Delightfully Inspired

Perfect Beach Waves for Straight Hair

May 13, 2013 By April Joy 2 Comments

So, the beachy wave is a hard thing to master for people with straight hair. No matter how much sprunching, diffusing, or moussing you do, it’s nearly impossible to keep that natural, piece-y wave longer than ten minutes. Luckily, I finally found THE best way to achieve the look in a cinch. I also found the best way for those who hate curling irons and hair products (at the bottom.)

Best Method

1. Pre-heat curling iron. The bigger the better, but my 1″ does just fine. Snag a bag of ice, ice pack, or something nice and cold (hello Diet coke!) This is optional, but if your hands run warmer, you’ll get better results working with them when they’re chilly.

2. Towel dry hair, and apply a volumizing product from root to tip. Usually, I just do my roots with Matrix Total Results Wonder Boost. (Clearance at Target. Complete stroke of luck that it’s the best one I’ve ever used.) But a simple homemade salt spray would do just fine to add texture as well.

2. Don’t brush or comb hair. If you’re in a hurry, blow dry it on HIGH heat, but low speed. The higher the speed, the straighter your hair will be.

I flip my hair upside down for extra volume. You’ll need to separate your hair with your fingers to make sure everything gets nice and dry! I usually throw my damp hair in a bun while doing my makeup. This let’s my hair air dry naturally a little before taking the blow dryer to it.

3. Separate hair into 4-6 rough equal sections. I’m too lazy to fasten them each with a clip for this style, but if your hair is particularly unruly – go for it.

4. Wrap each section (these are BIG sections!) around the curling iron WITHOUT clamping it. Leave the roots and tips out of the picture, and focus on the shaft. (Heh.) The focus here isn’t to get the perfect curl – it’s to make the hair nice and HOT!

5. Unwrap the hair from the iron. The big section of hair should have made a pitiful looking wave instead of a curl. PERFECT!

6. MOST IMPORTANT STEP: Put your hand on the ice pack for a moment, then make a “claw” with your fingers and SCRUNCH that hot section of hair up close to your scalp. Don’t make a tight fist, just touch your fingers to your head like you’re making a “cage” around the hair. Give it a few tight scrunches and really get that heat out with your cold fingers. Removing the heat from the hair is what makes this style last!

7. Repeat this step for the other sections of hair, then finish with hairspray. I always lift sections of hair and get that texture under each layer.

Seriously, this style takes me 10-15 minutes tops. No curling 20 little bits of hair, spraying them furiously with intoxicating goo, only to have them fall out later.

Au-Naturale Method

Towel-dry hair WELL, squeezing as much water out as possible. Don’t brush or comb. Replace all the products with a little home made salt water. Twist hair and form a bun on the top of your head, then secure with a hair tie. A nice 45 minute bike ride in 80 degree weather will set this up nicely, but a high heat, low speed hair dryer will do the trick too. Then cool everything off and ensure your hair is dry. This method is a little less predictable, but works too!

The most important trick is taking your hair from the super HOT state to the COLD state. The greater the temperature difference, the more receptive the hair will be!

Filed Under: Blog

Confessions

May 9, 2013 By April Joy 1 Comment

My good friend and I were chatting last night, and she asked about the May Blogging Challenge and why I haven’t blogged yet. I confessed that I have to spread my 3 blog posts per week among all my blogs/websites (which means only one post per week on each), or we’d have to add at least 6 more hours to each day… so if you’re wondering why I’m not participating in my OWN challenge…have no fear. I’m just a big cheater. :)

Anyway, the idea behind this challenge is to GROW your blog. So I’ve been thinking about cool recipes I could share, neat tips that are pin-worthy, sharing all my bobby pin storage ideas… Then it occurred to me that the only place I share my life is on Facebook and Instagram. Montages of me giving “thumbs up” in every photo and a billion dog pictures don’t exactly shed any insight on where I am, so I’m going to try and give my life a quick once-over here. In the form of confessions. Because that’s just more fun.

I ran a half-marathon two weeks ago! …and haven’t run since.

<—-This picture was taken at the top of the summit, after running 8 miles uphill. That look is a mixture of pain and camera-awareness.

I go for bike rides now, but running? No way. My legs are tired, my knees still hurt, and my toenails are STILL the most sore part of my body! I know, I know…I need to get back on the wagon.

My office turned into the laundry room.

For several weeks a pile of clean laundry (a very, very large pile) has been on my desk. I’ve been exiled to the couch because I can’t muster the courage to spend the hours folding…despite the fact that it’s my favorite chore. (Seriously.) But I purposefully planned an anniversary party in 10 days so that cleaning would be inevitable. That said, the kitchen has been outstanding for weeks. Maybe we can shift our energy to the garage next. Baby steps here.

I stopped thinking about getting pregnant.

