DIY Natural Leather Belt Craft

As most of you know, I love crafting-- but here is a project that Lucas enjoyed crafting too ! Granted, most of his crafting is done on Diablo but this time we decided to be productive and make something useful :) Our project of choice was a natural leather belt !

I've been eyeing this really nice Tanner belt for a while ever since I retired my old leather belt, but it is just so expensive that I couldn't justify the purchase. 

So the next best thing was to make our own, at a fraction of the price ! We went to the nearby Tandy Leather Factory in Costa Mesa, which sells all sorts of leather goods, from full hides to straps, buckles, tools... even moccasins. The employees were really nice and helped us make sure we had everything we needed. 

So, if you wanted to make your own natural leather belt for much cheaper, read on :) 

Here are the materials you need:

- a belt blank (you can buy one with or without pre-punched rivets, we don't have any rivet-punching tools so we opted for a pre-punched one) 

- buckle of your choice

- a leather hole punch (unless you want to be super badass and use a hammer and nails?)

- a bottle of leather sealant (to make sure your belt lasts !)

First, you'll have to trim the belt blank to your waist size. The easiest way to do this is to use an existing belt that fits you well. Use scissors to cut off the excess, and then make sure it fits snug around your waist. 

Next, you'll have to find out where the holes go. This can be tricky if your existing belt isn't already a perfect fit. With the belt around your waist, pull the end tight and mark where the middle hole should be. 

The rotary leather punch is a really funny looking tool. We practiced putting holes in the excess strip that we cut off the end of the belt blank, just to get a feel of how it works before tackling the final product. Leather is really tough, and it sounds like you are crunching bones when you punch through it O_o 

watch out, I've got a scary looking hole punch

Anyways, so using the mark you made for the middle hole, mark two more holes on either side of it. This way, even if you get fat (or skinny) you're still covered. Then, punch away. 

Now it's time to put the buckle in ! This is what the buckle end of the belt blank looks like. 

shiny buckle !

Thread the belt through the buckle, and make sure the fastener goes through the little gap in the middle of the strap. 

Fold the strap over the buckle and snap the rivets together. 

To protect the leather from water and other possible damages, you need to seal it. This is the small bottle of sealant we bought from the store, it was around $6. 

Using a paper towel, generously wipe the sealant all over the belt. As the leather gets wet, it will turn darker, but it dries almost to its original, natural color. Make sure to seal the edges as well, but the back side does not need sealing. 

Wait about two to three hours between coats (we cooked dinner and watched an episode of Game of Thrones). 

Wait a day for the sealant to really settle in, and that's it ! Your natural leather belt is done :) The total cost of this project, for both of us, was around $50. That's around $25 per person! Way cheaper than $105...and much more satisfying !

The really neat thing about natural leather is that it will wear and tan due to sun exposure, natural oils, etc, so that over the years it will develop a much warmer look that is entirely unique to the wearer. This is why it's such a trend among the raw denim crowd. Since I just made this one, I don't have an 'after' pic to show you, but maybe I'll do an update post in a year or so.

I'm excited to see how mine will look in a year or two. I hope you found this helpful and that it might have inspired you to do some crafting on your own :)

DIY Haircut

Yesterday I tried something different that I've never done before: I gave myself a haircut !!!

I've been wanting to try this for a while, but I've always been too scared of messing it up beyond professional repair. However, after seeing great results from a few friends who snip their own locks, I decided that it was worth an attempt- if anything, my hair has gotten so long that even if I do mess it up terribly, it's still salvageable at a professional salon.

After watching a few YouTube videos, here is what I came up with !

a couple inches shorter and I feel so freeeee !

I think it's not too bad for a first attempt :) I have recorded my beginner hair cutting method here for my future reference, or for your general curiosity. Not being anywhere close to a real hairdresser, I realize there are probably a million errors in the method I chose to follow, so don't judge.

I split my hair into eight sections... imagine two perpendicular layers, each containing four quadrants. One layer is the crown, so you would see the four quadrants if you were standing above me, looking at the top of my head. The other layer is the back and is perpendicular to the first, so you would see the four quadrants if you were standing behind me, looking at the back of my head (I hope that made sense).

I don't like math but it's a good visualizer

I started with the back-of-the-head layer and worked from the bottom two (quadrants 3 and 4) to the top two (quadrants 1 and 2). I pulled 3 and 4 to the front (clipped the rest away), and then I combed the hair out with some water to keep lengths even. Using 2 inch shears, I held them at a downward 45-degree angle and just slid the scissors down the length of the hair, quickly opening and closing the shears a few times. I did this three or four times until I got a pretty layered diagonal, and then repeated with the opposite side.

