Half scale progress :)

Hi everyone,

I hope you are all well- time has really been flying and it's been quite while since I last posted. I have been working in my half scale :p which is now almost done (which Is a very good thing as my next show I am working on started today at uni so now I've got to get in with that!)

Here are the latest pictures:

It's just the buttons and buttonholes down the front of the jacket left really :)

I'm quite proud of it though at times when you are hand sewing a hem for hours it can get a bit tedious :p

I will return soon with a post about my upcoming uni show work and also about a wedding fair catwalk I am working on on Sunday :D I'm very excited!

Speak to you all soon, 

Bye xoxoxo

Bonobos Fashion Challenge!

Hi,

As I mentioned in a previous post I was selected to take part in a Fashion challenge organised by the Menswear brand Bonobos. They sent me a few exclusive pictures from one of their latest collections (which you can view/buy: Here! ) and my challenge was to create a complimentary womenswear look. I spent quite a while looking at the different images and in the end there were two that particularly stood out to me- I loved the way that the men seemed to be looking at someone entering the room. I decided that the men were looking at my beautiful, complementary dressed, woman making her grand entrance. I imagined what she would be wearing to make them the perfect power couple (and to be making him stare so intensely)!

I will now present my designs. Here was the first image I chose to design for:

I loved how smart this suit looked whilst still being quite playful. Here is my complementary womens look:

The fabric darker fabric which makes up on side of the dress is supposed to be the same fabric that the men's suit is made from- I loved the idea of using the same fabric but in a way that it is not too obviously matchy-matchy with the suit. The diamonds on the cuff of the sleeve and in a pattern on the bottom of the dress add a bit of sparkle. The belt is attached into the front and back seam and s inches in the slightly flowier white portion of the dress. The fastening would be an invisible zip on the back down the seam which would end under the collar part (so but of the collar that tails off would be peppered etc.. down so it could be folded back to access the zip). You can see the dart placement on the white side of the dress. On the checked portion there would be a double pointed  dart which runs vertical between the bust and the hip, and similar in the back but between the shoulder blade and a dart running from the shoulder to the shoulder blade (as on white side also) the checked side needs more shaping as it doesn't have the little belt piece to sinch it in. Sorry for anyone who didn't want so much construction detail- just as a maker I think about all these things and it is nice to let you all know that my design is possible in real life seeing as I have only sketched it.

Here is the 2nd image from Bonobos that I chose:

This suit is razor sharp!  I was definitely drawn to the more formal looks- probably because the drama of them. The little pattern on the fabric and the velvet shawl collar are the accents I like the most- I tried to feature the velvet and patterned fabric in my womens wear design as I again liked the matching, but not in too-obvious-a-way look:

The draped strappy straps at the top I envisage being velvet roleau, as I mentioned above to compliment the velvet shawl collar (these fasten into either side of the CB seam- lining up perfectly of course! And into the top of the back of the dress). The fishtail part of the dress made from similar fabric to the diamond patterned suit fabric. The hanging ruby and gold coloured jewel piece adds some extra glamour and also I like the idea of its movement as it hangs- rather than being stitched down.The seam lines a fairly clear in the sketch if this dress and again I imagine there being a CB invisible zip.

I hope you like my designs, please do comment below to tell me what you think- honesty is fine! :)

And I would also like to Thank Bonobos for contacting me about taking part in this challenge as It has been really exciting and fun challenging myself to come up with new designs.

