Showing posts with label melle indie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label melle indie. Show all posts

 I took off some time to concentrate on getting my nail license, so I decided to take four months to dedicate to school and now I’m almost finished and I’m all over the place. How am I going to plan for the next phase in my life? One key word: Organization. I’m going to get everything I need set up and ready to go. This means going down the list of things that need to be done and checking them off one by one.

 


Laundry is always needed to have a successful work week. It eliminates the need to run around looking for clothes to put on. I need to print off some weekly schedules from Canva (Quick tip: write in pencil so you can erase the schedule and use it all over again… We don’t waste around here)


This might not be something a regular person would put on their to-do list but one of my most difficult ones is hair. Yes! I spend way too much time trying to maintain not only my hair but the hair I buy (aka wigs) So having my hair in a style I can do in minutes is important for me.


 Make sure all transportation is loaded and ready. If you have a bus/train card load it, If you have a car put some gas in it, or if you are doing rideshare make sure the phone is charged, the bill is paid for and the correct payment is linked (I have a horror story about how I forgot to pay my phone bill and I was in the middle of nowhere).


I plan on making more posts like these to keep myself accountable and on track. I count everything in quarters like a game, so we are ending the second quarter and have to finish off strong! I’m also planning on a brand-new website/blog that will be self-hosted. I’m very excited about that! I plan to have an amazing recap of the year 2023.


Make sure to stay organized & keep your eyes on the prize. Make every day count and go for your dreams! 


 I've been asked repeatedly if my press-on nails are manufactured and the answer is no. The nail themselves may come from China but they are definitely designed by myself all by hand. From that point on (a couple years ago), I said I would make sure to also hand paint and hand write each and every Thank You card so when a customer gets their order off of whatever platform I sold it off of they would know it came from an indie operation. 

Sharpie, Stamp Pad, Watercolors, Rubber "Thank You" Stamp, Index Cards

Everything I use to make my Thank You cards can be found at Dollar Tree, eBay, and Hobby Lobby. It's extremely easy and relaxing to do. Even though it's nerve-wracking when you have a bunch of orders and forget to make the Thank You cards I still feel grateful when making them.
Water Colored Index Cards

I can sit on the floor and make loads of these watercolor designs on the blank side of an index card. To me, it's therapeutic and calming. I'm usually listening to a podcast or watching a show while painting.
Stamped Watercolor Index Cards

After the index cards dry after a couple minutes you can now stamp them with your choice of color ink pad. I ran out of black so I'm using dark purple. I stamp "Thank You" in the middle with a flower on each side. leaving plenty of room for cutting shaped edges and writing your desired website at the bottom.
This is the finished Thank You watercolor card with my chosen website written at the bottom with a fine sharpie marker. I always cut the sides down with  special craft scissors and add in a pretty nail decal set (I have many repeat customers so I like to give everyone something every time they order to show appreciation) I really enjoy the art of things being hand painted and hand made. I will always be a fan of indie work I mean Hello my name is Melle INDIE lol. Make sure your supporting indie businesses and indie business owners. Thanks for stopping by! Now go paint something!

 

I wasn't really looking for an online library but since we have to do many things we are used to in a different way, I start searching for various book titles online. We live in a new day in time and going to the library was out of the question two years ago (Y'all remember 2020) But did you know you can still borrow books for free online?! I know there are probably plenty of websites like this one but Internet Archive is my absolute favorite! I’ve been reading books everyday since I found this website! To a nerdy type of person like myself this is better than Netflix! (Which I canceled by the way)  There are not just books but articles and videos. It really feels like the library because you have an hour at a time to read and once the hour is up you have to borrow again for another hour to continue reading. I’ve sat on the Internet Archive for hours reading and giggling. It’s a must if you're on a strict budget like myself but want some free entertainment in the form of a book.

Make sure when you find a book you like to add it as a favorite. This way all your books are in your favorite section and when you go back to borrow and continue to read it will take you back to the page you left off at. I’m super happy I found this one by accident. Internet Archive is a non profit online library and a true gem. I’ve been reading celebrity autobiographies lately and have been quite amused. One night I stayed up till 3am because I couldn’t stop reading the book I'm currently on right now.

