If you have normal skin, add the same amount of moisturizer. My skin
is combination during most of the year and dry during winters which is why I added slightly more gel compared to moisturizer.
So basically:
Normal skin         >> Equal parts gel & moisturizer
Dry skin               >> Less gel, more moisturizer
Oily/Combo Skin >>More gel, less moisturizer

2.Next add in the foundation. Add this as per the coverage you wish to achieve. I you want this to function like a tinted moisturizer, add a tiny amount. For more of a bb cream thingy, add more.

3.Add in the sunblock and loose powder.

4.Swirl in everything together till it's nice and even. Your finished result shouldn't be too dense or too runny, somewhere in between is perfect.

And we're done! Try it on! I was quite impressed with the results. I wore just primer on for most of the first day that I used it and people did notice the difference. exactly like a mlbb (my skin but better) look!

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Pin this on and share it with all the girls out there to give this a go!
You can check out my DIY gallery and/or subscribe here for tons more inspiration! :D
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PS: I've seen a bunch of variations now and then of this recipe. I suggest you make a sample first (a week's worth) and test it out. If you''re satisfied, you can go ahead and make a larger amount.

For now, sweet hugs and Adieu.
Nash

Pretty Me Up//Valentino Inspired Clutch!

Once in a while, hanging out on Pinterest gets the worst of me and I spiral into a trance of some of my most devilishly alluring pins. This Valentino shoulder bag is a mix of lace n' leather in bright berry, the atrocious part being it's not even in stock. Since I on the other hand am more of a clutch lady, love my healthy doze of glitter and the feminine appeal of sheer lace, a children's stationery box (which I had since I was 7..perhaps) is what got the makeover in my book.
And oh yes, at a much more affordable price for a college-budget student too.

Everything about this beautiful clutch is frugal, except the appearance:It's luxe and it's pretty sure to garner some oohs and aahs out of the other ladies when you tell them you crafted it yourself!

You'll need:

1. Krylon glitter spray in gold (or glitter and modpodge in gloss finish)
2.Adhesive spray (optional but highly recommended)
3.Some sheer lace (I used one of those tiny lace giftbags you get in the gift section at stores)
4.A ribbon in a complementary shade
5.Fabric for the lining (I used a single satin placemat that I purchased as a set earlier)
6.Super glue and scissors
7.Metallic Gold Spray paint (optional)
8.Fake adhesive gems (optional)
9. A plastic box with a lid that snaps shut

Instructions:

1. If you'd like, you can first spray paint the entire clutch with a metallic gold to avoid any ugly undertones of the previous color)
2.Spray paint the the entire exterior with the Krylon Glitter Spray in Gold. (If you're using the modpodge and glitter method, mix the required amount of glitter and glue in a big bowl and dab all over. Let it dry for a couple of hours and then add another coat. Finish with a coat of adhesive spray to seal everything in)
3.When dry, wrap up the exterior with the sheer lace (using super glue and scissors wherever necessary to trim extras and glue down protruding edges)
4.Use the adhesive fake gems as embellishment over the lace (surprsingly, I came across these in the car tools section :O They are supposedly used to jazz up the interior of your car...? :S)
5.Fashion the ribbon into a bow( I went for a Ted Baker style bow because they just look so classy) and glue it onto the top of the clutch's clasp)
      If your box just snaps shut just like that and you don't really have a clasp, you can still add it onto the top from where you'd normally open your clutch.
6.Open the clutch and line the interior edges with super glue.
Cut the fabric a few inches bigger than the size required to fit in the clutch and fold over the extra edges of the fabric onto the glue.
7.Done!

And that's how you possibly steal your children's stationery organizers and redo them into pretty clutches or if you're an outgrown kid like me (that just sounds creepy now), you can just dig one up from the hoarding you did over the years (nope. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who hoards these things)
Maybe you can also buy one. They hardly cost anything.

This is not a sponsored post, but in case you want to look up the glitter spray and metallic spray here are the links.
Krylon Metallic Spray in Gold
Krylon Glitter Spray in Gold

Also, I recommend (if you do a lot of glittery projects)buying a glitter spray as opposed to doing the modpodge routine because that's just mess free. You pet cat is spared millions of flecks of glitter adorning its lush coat.

