Time to vote! Which one is worse: Tangled necklaces or losing one earring? They’re both pretty terrible. Our solution: this all-in-one travel jewelry case! This is a MUST for your next trip, whether it’s a two-week-long journey or a quick overnight to Southern Cali. If you’re not sure what else to pack, may we suggest cute sandals to match your summer dresses and a punny beach cover-up for lounging at the pool? ;)
Materials:
– canvas
– patterned and solid fabric
– cord
Tools:
– sewing machine
– sewing pins
– ruler
– scissors
– pen
Instructions:
1. Cut 2 rectangles out of canvas that measure 10 x 13 inches. Then cut one rectangle that measure 11 x 15 inches out of canvas and another out of your patterned fabric.
2. Find the center of your 11 x 15-inch canvas rectangle and then pin on your desired pouch. Sew onto the canvas.
3. Use your solid colored fabric to create a pocket and loops for necklaces to hag from. Sew onto the canvas.
4. Once you have prepared the desired jewelry holders on your canvas, pin to the patterned fabric with the pockets (good side) facing in.
5. Sew around 3/4 of the rectangle, then turn right-side out and sew up the hole.
6. Do this same process for the 10 x 13-inch rectangles. Attach your desired pockets and sew.
7. Cut a piece of paracord and sew to the front side (patterned) of your rectangle.
8. Pin the center line of the smaller rectangle to the center line of the larger rectangle. Then sew down this line.
9. Fill with your favorite jewelry and head off to your tropical vacay!
Fire up that sewing machine, and let’s get started.
You will need canvas and a fun patterned fabric to complete this DIY. Cut two canvas rectangles that measure 10 x 13 inches, one canvas rectangle that measures 11 x 15 inches and one pattern rectangle that measures 11 x 15 inches.
Since we’re making a travel jewelry book, find the center of each sized rectangle. This will make it easier for you to center your pieces on your “page.”
Pin your pouch to the canvas page and sew. We used fun neon thread to amp up the neutral canvas.
Use your solid colored fabric to add loops and pockets to your canvas page. You’ll want to create pieces that are about 8 inches wide. When pinning, add extra space so your jewelry can slide in.
Pin your canvas to the patterned fabric. Make sure to pin good sides facing in. Sew 3/4 of the way around and then turn right side-out and sew closed.
Follow the same process for the 10 x 13-inch piece of canvas. Sew your desired add-ons to the inside page.
Pin the center of the pages together and then sew. You’re almost ready for vacation.
Cut a long piece of paracord, pin and sew onto the patterned side of the rectangle.
Check it out! A four-page jewelry-holding slice of heaven.
When choosing your color palette, try to use brights that will pop and complement each other.
Pop in your jewelry. Canvas is a great material to hold your earrings. Stick the posts through the canvas and attach the back on the other side. The neutral color makes the earrings pop and easy to spot.
Attach your bracelets to the sewn loops. Wait — is that a Katy Perry fast food charm bracelet? Yes. Yes it is.
The clear pouches are perfect for extra long necklaces that could get tangled.
The loops paired with the bottom pouch will keep delicate chains separated and not tangled when traveling. Total win!
All packed and ready to go!
Summer plans? Tell us where you’re going and your favorite packing tips and tricks.
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
You X Ventures for Unsplash
Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
Kobu Agency for Unsplash
You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures