Last Minute, Easy DIY Flamingo Halloween Costume!

Happy Wednesday you guys! In lieu of my normal Welcome Home Wednesday post, I'm coming at ya with a last minute and easy toddler DIY flamingo Halloween costume! This is seriously the easiest to make and if I hadn't run out of glue sticks, it would have only taken a couple hours while watching Friday Night Lights and drinking rosé. I mean, that's a #momwin right there! 

My Nana made Halloween costumes for me as a little girl and I've always wanted to do the same for my little girl one day. Well, I'm definitely no Martha Stewart, nor do I seem to have any spare time these days. But, I started brainstorming the idea of a flamingo costume and decided hot gluing some boas on a hoodie along with a beak on top would make for one cute and easy costume!

The Americano here in Mount Pleasant made for THE most perfect backdrop! One of my favorite spots in town...

We already had the pink pants (also debated these actual flamingo ones), glitter pink shoes and a pink bow (for when the hood was down), so all that was needed was a pink zip up from Carters (now on sale for $11) and some boas from the party store. Perfect for last minute because you don't need to order anything special online!

Here's what you'll need:

• Hoodie in your Child's Size
• 3 Pink Boas 
• 1 Sheet of Black Construction Paper
• 1 Sheet of Pink or Red Construction Paper
• Hot Glue Gun
• Hot Glue Sticks (about 40-50)
• Scissors 
• Cardboard (mine was from an Amazon box)
• Pink Leggings
• Pink Bow
• Pink Shoes (or black!)
• Thick undershirt (avoids irritation)

Now just follow these steps and you'll be good to go!

1. Prep your materials! Cut any ends off of boas, mine had a white cord that extended out and knotted without any feathers on them. Warm up the hot glue gun. Have glue sticks handy. Lay out your hoodie and bow. 
   
2. Cut out the beak and support! I hand drew a beak with pencil on the cardboard and cut it out. Then use that as a stencil and trace out and cut two pieces of black construction paper. Cut two strips of cardboard that are the length of the side of your hoodie. Cut out two small rectangles. Cut out one square that will fit the beak + rectangles.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Make the beak! Glue the two tabs to the beak, one on each side, with half hanging off. Glue the black cut outs to the beak. Bend the tabs at the bottom of the beak. Glue them to the square diagonally. Glue a strip on each side of the square. Cover the support in pink or red construction paper so it blends. Bend to form around hood. 
   
   
   
4. Glue the beak and structure to the hood! One strip on each side and the beak on the square to the top. I angled the beak so it didn't look as much like a shark's fin. See here:
   
5. Glue the boas to the jacket! This was the most tedious part consisting of squirting out patches of glue and then pressing down the boa, repeat, repeat, repeat. I went in rows and would cut the boa when I finished each row (vs. serpentine). I started across the back from arm to arm. Then the rest of the back. Next the rest of the arms. Then the hood. Then the front panels. Make sure you can zip the zipper in the front if your hoodie has one!
   
   
6. Fancy up your bow! Add a little strip of boa to the top of your bow with the hot glue so she's still cute even with the hood down! Just like in the cute little photo below...
   

That's it! I may have gone a little overboard with the support for the beak, but it ended up really cute once she had it on and there was no wobble. Let me know what you think and if you have any questions!

Also, stay tuned to Instagram and Snapchat (name: ephilli) to see what Ry and I are going as for a Halloween party this weekend!

PS: Pin this for now or later y'all! And follow me on Pinterest for more fun ideas!

5 on Friday: Dry Rosé Cider, My Fav Sweater and More!

Happy FRIIIIIIDAYYYYYY y'all!!! I gotta say, and I never ever want to wish time away when I have a baby girl that changes every single day, but gah y'all I'm happy it's Friday. TGIF. 

Luckily we have a relatively unplanned weekend ahead to spend time with our girl and get the last few big things we need to get done finished around the house to feel settled. So today I'm going to kick it off with a little Five on Friday, something I haven't done in awhile and I'm so happy to bring it back.

{ONE}

A new offering from Candlefish! Y'all have heard me obsess over Candlefish in the past with this post and now they even have a partnership at Anthropologie. Plus, the ladies of Southern Charm are even fans. 