Speak to you all again soon,

Bye xoxoxo

Sunday style

Hi,

My my, it has been quite a while since I brought you a Sunday style! I have one for you today though :) As I mentioned in a previous post I had designed and started making an A line dress (from scratch, making my own pattern etc.) from a shirt and skirt I picked up in the costume store sale. Today we had family friends over so I made sure I got it all done ready to be worn and shown off! Lol :P

Here is it just flat:

Here are some of the details up close:

Folding back the  corners of the pocket flaps was my dad's idea and then I thought I could do the same with the collar and add little buttons to tie everything on :)

If you had forgotten the pieces I got the fabric from here they are:

Here is me wearing The dress:

I am really pleased with how it came out as it fits me really well, as it should because I made it to my measurements :P and it nice and airy for summer.  The colours also go with the colour of my hair too I think- if I am going to indulge myself and be really vain, lol! I will stop now and compliment you all- You all look beautiful today :D xxx

I am off to go and relax now. I have eaten a lot of my dad's delicious food today so need to sit and let it all go down- warm chocolate peanut butter ice cream sundae sauce and brownies is all  that needs to be said! :P

Before I go though I do want to say thank you to everyone who has looked at my new etsy shop. My viewings are increasing which is lovely :-) Also I have a special tutorial coming soon that I have made for you all so keep your eyes peeled! 

See you soon,

Bye xoxoxo

Saving my mum's vintage dress

Hi,

 

Today I bring to you my latest project....

 

A while ago now, when me and my family were on holiday in the IOW my mum bought this beautiful original 1930/40s dress in a vintage shop:

 

 

It fit her really well and looked nice however, when we got it home we realised it had some quite bad watermarks/staining on it :( They hadn't shown up in the shop (we hadn't been lied to, just nobody had noticed them), but are clearly visible in daylight:

 

My mum was really disappointed and hasn't been able to wear the dress due to the visible staining on the bodice and the main stain (pictured above) on the skirt. My mum tried getting it dry cleaned- they tried their best but nothing could be done :-( Again I was sad because my mum really liked the dress and it cost her £125; though this is not extortionate, it is still quite expensive, and definitely is an amount you want to get some enjoyment from.

 

My mum stashed the dress in the wardrobe, then yesterday we were watching a programme on TV called 'This old thing' which was all about vintage clothing and refashioning it. We decided to get the dress out and give it one last attempt to try to make it wearable. I looked at it, assessed it, thought about hard etc... and then I came up with this idea:

 

A central panel of matching colour scheme purple crepe type fabric (fabric from one of the bargains I got in the costume store!). My mum thought that sounded good as she wanted to preserve the dress (so not cut into it) but also to cover all the stains on the bodice and skirt of course- and the panel can do both! Also I knew I had to come up with a solution that was fairly simple in style so as not to overpower the rest of the details on the dress or make it look 'too much'. The simple, clean shape of the panel should be perfect.

 

I started work on it today- I have got the shape tacked onto the dress and the bodice and skirt panels cut out and ready to be seamed together- I will work more on it tomorrow and will of course bring you lots of pictures when the transformation is complete. I really hope it looks gorgeous and I know it would make my mum really happy if she did love it and could wear it- she had kind of written it off after the dry cleaning didn't really work out. I have made it my mission to SAVE MY MUMS DRESS!!!! :0)

 

Hehe, I have also got some alterations I am working on for my next door neighbour too, I need to finish those of tomorrow as well- I will be a busy bee! But in-between I can relax with dad and brother who have both happened to have the day of work/school and we are getting subways, a mcflurry and playing tennis at the park. So that will be nice. I had a good day today as well- me and my mum saw the importance of being earnest at the theatre and had cupcakes from Sweet couture. Mmmmm... I am craving another one now!

 

Lol, I better get off to bed ready for my busy day tomorrow,

 

Speak to you all again soon,

 

Bye XxXxXx

Happy valentines :)

Hi eveyone,

I hope you all had a great Valentines day with your loved ones yesterday :)

 

I had a lovely day with my family. My dad treated me to this cool multicoloured rose (and a box of lindt chocolates!). It is a real rose and everything but they used coloured water to make it these amazing colours:

 

 

 

It was called a Harlequin rose. I love it soo much!!! it reminds me of cirque du soleil, it is very theatrical :P

 

Talking about flowers, this week (as it has been reading week for me) I have had some time to work a bit more on a little half scale dress I have been working on- I designed it, then draped the pattern and now I am making it up in the real fabric :0) Here it is so far, the skirt is inspired by petals:

 

It is also inspired by the dress in Disney's Princess and the frog (I love that movie!). When I have finished the dress (it will be ribbon laced at the back and may even have some form of sleeves :-) I am making a petticoat to go underneath to puff out the bottom for the petals to drape over. I have been really careful with the construction and pressing and am really proud of it so far :-)

 

This week I also finished the new stock I have been working on for my shop- some of my little knitted Easter chicks!:

 

 

I have uploaded four sets of two; one set of light green (pictured above) and one set in pink, blue and yellow- All at only £2.50 per set.