For those who are plain confused, modpodge is a kind of all-purpose glue/sealer.

If you're not one to attend parties, you can also have this sitting in your boudoir as a jewelry box and heave a sigh of satisfaction everyday when you look at it.

         If you're new here, and I'm pretty sure you must be, you can look up my other epic line up of DIYs in the gallery!

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If you also happened to love this DIY, go ahead and pin it! (Also come back for more glitterati fun!).

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Oh, I just realized I missed the last step, dunk your precious baubles in!

Much love, Nash

Cravings Ravings//2 Ingredient Chocolate Pancakes!

Have you like, ever craved chocolate and pancakes at the same time? It happened to me today but all I had were three different flavored baking mixes at hand. Since I'm a chocoholic by blood, no points for guessing my choice! My mum is normally the pro pancake maker (the classic pancakes that is!), so I decided to step up the game and mould the baking mixes to create my own super-fast pancake version and lemme just put this simply...
These are heartache!
Because the minute you finish these up, you'll be wishing for more later!

These will make about six medium sized pancakes. They are soft and moist and the middle is extra chocolatiey! (if that's even a word!).

You'll need:
-1 cup chocolate cake baking mix
-3/4th cup to 1 cup milk

Instructions: (the way I love it)
-Mix the ingredients well ina  big bowl making sure no chunks remain.
-Melt a lil chunk of butter in a pan and heat on low until the butter soften and melts evenly around the pan.
-Pour a dollop of our homemade pancake mix into the pan and let it cook for about 50-60 secs on each side. Flip carefully in between so that the batter doesn't separate!(Keep adding a bit more butter if you need between each pancake or you can just sub oil)
-Top with a hearty doze of your fav chocolate sauce, some delish ice-cream and serve.

I love the constrasty flavor of strawberry ice-cream against the fluffy rich chocolate, but if you can take up a chocolate volcano upheaval, feel free to try chocolate ice cream as well!
Of course the best neutral bet would always be vanilla!

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Ah, yes, and this recipe you NEED to pin because I don't want you missing this out with time and forgetting the instant gratification it provides to curb your chocolate cravings!

Pluuuuuus, you can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, subscribe and lalalalaa, I'd love to have you everywhere!

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If you have any queries, drop in a comment and let me know or just speak up your thoughts in general!
Lots of love and stay warm and cocoa-d up this winter,
Nash!
PS- You can check my other quick and easy lip-smackers here!

Pretty Me Up//Gorgeous DIY Headband!

Today's DIY was straight out inspired by the beautiful headpiece Keira Knightley flaunted here and from the ramps of trendseters like Marc Jacobs and Anna Sui here n' here!

We impart the whole rich look that these designer wishlisters create by using velvet flowers and multifaceted gems gleaming in the middle. You can also use faux pearls bought from any craft store. The price I got mine for was a steal and I'm sure that you'll find some that you'd fancy too!
The only rule of the thumb is to make sure you remember the theme is royal and opulent, so choose your embellishments according to that in any color and make them come together in the look you think would be perfect. :) Good quality but economical is the phrase here baby!

1.Make sure you map out how many flowers you'd like to have on your headband. I used seven: One bang in the center and three each on the right and left.

2.Use a super-strong glue to adhere the flowers onto the headband because you don't want these fraying and falling off with time! I learnt the hard way to not put blobs directing using the glue nozzle even if i's a small one. Use a toothpick to handle the flowers to avoid having any tacky stray glue strings on them later!

3.Using the toothpick, attach the gems onto the center of each flower and...

Try different combinations! You can just do three on one side or use a velvet/satin ribbon instead of the headband.
TIPS, TIPS, TIPS!
If you wanna add more bling in there, on the base of the headband, first add a sparkly sequin trim in the same color as that of the petals and continue the rest of the steps.
If you are having a hard time finding roses, then just go to a decorations/gift store and grab one of those tiny rose bouquets used for decoration or gift toppers, separate them from the stems and use them instead.