For quadrants 1 and 2, I unclipped them one at a time and combed some water through the hair. Starting at a higher point than I had with the previous layer, I did the same downward angle with the scissors, making sure to stop where the shortest layers of 3 and 4 began, to get a seamless transition between the two.

Moving on to the crown layer, I pulled the top quadrants 3 and 4 (back of the head) way up above my head (like a troll doll) and tied it with a flat hairclip. Without using any water, I brought the ends of my hair right in front of my eyes. With the hair facing downward, I pointed the scissors upwards and snipped at the ends, trying to keep the cuts varied. Because I didn't have the shortest layer of the last two quadrants as a guide, I had to let this down and reclip it up a couple times before I got it right. Top quadrants 1 and 2 were pretty easy, I just held them straight above my head and snipped away.

This was a rough foundation for the haircut;  to polish it up, I ran my scissors through the layers on both sides to really smooth it out and make the angled layers more visible, and I also flipped all my hair upside down and snipped upwards that way as well to create more variation in lengths.

That's how I cut my own hair for the first time ! This is something I'm definitely going to be trying from now own... not only do I get to save money with this DIY, I have control over my length (I swear, "2 inches" must be hairdresser talk for "half a foot"), as well as how shaggy I want the layers to be. My hair has so much more movement now, and I'm happy with how it turned out !

happy customer :) 

Vocabulary Volume #8: Neurobiology Edition

I'm proofing a graduate research paper on neurobiology. The subject matter is way over my head (it's about brain things) so I'm only proofing for grammar, but nonetheless I've learned some interesting words in the process...



organotypic: tissue removed from the body that continues to grow and develop as if it were still inside the body

papain: protein dissolving enzyme found in unripe papaya and often used in commercial meat tenderizer

glia: the connective tissue of the nervous system

triturate: to grind into a fine powder

immunocytochemistry: microscopic techniques used for studying the immune system

puncta: a small, distinct point

lentivirus: a retrovirus that is characterized by a delayed onset of symptoms after the infection

intercalate: to insert something between fixed points or layers (pretty much means to sandwich something)

phalloidin: toxins from the death cap (mushroom) used for fluorescent imaging

TABLET

Arizona

I put an album up on my Facebook already, but I thought it would be nice to have a record of it here as well :) 

Last week, I went on a road trip to A R I Z O N A ! 

Lucas had an interview for the A.T. Still School of Medicine in Mesa, which is by Phoenix. Instead of leaving me alone on Valentine's Day to drive out there, we decided to go together and make a long-weekend trip out of it !

Being young and broke, we worked hard at keeping our expenses in check- in total, our budget trip only cost us a little over $150 per person- not bad for five days of adventure ! We pulled this off by booking the cheapest motel we could find near the university (evidenced by the fact that more than half of the electrical outlets weren't working, and that the walls were incredibly thin...), and eating peanut butter sandwiches and fruits for pretty much every meal of the day haha. Other than that, our trip was also made possible by our dear friends who helped us cut on costs by offering your homes and hospitality--

Thanks to Trent and Bonnie, for having us over for a very charming brunch at your cozy new apartment, and for making us delicious popcorn for the road ! It was great to see you two settled in and very much in love. You two have a great story, and are truly an inspiration for us !

Thanks to Claire, for being so excited about having visitors ! You really made us feel special, and I hope you are enjoying your boba package :D Thanks for being the best tour guide we could have, for bringing us to the Grand Canyon, letting us build a fort out of your couch, and showing us Flagstaff in a cup !

So now, here are some selected photos from the trip ! Arizona is absolutely beautiful. I always imagined it to be just like the western movies, or the scenery on the license plate. However, there is so much more ! While driving, we passed just about every possible type of natural landscape- desert, grassy plains, scrub lands, cactus forest, snowy plains, mountains, aspen forests...all were lovely scenery to drive through.

on the road !!

almost there...kind of

some mountains on the way to Phoenix

A.T. Still, where the interview was held

it's a nice campus !

Papago park in Tempe

Hiking up to the Hole in the Rock 

looking out at the city !

some normal southern Arizona scenery

a cactus forest ! never seen one of these before...

some shrubby cactus landscapes

and more driving... but suddenly, snow !

gotta take a stop to play in the snow ! unfortunately, I lost the snowball fight :( 

this was our little rental car, it served us well !

Flagstaff, here we come !

beautiful snowy mountains

visiting the Grand Canyon !!! truly amazing

never thought I'd see snow here

dear friends :)

the color palette was lovely

Native American tribute

Macy's ! The most hipster breakfast shop I've ever seen
  

heading back to LA...almost 500 miles !

passing through the San Bernardino Mountains

a gorgeous sunset to welcome us back to California :) 

Unreadable

Theodore Bay was a pretty normal dad. He had tortoiseshell spectacles, light blue button-downs, and a slightly balding spot on the dome of his head that he was constantly in denial of. He loved his wife and his two children, and liked going to local hockey games with his family. However, there was one major difference that set him apart from other fathers; one difference that, ironically, had unpredictable consequences.

