DIY Crafts – Chevron End Table

My sister has shared her love for chevron print with me and with my new found love for chevron I decided to paint some end tables I had. I'm moving to a new apartment at the end of the week and wanted to change up my decor a bit. Right now my decor is basically free things my siblings and friends have given me, but I wanted my new place's vibe to actually be planned. So I thought why not try out chevron.

I had two old Ikea tables that a former boss gave me. Some of the paint was chipping away so I decided to scrape the paint. BAD IDEA! My dad later let me know that you shouldn't scrape paint off compressed wood, but instead use a chemical paint remover. OOPS!

I bought a few cans of white spray paint that had primer mixed in. The primer mix is really important. I also bought a dual spray paint that was black + primer. And don't forget your painters tape.

I sprayed the top and the edges white first. That took a lot of coats to make it even. [I didn't take a picture because I forgot sorry.]

After the white paint was dried I taped off the chevron design with painters tape. My first table came out better because I went over the tape with a card making sure the tape was really sealed. I didn't want any of the black paint getting under the tape. So I strongly suggest doing this because it will suck if you find out the tape wasn't pressed and sealed perfectly. Trust me!

I then sprayed over it with my dual black + primer spray paint. I decided to spray the edges black because I like black better. It's my personal preference so it is up to you.

After the black was dried I pealed off the tape and voila my table is now chevron print. I did have to go back over with a small paint brush and touch up a few places where the tape was covering part of the edges. But I thought it turned out pretty great.

My sister said the legs needed to be white and my dad said they should be black. Basically the legs needed to be one of the two colors and not a third color. I decided black because my new sofa would be white and I didn't want too much white. Also I just like black better.

So when I painted my second table I sprayed the legs black when I was spraying over the tape. And this is why I said earlier to make sure the tape is sealed, because I didn't with this second table and I wasn't as happy with the results. The black paint spread under the tape and when I took it off I was very annoyed. I had to go over almost all of it with a paint brush! The lines didn't come out as sharp as the first one. I did however like the legs painted. But basically if I get really bored and have the time I might just redo it if I decide to keep these end tables for a while longer.

The last step I did was seal the paint. Once they had dried for a good time I used mod podge. I use mod podge for everything, and I didn't feel like going to the store for something else. My little brother works with wood and he said it would be fine. Now the stores also have a sealer for wood if you want that instead. But I just wanted something that wouldn't make the paint chip and would keep it from peeling. But the more official stuff would probably be better and last longer. Think about if people put cups on the surface and what not.

I bought all my stuff from Walmart because it made it easier than going to different stores. And I like that at Walmart the spray paint is right there, but other stores have it behind a locked glass case and I can never find a worker to open it for me.

I like my tables and for my first big paint project all by myself I think they turned out great. Not to mention I can say I made them and even if someone else makes some too, mine are one of a kind. Share your own photos if you have and chevron projects or if you have tips to make them better!

Happy crafting!

DIY Crafts - Necklace Board

I finished another of this past weekend's crafts! I woke up and was watching the HGTV channel. That channel is dangerous because there are so many good shows! During one of the commercials I saw this idea. [Also check out the DIY Network.]

It was on the show where the lady redesigns closets and she hung knobs on the wall. I am currently moving every year so I can't really put that much work into permanent things. I previously hung adhesive hooks on the wall to hold my necklaces but I wanted something a little more cute.

So I decided to use the knob ideas in a sense that would be easy to move when I move!

I had an old cork board that I was ready to do something crafty with and it worked out great.

Painted board

Things you'll need:
• Cork board
• Paint
• Mod Podge
• Felt or fabric
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Decorative drawer knobs
• Flat tacks
• Optional: extra decorations

Paints I mixed

Step 1: I painted the old cork board by mixing paints to create a color I liked.