For the past 6 years, it was at the forefront of my mind. I still think about it every now and then, but honestly – everyone else is thinking about me getting pregnant more than I am! To clarify though, it’s not because we’re done trying. The hubby will be undergoing a pretty serious surgery this month, and we’re waiting until he’s done healing to start up again. Then we’ll be pursuing an IUI right out of the gate. So for the first time in years – it’s kind of nice to just…not worry about it. People always say that’s when it happens – but I 100% guarantee that it won’t…unless the twinkle in his eye can magically float over to my fallopian tube during his recovery. ;)

To be honest, there’s no shortage of little baby girls in my life right now – and handing them back to their mothers when they poop is the greatest.

I am still driving a gas-guzzling pickup.

Since totaling my car, we’re still stuck with this big blue beast while deciding on a new ride. While environmentally hazardous, watching me dismount the driver’s seat certainly is entertaining.

I’m in the midst of following through with over-ambition.

I’m writing blog posts, e-books, recording workshop videos, getting drafts done, coding websites, and basically haven’t moved from my seat but once a day to get in a little exercise and make meals. I’m sure it will all be worth it once I’m done, and staying on schedule is seriously nice. I suppose it’s time to make up for the weeks spent running miles and miles each week to prepare for the race. Maybe I should Google ‘consistency’?

I haven’t scooped the cat litter in almost 2 years.

Try not to picture a heaping mound of cat crap in my house, because my husband does it religiously. Since he does it so often, I don’t even consider it part of my routine or even THINK about it. Then the other day we both realized I haven’t done it a single time since moving to the new house and I wanted to crawl into a hole a die.

Teaching online is harder than I thought.

I teach online classes, and the entire dynamic has changed since I first started a few years ago. In all fairness, I was the one who changed it and actually think this method works MUCH better because students can study on their own time. This means procrastination and technical difficulties can absolutely NOT get in the way, because all the materials have to be available immediately to download. Today I re-recorded a video 5 times and just about cried on the sixth (and successful) attempt. The term ‘learning curve’ is both incredibly accurate and ironic.

and on a positive note….

My husband and I are becoming business partners.

Locally, there’s little in the way of savvy social media experts or web designers. So we’ve decided to join forces and bring the expertise offered internationally to a local level, and really help our community. There are several ad agencies that focus on TV, radio, etc…. but having a company that focuses on new media only, along with excellent design, and a dramatically different style than anything I’ve done in the past is something I’ve wanted to do for awhile. Looking forward to moving up in the world!

I’ve never been so happy to never be lonely.

I value my quiet time, but probably the absolute best thing going on in my life right now is that we’re just minutes away from both our families and friends. Getting everyone together means the house is always packed with bustling kids, adults laughing at inappropriate jokes, salsa, spirits, fighting, religious debates, snuggling babies, running, etc… together.

I do miss these two though. They’re my little brother’s children. How he produced something this adorable…I will never know. Starting a “move to Idaho” fun soon. :)

And that’s where I am! I promise, at some point I’ll share my tips on bobby pin storage.

Filed Under: Blog, May Blogging Challenge

May Blogging Challenge!

April 29, 2013 By April Joy 2 Comments

Holy crap, I haven’t blogged since the dark ages.

I’m not kidding when I say I have OVER 10 posts sitting in my dashboard marked as “drafts.” I’ve started blog posts about trying for a baby again, how social media is ruining blogging, how much time I spend designing, how much I Instagram and Facebook… but never actually hit “publish” on any of them. So this month I’m not only participating in, but HOSTING a blogging challenge to help me get out of this drought! (Ok, and honestly I’d love to have a nice convenient linky of incredible blogs to refer to and interact with the whole time. All this Feedburner, Google Reader, and other nonsense is making it complicated to want to keep up on my favorite blogs.)

The Blog Designer Network and Creative Girl Media (along with this fancy personal blog of mine) are all hosting this challenge that will help bloggers from ALL genres get back in their blogging groove! Head over to the BDN because there are actually PRIZES for people who participate! SQUEE! (Fine. I can’t win. Whatever.)

That said, I have tons of ideas for blog posts that I now have an excuse to hit “publish” on! Pin the image below to your fave Pinterest board, then enter your blog in the linky below! It’s super easy – just post at least three times per week during the month of May. There will be more details on the BDN, along with tips too!

Filed Under: Blog

Why We Switched to a Whole Foods, Plant-Based Diet

September 13, 2012 By April Joy 10 Comments

(I’ll wait while you sit down.)

Two weeks ago, my husband and I decided to adopt a whole foods, plant based diet. Which means no meat or dairy, and mainly whole vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and fruit. Lately, the documentation and publicity has been absolutely running rampant, so we decided to research it for ourselves. I use the term “research” loosely, meaning that we watch a bunch of documentaries and Googled our way to a conclusion that we’ve always sort of known.

Being able to eat food like this, I don’t think I’ll ever eat meat again! This is Mediterranean quinoa and carrot ginger soup from 3 Girls Gourmet in Boise, Idaho. Amazing.

Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

We saw the documentary Forks Over Knives, which is a very convincing take on why eating mostly plants can literally reverse aging and lead to a longer life. After watching a few more documentaries including Food Inc., reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and even Skinny Bitch, we decided that eating meat and dairy wasn’t for us. Not only that, but as we get used to this diet, we plan to keep our food choices local, in season, and sustainable.

