REVIEW | BlinBlinMe Jewelry, Makeup, & Accessories Haul

*Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by BlinBlinMe. I paid for these products out of my own pocket and this is an honest review. All opinions are my own and are in no way influenced by their company.

Hello all! Today I'll be doing a haul review on BlinBlinMe.com, an online site which features Korean (I think) jewelry, makeup, and accessories for only $1 each (say whaaaaat?!)! Sure, the name is sort of funny (was it supposed to be BlingBlingMe?) but I was overall very pleased with the items I received. If you recall, I briefly mentioned it as the site where I got my temporary tattoos from for my previous DIY phone case tutorial,

Here's a sneak peek! Read on for more details about the goodies I received inside!

Packaging
The package came in a plastic mailing bag and inside was carefully wrapped with hot pink tissue paper with a sticker. Under the tissue paper was more bubble wrap to protect the contents! I love the care that went into the packaging to ensure nothing got damaged during transit. All of the items were also individually wrapped which was nice.

DIY | Leather Wrap Crown Bracelet

*Disclaimer: This post is brought to you courtesy of Endlessleather.com. I received samples of their products in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own and are in no way influenced by their company.

Behold my fourth (!) project for Endlessleather.com! If you missed my last three tutorials and review of their products, you can find them here.

This time around, I made a different type of bracelet using one of their adorable crown charms. I also had a hankering for a blush-colored bracelet but never found one to my liking. Like all my other tutorials, this one is (hopefully) super easy and dare I say, somewhat Juicy Couture-esque (minus the velour and neon colors)?

DIY | Gogo Philip Inspired Crystal Hexnut Necklace

Asos.com is one of my absolute faaaavorite sites to shop at (disclaimer: not endorsing, I just really love them) because they have such unique pieces and their fashions are always on point. I spotted this totally DIY-able Gogo Philip necklace, so I made this necklace from some extra hexnuts on hand from my last project!

Left: My version | Right: Gogo Philip Bolt Diamante Necklace

FASHION | Born Pretty 10% off coupon for my dear craftlings!

*This particular post is not sponsored. I currently receive no commission through the use of this discount code. This is something that I am interested in that I want to share with my readers. Future sponsored posts will be very clearly labeled as such.*

Hello all! I've got some exciting news to share with you all today!

I was recently contacted by Born Pretty asking if I would like to review some of their products and they have so kindly offered my lovely readers a 10% off discount with my coupon code:

VUT10

As you may have noticed, I'm a huge jewelry hoarder so I was absolutely delighted to find that they have a lot of Korean-style jewelry (obsessed!). Plus, I'm a sucker for free shipping! Hopefully the cheap prices don't reflect cheap quality; I'm waiting on my order to arrive so stay tuned for my honest product review! I want to make sure this place is legit and honest in all their sales!

Let me know down in the comments if you used my discount code, run into any issues at all, or have any questions/complaints. Tag me #cafecraftea on Instagram so I can see what you got using my discount code!

Click the image to check out their awesome selection of unique and ridiculously cheap jewelry, hair accessories, phone accessories, and so much more!

DIY | Alex & Ani Inspired Adjustable Bangle

As you may or may not know, I'm tiiiiny. I literally haven't grown in about nine years and can still fit into dresses from eighth grade. I've the wrists of a 10 year old child so I'm unable to wear bangles (unless I wear them on my upper arm, #tinyasiangirlproblems). I've been a bit on a wire kick lately and this project was inspired by Alex & Ani's adjustable bangles so feel free to customize with any charms you'd like :)

My version (left) | Aunt Charm Bracelet photo credit of Alex & Ani (right)

DIY | Mini Whisk Necklace

I'm always a fan of wearables that both show your passion are quirky conversation starters (see my knitter's necklace DIY). Although I often don't have the chance to update my "things to bake" part of my blog, I still consider baking as one of my favorite hobbies.

DIY | Rhinestone Wrapped Charm Bracelet

Google "wrapped bracelet" and you'll have to wade through the multitude of DIY bracelet tutorials out there...and it can be a bit overwhelming! I wanted to put my own spin on the wrapped bracelet, reminiscent of those sixth grade friendship bracelets except a bit fancier!

DIY | Chain Scrap Rings

Since I still had some chain scraps lying around from my mixed metal tassel necklace, so I decided to make matching rings. These look great both worn alone or stacked!