If you like this post, please go ahead and share it with all your buds and pin it on!

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You can also subscribe to Craft A Doodle Doo and buddy me on Pinterest & Facebook for so many more glamorous DIYs...because if you're ready to whip up some ah-mazing clutches; the tuts are on soon!

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Additionally you can try making your own flowers(which obviously means you won't have to spend anything on the flowers!) shown in this post. Super easy!

Drop me a comment for any queries or just to speak your heart out and hope you have many marvelous things to look forward to this year :)



























Love, Nash

ps: have a glimpse of my other DIYs here and enjoy! :)

The Freebie Jubilee//DIY Secret Envelopes!

Warm hullo there! I'm posting up a quick idea for you folks here because bigger DIYs are churning up in the background which I'll be posting soon!
These itty bitty envelopes are perfect for housing lil rings, pendants or studs as gifts (or even some yum candy!)
The best part is they have secret, totally heartwarming (yes, that's not even a word, no judging this once please!) messages inside!

The set includes two printable envelope templates which you can print out (dimensions according to your preference). I've made the resolution good enough that even templates printed onto a complete A4 sized sheet should come out fine. :)
The set also includes tiny lil labels that you can either print out on an adhesive label sheet or print out on regular sheets and paste onto the sides of the envelopes. ^_^

The first secret message inside says "You just..awesomed...all over my heart" which you can tuck in the velvety red floral envelope..
and the second one says "You turn..plain into...poetry." which coordinates with the glittery gold gingham envelope!
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You can download the set here and give your special someone a dainty, sweet surprise!
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A quick tip: Get a circle punch and make fake confetti by punching through colored paper and fill in the envelopes for bonus quirk! Load 'em up with gummy bears and m n m's for some added fun!

To wrap up, secure a pretty coordinating ribbon around the envelope packages :)

These are the extended version of my Charm Bash free printable papers collection, so if you wanna grab that, go here!

For other pretty DIYs. hop over to the DIY gallery for tons more inspiration or for more gorgeous printables check out my freebie section!

You can also follow me on Pinterest and Facebook to get updated regularly and do pin this if you happen to like it!

Have a super week ahead,
Till next time, Nash =)

Cravings Ravings// Hot n' Spicy Chicken 65

When my mum announces (or rather the delicious aroma of curry leaves melding in with the tender chicken come wafting through the kitchen hinting) Chicken 65 for dinner, fireworks spill in my tum. If you've ever been one to love spicy Indian food, then this is so for you! Its an utterly famous dish in India, and there's a myriad theories for why it's called Chicken 65, but lets cut through the jazz and relish the pictures, shall we? =)

It's simple, quick and will switch your tastebuds to ignite mode, promise!
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Ingredients for the marinade : 1. Chicken fillet - 500 g 2. Egg - 1 3. Black pepper powder - 1 tsp 4. Red pepper powder - 1 tsp 5. Ginger & Garlic paste - 1/2 tsp 6. Red food color - a pinch or two to give an snazzy red color to the dish 7. Soya sauce - 1 tsp. 8. Vinegar - 1 tsp 9. Worcestershire sauce - 1 tsp. 10. Tomato sauce - 1 tsp. 11. All purpose flour - 3 tsp. 12. Cornflour - 3 tsp.

Ingredients for the sauce/gravy : 1. Yogurt - 1/2 cup 2. Soya sauce - 1tbsp. 3. Worcestershire sauce - 1 tsp. 4. Tomato sauce - 1 tsp. 5. Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp 6. Garam masala powder - 1/4 tsp (found in the Asian/Indian aisles at grocery stores) 7. Green chili sauce - 1/2 tsp 8. Green chilies - 5-6 (slit into 4, length-wise) 9. Curry leaves - 1 cup 10 . Ginger - 1 tbsp, finely chopped 11. Cooking oil - For frying

