Thursday, May 31, 2012

Made It Alive!

I'm probably the most surprised of anyone that I actually made it to New York City, with less of a struggle than I was expecting!  The flight in was normal, sat next to two very thrilling people who were....sleeping.  Yes, we had some mighty exciting conversations.  Then grabbed a cab to the SVA college summer housing, located on Ludlow Street.  Here are some views from my window, I enjoy the view but it is sure loud as f**** here, I opened the window for a minute and three ambulances, a couple cops, and some jackhammers were adding to the music of the city hubbub.  So far I can't figure out quite how to enter my bathroom, could pose as problematic as a couple days pass, who needs showers anyways?

With the new location, supplying you with the newest and greatest DIY/MIB's may be a tad challenging, so you are just going to have to put up with regular updates from my New York experience.  Don't worry, I'll include everything from fashion to dining, it will be like you're right here with me ;)  




Just a couple pictures of my plane outfit, a long, comfy maxi dress I had bought in Spain, paired with a Cleopatra-esque necklace.  Hope the muggers don't think it's real gold... well it's probably time to put on my big girl pants and explore the city, GULP.




Sunday, May 27, 2012

Yes, You Now Look Like a Supermodel

Oh how we all strive for that hourglass shape.  Screw the gym, why not just fake it with some panels of fabric sewn around our now hidden foopah?  This foreign "peplum" technique is taking over our fashion runways and ready to wears, someone must stop it before it's too late.  If we aren't careful, the common workout will be copped out and our citizens will spend their hours on the couch, knowing the peplum will cover all their "loose ends".

Well, I might not have time for a class at the gym today.....let's peplum.



H&M $34.95


Zara $49.90










Friday, May 25, 2012

Rebelling Against....No One In Particular.


If you haven't noticed, lately I've been going through a grunge phase.  It may potentially border on being irreversible, God save my soul.  We might as well endorse it for the time being, another Made It Better will soon be under our belt!  This one begins simply enough, just feel free to elaborate as much or little as you would like, show off your signature inner punk ;)

INSPO:



VINTAGE VIRGIN








Supplies:

  • Denim jacket (Mine was from The Gap, $5 when thrifted)
  • Bleach
  • Pliers
  • Studs (I used leftovers from a previous project, feels good to use up leftover stuff!)
  • Miscellaneous decor to adorn your badass vest, Mine includes iron-on patches, painted vinyl, and stud trim




Step 1) Cut off the sleeves of the jacket




Step 2) Fill a bucket with an inch deep of bleach (about half of the bottle) and dip the bottom half of the vest into it.  Dilute the bleach a little bit with about 1/2 cup of water.  Let the fabric sit until it turns very light, about 3-5 minutes, it may still be actively bleaching until it is washed or rinsed out. (I learned this the hard way, the first time I decided to let the fabric sit in the bleach for an hour so it would get SUPER white...it turns out it just disintegrates...)  Then depending on the look you are going for, dip the very top of the vest including the collar in the bleach following the same methods.  



Step 3) Wash and dry the vest to stop the bleach from processing and further bleaching the denim.  Here's how mine turned out:


Step 4) I went ahead and put some studs in a had from a leftover project, They went in the front pockets and collar. 



Step 5) To add a little more pizazz, I cut two pieces of vinyl to fit the side panels of the vest.  I started with a paper pattern and traced along the seam lines to create it.  Trim the vinyl to fit inside the panel.



Step 6) By following the design in one of my INSPO pictures from above, I painted the vinyl to create my special punk effect.  Pretty special right?


And then did the same for the pockets...


Step 7) Hot glue the vinyl in place on the vest and then topstitch it to secure the placement, definitely learned just hot glue was not enough.



Step 8)  Now go crazy with it.  I ironed on some patched I had lying around (I make it sound like I'm a packrat from all the stuff I have "lying" around, well I probably am, at least its organized chaos!) and threw on a couple more studs, because well, you can never have too many.



And the final project!  Tell me what you think, how would you customize it? Feel free to add chains, animal print, you know anything that will make you feel like a rebel.












The Summary:

Supplies: 
Jacket $5
Patches $10
Studs $10

Total: $25

I'd say pretty good for such a badass vest, feel free to sell it for more ;)


Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Stand A Little Bit Taller

Ah, back to the 90's.  Just when you think you can escape from a certain fashion trend, it always comes back to haunt us.  As in the case presented, Flatforms.  They may or may not have nicknamed this fancy footwear such a clever name back in the day, nevertheless they are back with a vengeance.  Strap these babies on your feet, make the Spice Girls proud.  They seems to be the summer version of my platform brogue post earlier, I guess I end up sticking with the things I like.  Hope you enjoy my latest blast from the past.






My Fav but INSANELY out of my price range...well one day when I'm rich and famous.
Elizabeth and James, $265, buy HERE


Friis $199, buy HERE



Here's some for the sport chic, not me, but hell I can pretend!
ASOS, $295


These go perfectly with the latest pastel and color blocking trends, reminds me of yummy sorbet :)
Matiko, $160, buy HERE



Here are a pair that will make a little less of a dent on my wallet from Urban Outfitters.  I think I will be investing in these for my summer wardrobe!
Urban Outfitters, Kimchi Blue Platform Sandal, $29 buy HERE



And now some just for fun :)

Lady Passion, Irregular Choice, $119, buy HERE




Hopefully I gave you some solid options to "heighten" your summer wardrobe.  Would you wear this 90's style or is a wedge daring enough?