I’ve been MIA lately on social media and my blog. I'm trying to really get my scheduling together because I’m all over the place. I had to post something about this though. The stereotype of people of color not reading is a bunch of B.S. I’ve always liked to read and so does my Mother. Your imagination will beat out a movie any day. Why do you think the movie version of a book is never as good as when you read it and pictured it yourself. I hope you guys take this resource and use it to your advantage. There is so much to gain on the internet if you use it correctly. Have a great one and read a book today… it's on the house.


 Since the pandemic it's been a little harder to do the activities you're used to and to be around your family. It’s a chore just go outside you have to worry about germs, where you're putting your hands, making sure you are social distancing among many other things. As soon as things start to get serious and we started getting mask mandates, use hand sanitizer and wash our hands rigorously everyday. My immune system was not so good so I immediately started to develop a daily routine. In this daily routine I would consume the healthiest things I could get within my budget. Here are some of those things that I have to have every single day.

I'm not saying these are things that you need to have in your pantry but one or two of them a day may help with your overall immune system along with a little bit of exercise could help during these difficult times.


Organic Green Tea

I'm addicted to organic green tea in the morning. It's kind of like my must have when I first get up besides water. I used to get my organic green tea from a local Asian market but the brand I'm actually drinking till this day is Uncle Lee's Organic Green Tea. It can be found at Walmart and online on amazon.com it's one of the best tasting organic green teas I've ever had. Here are a couple reasons why it would be a good idea to consume Organic Green Tea everyday:

  1. The ingredients in Organic green tea will increase fat burning

  2. Organic green tea also has ingredients that can reduce bad breath

  3. Organic green tea is also a great source of antioxidants

  4. Organic green tea is extremely inexpensive

  5. Organic green tea may also help boost brain function

These are just a couple of the benefits of drinking organic green tea every single day. It's a perfect addition to help with your health and immune system in these days and times.

Vitamin D3

If you're vitamin D deficient you may want to think about taking a supplement on a daily basis if you don't get around sun very often. Unfortunately I am vitamin D deficient. I found out through a doctor's visit and I hope when I go back I won't be deficient anymore hopefully. This supplement is also very inexpensive.

Organic Sea Moss Capsules

I tried to use the dried sea moss, soak it, put it in the blender and make drinks with it but dried sea moss just had a very “ocean'' type of smell and taste to it. It made my sink, my refrigerator, and different jars smell like the ocean (I nicknamed it Sebastian) . It wasn't a really bad smell but it was very potent. I liked the way I felt when I did drink it so I decided to look for organic sea moss capsules and started to take those daily instead. Irish sea moss capsules have a lot of nutrients in them. Try to get them one hundred percent organic and wildcrafted if you can. Check Amazon and Ebay.

Probiotic supplement

I came down with the stomach flu about 2 years ago. I went to a local clinic and I'm so glad I got a really good doctor who observed I was having repeated stomach problems and recommended that I take the Garden of Life Primal Defense Ultra Probiotic Formula capsules. His recommendation was a good one because I haven't had any stomach problems since I've been taking these probiotic capsules. These probiotics are very popular and sell out quickly. I was not aware how important your gut health was and how you need to protect your stomach to keep from getting sick from different foods.

Multi-Vitamin Gummies

These are my very favorite gummy vitamins. These gummy vitamins taste like candy. The gummies have a really fruity natural taste to them. These gummies are the Vita Fusion MultiVites. I take two of these Vita Fusion gummies per day. There's no gluten, no high fructose corn syrup, no dairy, no artificial sweeteners or flavors. I depend on these gummy vitamins daily for immune system support the same way as the probiotics, sea moss capsules, and vitamin d3.

I have incorporated organic green tea and multiple capsules into my daily routine in the morning and have felt very healthy throughout this whole time. For the organic green tea I make two bags with hot filtered water and agave sweetener in a big cup (it's good hot and cold), I take one of each for the sea moss, vitamin D3 and probiotics. For the Vita Fusion gummies I take two of those a day.

I am not a doctor so I cannot recommend any of these products all but I can say in my experience taking them on a daily basis I can say they have helped me feel great through all of 2020, 2021 and now 2022. Do not forget to add in some exercise to lower your stress and don’t forget to laugh (it's the best medicine ever). I'm glad to share this information and I hope it helps somebody out there. In the meantime eat healthy, keep your head up and stay positive.


 I'm all about some DIY projects. So when I was thinking about changing my video backdrop/ background in my recording room for YouTube I thought about the popular organic balloon garlands I keep seeing online and on Instagram. I used to work at a party store for years blowing up balloons on a daily so I thought this would be a fun DIY balloon project. I got a balloon pump from Ebay, table cloth from The Dollar Tree and the balloons are both from The Dollar Tree and Ebay.