 

Do pop over and take a look: Click here :)

 

Today me and my mum went to see the Isabella Blow fashion exhibition at Somerset House in London. It was really fantastic- so many amazing hats and dresses to look at many of them quite outrageous making it all even more fun! :) Then we went for an afternoon tea at Hush Brasseries in St Paul's which I treated my mum too, We ate it all before I remembered to take a picture though :P It was very nice there were little scones and mini macaroons. Hahaha I didn't know I liked macaroons until today and now I have a craving for more! The slice of mars bar cheesecake you get at the end of the tea was tasty too :0)

 

Tomorrow me and my family are going out for a meal (Hehehe, I will try to remember pictures this time :P) as it is my last day of reading week then i am going back to uni- to do more corsets, yay :)

 

Talk to you all again soon and I hope you all have a lovely Sunday,

 

Bye xxxx

 

 

Build-A-Bear couture

Hello,

 

In my free time in the evenings after college I have been pottering making a dress for my Build-A-Bear bunny I made for my 18th birthday (Called Georgia :) I managed to finish it tonight :P It is a little bit dodgy in places mainly because by the evenings the light in my room is pretty terrible! hahaha :oP

Here it is;

 

 

My inspiration was the beautiful African style dresses that Stefany (the dressmaker at the tailors I work at when I can) makes. I love them soo much I knew I had to try and make my own version and Georgia was moaning that she didn't have enough clothes (she is a bit of a diva :P) so I thought why not make one for her? :-)

 

I went with a one shoulder dress with a nice big collar/neckline, a diagonally attached flaring skirt and I even fully lined the bodice hehehe I think it gave me some practice at my pattern cutting skills that's for sure!

 

I will definitely be making Georgia some more outfits soon so I can try some more designs to practice. Which reminds me I think my Blythe girls need some love and attention in the fashion department too, they have been a bit neglected what with me starting uni- I will get on that over my holiday which is coming up soon.

 

I'm off to get some sleep now ready to continue my mask which is what we are making as part of out trying out of the props course (we do these little taster days of the other degrees at the college so that we can understand other peoples crafts and skills and respect their part in putting on a production :). Mine is going well... I think :P It is going to look a bit like Medusa I think, but we will see!

 

Here is the base of it that I have to paper mache:

 

 

lots of paper and gluing tomorrow.... lots!

 

Hahaha see you all soon, and please do check out my shop (just click the button at the side of the page :) as I listed loads of new items last weekend- lots of fun food brooches that I hope you will all like!

 

I hope you are having a lovely week so far,

 

Byeee my friends xxxxooooxxxx

Getting ready for uni!

 

Helloo,

 

For several weeks I have been getting all the bits and bobs I need for Uni like pots, pans, books, course supplies and..... clothes! :D Haha, I have enjoyed doing my clothes shopping, choosing lots of lovely outfits to wear.

 

I wanted to show you a picture of my most special, glam, saving-for-a-special-occasion dress that my mum and dad got me as an early birthday gift:

 

 

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT! I was drooling over it in the shop and said to my mum one day I will wear a dress like that! Then the next day she surprised me by bringing me one home :D It is sooo beautiful and it fits me perfectly :-) I am so happy to have it in my wardrobe ready to bring out for that perfect occasion! (and to put on and walk around in it in front of the mirror when I want to, lol :p) 

 

As my college is about 1/2 hour walk from my uni home I planned on using my bike some days and having a nice little cycle there instead. As another early birthday present my dad helped me do up my bike (which I haven't used in years!):

 

 

I got a cute basket :3:

 

And my dad made me a wooden vintage style crate to go on the back to give me even more carry space. I chose to put 'Gutermann & Co' the sewing thread makers so we painted it on the side and on the other side I want to paint 'Finest sewing thread' in an old fashioned style font to complete the look :)

 

Tomorrow me and my dad are taking some of my stuff up to my Uni home so that will be fun.