DIY | Mixed Metal Tassel Necklace

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's got a ton of chain scraps lying around. For this DIY I used some leftover chain from another project and topped it with a pearl bead for that extra oomph. This is especially perfect for those days when I find it hard to choose between gold vs silver vs gunmetal gray accessories. Why not all three? Check out what I did with the rest of the scraps!

DIY | Message In A Bottle Necklace

I did this project a couple months ago with my class of kidlings and I had just as much fun as they did, picking out things to fill these tiny bottles with. There's just something about mini objects that has such an appeal. The best thing about this DIY is the customization; your bottle won't be exactly the same as someone else's :)

DIY | Ombre Bunting Necklace

Mint. Ombre. Bunting. Paint chips. Here's a project that's the perfect marriage of all four. It's super easy and cheap, yielding fantastic results since you might have most of the materials on hand already. Best places to swing by to pick up a few stacks of paint chips: Home Depot, Walmart, & Lowes (I won't judge). If you don't have paint chips, you can also use cardstock :)

DIY | Sizing Down Rings

So I've got a bit of a thing for rings (as you can probably tell from here). Similar to my beef with bangles, size 6 is often the smallest size that rings are sold in (shooting eye darts at you F21...). Of course, I would conveniently be a size 5. Today, I'm going to show you a quick fix for sizing down rings. Unfortunately I haven't got magic to make rings bigger so you'll have to consult a jeweler for that!

Note: I intended this as a quick fix for costume jewelry! More expensive rings (ie wedding rings) should definitely be professionally resized.

DIY | Belted Buckle Bracelet

Bangles of all sorts are not friendly to this particular tiny Asian girl :( While others have the luxury of lovely arm parties, any bangles I do own either travel their way up my arm or slip off completely. Having seen these around the web by French Connection, Ted Baker, and Michael Kors, I put my own spin on this adjustable version for less than $10. 

(Side story: One time I walked into Michael Kors and asked to try on the beautiful rose-colored one in the hopes that it would fit my teeny wrist...I literally walked out all sad.)

Image credits (from left top): Michael Kors | Ted Baker | French Connection | DIY version

DIY | Byzantine Chain Bracelet

Who knew something so pretty and intricate could be made from just jump rings (and a lotta patience)? I decided to tackle one the "Idiot's Delight", also called the Byzantine chain. The pattern is tough to learn at first but once you get the hang of it, you'll be rewarded with a lovely luxurious chain.

DIY | Kate Spade Inspired Studs

With very similar steps as my Simple Pyramid Studs DIY, here's my take on the Kate Spade Locked In Stud Earrings! I opted to make the gold accents a little more bold than Kate Spade did though.

Kate Spade Locked In Stud earrings (left), my DIY version (right)
Image courtesy of Zappos

DIY | Simple Pearl Studs

It'll be a while before I can afford a pair of real pearls; I'd be too nervous about losing them! Perfect paired with an updo and pumps, these pearl studs will be an elegant, timeless, and classy addition to any wardrobe. Best part: you won't cry (too much) if you ever lose one!

DIY | F21 Earrings Upcycle

I feel almost guilty calling this a DIY since it's so simple. In my Labor Day Shop My Closet post, I mentioned that I wanted to change these $3 F21 Rhinestone Angel Earrings because they were seemed too flashy for my taste and were a bit too heavy for my lobes.

From this...

$2.99

-drumroll-

FASHION | F21 Labor Day Bling

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Forever 21 to review their products...although that'd be nice :P I'm just sharing with you the things I've purchased. 

From my Instagram; no camera right now :(

Monday holidays are the best (can I get a woot-woot for free shipping?). I love shopping at F21 but anytime I come within 100 yards of one, I just want to silently back away. I dread shopping there now because 1) its sheer size is so overwhelming, 2) there are far too many people, 3) pseudo-OCD me would comb every rack just for the sake of being thorough. These days, I prefer to shop online.

I ended up getting the following seven items (clicking on the caption/price brings you to the item website, all images from F21):

DIY | The Knitter's Necklace

As a long-time knitter, I came up with this simple, cheap, and adorable necklace inspired by a skein of yarn. The total cost of this project is mere pennies if you really think about it :)

Although I don't have much time to knit as much anymore (and as a consequence of an unmentionable unfinished sweater...), this DIY is for my fellow knitters (and crocheters!) to wear your favorite fuzzy yarn loud and proud. 

I'm still working on my picture-taking skills since my apartment is terribly dim and I usually blog in the nighttime when there's no more lovely daylight. DIY after the jump!