I had a ball blowing them up with the hand pump! There was no design I just blew up all the colors and bunched them together. There was a pack of (6) Confetti balloons from The Dollar Tree that were great accents in the bunches. The balloons were one big garland and then I messed up and put some strong double sided tape on them and it made the middle pop. Which ended up being cool because I ended up with two clusters. One for each side of me.
I was very impressed with the outcome! The two clusters on both sides of me while I sit in the middle for videos or pictures. The table cloth was black which really made the colors pop out. This can also be done for parties as well. 
Very cool DIY balloon backdrop/background that cost me very little but gave off a great look on camera and for photos. I have a couple more ideas with balloons for future backdrops. If you want to see the full video on Youtube of how I put this together with all my shenanigans included click below:
Thank you so much for reading and stopping by! Hope you got some balloon ideas flowing for your next at-home project. Have a great one!









 I did it again! I was able to scoop four colors of nail polish from The Dollar Tree all Sinful Colors brand! I'm super excited because its very rare to see Sinful Colors nail polish in The Dollar Tree. Sinful colors nail polish is usually in a store like Sally's or a higher priced beauty store. I was also impressed with the shades I picked up. Usualy the colors all look alike or they are dull and unwanted but these colors are POPULAR!.

First color is a deep lush red called "Redrum" It's a sexier type of deep red. Would look great on nails or toes. This is more of a classic color. If your a red lover this is a beautiful shade of red for a set of nails.
Next color is called "Charmed" it's a fine glitter sparkle type of polish. This charmed color can be worn by it'sself but I feel like it would have popped so much more over a cool tone colored nail polish. But is very suttle by itself. Very fine and glittery without the flash. Like a elegant champagne glitter.
The third color named "Interglamactic" it's a violet purple but brighter type of shade. Not quite purple but not pink either so I would say it was more of a pretty violet shade. Great to step out of your comfort zone with. Not to bright but a stand out nail polish color.
Last but not least is "Spirirted" a lilac purple shade that is super cute. I have this shade on my pedicure right now and it looks great! I'm not a purple person but I might start doing a purple manicure and pedicure once in a while. It's a nice break from red or blue.
I'm very pleased to put all of these Sinful Colors nail polishes in to my collection. I would love to see a lot of these shades as press on nails. More manicures and pedicures with these nail polishes before the summer season is over.
You guys already know the drill! Check your local Dollar Tree or just a dollar store and even discount places like big lots and you can possibly run up on deals like these.
So grateful to have found these for a total of $4.00! (Plus tax of course) Thank you for checking out my Sinful colors nail polish swatch blog! As soon as I find more shades I will swatch them. Have a great one!












 You can create easy nail art with a couple tools that will make you look like a professional. For this demonstration I'm going to use some acrylic paint you can find at Michaels, Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Jo Anns craft store or even online, A dotting tool (Can be found online or at a beauty store like Sally's), An old toothbrush (Not the same one for your teeth and a long line brush (usually found in a cheap nail art brush set)


First white dot design is super easy. I'm using a practice finger with a nail tip inserted. I painted the nail tip pink and started with one white dot. Next place two white dots above it and repeat that pattern until there is no more room for anymore dots.

Put top coat over it and now you have an easy peasy dot pattern you can do on all types of nails or just one accent nail.


The second nail design is one of the most simple designs I've ever seen. Your going to take an old tooth brush dip the tip of the toothbrush into your desired acrylic paint and keep dabbing on the nail until you get the look you like.


Let it dry and put your desired topcoat over it and be proud of your one of a kind toothbrush design.


I saved the geometric lines for last because this is the most challenging for a beginner with little to no nail art skills. Take your thinnest line brush dip it in the acrylic paint make sure to test your lines on a piece of paper or cardboard to make sure the lines are smooth and thin. Start with two sets of lines on one side of the nail then another two lines on the opposite side of the nail. Lastly start creating lines going thru the other lines. Now you have a geometric line nail.


Apply topcoat over the top and WALA you made a geometric nail design.


All these nail designs and simple and with acrylic paint the designs are unlimited. Make sure to let your acrylic paint dry completely before applying the topcoat. You will know it's dry when it's a flat color and looks like chalk.


Happy Nail Designing!


Thank you for stooping by! If you would like more nail art tutorial blogs let me know in the comments!





