Knobs

Knobs after screw removed

 





 Step 2: While I was waiting for the paint to dry, I decided to work on the knobs. [I bought them on sale from Hobby Lobby.] I needed to take the screw part off. It was harder than it looked but my friend made me look weak and just basically unscrewed the knob from the stem screw with pliers.

Tack added to knob

Step 3: I hot glued the flat tacks to the end of the knob. [I chose hot glue because it was what I had but I would guess it could be done with super glue too.]

I wanted to tack the knobs onto the board so I could rearrange them and it felt like a stronger hold. I hot glued one but it doesn't hold up the same weight and it could be because of the fabric or type of glue. Tacking or gluing the knobs is up to you.

Step 4: Now I went back and added Mod Podge over the paint. [It can be found where ever craft supplies are sold.]

Broken board

Step 5: I used felt sheets I bought from Michael's. You could use fabric as well. I wanted to cover the board because it was old and there were cracks in the cork. I cut the felt to how it would fit on the board.

Felted board

Arranging felt on board

Step 6: I hot glued the felt onto the board. [You could staple it but I didn't want the staples to be visible.]

Arranging knobs

 Step 7: I then stuck the new tack knobs on the board how I liked them. (After trying to hot glue one of them.)

Step 8: And I decorated the border of the board with jewels and flowers that I had on hand.

You could add a border on the cork part or the wood part. Decorating it is strictly up to you.



Step 9: Add your necklaces and enjoy. Hang the new board up in your closet or where ever you prefer.

Finished board :)

[Buy extra knobs because when we were taking the screw stem off one broke. And you may need more than you think. I need to go back and buy more since I have a lot of necklaces.]

You can hang a lot of necklaces on one knob or just a few. It depends on how many you have and how visible you want them. The bigger the board the more space you have! This was really simple and would make for a great gift!

Share this with your friends and post yours if you try it! Enjoy!

DIY Crafts - Earring Holder

Over the weekend I wanted to get a jump start on my summer craft to do list. I stupidly decided to start three different crafts and finished one. [I always have next weekend.]

I had an old earring hanger that my mom made me years ago. It hung on a hanger and the fabric was ugly no longer my style. Thanks to Pinterest I saw something like this and wanted to try it.

This is what you will need:
• Open wood frame (or frame of preference)
• burlap (color of your choice)
• Starch spray (I used Faultless brand 'Heavy')
• Hot glue gun and glue
• Paint (I used a light color and then a crackle overlay)
• Paint brushes

Original white frame

Step 1: I cut the burlap based upon sizing it to the back of the frame. [I bought the burlap and frame from Hobby Lobby.]

Step 2: I sprayed the burlap with the starch spray. I sprayed the burlap over newspapers. [I bought the starch spray from a dollar general store, but it can be found anywhere you buy laundry detergents.]

Painted frame

Step 3: I painted the frame with the light buttermilk paint. The frame was originally a bright white color and I wanted it to be a little more rustic. [I bought the paint from Michael's.] I painted a few coats so that the color was more pronounced.

Paints

Crackle

Step 4: I then used the crackle paint and painted it on over the color coat. [I don't think I did it right because it isn't the most crackled but I like it that way. You can buy spray paint cans that have a stone or crackle effects.]

Step 5: Once the paint was dry, I hot glued the starched burlap to the back of the frame. [You could do this with staples but I didn't have a staple gun.] Pull tight on the burlap when gluing it down so that it is stronger. [The starch should have made it stiffer as well.] The stronger it is the better it will hold the earrings' weight.

Step 6: I then hung my earrings up and realized I have a lot! I need a bigger frame. :)

Finished project!

You can lean it up against a wall or hang it with ribbon or like a normal picture frame.

Hope you like it! My friend also did it with window screen instead of burlap. Share your ideas and if you try it! Enjoy!

DIY - Easy, Messy, Fun Summer Hair

I'm taking a May-mester this summer and as you can guess it is really hot in the best state in America. I have naturally long curly hair with layers, needless to say that sometimes it is hard to do anything with it. I can either do frizzy curls or frizzy attempted straight.

I like to wear my hair in fun ways that will stay the whole day so I don't have to keep messing with it. As a kid I loved pigtails, but now as a young adult I don't want to look too young with normal pigtails and just normal braids can get boring. [I don't know how to french braid on myself.]

I found this hair style in Seventeen Magazine that was so cute and wanted to try it and share it with others. Mine did come out different than the magazine but still cute! [Just goes to show that the magazine suggested styles are done by professionals.] Mine is an easy DIY style.

I personally prefer to have my hair straightened [not perfectly] but not curly. It makes it less tangled and easier to deal with because of the layers.

1. Split your hair in two as if you were going to secure the hair in regular pigtails. [Don't worry about the part having to be perfect. This should be a fun style and it isn't the 90s so no one cares about the perfect part.]

2. Secure one tail so you can work on the other tail.

3. Split one tail into two equal parts.








 4. Tie the two strands in a knot. [Like you would tie a shoelace knot.] Make sure you pull tight.

 








5. Repeat Step 4 until your preferable length is all tied into knots.

6. Secure the pigtail at the end of the knots with an elastic band. [I like to use the clear ones that can be found at Target.]
{How much hair you leave left over at the end is up to you.}

7. Repeat Steps 3-6 for the other tail. [You can see that the unknotted tail is much longer than the tail with knots. This is how mine is different than the magazine's.]





Now that both tails are knotted up and cute, you are ready for the day. I received so many compliments on them today at school and now am ready to go chill at the pool not having to worry about redoing and redoing my hair.

You can dress this hair style up with any cute hat. I like to get my hats from Forever 21. {Really fun part is that since it makes my hair look shorter more people notice and freak out wondering if I cut it. I love that I can have super long hair but do styles that make it look short.}

Enjoy! Share your pictures if you try it!

My World Of PR - Blog 15

    So after talking with a fellow classmate about how our perceptions of public relations have changed and about what his plans are for after college it made me think I like his idea about sharing them with the world in a sense of advice. Take it or leave it. Advice and opinions should always be taken with a grain of salt.

    Three years ago when I first entered college and chose my major I was so excited about public relations because the academic advisors made it sound like so much fun. I’m a people person. They said this would be great since I love organizing, planning and dealing with people. Well who would have thought three years later I would be changing my focus all together. Is it public relations’ fault or mine? There is no fault in this situation. People change over time and teachers change perceptions. Throughout my experience teachers in my degree never could understand why I was in journalism since I am letter dyslexic and spelling is not my strong point. I’m what journalist would say is an oxymoron. I can’t spell but I’m crazy good at math. And how did I end up in journalism?

    At 18-years-old I thought I loved it. Funny how the advice I was given about boys can be held true about picking a major. At 18 you don’t know what you love. Well I loved writing and people. But just because I loved it didn’t mean I was very good at it in the world of PR. If everyone was meant to do PR then what would be the purpose of getting a degree in it? There would be no purpose. Sadly for me I found out three years late and one semester short of graduation. No matter how hard I tried PR and I grew a part.

    I still love to write. I hope one day I can write and speak to young adults and share my story so that it may help them. My personal life story and academic story is one for the books for sure. But I can’t say that having chosen something else three years ago would have been best for me. How else would I have learned what I am meant to do? I wouldn’t have. I now know what I should be doing.

    I want to go into higher education and student affairs administration. I realized that through all the hard times in school, I could always lean on my campus involvement to lift my spirits. At UNT we have amazing faculty in student affairs administration that were always there to be a friend or a parent when I needed one. I learned that I wanted to do that for other students like myself in the future. So what does this have to do with PR? Everything.

    Yes, PR is about press releases, media lists, communication plans and so much more. But it is about human activity and word-of-mouth. I see PR as a form of interacting with people. That was what I was looking for since the very beginning. Maybe I was just looking in the wrong place for my people connection. The way I see it is that PR has prepared me for knowing how to communicate with people and spread a positive image to the future students that I will interact with. I am very thankful for my time, the good and the bad. Without any of it I wouldn’t know where to go from here.