I joined fellow bloggers this week in downtown Charleston at their studio to make some candles, mingle and hear more about an exciting new offering coming soon! I can't wait to share more, but for now I'll leave you with this picture of these gorgeous friends!

Make sure to visit Charleston Shop Curator, Coastal Bride and Charleston Weekender who are with me above!

{TWO}

The sweater I'll be wearing all season. I recently ordered this Free People sweater that is flowy, slightly open in the back with a mock collar and is everything I've been looking for and more. It's hard to find a sweater that's comfy, stylish and not heavy or itchy. This is the one y'all

{THREE}

Rosé Cider. Yep, you read that right, I found this Wolffer Dry Rosé Cider at Whole Foods this week and I'm pretty obsessed. It's definitely sweeter, but the cute little bottles and the fun branding make it the perfect treat for my basic babes out there. 

{FOUR}

Always a good hair day. Not even gunna lie, I saw this photo that my amazing hair guru (stylist just didn't feel right), Lex, texted me last night and I had to asked, "Is that MY hair?!". Haha! Talk about a good hair day, so in love with my updated locks. It just feels so darn awesome to get your hair did, am I right?!

Photo cred: Lex, follow him on Instagram and visit him at Stox & Co if you're in Charleston

{FIVE} 

Our new dining room table! If you follow me on Snapchat (name: ephilli) you know that we love to frequent the Celadon Sunday Flea and on our last trip we found this beauty. I loved how wide it is and it even has a built in leaf that pulls up through the middle when you maneuver the levers underneath.  

Still trying to decide on those barstools you saw here, now I need to decide on some dining chairs as well... any suggestions?

Linking up with A. Liz Adventures, Carolina Charm, Hello! Happiness and The Good Life.    

{SIX}

Surprise! Adding in a bonus item to this post because this popped up on my Timehop and how could I not share this adorable little fall baby. Absolutely mind-blowing what a difference a year makes! See all the photos in this post on Sully's 6-month mini session with Allison Shumate.

Clemson Lake Engagement + Surprise Party

It's almost Friday you guys, we're almost there! I really feel like this week has flown by though, maybe it's because I've had something after work almost every day, which, by the way, I'll be sharing one of those post-work events tomorrow(!). 

Today I'm excited to slow down for a second though and bring you the beautiful engagement of one of my bestest friends in the whole wide world! Even better, it took place on the gorgeous Lake Hartwell during our Clemson weekend that I shared here. 

Y'all, I wish I could show you the texts and explain the conversations leading up to this engagement with the groom-to-be, Jake. They were so sweet. He really went above and beyond to make this moment and all those after super special for his future Mrs. Especially when it came to selecting the photographer, Alicia, of Alicia Tegen Photography, to take these gorgeous photos!

But first, let's rewind and talk about leading up to the proposal itself... The nerves flying around the house pre-proposal were unreal you guys. Jake was trying to hold it together in front of Sam, I was trying to sneak away to position the photographer (along with the help of TJ, thank you!), Sam's siblings were hiding in the bushes and inside all the other girls and guys were trying to keep a straight face and set up a surprise party! 

When Alicia was in position, I gave Ry the signal we had agreed upon to alert Jake that all was ready and wouldn't you believe it... the man completely forgot our signal and missed it! Typical. ;)

So then it was up to me to give Jake the thumbs up without Sam seeing. Luckily he got the message and stepped out for a "work call" coming back in to grab Sam so he could talk to her about it. As they walked down the path towards the lake we were inside scrambling to get decorations set up and her siblings inside. 

Well you guys, all that went by the wayside the minute Jake dropped to one knee. We couldn't help but watch, cry and laugh before we cheered them on as they walked up towards the house. Everyone was such a big help throwing this little surprise party together, it was so exciting to have our whole crew there together!

Then it was time to ooh and ahh over the ring (which is so classic and beautiful, I died), share hugs all the way around and clink our glasses!

I'm telling you what, this is one amazing couple. They're going to create such a beautiful life together as husband and wife and I feel so blessed to witness their wonderful love. This is about to be one fun year of celebrating these two!

As you can tell, it was such a wonderful and emotionally happy day, Sam was surprised and we all had a blast celebrating the night away!