Listen to Chic Steals November 2013 Cinematic Music Playlist by Little Warrior

DIY Ideas for Spring 2014 Straight from the Runways (A – M)

Oct 29, 2013 | DIY, Fashion

So all the Fashion Weeks around the world – New York, Paris, London, Milan (and Portland, LOL!) – have now concluded and it’s time to do a final wrap-up of all those great ideas and put some inspiration on file to add to the DIY queue. So what’s in store for this coming Spring? And what are you DYING to DIY? Let’s take a look at some amazing runway pieces and see how we can interpret them for creative fashion-lovers on a budget (AKA the Rest of the World):

Left: Take a cue from 3.1 Phillip Lim and add agate-inspired layers of fabric paint to an artfully-cut hem of a white top. Stitch in a layer of sheer fabric underneath for length, and some glued-on rhinestone jewels for your sandals.
Right: Alexander Wang‘s oversized trousers are potentially an easy DIY by thrifting a pair of too-large gray dungarees and folding the excess fabric towards the front, securing with hand-stitching in the shape of an X at the waistband.

Left: Burberry Prorsum’s chic update on the granny-lace skirt can be made by adding some sew-on rhinestones over the flower motif in a lace pencil skirt (and you could easily make one from a thrifted tablecloth or lace curtain!) Update a pair of sandals too by adding a same-colored rectangle of fabric between the toe-strap and ankle-strap (and just gluing the fabric over the straps on the underside).
Right: Simulate the pretty elegance of Carven‘s cutout dress with some DIY floral applique at the sides, and a strategically-placed cut-out in the center of a simple LBD.

Left: A steady hand can mimic the swooping brushtroke motifs at Céline with just some red fabric paint on top of a royal blue T-shirt. Also stitch in a sheer black chiffon underlay to a plain white pleated skirt.
Right: Christian Dior‘s breezy shirtdress is a re-tread of 2011’s cutout shoulder trend (but just tuck one side of the front into the button placket and pin in order to steal the look).

Left: Create a suitlike ensemble with mismatched separates with some strategically-placed floral applique (see Carven, above) just like at Creatures of the Wind.
Right: Warrior chic is totally attainable by stitching in some neutral fringe trim at the waist of an ivory dress, and adding some tan leather extensions to your flat sandals, inspired by Derek Lam.

Left: Edun‘s pattern play can be re-created by stamping a black X pattern with fabric paint over the bottom half of a white coat, and stamping a larger pattern onto plain white sandal slides.
Right: That funny folded skirt outfit at Giambattista Valli could be made by cutting the skirt part off of a wide A-line dress, then slitting the skirt up the center. Flip each side outwards and secure with invisible stitches underneath each roll for the skirt-part, and crop the top part of the dress to create a crop top.

Left: Honor‘s understated dress can be made from a simple black LBD with the addition of sew-on silver star sequins scattered on the collar and pocket. Also: glam up a pair of black flats with some multi-colored pink glitter on the toeboxes by using Mod Podge. (Plus: glittery sunglasses too!)
Right: Hand-stitch a couple pieces of black strapping to the bottom of a bikini top to mimic the Jason Wu Spring 2014 strappy bikini.

Left: Create a boldly-striped skirt like at Jil Sander Navy just by streaking a pleated white skirt with some vertical stripes of diluted fabric paint.
Right: L.A.M.B.‘s fashion-forward dress can be re-created by sewing a long rectangle of fabric to the bottom of a straight black tanktop, and allowing to gape open for a fun nonchalance. Also: Re-color the tops of white sandals with some Angelus leather paint for that contrasting cobalt hue!)

Left: Taking a page from Markus Lupfer‘s playbook, small cut-out hearts can be made in a sweatshirt by hand-stitching some lace fabric behind each cutout, with the edges hidden by sewn-on ruffled trim. Glue some chunky rhinestones onto the toe-straps of some plain black sandals. (Adorabe Persian kitty sadly not DIY’able!)
Right: Go wild with Moschino Cheap & Chic‘s take on Spring: Add some flamingo-shaped iron-on appliques to a plain white purse, create some pink marabou puffball shoeclips, and stamp a white cami and pant-set with flamingos rendered in pink and black fabric paint. Now all you need is a Cosmo!

Ideas from brands beginning with N-Z soon to come!

xo
Carly

All runway photos from Style.com