 Make sure to check your local Dollar Tree for LA Colors nail polish. I've been getting loads of new colors. I stock up on LA colors nail polish for my manicures and pedicures and also my custom press on nails I do for people on Ebay, Depop and Mercari. These colors are all in the nude/neutral family and they are very popular with my customers. I'm also a fan of these nail polish colors because they are more chill and laid back. I still go on public transportation alot so I like my colors to be more toned down.

I absolutely LOVE these colors from the lightest to the darkest they all have a great classy look. Here are the colors individually with the name of the LA colors shade of polish.
This shade of LA colors nail polish is "In The Nude" I love this color for designing. It's a great color on it's own or for a back drop for acrylic paint or other nail polish colors.
This LA colors shade is called "Intimate" it has a nice light tan color to it. Perfect for a low key manicure/pedicure but still looks classy and neat

This LA Colors shade is "Innocence" it's in the same tan/brown family as "Intimate" it's a slight bit darker but it's a great tan/nude type of color. Also would work well as a nail polish to add colors to.
This LA colors shade is "Warrior" I'm usually not a fan of this type of color but it's very pretty on the nail, I would definitely wear a manicure / pedicure with this color. It's also a perfect color if you have to go to work. It just blends so nicely and looks very rich. 
Love all 4 of these LA colors nail polish shades! I can't believe I only paid $4.00 I would have easily paid more to have this collection of nail polish colors.
Make sure to check you local dollar tree and see what steals you can get on LA colors nail polish. I'm in Georgia and currently (its June 2021) all the dollar tree stores I've been to have been STOCKED with LA colors nail polish. So go on the hunt and get you some cheap nail polish.














 It's hot outside! I've been dressing a little grungy. This is more of a casual I don't give a &%4# look. I really like bleach, holes and rips in my clothes. The more worn it is the more I like it.

I actually bleached this tee myself. It was in the give away bag but I decided to rescue it and the shirt came out very nice. My ripped arizona jean shorts I wear every spring/summer season. I'm happy I can still fit them. I put the outfit with a comfortable burgundy Sketcher sneaker. For some reason I can only wear them without socks (I know that's gross)
I will definitely be wearing outfits like this all summer 2021 long
You got to make sure your edges and hair don't care either. We have to have matching energy.
This has to be one of my favorite looks so far. It has MELLE DON'T GIVE A &*%$ written all over it.

Shirt: On Fire
Shorts: Arizona Jeans Co.
Shoes: Sketchers
Necklace: Random Brand (Beauty Store)








 

  


At first I was sure that went I got my apartment I was going to to need cable. 

No boyfriend hardly no friends your over 30 and lonely your going to need some cable!  

I grew up with cable most of my life living with family so of course hike my bill up to $200 let’s go! But then I thought about the times when the family fell on hard times. I can think of about (3) times I lived in a house or apartment with no cable and there was really no difference as long as there was internet.


I moved into my apartment in 2018 and you know what I decided don’t want cable. I’m frugal I’m a rebel (I thought to myself) I’m going to march into Xfinity and tell them to give me internet only. That’s what I did! I don’t regret none of the decision. I pay less than $100 a month and here are my 10 top streaming apps some paid but most are free.

         



  1. Netflix (Paid)

       It took me a minute to get used to the idea of paying $12.99/ month but it’s well worth the price. Back in the day on one movie theatre ticket I would spend $8.00-$10.00 after popcorn, drinks and snacks I spent well over $20.00. With so many television shows, stand up comedies, romance, drama, it’s hard to chose what to watch from day to day. My favorites right now are Bridgerton, Living Single (90’s throw back) and Forty Year Old Version. It’s definitely worth the monthly fee on my credit card.


  1. Hulu (Paid)

       I needed Hulu for a writing class assignment. I was kind of pissed because I wasn’t really trying to add any more monthly expenses. I got the $5.99/ month I was going to cancel it but then I saw some reality shows from TV I wanted to watch. Then I got totally hooked on Grown-ish and that basically made me keep it.


  1. Pluto (Free)

      Pluto is free! I really liked the interface. Pluto is set up like cable television and even has the music channels all the way at the end. There is MTV, BET all types of channels for specific genres like reality or comedy. Pluto was one of the first apps on my Roku TV it was great! I watched cooking channels all the time and movies. Pluto is a great free streaming app on my TV.