    I hope anyone reading this will feel lifted in the thought that everything happens for a reason. And my big piece of PR advice: PR is nothing like it is portrayed on Sex and the City.

    Happy summer.

UNT and the Class of 2026 - Blog 14

    Courtney Wright is a second grade teacher at Uplift Education. On Thursday, April 26, 2012 her second grade class and another took a field trip to UNT. Courtney is a UNT and NT40 alumni and asked current NT40 members to help put together a tour for her students. Administration and Athletics jumped on board and thought this idea to get the elementary kids excited about UNT was the best thing.

    The second grade tour started with a full fledged tour of Apogee Stadium lead by NT40 members and Paul Batchelder, Senior Associate AD, Marketing. The students we led through the tunnels underneath the stadium and met some of the players that were there training. Next, they were taken up to the 5th floor to overlook the stadium at the highest point on the balcony. They were given a tour of the President’s Suite and the club level as well. They were so excited to see how the rooms transformed in order to host a press conference.


    The students were then taken to the main entry level of the stadium stands and were walking to the field when they spotted UNT’s beloved mascot, Scrappy the eagle. The second grade students took off running toward Scrappy hugging and jumping all over him. The alumni, current students and faculty in attendance fell silent with a proud smile on their face when the chorus of the song made it to them. The second graders were singing the UNT fight song with all their might and the UNT spirit was strong in them. 


    “Visiting UNT with my kids was so much fun. Watching them run to Scrappy while screaming the fight song, having a picnic on the football field and a shopping spree in the bookstore all made this an amazing day. Or as one of my kids said, ‘Today was the best day of my life.’ Love the Mean Green and my Mean Green class of 2026” said Courtney Wright.

    The second graders were able to have a picnic on the field with Scrappy and some of the athletic staff. They then were shown around the main campus and were able to see a real college classroom. The students were beyond thrilled and hyper to get to the bookstore and have their parents buy UNT swag for them. 

    “We should do this with all of our alums that are teachers,” said Paul Batchelder. “If we can get the kids out there growing up loving UNT then we would be in far better shape. These kids that live around here should grow up with the spirit of UNT and not the other Texas schools such as UT.”

    The tour was from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm on Thursday and took administration and athletics three weeks to prepare everything. This was the best example of PR that I have seen from UNT. It is not enough to just rely on the current students to tell their friends about UNT but for them to take the time and reach out to the surrounding schools was smart. And as Paul said, it is important to start them young so that they grow up loving UNT and when it comes time to apply they apply here at the school they grew up cheering for.

College Students Use of Promotions - Blog 13

    I was looking around a lot this week to see how college students perceive public relations. I was curious to know what most people know about it and think about it. This was a perfect week for this too because most of my friends are in the Greek Community. Two of the fraternities had philanthropy events and contests this week.

    I was asking their PR chairs what they think PR is and most of their responses about were what I have come to learn as advertising. It made me think should there really be a define line between the two? Isn’t there a very good reason why the school combined the two majors into one? I have been talking with different employers and looking at job openings and so many are in the communications department where you need strong skills in both PR and advertising.

Cut The Chis flyers.

    So the best word we came up with that described what they thought of PR was promotions. It seemed like a mix of PR and advertising. And this week I have seen so many ways of the fraternities promoting their event. They used social media in the biggest way I have seen them do yet. Part of their week long events includes Facebook “like” contests. The participants that have the most “likes” on their page will win extra points at the end of the event. And the Facebook pages are not limited to reaching just UNT students. Alpha Phi sorority had their page reach the the national level. Their nationals event re-posted the link to the page so that every Alpha Phi world wide would see it. It seems crazy that just a UNT event could reach that many people so far away.

