DIY Decorative Juju Hat Inspired Wall Decor Tutorial

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African/Cameroon Juju hats have been around as home decor for a few years. They’re so beautiful, artisanal/handmade (symbolize prosperity, worn by ceremonial dancers). DIY decorative Juju hat inspired tutorial:

DIYShowOff Juju hat wall decor tutorial

juju hat wall decor diy

When a friend of mine had to part ways with her African Juju hat wall decor (you don’t want to know), she was in the market for a replacement. It’s been a while since I’ve been crafty and what better time than the new year for a fresh start?! Perfect timing. A perfect opportunity to focus on the positive and to send some good juju to a friend. 

What’s your first DIY project of the new year? Looking for and easy, fun and “GOOD” DIY to jumpstart 2022? This is the perfect little project for you to try! I felt empowered and inspired so I opened up my Amazon app and ordered these supplies: 

diy materials for juju hat wall decor

Materials I used (referral links):

cardboard circle (could easily make one from recycled cardboard too, especially if you’ve been procrastinating the holiday clean up!)

• feather trim ( purchased 2 of this feather trim and 1 of this feather fringe trim)

• aluminum pop top (removed from can) to hang (could also use string or hang with push pins)

Tools:

hot glue gun/sticks, scissors

What I did:

I found the center of my cardboard circle. From there, I drew a straight line to the outer edge. 

tape measure

Using scissors, I cut along the line. 

scissors

Next, using hot glue along one side of the cut, I glued the other side slightly on top to create a little bit of a ‘bowl’-shape. It’s very slight…just enough to give it a 3D look.

Gorilla Glue gun cardboard circle

Then, protect your fingers ‘cuz that hot glue is HOT! Be careful! (I used a capped pen to hold down the ribbon as needed.) Determine placement and start attaching the bottom of the feather trip to the cardboard circle. I worked my way around the outer edge. 

hot glue feather trim feather crafts feather circle

Repeat in circles for complete coverage. Based on your supplies, determine how close together to cover the cardboard. I alternated the 2 different feather trims. 

gluing feather trim feather ribbon juju hat craft project making a juju hat decoration gray feathers placing feathers circle of feathers juju hat inspired wall decor circle of gray feather trim cutting feather trim hot gluing feathers diy juju hat wall decor making a juju hat DIY juju hat tutorial easy diy feather project juju hat DIY

For the center, add a coordinating or same color silk flower. Or, like me, take a bit of leftover trim and roll to create a “center” piece. Attach with hot glue. 

glue gun and feather trim feather trim craft flower feather boa craft craft project with feathers

Fill in with individual feathers as needed.

scissors and gray feathers gray feather and glue gun gray feather craft idea

Attach hanging mechanism of choice to the back with hot glue. 

hanging wall decor with a pop top

Easy peasy! Much lighter and not as detailed or heavy as the real thing but beautiful none-the-less and special because you made it yourself!

The result:

diy juju hat wall art diy gray juju hat wall art

Texture! Softness. Beauty!

poofy feather wall art sitting room wall art diy DIYShowOff Juju hat wall decor tutorialgray juju hat wall decor diy gray feather juju hat decor

I’m hooked and plan to create several more! More feather trim as been ordered! I need a fluffier one! A feather boa would work as well (although a little messier)! Maybe some rattan coasters for the center or a coordinating silk peony would be beautiful too. I’ll come back and post more pictures. Interested in adding yours to the feature? Submit your juju hat photo to thediyshowoff at gmail. 

How about you? Ready to get crafty, creative and inspired in 2022?

 

Baby Shower Gift Basket Tips and Inspiration

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There’s nothing more precious than a new baby and putting together a collection of sweet baby gifts can be so meaningful for parents-to-be! I love shopping and gathering up gifts to create a beautiful arrangement and I’m all about a pretty presentation. I thought I’d share a few I’ve made this past year to help inspire you if you’re stuck or looking for some examples to go by. Some affiliate links included. 

diyshowoff baby shower gift basket tips and inspiration

Baby Shower Gift Basket Tips

Tips for personalizing a gift for a new little person makes if feel so special, right? Here are a few tips to help:

  • Registry – most parents-to-be will share their baby shower registry. Try to choose a few items from their hand selected wish list when possible.
  • Gender – it’s rare that we don’t know this ahead of time and completely unnecessary but if you do know, it does narrow down options. 
  • Name – even more rare, but if it is known, I love to add something monogrammed – specifically, I love adding a wall art letter or creating a personalized iron on decal. 
  • Theme – a lot of the time, the baby shower invitation will give a hint to the nursery theme or design style … elephants, owls, woodland, boho, Noah’s ark, etc.  
  • Parents’ hobbies, collections, lifestyle. Do they love the outdoors (fishing? hunting?), love their dog(s)?, have a favorite sport’s team? 
  • Your signature piece – for example, I’m all about wellness so I try to include chemical free, natural, organic options when I can. 
  • Diapers & board book – baby showers now will often host a special raffle for bringing one of these items. I always use a pack of Honest newborn diapers in the bottom of the basket to lift the gifts. Either way, diapers are SUPER helpful and adding a favorite children’s story or baby board book to create a library of bedtime stories is one of my favorite things to add. 
  • Gift wrap a few of the items with coordinating wrapping paper. I often use what I have on hand. It doesn’t have to be specific baby shower themed. 

