DIY Project! Trick Out Your Cube at Work

Meet one of SELF's Editorial Assistants, Alyssa. When's she not scoping out the latest pop culture trends for our Entertainment department, Alyssa can usually be found DIYing. We tap into her craftiness to find out what she's whipping up every week.

Think about it: where do you spend the majority of your time during the week? If you're anything like us, it's a three-sided cubicle that's, let's admit it, hard to make attractive. We wanted to do a little something to spice up cubicle life as we know it, and what better way to do that than with a touch of neon that has a totally practical twist? Good news: Many office supply stores sell bare-bones products that can be injected with a bit of 'tude, minimal effort required. I went with two wood canisters for pencils, pens and scissors, as well as four pieces of cork with magnets attached to the back that will serve as an extra space to tack my edit ideas. (Likewise, feel free to tack on anything that inspires you!) 

You'll need:

2 wooden pencil holders4 square cork pieces1 roll of magnetic tape with adhesive backing blue painter's tapeneon spray paint in the color of your choice

Start by using  the painters tape to create quirky, personal designs on both your pencil holders and cork pieces. I went for a trendy, color blocking-look on the pencil holders, and various lines on the cork pieces, but remember, do whatever you like. Only caveat: Make sure the tape is pressed firmly to the surface, as cork can be very absorbent and you don't want to spray paint to bleed through.

Important reminder: Everything you cover with tape will remain the color of cork/pencil case. Keep that in mind when you design. Then, spray your items with a quick-drying neon spray paint. Spray two coats, letting the first dry for about 10 minutes before repeating. When you're done coating, let dry overnight. 

The next day, cut the magnetic tape into pieces, and stick one piece onto each of the four corners of your corkboard.Simply transport the items to your office and set 'em up. All of a sudden your cubicle doesn't feel so much like a cubicle, amiright?!

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Image Credit: Alyssa Longobucco

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Weekend Project! DIY Waterproof Coasters

Meet one of SELF's Editorial Assistants, Alyssa. When's she not scoping out the latest pop culture trends for our Entertainment department, Alyssa can usually be found DIYing. We tap into her craftiness to find out what she's whipping up every week.

As I get older (and yes, I know 23 isn't really "old"), I go through more and more life stages with my friends -- and right now, we're all heavily into the "moving out" phase.

With so many apartment-warming parties to go to, I needed a few unique gift options (Because really, how many tea kettles does one apartment need?), and these DIY photo coasters seemed like the perfect solution. You can take creative license with these and use whatever image you want -- one ripped out of a magazine, printed off a camera, or in my case, a few of your Instagram photos. (We love the site Prinstagram for printing ours!)

You'll need:

4 plain coasters (we got ours for under $8 at Crate and Barrel)Mod Podge in "Glossy"A sponge brushClear Acrylic gloss spray

Trim your photos to the size of the coasters, making the image end slightly before the edges of the coaster. Coat the back of your chosen photo with a generous dose of Mod Podge (but not too much -- you want it to dry, after all!).

Let the Mod Podge dry for about 15 seconds, then place your coaster over the photo and press gently, adhering it to the sticky side of the photo. Allow it to dry for at least 20 minutes without picking it up (Patience, students.)

One the photo is applied to the coaster, it's time to topcoat. You're going to want to coat the image and coaster with at least three coats of Mod Podge, allowing it to dry for 15 minutes (or until clear) between coats.

Once the final coat has dried, spray all of the coasters with a clear acrylic gloss spray, which ensures that they're waterproof/drink proof. Because you know you'll be putting a few margaritas on these babies!

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Rosie Fortescue at the AllSaints Biker Project

Rosie Fortescue wears a black fedora hat, beige trench coat, skinny leather trousers and a black Celine bag to the AllSaints Biker Project exhibition in London - vote on celebrity fashion, style and red carpet looks in GLAMOUR.COM’s Dos and Don’ts

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Weekend Project! How to Perfectly Arrange Flowers

Meet one of SELF's Editorial Assistants, Alyssa. When's she not scoping out the latest pop culture trends for our Entertainment department, Alyssa can usually be found DIYing. We tap into her craftiness to find out what she's whipping up every week.

We may have lost an hour this past week, but we gained spring. (Or at least, we almost have!) There's no better way to ring in the season than adding fresh flowers to your home or apartment. I'm pretty bloom-obsessed, so through the years (and a little trial and error involving dead, smelly flowers), I've picked up several tips and tricks that make pulling together a proper arrangement a cinch. Follow these, and you'll be a veritable flower child before you know it.