Participating sororities driving around campus with their banners on their cars.

    The other fraternity also used social media but not as intensely as the other group. The Sigma Chis had their yearly event, Derby Days, this week and their strongest “promotion” technique they used was through the form of t-shirts. Something so simple went a long way. Just on Thursday when we were collecting money outside the union I saw so many people wearing the same Derby Days shirt. People were asking us why we were all in the same shirt and what it was about. This was excellent PR in the word of mouth sense.

    It was quit a week for Greek Life. With the shirts, banners, social media and flyers all around campus people took notice. We were able to have many successful events all week and raised over $200 in one day for one philanthropy. The other events did just as well. And all week we promoted the Greek Preview Day that is happening this weekend.

Cut The Chis - Trenton Conger donating his hair to Wigs For Kids.

    All in all, I feel like I learned a lot from this week. I sort of thought PR was just press releases and fact sheets but this week was fun. From painting banners to sticking up Cut the Chis flyers all over campus I learned how others view PR and how in the real world public relations and advertising are mixed together and promotions is just as important as having a well put together press release.

Internship - Blog 12

    So I’m excited to announce that I got offered an internship! I wanted to talk about it and how excited I am to be doing it this summer. It is with Substance Abuse Resource Center (SARC) on campus. I will be in charge of all their PR.

    I’m really excited to be vamping up their social media presence. I am going to start Tweeting out Tweets that students would be smart to remember. Such as, standard drink sizes and what not. Also, we are looking forward to working with Denton PD on getting statistics to Tweet about the statistics for at risk weekends.

    I will also be working at the orientations talking to students and parents. I get to update all the promotional materials and presentations that will be distributed to them. This will be a really great experience for me in the PR world because so far I have only learned about it in a classroom and not seen it done in the real world. Everyone says that once you have an internship you will fall back in love with your major and I need that badly. It’s even a double win for me because I will be getting to work in Higher Education which is what I want to go to graduate school for.

    This summer will be filled with a lot of research, writing, advertising, promoting and presenting but I am ready for it and can’t wait to see what it teaches me and I’m ready to learn.

    I have never been more excited to learn from a first hand experience in public relations.

Handling The Tornado - Blog 11

    This past Tuesday UNT students experienced the unorganized crisis management of UNT. At 2:30 p.m. the Denton community became very aware of the severe weather heading its way. In severe weather incidents in the past UNT has issued an Eagle Alert that goes out to all the students and registered emails and numbers informing them of the safety concerns and any important information/announcements the school makes. By 3 p.m. when the storm was expected to hit the students had not received any form of alert.

    What does this have to do with PR? It has everything to do with it. Right then in the moment UNT was creating a crisis management good or bad to be determined in the end. But as PR agents we are told to always handle the situation before it explodes. It’s easier to clean up a small mess than it is to clean up a big one. UNT had the mentality of go big or go home. The persona they were giving off to the students and the students’ families was that the safety and accurate information for the students was not the main priority. UNT is one of Texas’ largest commuter schools.

    Some students on campus were lucky to hear the tornado sirens and knew to make it to a safe building until it was over, but there were many classes going on that had no knowledge of the sirens or the issue going on. UNT not only had poor communication to the students but also equally poor communication to the faculty and staff. There were many offices located in parts of the building that have absolutely no access to information. Whether it was because UNT determined they were in a safe spot or not it would have beneficial to the teachers to know the severity so that they could inform their own students not to make the trip to Denton.

    Poor communication never leads to good PR. It gives PR people a harder time having to deal with it later. UNT had however posted several comments on their official Facebook site. It was a nice touch for the students that had access to the internet but this is not the normal form of communication between students and UNT. We students are used to the Eagle Alerts as well as the teachers. The school doesn’t promote the use of non-school related internet activity in class so the students that were in class really didn’t know to check Facebook or to even go straight to the official UNT Facebook.