 

In other news here are my latest innocent smoothie hat creations:

 

 

An American style pretzel hat :D- I am going to make more in different colours.

 

And some little flowery hats that remind me of baby hats:

 

 

 

I used pastel self striping yarn and I think it gave quite an interesting effect.

 

I am off to carry on with more now, and check I have packed all my stuff properly for tomorrow!

 

See you soon,

 

Bye XXX

Sunday Style

Hello,

 

As you will probably know I have been back of holiday for a few days now. My parents have been offering for ages now to do my room up but with all my studying for A levels and stuff I hadn't got round to it- but now it's the summer holidays and I am free! :D so me and my parents have been painting and decorating since we got back and it is almost done. I am sooo excited, I have new craft storage boxes and a sewing area and a funky fire place me and my dad decorated. I will post pictures when it is fully completed, which should be by the end of the week :-)

 

But in other news today I bring you another Sunday style, which I actually wore to family barbecue before I went on holiday:

 

 

I made the pattern myself by draping on the stand :) It was a little tight, but that will teach me to drape a bit more loosely next time :-P

 

I did diagonal underarm darts and straight back waist darts- the darts being the main design features as I thought the fabric was so pretty that I didn't want to take away from it by adding too much to the dress. I think it is a print of forests and lakes and old fashioned ladies:

 

To me it reminded me slightly of Japanese traditional gardens :)

 

I'm off now to get in bed so I am ready in the morning to finish off the tidying of my room :P And in the afternoon me and my family are going to see Charlie And the Chocolate Factory in the theatre in the west end so I mustn't be too tired for that either!

 

See you soon,

 

Byeee xxx

 

P.S. Thank you to Steph for sending me the lovely parcel of incense after reading on my blog that I have been using some it :) They all smell so nice!

 

Bye OXXXOXXXOO

Sunday style

Hi guys,

Today I bring you two Sunday styles (hehehee, because I wore one of them on Saturday- not Sunday but sshhh :P)

 

First is a slightly more sophisticated Sunday style, well no crazy coloured wig this time!

It is this bird dress with long straps that tie at the back of the neck :o):

 

 

It is made out of a spare curtain from a pack my mum bought for the porch. She asked me did I want it and I was like if it's fabric I'll have it! And I think I managed to put it to good use. I wore the dress to dog racing with my family and it was pretty hot so I'm glad what I made was cool and flowy :)

 

Hehehe, a slightly more usual Sunday style now (but still no wig sadly- it is too hot!)..... a pair of doughnut print culottes:

 

With little kawaii blue star buttons I got from japan- this is the first piece of clothing I have flat pattern drafted from measurements to block to adding pockets and a fly so I was pleased they came out with a relatively good fit- a little bit of adjustment needed but nothing major :) The were verrryyy comfy as being culottes and not shorts they were a bit more roomy, I wore them round to lunch at some family friends. They were fun to make and to wear! :P

 

I hope you are all having a lovely week,

 

See you soon,

 

Bye xxx

 

Last holiday update!

Hello everyone,

This is my last holiday update as tommorrow I am coming back home. I had a really good last day today though as the sun has been shining and me and my family went back to the Chocolate Apothecary (a reaalllyyy nice cafe). I had half a cookie, half a brownie (I shared with my dad as they are to good to try and choose one of them :P) and some appletizer :0) Mmmmmmmmmm! Also this evening when we went to the pier my brother won a cute donut plush on the grabber/claw machine and gave it to me (we have been trying for the whole week to win something and finally on our last day we did!)