Trim It

Always trim a fresh end for stems once you bring them home from the flower shop. Cutting the stem at an angle allows for more water to be absorbed into the flower. To keep your flowers alive as long as possible, you can continue to cut the stems on an angle every four days (they'll get progressively shorter, so make sure you keep a bit of length initially).

Tape It

If you're looking for a simple way to give your arrangements a professional look, look no further than your junk drawer. Use tape (yes, really!) to create a grid formation on the mouth of your vase to keep flowers evenly spaced and in formation. If you want to get really fancy-pants, pick up some florist tape (but you totally don't need to).

Arrange It

There are several tricks to arranging a gasp-worthy bouquet. First, always remove any stray leaves from the stems-a good rule of thumb is anything below the waterline (aka where you're filling the water up to in the vase) goes. Then, decide what look you're aiming for.

One of my favorite bouquet styles is a lot of one flower (in one color family as well) arranged in a vase. Pick a big guy, like a hydrangea bloom and let it take center stage in a vase by itself. Hydrangeas are needy-replace their water every day!

Another fun twist is quirky vases. I was gifted this little fishy as a housewarming present-I happen to think it's totally awesome. I put a small bundle of flowers in it and tied with a burlap string-it looks a little shabby-chic, and I love that! Another option is turning a light bulb into a hanging vase-and you need are pliers, a little patience and burlap string-SO cute.

If you're looking for a long-lasting minimal look, try sprigs of dried lavender and grass in vases (mason jars or old bottles that have been spray painted work perfectly!). They look natural and stylish-and you don't have to worry about them dying!

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Jennifer Aniston filming Untitled Elmore Leonard Project in Connecticut

Jennifer Aniston filming Untitled Elmore Leonard Project in Connecticut

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The Mindy Project Takes Off

Actor, writer, producer Mindy Kaling steps out of The Office and into the spotlight.By Rebecca Ascher-Walsh
WebMD Magazine - Feature

Mindy Kaling seems to move at the speed of light.

At 33, she is the creator, producer, head writer, and star of her own Fox network sitcom, The Mindy Project. Her growing fan base includes more than 2 million Twitter followers, at whom Kaling fires off tweets on topics as varied as shopping, friendship, and the revenge fantasies she has while jogging. Her collection of essays, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), became a best-seller last year when her only claim to fame was being a writer on and co-starring in the NBC series The Office.

If colleagues left in the dust are shaking their heads, Kaling shrugs off her heady ascension. "I'm an Asian kid who grew up the child of immigrants and went to an Ivy League school," she says, her high-pitched voice and rapid speech making her sound like an enthusiastic teenager rather than an industry heavyweight. "I'm a hyper-perfectionist and a people-pleaser."

Raised in Boston with her older brother Vijay by her OB/GYN mother Swati and architect father Avu, Kaling became interested in comedy as a teenager. She spent hours deconstructing movies and comedy skits. After graduating from Dartmouth College, she and her roommate Brenda Withers moved to New York and while looking for work wrote a comedic play called Matt & Ben, in which Kaling played Ben Affleck to Withers' Matt Damon. In 2002, it won top honors at the Fringe Festival. After moving off-Broadway, Time magazine named it among the "Top 10 Theatrical Events of the Year."

Producer Greg Daniels, just about to launch The Office, took note and hired the then 24-year-old as the show's sole female writer. During her eight-year tenure, the cast earned an Emmy nomination and she earned critical praise for her role as the narcissistic customer service representative Kelly Kapoor.

Last year, when the show entered its final season, Kaling made a pitch to Fox: She wanted to write, produce, and star in The Mindy Project, playing a romantic-comedy-obsessed OB/GYN in New York. Then Kaling boarded a plane to Boston, where she spent three months at the bedside of her mother, who was dying of pancreatic cancer. "In some ways, those were the most amazing three months," says Kaling, who describes her relationship with her mother as one of the most significant of her life.

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Most patients are diagnosed at a late stage with a five-year survival rate of 2%. "No one is lucky to get cancer, but I remember feeling jealous of people who got a cancer where there were stages and you could do chemo to [treat] it," says Kaling, whose mother lived with the diagnosis for eight months.

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