  1. TUBI (Free)

     When I want to watch a really good D list movie… This is it! Tubi reminds me of a bootleg Netflix. Yes you have to watch a couple commercials but there is so much to watch. My favorite section of all time on Tubi is the black cinema. I can watch old movies from that section all day long and there is some new ones too. Tubi is also free and is a must if you don’t have cable


  1. Pandora (Free for me)

     Yes you can pay for Pandora but the free version is great for me. Even though this is streaming music and not television shows or movies it’s still a source for entertainment that is free. Sometimes I just want to play some jazz or chill music and make some accessories or list in my shops while I jam to my music. Get a cup of tea going and we are having a good time. 


  1. Roku Channel (Free)

   I have a Roku TV so this app was already on my television and ready to go. Roku Channel interface is also set up like Netflix and Tubi. Roku Channel has different categories of TV Shows and Movies to watch. It was a steal to come with the television


  1. YouTube (Free)

  Don’t be confused there are two streaming apps to choose from. YouTube TV that is the one you pay for and the regular YouTube App similar to what is on your phone and computer. You will have to put the regular YouTube app on your TV. I was trying to use the YouTube TV app and it kept saying I have to pay. That’s not the correct one we want free! So download the YouTube app right on your television and you’ll be able to watch movies (yes they have ads), your favorite you tubers and if you anything like me you watch yourself!


  1. Film Rise (Free)

 I have Film Rise but I have never watched anything on it. There is a good amount of choices and categories. There are also other apps to download like Film Rise Comedy, Film Rise Thriller so that’s a win win to get all the different apps from Film Rise for free.


  1. Crackle (Free)

Crackle is another app sitting on my TV that goes unwatched but I just put on a Crackle original movie and it looks pretty good! Loads of choices but there is commercials. That is pretty much with anything that is free your going to watch advertisements. 


  1.  Live Antenna TV (Free kind of)

   It’s free but you do need to attach an antenna. I got one from Wal Mart for about $12.00 there are not a lot of channels anymore but there are some local ones and there is always something playing


So there goes my top (10) Streaming Apps on My Roku TV. If you don’t have cable or your on a budget and don’t want to do the paid streaming apps you can still have plenty of television.

💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛💚💛 💚💛💚💛



 The Dollar Tree has really been coming through on these LA Colors nail polish! Every time I go to a new location they have more new colors. This week I picked up a LA Colors nail polish called "Watermelon" very beautiful deep dark berry pink color. 

This was my first time getting this nail color most are duplicates so I buy the same colors over and over. It was nice to see a deeper shade of pink.
LA Colors nail polish "Watermelon" was such a pretty color on my pedicure I decided to throw in a quick manicure also
Definitely will be keeping the watermelon nail color from LA Colors for my nails and toes for this summer. Hope I can stock up on some new colors for the next post! Make sure to visit your local Dollar Tree and see if you can find any nail polish steals from LA Colors.






 I feel like I've done this post on different blogs a million times. I always rewrite it because it's one of the cheapest coolest at home spa like treatments you will ever give yourself. I'm choosing to do the DIY Lotion Paraffin Treatment on my feet this time because my feet are extremely crusty right now. You can also do this DIY treatment on your hands the same way. Here is all you need to do this DIY lotion paraffin treatment and you might already have all of this in your home right now!

That's it! (2) Plastic bags (I have plenty from my grocery shopping) Any type of lotion (This one was from the dollar tree but I say go all out and splurge on some nice lotion your really like or even make some!) Lastly a pair of big comfy socks to warm your feet up.
So we are going to wash our feet off clean and put LOADS of our chosen lotion on the feet. Be very generous this is the "Paraffin"
Slide each foot into a plastic bag and tie the bag or tuck it in
Final step we are going to put on our comfy socks over the plastic bags to create that warm lotion that will now act like "paraffin" leave your feet like this for at least (20) mins the longer the better. If you can stand an hour go for it. Also you don't have to sit down you can walk around. It will be squishy but you'll create even more warmth by moving around. Watch a show or just kick back and relax until your ready to reveal those toes.
Nice soft feet in about (20) minutes! I love this DIY Lotion paraffin treatment! Not just cause it cost pennies but my feet really do feel good afterwards and I know if they get ashy again I know what to do. Make a at home spa day with DIY feet and hand treatments. Who said being pampered had to be expensive. This is self care on a budget budget. 

Thank you for stopping through! Make sure to try this DIY and share it!