Make a large Girly tote bag inspired by Vanessa Bruno and LL Bean on Made by Genevieve. It looks so perfectly done and rivals those you could buy in a store! (And check out all her other DIY tutorials on her site too – they’re fab!)
Desde Tenefire Con Amor made an awesome DIY Prada Banana skirt just using fabric paint on white cotton. The great thing about those Prada bananas is that they have this hand-painted quality, so the more sketchy-looking, the more authentic!
Add some DIY to your office space with the help of Design*Sponge. I love all the great patterns from fabrics and paper that can be incorporated into your office area – how fun!
Erin Siegel Jewelry posted a how-to for a Simple Link Bracelet. Imagine making a bunch of these with your favorite charms and stacking them with other bangles and cord bracelets? Lovely and summery!
Autodesk, one of the world’s leaders in design, engineering, and entertainment software (3dsmax, CAD) just acquired the largest DIY community on the web: Instructables.com (for around $2 million). source I truly hope they improve the uploading editor (because it takes so goshdarn long to upload a project that I rarely do it), and that Autodesk doesn’t exclude how-tos and projects that may come close to some of their licensed products and software – as well as respect intellectual property ownership (which according to some of the comments, they have not had the best track record in). It remains to be seen!
Make a Custom Pair of Tap Pants with Haley Pierson-Cox on CraftZine. Boy, the fabric she used for her shorts looks so familiar!! I guess that polka-dot satin just lends itself so easily to a pair of frilly, lovely shorts. A must-do before the summer’s done!
…love, Maegan made a stunningly amaaaahzing pair of DIY embellished jeweled pumps, inspired by Dolce + Gabbana. The final result is completely droolworthy!!
If your project was featured above, feel free to grab a button and share the DIY!
If you have a DIY how-to or tutorial that you’d like to see featured on Chic Steals, please email me at carlyjcais at chic-steals dot com – and I’ll try to squeeze it in to one of my Links of the Week posts! (Tutorials/how-to’s with steps included please! So everyone can share in the DIY goodness:-)
xoxox
Carly
-all photos copyright their respective authors; photo array by me-
(just click on the photo to see the product linked)
I always find that even when I think I don’t need another single thing in my wardrobe, clicking on over to ASOS.com always proves me wrong. I see this – I see that – I start drooling – my “how can I DIY this?” wheels start spinning – and before I know it, I start having dreams about a certain top or dress or bag or shoes (glitter peacock platforms anyone?).
I know, I know – I’m probably the worst example of rampant consumerism…but a world filled with frills and charming prints and lace and sparkly things is a world that makes me happy.
Feeling utterly uninspired lately, what with still getting back into the routine here after a month of being away – and mounds upon mounds of unpacking still littering my bedroom and computer room – I haven’t been up to DIY’ing much lately, or even web-surfing to any useful extent. Here are some things that have been on my mind lately and saved in my “Inspirations” folder…and maybe I’ll finally get off my bum and start doing some of them?? (more…)
Since coming back from Tokyo and getting up at 1 or 2 in the morning for the first 5 days or so, I’ve had some time to kill waiting for the grocery store to open so I can start my day. I’ve dove into my video collection and pulled out everything video that I used to love growing up – mainly because I wanted to re-visit the fashion from that era. It’s amazing to see what looks silly to our eyes now – and what fashions are still around! Here are some of my favorites:
The ultimate sleepover movie in the 80’s! I had no idea that it had been Sarah Jessica Parker and Helen Hunt in the two lead roles for the longest time, even after they both became known for the rest of their careers. Remember Helen Hunt’s beret with the grasshopper on it from the DTV tryouts? Or her outfit where she changes on the school bus simply by flipping her Catholic School uniform inside-out and securing it with the help of velcro? SJP’s outfit where she competes at the dancing competition for DTV killed me – I even made a similar version way back then, scribbling on a cut-up white t-shirt with pink fabric paint and pairing it with some hot pink spandex leggings.
I can watch this movie over and over again – and even now, when I’m at least 10 years older than everyone in the movie, the cool kids still look “cool.” Remember Cindy Mancini’s outfit that got splashed with red wine? Suede fringe and rabbit-foot earrings! I was always shocked at the boldness of it.
Who could mention iconic 80’s teen movies without including The Breakfast Club? Kids from all the different cliques in school are forced to spend a day with each other in detention – and emerge friends. (At least for the day.) Molly Ringwald was wearing that pink outfit that could pass for fashionable even today – and gives Ally Sheedy a makeover (I preferred her before all in black though!). I think anyone who watches this movie will find all of the characters relatable, even if they themselves identified as a “jock” or a “nerd” during high school. (sorry I don’t know why the above video isn’t loading:-(
The ultimate 90’s high school makeover tale. Who didn’t want to get up and put together her outfits like Cher? Watching it brings you back to all the great mid-90’s fashion: over-the-knee black socks, clunky-heeled shoes, bright colors, matching plaids. Why is it that movies with “makeovers” appeal so much?? This has three: the high school math teacher, Tai (Brittany Murphy, R.I.P.), and Cher herself. And it just makes you smile!
Watching the whole TV series was like watching 10 years of fashion fly by. I was always partial to what Donna Martin wore in the high school years – but all the flowered, breezy minidresses, combat boots, black velvet chokers, and bodycon dresses bring back memories.
Did you have any “fashion-inspirational” movies that you loved growing up?
Carly J. Cais I am a DIY’er, designer, sewist, maker, and marketer. Chic Creative Life is where I share what I do, and help others bring their unique style into their own lives.
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