Theodore Bay was a Reader.

Of course, like any Reader, his readings were dependent on the day-to-day course of events. Even the slightest changes led to dramatically different readings; a person's mood would certainly influence his or her decisions, then actions... which then influence other people's moods, decisions, and actions... in an ever-changing web of social and emotional dominoes.  

Alice Bay was a pretty normal teenager. She had scented hairspray, pink skinny jeans, and a few celebrity crushes that she was constantly in denial of. She loved her brother and her parents, and liked going on occasional camping trips with her family. However, there was one major difference that set her apart from other teenage girls.

Of course, your life would be pretty different too if your dad could read the future.

---

"Dad, I want you to meet Ryan," she said with a smile. "Ryan, this is my dad. I've told him lots about you!"

"She sure has," Theodore said with a firm scowl. Two seconds into meeting Ryan, he had been disappointed by his weak handshake and the bizarre skull tattoo he had obviously not even tried to conceal. Two minutes later, he had silently run a mental reading of the boy, and seen image after foggy image of a boy who was irresponsible, immature, and reckless with his little girl's teenage heart. Two hours later, he was sitting his daughter down- telling her, once again, that this boy was no good for her.

"But I don't understand, dad," she sighed, "how do you KNOW that he won't treat me right? You haven't even given him a chance."

"Sweetheart, you just have to trust me," he tapped the side of his head twice, right above his glasses.

"I know, I know..." Alice was exasperated. "Sometimes, I really wish you weren't able to do that."

"It's for your own good, love..." He kissed her on the forehead. "I'm just watching out for you."

---

Half a year later, Alice showed up for dinner with a new candidate in tow.

"Dad, meet Philip. Philip is in my History class, he's really smart!"

Philip took Mr. Bay's hand with an especially firm grasp. Satisfied, Theodore Bay relaxed his grip and motioned for Philip to take a seat at the dinner table.

"Wow, that chicken smells great, Mrs. Bay!" he exclaimed

"Why thank you, dear ! But...how did you know we were having chicken?"

"I... I can smell it ! My mom is a really great cook too." He said with a glowing smile. As the family sat around the table, ready to eat, Philip breathed a sigh of relief. A close call, he thought, but not close enough that her dad is on to me yet. He had heard stories about that cutie Alice Bay, and her overprotective dad who forbid anyone from so much as touching his precious daughter. These stories were not even close to scaring him though. This is because Philip actually knew what made Mr. Bay so intimidating. You see, Philip was a Reader himself, and he knew for a fact that the only futures Readers can't see... are those of other Readers.

Smugly, he laid the napkin across his lap and picked up his fork. He was determined to get with the girl that nobody else could touch, determined to take the challenge and add shy little Alice Bay to his growing list of female conquests. Knowing what her father would ask, he had already prepared a considerable bank of grossly exaggerated answers that would project the best possible image... an image that he hoped would be so stellar, that Mr. Bay would let down his guard.

"So, Philip," Mrs. Bay spoke up, "don't be shy, tell us a little about yourself!"

It's showtime, he thought. "Well Mrs. Bay,  as you know I'm in the advanced History class with Alice. I really like history, and in the future I'd really like to become a lawyer..."

DIY Many Moons Sweater

I love crafting with materials I already have on hand :)

A few days ago, I brought new life to a boring blue-gray sweater with some fabric paint ! I found this men's sweater at Goodwill for 6 dollars- it's by Banana Republic, and is made of 100% merino wool so it is quite warm and cozy.

Despite its coziness, I still thought it was a little bland, so to spice it up I began thinking of ways I could embellish it. I could sew on some lace, or elbow patches, or buttons...or I could paint a design onto it. I finally settled on painting the lunar phases :)

Before

After ! :)

 First I sketched out many moons on a sheet of thick card paper.(Many Moons is also the title of one of my favorite childhood books, by James Thurber.)  Using an Xacto blade, I cut out the shapes to make a stencil. I had a small bottle of white fabric paint left over from the DIY Garuda shirt project, so I just used a small paintbrush to dab spots of paint onto the shirt. Since the moon isn't really a fully white orb, I left some blank spots where the grayish-blue of the sweater could show through, thus making the craters and shadows.

here is a better picture

and a close-up of the design !

For those of you who are like me (I had to look this up online) and might be a little rusty with your lunar phases, they are as follows: young moon, waxing crescent, waxing quarter, waxing gibbous, and full; the second row is full, waning gibbous, waning quarter, waning crescent, and old moon.