    Of course there were comments on the warnings from students and parents. UNT was being accused of not caring about the safety of its students. TWU just down the road from UNT had sent an alert to all the students informing them of the cancellation of classes by 2:35 p.m. The one good thing the UNT did do throughout this entire mess was that they were smart enough to comment back in reply to the negative concerns. It would have looked worse if they had ignored them all together. But, the heat they received from upset people will be around for a while and something that UNT will need good publicity and PR for. Needless to say they did not handle the tornado well.

Source:
http://www.facebook.com/northtexas

You're Your Own PR Person - Blog 10

    What part of your personal life is private when it is posted to the web? At what part does the judgement start when you’re interviewing for a job? When do you turn on the charm and sell yourself? These are some of the questions that are commonly on the minds of college students who are looking for a job.

    Over the course of my three years in college I have learned the answers to these questions. I never really understood at the beginning when my parents didn’t like the idea of me posting a lot of personal information on myspace, Facebook and other social media sites. Now though I completely understand. No matter if the posts are deleted they are there forever. Anything I put out on the web is subject to be seen when I’m applying for jobs. Nothing is private any more when it is on the web. And that means whatever I put out there when I was 16 reflects on me now as a college senior applying for internships.

    That brings me to the second question. We all wonder when do they start judging us for the job. I have had the opportunities to listen to professionals come and speak to us in many classes. They all agree that judgement starts a good time before the interview. Whether it is when you drive on the grounds or walk into the building. Personally from my experience the best answer would be that is starts from the very moment you send in your resume. They judge you on that and go and look you up in LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. They will know so much about you before you even walk in the door.  This can really hurt some of us because some students don’t see the need to present themselves professionally online when it is supposed to be social.

    I have heard from professionals that if the person doesn’t look good online then they don’t hire that person. This means that we are making an impression at all times. It is not only important to charm the boss when you are in the interview but they are always watching and it is important to be on your best behavior all the time. We are our own personal PR. Anything I do is subject to grounds of how people see me. This is not only true for PR students wishing to go into public relations but true for every person. We are the best marketers of yourselves. We need to make sure that we are always presenting ourselves professionally.

    I feel that as a PR student I have the upper hand because we are taught to please the client and present things to the public appropriately and effectively. I can take all that I have learned for how to handle a client and apply it to my every day life when wanting to present myself to the public. I am glad that PR has taught me that it’s not just for clients but for myself as well.

Rodeo Houston Runs Live Twitter Feed - Blog 9

Cans Promoting School Pride - Blog #8

    The University of North Texas hosts CANstruction every Spring semester during Greek Week. Greek Week is a week where every Greek chapter comes together in eight teams to compete in friendly competitions for a whole week and then get honored at the end of the week for all that they have done that year. One of the events the teams participate in is CANstruction.

    CANstruction is not just open to Greek Life but open to the entire school and any organizations or departments that wish to participate in. This year the event had to moved inside to multiple spots in the union due to the weather but that didn’t stop the students. Students come together during CANstruction to build something from their cans and then donate the cans to food homes.

    The theme this year is school pride. UNT is not one of the strongest schools for school pride but the turn out this year was amazing. The new brand identity for the school is present in the structures the students are building. “Green Light to Greatness” is the new tag line and is the theme to so many different groups.

    This is a different side of PR that I’ve seen. So many people think PR has to be through an agency or corporation but this spirit is a different PR. These students are walking promotions for UNT. They are coming together in spirit of UNT and will leave and tell people they know about UNT. Students that find a connection to their school are more likely to promote their school. It’s a simple fact.

    These students will spread good things about UNT and continue the hype of the new tag line. The brand identity didn’t stop at the reveal event but continues in events throughout the university and through the spirits of the students. I think that is the best PR there is. An inspirational PR is what I would like to belong to. PR is more than what we learn in class with communication plans and social media releases. Those are necessary to learn but a classroom cannot teach you this. I want to be inspirational in my PR career.