THIS is what it makes!
I’m super-excited to announce that I am M&J Trimming’s Blogger of the Month over on their blog today. Woohoo! Go on and
Thanks so much to the M&J Trimming team for this fabulous opportunity!
Let me know what you think of the projects:-)
xoxox
Carly
~If you liked this post, please share it!~
I ended up having too much to do this evening and took a day off from attending the shows. Most years I haven’t felt that I’ve seen anything innovative or worth blogging about on the activewear days (sorry, Portland!!), but this year apparently it was a day worth going to. (Mostly because they bundled the eco-friendly collections on the same day as the activewear…not the best move IMHO.)
I’m super-sorry to have missed Anna Cohen‘s collection especially, since it was a collection designed for the customer to actually DIY their own knits utilizing her Imperial Yarn!! Did someone say DIY??! Right up my alley;-) As for the rest of the collections, you guys can be the judge of whether this night was worth attending, after viewing local uber-talented photogs OSI Photography‘s beautiful shots* below: (more…)
I personally love the Free People catalog – it’s always chock-full of inspiration (both styling inspiration and DIY!) and on every page emanates an ethereal, dreamy beauty. I’m digging all the rust- and caramel colors, reminiscent of Fall foliage, and the beautiful 70’s-style textures that are just begging to be touched. Here are a couple DIY inspirations that struck me as totally do-able this season:
Update a jacket with a printed fabric glued onto the back of it and decorated with pompons. Add a yarn fringe trim around the edges, and more printed ribbon at the cuffs.
Break away from boring stripes by sewing in gray jersey at the sleeves.
Create a convertible coat by cutting a wool overcoat in half just below the waist, hemming each piece, and adding heavy-duty snaps to hold the whole thing together (you’ll lose about 1.5″ of length though).
Easily re-create this necklace with a scrap of leather, a rhinestone, and some wooden beads. Looking for a fur vest? Try P.S. I Made This‘ tutorial using faux fur here.
Glue bright, striped fabric over the outers and tongues of a pair of black combat boots. Leave the toeboxes uncovered.
This dress totally reminds me of A Pair and a Spare‘s DIY Bodycon rug-dress. Could you not use the rug fabric in different orientations to create the front of this little number, layering it on top of a black bodycon dress? I think you could!!
Find a pretty lace crocheted doily/throw/tablecloth, and if needed cut out parts of it so the design stands out, and use it as you would fabric to create a cropped tee. The necklace? A piece of gold embossing metal (available at Jo-Ann’s Fabrics) lying on a sticky-foam backing with jumprings attached to it. Anyone can do it!
xoxox
Carly
~If you liked this post, please share it!~
I am soooo backlogged with DIY’s! It’s so frustrating to walk into my office every day and see a pile of stuff that I’m just dying to finish up, but can’t spare even an extra minute to do right now. Yes, I’m still working on the Balenciaga Cut-Out Boots. Yes, I’m still working on the Gothic Lolita Bunny Bag. My office is a complete mess, I can’t see my desk, and I can’t even get to my sewing table. But I’m also dying to do a project involving the above…since they just arrived in the mail and are tempting me with their ethereal beauty. I find jewelry projects so more satisfying since usually they can be finished fairly quickly, and enjoyed all the more rapidly.
What do you think these pretty tourmaline crystal points will end up as?? Something resembling a piece from some designer’s S/S 2012 collection? Hmmmm….
The answer soon to come!
xoxox
Carly
~If you liked this post, please share it!~
I love M&J Trimming so much – they’re like a virtual candyland filled to the brim with all the tools of the DIY trade!! – and so I was just thrilled to be able to work with them as Blogger of the Month for October on the M&J Trimming Blog.
They sent me a lovely box overflowing with goodies from their store a few weeks ago, and I’ve been DIY’ing like a banshee ever since. The projects will go live next Tuesday (October 11), and I’ll be sharing the link here, so check them all out next week and please let me know what you think of them!
Thanks so much to the M&J Trimming team for making this a possibility! I can’t wait to share my projects with you all!!:-)
xoxox
Carly
~If you liked this post, please share it!~
Okay, so we saw a version of this as a DIY on PS I Made This lately…but isn’t this twisted, yarn-y confection just begging to be DIY’d as is? Cue the pompon maker and bright yarn…this would be so easy to “recreate” with a barette attached to a yarn pompon, and a couple other hair combs with a small amount of yarn wrapped around them (or even small knitted rectangles – even cut from a sweater!!). You wouldn’t have to go full-on runway-style woven-through-the-hair either…just a prim braid or chignon pinned up at the back of the head, with the aforementioned barrettes/pompon would look pretty neat!
xoxox
Carly
photo from Style.com
~If you liked this post, please share it!~
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.