Method 1. Clean and dice the chicken to bite size pieces. 2. Mix all the marinade ingredients well. 3. Add the chicken pieces and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 4. Heat oil in a wok and fry chicken pieces in small batches till light golden color 5. Drain the chicken and transfer it to a plate. 6. In another wok, heat about 2-3 tablespoons of oil and add green chilies, curry leaves and saute for about 15 to 20 secs. 7. Remove them with a slotted spoon and keep aside in a plate. 8. Stir fry the chopped ginger in the same oil . 9. Then add coriander powder , garam masala powder , soya sauce, worcestershire sauce, tomato sauce , green chili sauce , yogurt and food color and saute till the yoghurt is no more raw and the oil separates, forming a thick gravy. 10. Add the fried chicken pieces to the sauce/gravy prepared above. 11. Add some of the green chilies and the curry leaves and keep aside some for garnishing 12. Cook on medium heat for few seconds till the chicken is coated well and the gravy is almost dry. 13. Garnish with crisp-fried curry leaves and green chilies and serve hot as a snack or as a side dish.

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And there you have it, finger-lickin' gratification!

I daresay the fried chicken chunks and crisp fried curry leaves-chilies make an envious couple, agreed?

We paired this up with some raita [(seasoned yogurt) to counteract the spiciness] and a gorgeous salad on the side.

How long overdue this recipe was, but i believe it's justified since I have a long tingling series of recipe lined up for ya' all!

Oh gosh, and it's been quite a while since I've eaten this and looking at those pictures is making it worse (wrong, looking at the pictures in MACRO)

I can say my mother made a very glad daughter out of me, thanks mum! :*

Okay, we're done here today (oh well, I'm done, you can still dream and ogle at the chicken ya' know!)

For more lip-smackers, join me on Pinterest/Facebook/become a subscriber!

And don't forget to pin this recipe to aid in your future cooking endeavors!

Lots of Love,

Nash

Inspiration Nation//Architecture Project Reveal!

Hello ya' all!

For those of you who know that I'm an Architecture Sophomore at college, you may as well be wondering why all that I ever post over here is floral, vintagey feminine DIYs, and freebies, and a few recipes now and then, beauty fixes even...but anything related to architecture? Nope......until, now. :)

This is my final model for the proposal of a French Consulate General. The site area is quite small really, but I wanted to make it iconic, here's the behind the scenes of how I did it.. *drumroll*

First, I made the very basic building design out of smokey grey-brown foamboard. The building isn't in itself complicated, but 1.5 meters away from it, it holds a beautiful aluminum cladding held in place by supports.

For the design of the intricate cladding which was inspired by the Eiffel Tower's cross-net pattern and the famous Arab 'mashrabiya' style, I went to a laser cutting lab with the vector images of the pattern drawn out. The laser cuts through mattboards...

And you get the above result, well not really, (since it was so detailed it couldn't cut all the way through, I had my craft knife come to the rescue!). 

A black acrylic undulating wave frame was then laser-cut and hot glued over the gold pattern.

The supports cut in the same black acrylic were then hot glued at the back,...

And voila!

Look at the beauty! Can we pretty please lemme brag here for a teeny second and lemme say I'm smitten by my own model??

New visitor to the consulate? Please allow me to walk you through the journey ^_^

You are first welcomed through a gate for the consular's main enterance, the secondary gate lies on the adjacent side.

Your left and right alley are laced with beautiful high-rise palm trees....

Upon entering, the same mesh canopy shade lies overhead, walking up the steps, you can see two refreshing water features cascading smooth glassy water jets at both the sides...

Lush green terrace gardens invite you for outdoor lounging lined with trees in full blossom....

A pyramidal skylight filters warm, sunlight into the mass to hint the perfectly blue sky..

Wherever required, my warrior acrylic supports keep my gorgeous cladding in place :)

The pretty woven web cladding filters through a beautiful play of shadows onto the walls and glass windows...

Do you think the building would make the consular and deputy glad?? :)

If the design of the building inspires you, do pin this project so that it clicks through another idea for you in the future!

Join me at Craft A Doodle Doo on Pinterest and Facebook fo' lots more fascinations or easier enough, become a wonderful subscriber! :)

Thank you so much for taking round a trip with me, I feel honored. =)

Lots of love,

Nash