DIY: Simple Monogram Door Decor

Hello everyone,

This past weekend I took a trip to Michaels, which of course can be dangerous. They have so much cute home decor there that you can do yourself or that is already ready to use. Since Madi was in Washington D.C. with the basketball team he helps coach, I spent Saturday night catching up on TV and crafting! I was inspired by a few spring/summer door decor items on Pinterest, and here is what I came up with for our front door!

What you'll need:
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun and sticks
- Burlap or thick ribbon
- Wooden letter
- Sponge brush
- Your choice color of paint

First I made the burlap bow. I found this adorable lace lined burlap at Michaels, normally $5 but was on sale 80% off! I got eight feet of this adorable burlap for $1!

Step One: Cut the burlap and make a loop as shown below.

Step Two: Next cut another flat loop

Step Three: Cut a long strip of the burlap down the middle, almost all the way to the top and add that to the back of the bow. This is what your wooden letter will hang on.

Step Four: Pinch the two at the middle and tie a small loop of burlap or string tightly around to make the bow shape come together.

Step Five: Cut another strip of burlap to put around the string.

Step Six: Next step is to paint your wooden letter whatever color you want. I've seen some people do designs on it like chevron or paisley, but I wanted mine plain and simple. Let your letter dry, then attach to the long tails with hot glue. Hold tight to ensure a good seal.

Step Seven: Glue a loop on the back of everything for your door decor to hang on your wreath hanger.

TIP: You can add more tails to your bow if you want, or more loops, whatever you think looks best, but make sure you look at it first before you glue to be sure you like it!

So what do you think? You can make it more fancy, more colorful, use different ribbons, etc. There is a good variety! This is an inexpensive project, I spent less than $10 total since I already had everything at home except the burlap, letter, paint, and sponge brush. Michaels 50% off and 40% off coupons are the bomb.com.

Thanks for keeping up with me,
- Olivia :)

#BookWorm: The Girl on the Train

Hello fellow readers,

Ahh! The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins was my most recent read. Wow guys, so so good. I am all about mystery/thrilling books, and to be honest, I am pretty picky with them. This one is great. Best thriller I have read since I read Dear Daughter last year. If you haven't already heard about this book, or about the movie that is coming out in October, here is what it's about. Rachel rides the train from her little town to London for work every day. Same train, same route. She passes by a house on that route every day, which also happens to be at a spot where the train stops. She starts to watch the people that live in the house near the stop and imagine what their lives are like. One day she sees something that will change her life forever. Come to find out, she is more involved with what she sees than she realizes.

Like I said before, this book is great. It draws you in and kept my attention. Definitely made me want to read it quickly to find out what happens. I started it Sunday night and finished it Friday night, while working all 5 days. All in all, it probably took me a total of eight dedicated hours to finish it. I saw some people comment  that the book was "predictable". If you were able to predict the ending of this book in the first chapter, bravo, you should sign up to work for the FBI. I did not find it easy to predict, where some others I do. I think the fact that I couldn't predict the ending or what happened made me like the book even more. Overall rating? 9/10. Worth the read for sure.

Watching the trailer for the movie, I am very excited to see this film when it comes out in October. I love Emily Blunt, and although some have said she doesn't fit the physical appearance described for Rachel in the book, I really think that she will play her part well. Has anyone else read this book? Or seen the trailer for the movie? What are your thoughts? Be cautious, there is another movie with the same name that came out a few years ago, definitely not the same book or plot. In other news, I stopped at the library and picked up a new stack of books that I am looking forward to starting this weekend while I have some free time. Let me know what else you have read that you recommend for me to read! My list is once again dwindling down.

Thanks for reading with me,
- Olivia :)

#BookWorm: The Lovely Bones

Hello fellow readers,

Happy May! This weekend I finished reading The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. Oy. This book. So I remember when the movie came out in 2009. I was in high school and a few people in my grade read it and went to see the movie. The cast was pretty good: Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, and Susan Sarandon to name a few stars involved. I put it on my list to read and then see, but time got away from me and I totally forgot about it. That is, until I ran upon the book in Edward McKays in Raleigh this year. So I gave it a whirl.

This book's premise is about a little girl Susie Salmon who was murdered and is now up in her heaven watching the mystery of her death unfold below her on earth. Only a few pages into this book you know who murdered her, her neighbor, and you know how he did it. The rest of the book is spent going back and forth between past and present happenings of Susie and her family's life. The first half of this book, great! Captured my attention. After that it got a little long winded. And the end was super anti-climactic. Not the worst book ever, but not that great either. It took me weeks to finish the second half because I would fall asleep after about ten pages each night. The struggle was real guys. As usual I am curious to see the movie and compare the two. Maybe they will leave out some of the odd parts towards the end. Rating overall? 6.5/10. It was just ehh. Don't understand how it was a national bestseller.

Next up on my list is The Girl On the Train by Paula Hawkins, which will be coming to theaters in October. Emily Blunt plays the main character, which makes me want to go see it even more because she rocks. So have you read or seen The Lovely Bones? What did you think? Is the movie worth watching?

Thanks for reading with me,
- Olivia :)