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I don't consider myself an especially crafty person, but this weekend I have a few DIY and food projects to share with you. First of all, I have been on a serious hot chocolate kick lately. This recipe for homemade hot chocolate has turned me (someone who normally doesn't even like the stuff) into an addict. Here's the recipe:

32 oz Powdered Milk 6 oz Original Coffee Mate (powdered) 1 lb Nestle Quick 1 lb Powdered Sugar
Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl. Store in a plastic container or zip top bag. Scoop 1/3 cup into your mug, fill with water, stir and microwave until it's as hot as you want it. It makes quite a big batch so it will last awhile. It is also great for gift giving.

This recipe is wonderful on it's own. It is far and away the best hot chocolate I've ever had. But when you add homemade marshmallows to the party, it is over the top. The recipe we used for them is from Smitten Kitchen, and it is a little tricky but definitely doable. Once you have tried these, a regular jet-puffed marshmallow just won't cut it for you anymore. Dusty and I have been drinking a mug of this delicious hot chocolate with marshmallows every night. So good.

The second project I'll share with you is how I made my tulle skirt (worn here and here, and I'm not done!) I wasn't thinking of making a DIY post about this when we did it, so I don't have step by step photos. But so many people have asked how I made it so I wanted to fill you in.

So this was me at the tender age of 17 with my friend Nick at our junior prom. I wore a strapless ivory tulle dress with gold embroidery that I was absolutely in love with. Fast forward eight or nine years. (omg.) I saw an amazing tulle tutu skirt at Anthropologie and instantly coveted it and started styling it in my head. But I couldn't bring myself to pay so much for it. Then I flashed back to this dress, and I thought it might work. I have to give props to the amazing sewing skills of my mom, who I admit did most of the work on this. She also recently tailored this dress to fit me like a glove. Thanks Mom :)
So basically we cut the top of the dress off, leaving a few inches of the bodice for a waist band. It zips up the back and there was no way to work around that, so the zipper is still in it - we just cut right around it and I tuck it down into the skirt when I wear it. Then we cut off enough fabric from the bottom of the dress to hit below the knee, and hemmed the lining. We sewed a wide satin ribbon around the waistband to give it a finished look. It makes a cute bow in the back as an added bonus.

And that's about it. It obviously wasn't made completely from scratch so it won't be very easy to replicate, but if you ever had a dress with a tulle skirt that you don't mind cutting up, you could probably make your own the same way. I've heard there are also similar ones on Ebay and Etsy.

This weekend's blog love is all about Stephanie Lam of Lam in Louboutins. Her's was one of the first blogs I discovered when I started my own blog, and I've loved each post since.

Stephanie has a completely envy-inducing wardrobe filled with gorgeous high end items like her incredible hand bag collection mixed with lots of J.Crew and Zara. Her look is feminine, sophisticated, and often includes a healthy dose of glam. She's also super sweet and adorable. Click here to visit her blog, I know you'll love her too!
Thanks for reading! I'm going to take a few days off for Christmas. Enjoy your holidays, whatever you're celebrating!