My husband has had four heart attacks, and currently has heart disease and a very long list of other things wrong with him that won’t benefit from a steak and eggs diet. Luckily, he LOVES tofu, and is completely on board. He actually looks like he has lost 20lbs!

The first week I didn’t have meat, dairy, eggs, butter – or any other animal products. The second week I made it without meat, but did eat some dairy because we were traveling. I felt GREAT and my skin was honestly what looked the best. However, I did get physically hungry…a LOT. In fact, I just ate a vegan Indian dinner, and my stomach is growling. I feel like I could eat a plate of chicken nachos! Aside from the fact that it would upset my stomach horribly, I also read that it takes some getting used to. So I’m willing to keep at it.

If you’ve ever been even remotely curious about how eating plants can help you live longer, JUST DO IT. You’ll never feed your child a Twinkie again. Nor will you fill their sugar-laden cereal bowls with cow’s milk. (Seriously, think about the fact that we grow up on the milk of a completely different species. It’s weird.) I’m sure that at some point I will have some meat or dairy again, just like anyone does when they try to eliminate foods they love from their diet. But honestly, if we can eat 90% healthy, and only 10% indulgences…imagine how much healthier we will ALL be!

Filed Under: Blog, food

Giving My Business a Little Makeover

August 13, 2012 By April Joy 11 Comments

First, allow me to express how much I suck for not posting in a few weeks. Okay, it has been a month (since a REAL post anyway.) Time flies, blah blah blah. I’m busy, blah blah blah. I have to entertain at THAT adorable, clingy, attention whore (left). You get the idea. The last few weeks I’ve focused on getting extremely organized, getting my office and house in order, and launching the services at my other site. Now that things have settled down, I can post some of the awesome stuff I’ve been dying to share with you!

So, I always new I wanted to be an entrepreneur. Being my own boss, doing my own promotions, coming up with business ideas….it’s all something I’m ~~moderately~~ completely obsessed with. I’ve been a blog designer for four years, 2 of which have been spent working at it full time. Over 800 designs later, there have definitely been some lessons learned. There are times when my downfalls get the best of me… trying to do too many things at once and trying to stay organized are the biggest two. So for the last few weeks I have focused on organizing my websites, my office, and my life!

My office is finally FINISHED! Woot! The amazing Kallie over at Smitten By took my random thoughts and was able to send me interior decor that was completely unique and out of the realm of my normal comfort zone. The main colors are light blue, red, and pink…which I never would have thought about putting together. But they look absolutely astounding together! Plus, the amazing pillow covers are a variety of textures and patterns that would have never come to my mind. I suppose this is why I’m a web designer, and not an interior designer, right? I would say that redecorating an office really doesn’t have anything to do with getting organized or building your business, because…well..throw pillow are only good for looking at and sleeping. BUT, I can firmly attest to the fact that having a pretty office has made me feel more organized and creative. It’s true.

Here are the materials included in my office makeover: 6 total canvas prints, 4 pinwheels, 3 paper lanterns, 2 sheer curtains, 1 nine compartment shelving unit with two matching canvas totes, 2 geometric frames, 7 pillowcases with 3 matching sets and a smaller detailed flower case (I bought the pillow to stuff in the cases at savers), a few pink galvanized buckets, and one large refurbished table. The perfect office chair and rug will come soon…haven’t found them yet.

office makeover pictures!

(Click any image for a full view.)

Feel free to easily share any pictures in this post on Pinterest!

Nevermind my “bucket” coaster, I hadn’t yet made my coasters…which you will find at the bottom of this post.

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Now, On to my next topic . . .

I’ve also been organizing my business much more efficiently, and saw people tweeting about their new Erin Condren planners. Well, just one click and I fell in LOVE with everything Erin offers. So I ordered my planner, and just a few LONG, grueling weeks later (or so it seemed) it arrived in the mail! I haven’t been that excited for something in a long time, but when it involves blank paper, pretty stationary, and anything that smells like print…well…let’s just say I’m the weird girl who likes to sniff magazines and books more than read them. Hopefully I will use this planner more than sniff it.

The planner was smaller than I anticipated, which is actually a welcome surprise. The cover is laminated with thick plastic, and the interior pages are printed with pretty colors, patterns, and a variety of quotes. The planner lies flat on the table, which is definitely a must, and I personally ordered the pen holder…which was a fantastic purchase. The pen doesn’t stick out on the side of the planner, but rather is nice and “tucked” into the side for easy carrying. I also ordered the notepads, which at $18 for two of them aren’t really cheap. BUT – I use them almost more than the planner itself, so those were also a great buy.

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As if that weren’t enough, I was even inspired by the darn box the planner came in, and after weeks of desperately needing coasters for my rustic raw wood desk, I finally just made some!

the final makeover

Creative Girl Media is my new design baby, and I finally opened up my services area to take on new clients. I had a vision for the design, and luckily it was pretty simple and clean so it didn’t take long to finish. It’s also a responsive layout, so if you re-size your browser window you can see how it will fit within the constraints of any device!