 

Yesterday we had a 'chipnic' ( a chip picnic :) on the beach, hehehe :0) my dad made up the idea. we packed some rolls and sauce and then went and bought some IOW potato chips from the local chip shop and sat on the beach and ate our chip butties :P I had a few chips left at the end so I fed them to the seagulls, they went crazy for them!!!

 

On Wednesday we went for a meal at pizza express with some of the gift vouchers my nan gave us, that was really nice I had doughballs, some margherita pizza and then a big toffee glory ice cream :P It was very tasty :)

 

Tuesday was a shopping day really, my mum took me back to the vintage clothes shop as I really enjoyed looking round it the first time. She helped me look through all the rails for something my size and I tried on some different dresses, they were all so pretty and in the end my mum treated me to my two favourites and a cardigan for me to wear to my upcoming 18th birthday celebrations!(Pictures coming when I get home I am just still struggling to upload them)

 

This week I managed to finish the teddy bear cross stitch kit I started a while ago and the mini butterfly one my mum bought me last week. And I started another dress for my Monster high doll out of some pretty Chinese style fabric I bought in the IOW this time last year! I also came up with another tutorial to share with all of you which I shall be posting up over the next week or so :D

 

I hope you all had a lovely week,

 

See you all very tommorrow to announce the winner of the 2nd blogiversary giveaway, If you haven't entered yet don't miss out! Good luck to everyone :0)

 

Bye xxxXxxxXxxxX

 

Holiday (and Olympic!) snaps :)

Hi guys!

I am back now and as promised I bring you pictures, lol :P Hehehe, I will try not to bore you all! (I have only chosen my best snaps :)

Here is the view from the back of the glass bottom boat, the water was very blue in Malta and it was ALWAYS hot and sunny:

Interestingly there is no tide in Malta... I don't know why, there just isn't! :-P

This is the best picture I could get of the fish through the windows at the bottom of the boat:

It was cool to the see the 'underwater world' though I did feel a little bit sea sick!

Hehehe, here is the infamous 'Maxibon cookie', soooooo tasty :0)

It got a bit battered on the way home from the shop but It was still very yummy!

If only it was possible I would have got one for a giveaway, lol!

Another thing that was super tasty was the ice cream filled croissants me and my family had by the sea front, I very much recommend giving it a try at home:

I had cookie and banana ice cream......mmmmmm.... I wish I had one now :)

In the main set of shops near our parade they had lots of handmade Maltese lace and my mum and dad treated me to this beautiful umbrella, I absolutely love it. I can't wait too use it in the park on a sunny day or at  the next family barbecue!

Last of my holiday snaps are the pictures of some of my makes :-):

Hehehe, I hope you all had a nice couple of weeks while I was away too (and I hope my pics didn't bore you too much :P) xxx

In other news as I'm sure all of you will already know London is hosting the 2012 Olympics! Me and my family luckily managed to get some tickets, we got to go and watch the handball today. I had watched quite a few events on TV whilst on holiday so I was quite excited to go and see the Olympic park in real life. (I'm also lucky I only live 10 mins from Stratford so we didn't have a long journey to get there either!)

Here is the main Olympic stadium, what you  see as you walk in:

It is a very pretty stadium. As you can see from the picture the park was relatively crowded but not jam-packed which was good as it was quite hot today. The queue for the mega store was huge but it did move quickly and only took about 10 mins to get into the shop for a look.

I also saw the velodrome quite clearly too:

I got to go into the basketball stadium though as that was where the handball was

The basketball stadium:

Here are some pictures inside I took from my seat:

It was the mens quarter final, Spain V France. It was quite exciting at the end as it was 22, 22 with two seconds to go and then France scored to win the match. They told you all the rules at the start so that was good as then I knew what was going on :-P

I promise there will be less pictures in the next post, I will give all your eyes a rest! I just wanted to share with you all my adventures :)

See you all soon my lovely lovely friends!

Bye XxXxX

P.S. In the next couple of days I will be celebrating my Second Blogaversairy (well belated one as it was a few days ago now) as I mentioned before I went away so make sure to check back soon :D

Byyyyyyyyeeeee