Baby Shower Gift Basket Inspiration

Here are 5 baby shower gift baskets I’ve put together to help inspire your next baby shower gift. 

Girls: 

EMMA

Emma’s mommy’s favorite color is purple and she designed an owl themed nursery. My dear friend waited a long time for this precious miracle and I am so happy for them! 

purple owl baby girl gift basket

Gifts I selected: 

purple baby gift ideas

SOPHIE

– a pink themed collection fit for a princess!

pink princess baby girl gift basket

Gifts I chose: {some substitutions pictured)

pink baby gift basket tips inspiration

Boys: 

TOBIAS & ELIAS

– shopping for twins is so much fun! I didn’t go with completely “identical” but it was fun to put a woodland theme gift collection together for two! 

woodland theme baby shower gift basket deer boy baby shower gift basket

Gifts hand picked by me: 

woodland baby shower gift basket tips inspiration diyshowoff

CONNOR

– this little guy’s mom and dad are parents to two German Shepherds. What fun it was to include the ‘fur babies’ too!

german shepherd baby gift basket

Gifts I included:

dog baby gift basket tips inspiration

MARINO

– a blue teddy bear/sweet dreams collection for this precious boy. 

baby boy young living seedlings blue bear gift basketyoung living seedlings

Gifts I selected: 

baby boy gift basket inspiration tips

What are some of your favorite go-to baby gift ideas? 

Easy DIY Summer Cooling Spray Recipe & Tutorial

It is HOT out there! Our local forecast promises a HOT and humid week. No worries! I’m going to share my favorite way to keep cool and chill out with an easy DIY cooling spray.

DIY cooling mist

Reasons you need to make cooling spray this NOW for you and your family members.

• It’s hot outside! As a result, you might be feeling over-heated.
• If you’re hot, you’re sweating. Yuck. Doesn’t hurt to spritz on some good smelling lavender and peppermint! lol
• If you’re overheated, chances are – you’re cranky. A ‘lil lavender for calming is going to help!

DIY Keep Cool / Chill Out Spray

Supplies I use:

I included some affiliate links.

• 2 oz. amber glass spray bottle (or adjust recipe according to the size spray bottle you have on hand)

• Witch hazel

• Distilled water
Peppermint essential oil*
Lavender essential oil*

* I only use and recommend Young Living essential oils! Quality matters!

What I do:

I fill the bottle half way with witch hazel, then the rest of the way with distilled water (to where the bottle starts to curve, NOT to the bottle neck or completely full, leave room for essential oils. I then add 4 drops each of Lavender and Peppermint. No worries if you get an extra drop or two, no worries if you’re running low and only have 3 drops. The nice thing about DIY is you control the strength and can alter the recipe as needed.

Lavender Essential Oil

The Swiss army knife of essential oils! SO many amazing benefits! Off the top of my head – supporting healthy skin, so a good choice for a body spray. AND as most of us know…relaxing and calming. So hot = cranky pants, add lavender = CHILL (CALM).

Young Living lavender

Peppermint Essential Oil

Another good one with so many benefits. It supports a healthy digestive system, soothing after exercise (dilute and apply topically), etc. But one other benefit is … it’s COOLING! For all things that cause me to overheat, I keep this bottle handy. Peppermint = CHILL (COOLING).

peppermint essential oil

Tip:

It is not necessary at all, but I store it in the refrigerator to give it an extra cooling boost!

Easy to grab and go, throw it in your purse or backpack. Having a cookout or going on a picnic in the park? Toss it in the cooler.

How I use it:

Shake and spritz myself, then spray the back of my neck.

Head’s Up:

Avoid your eyes! Peppermint stings! IF you do get it in your eyes, grab some coconut or a carrier oil, some fatty liquid and flush. Water will not help.

When I use it:

When temps are up, summer heat! Outdoor events, going to the park, going on a walk, run or hike, doing yard work, working outdoors, when air conditioning isn’t available or isn’t working, when the power is out and the a/c and fans aren’t an option, picnics/BBQs, at the pool.

IGTV

It WORKS! When I made this video, I spritzed myself then had to adjust the a/c. I was cold! Brrr!

Watch the tutorial on IGTV HERE!

Not a member of Young Living yet?

You guys! I know you’ve heard of essential oils by now. Maybe it feels overwhelming? Sounds expensive? Whatever your reason, I’d love to answer your questions and address your concerns.

#1 Quality:

It does matter and Young Living has a 25+ year history and is the pioneer of bringing back and raising awareness for using essential oils. Check out the Seed to Seal guarantee and pillars.

#2 Where you get them matters.

Maybe you’ve had a bad experience with MLMs, therefore maybe you feel that going to the store is a better option because you steer clear of network marketing “scams”. Well, with a 25+ year history and the fact that scams are illegal, Young Living doesn’t fit that description at all. And you wouldn’t avoid your friend who waitresses at your favorite restaurant, right? Of course not. You’d want to be seated in her section, tip her extra and show your support. Same thing! PLUS! When you connect with a friend who’s passionate about Young Living, you’re going to have access to an amazing community of thousands who love and use the products and share their real life experiences as well as educational resources to empower you to actually know how and why you would use the products. You have a friend to hold your hand as much or as little as you want to make the whole ‘healthy lifestyle’ less overwhelming!

#3 Membership

Purchasing a Young Living Premium Starter Kit is NOT agreeing to selling anything. It’s there floating in the background as an option of your membership but completely your call. No pressure, no obligations. It’s NOT agreeing to purchasing regularly or ever again (of course they have an optional rewards program for those of us who do that can be canceled at ANY time without penalties). There is NO yearly fees. You guys, we have a SAMs Club membership. $45/year. Over a year year time frame, we’ve paid $450 for the privilege to shop there and not really anything to show for it. With Young Living, you buy a premium starter kit, you have lifetime access to 24% off retail prices. That’s it. Not to mention the starter kits are the best bang for your buck. When I need to restock, that’s usually the route I go (hello, $400+ worth of product for $165 = smart)!

#4 Young Living Lifestyle

Young Living is about so much more than essential oils (although they have a HUGE collection and oils you can’t purchase anywhere else). Example: we started choosing products with non toxic ingredients. Building and supporting a healthy immune system is SUPER important! So I simply switched from buying the following at the store to purchasing them with my Young Living membership (ask me how I get 25% back in rewards):

Young Living products

• Cough drops and chest rub
• Insect Repellent
• Dental care (toothpaste, floss, mouthwash)
• Natural deodorant
• Nose rings! yep! – personal essential oil infused diffuser rings
• Shampoo and conditioner
• Clean makeup! Yep! EVERY thing you need!
• The best skincare I’ve ever tried in my life
• Supplements (Vitamin D, C, B and more!)
• Baby products (wipes, lotion, wash, shampoo, diaper rash cream, etc.)
• Pain cream
• Sunscreen and After Sun Spray
• C B D oil + C B D muscle rub
• Household cleaner (plant based that we use on EVERY surface of our home)
• Foaming hand soaps + bar soaps
• Bath bombs, body wash, lotions
• Hand sanitizer (that doesn’t burn and is so moisturizing)
• Hormone support – I have NO issues at age 50 or for the last couple of years and I know it’s because of what I use.
• Laundry and dishwashing soaps
• Kids’ collection (pre-diluted essential oils)
• Pet line!
• Energy and anti-oxidants with Ningxia Red (love Ningxia Zyng for an afternoon pick me up too)

I could go on and on! I love that there is so much to choose from to create a beautiful safe environment for my family!

Get Started:

So, which kit are you going to go with? My recommendation: The Premium Oil Kit + Aria diffuser (it’s a gorgeous statement piece, ART!) with soothing sounds, glass dome, speaker (plug in your phone!), light options, and a remote!  The Desert Mist diffuser being a close second with great settings too (lights, candle flicker mode, 3-5-10 hour settings, automatic shutoff).  

Young Living starter kit options

And when you purchase one of the Premium Starter Kits using my referral #1836762 at YoungLiving.com HERE, I’ll invite you in to our circle of wellness inspired friends who will embrace you! I’ll plug you in to our beautiful Facebook communities. I’ll get my favorite educational resources to you so you have guidance. I am personally available to you as a mentor and friend. I even offer a special welcome bundle for DIYShowOff friends that varies month to month. This month: I’ll give you 10% back on your order and reimburse your standard shipping. OR if you’d prefer, we can chat and I’ll personalize your welcome bundle to suit your needs.

Wishing you well!

Stay COOL, HOT friends!

Use this same recipe with these oils to create a DIY outdoor spray

DIY outdoor spray recipe