GIFTS

Soooo, after Christmas and everything is already over, I had a friend tell me that she bought me something and is sending it to me. We used to be really good friends before we both moved from our old school. Now she lives in Illinois. Okay, so the dilemma here is that I have no money. None. I don't work, so my influx of the green stuff is seriously limited, but if I didn't get her something after she went through the trouble of buying me something I would feel bad. So, I went out and bought this cute pink jacket with a gift card I got for Christmas to Old Navy. I then tossed in an adorable scarf that I would rather die than be parted with, and a pair of gloves that . . . aren't so great. AND I baked this cute little chocolate cake.

And then I put it in this adorable tin. I basically just baked the cake, and used the tin to cut the cake into the perfect shape and then slid the cake in. Once it was in, I iced it and topped with sprinkles. It makes such a cute personalized gift. The cake was a box mix, but she doesn't need to know that.

ERGH.

So I guess it's been a while since my last post. Like, four months a while. BUT I'M BACK. WHOO. Just so you know, I wasn't wasting my time not blogging. I'm in IB, so I had a bunch of tests in May. Then I had some personal problems which started in March and ended in April, and then I moved to a new house in June. June was also when I started volunteering for a little summer program for gifted kids (which was fun; I encourage you all to try it as soon as possible).

I GOT MY HAIR CUT TOO.

When I started this blog, I was in the middle of my a phase where I wanted to grow my hair out which started in, oh, August last year. Before that I had a cute jaw-length bob which, I'm pleased to say, has made its return into my life.

I haven't stopped DIYing, either. Just a few minutes ago I finished working on two shirts for school next year, as my county decided to adopt a school "uniform". Uniform is in quotations because basically it's just a stricter dress code: we have to wear collared shirts of a single color or a school T-shirt, we can only wear pants/shorts/skirts of single color, and things like piercings or tattoos have to be covered up. I, personally, don't think this is much of a problem. In fact, I like it. I just don't think that it's going to end up taking very well with the majority of my school.

I may post the shirts later. I have tons of other things to post first: a summer dress, a high-waist skirt, that bikini I was talking about forever ago, a cropped cardigan, etc. TONS :] so be prepared.

So, You Want to See my Necklaces? {sure you do}

I was looking through some stuff on the Urban Outfitter's website yesterday, when I saw an adorable necklace:

So, naturally, I wanted to make it. All you really need is a chain, a safety pin, and a few pendants to string along the safety pin. Mine turned out pretty cute, although I did have to shorten the chain (and my chain was much thicker than Urban Outfitter's):

If you want to make one, just attach your pendants to your safety pin; then, use clasps to attach your safety pin to your chain. Add a clasp so that you can take the necklace on and off, and you have your necklace.

After the safety pin necklace, I made a bow necklace. I didn't really model it after anything, I just made a thin, beaded necklace, made a bow, and found out that they would go together like macaroni and cheese. Or peanut butter and jelly. Or oreos and milk. Whatever floats your boat.

For the bow, you need some thread and a ribbon (I chose a black lace ribbon). Fold the ribbon several times until it's the size you want it to be, then tie the thread around its center. Tug at the edges a bit, and you should get your bow shape.

You can attach your bow to any necklace you like by either sewing it on or safety pinning it in place.

DIY: Sweater {upcycle it}

So, I got a little distracted, and I didn't end up finish the bikini. YET. I got the top done, and just started working on the bottoms, when I found a few other articles of clothing that I wanted to mess with. This is one of them (I have a dress that I did as well, and I'll be posting that . . . well, sometime). Don't blame me, blame my BCBG app on my ipod. I saw this cute sweater, and I realized I had everything I needed to make it, so I did. Here's a picture of it (visit BCBG.com for details):

All you need to make this is one sweater (it can be any color, really, but make sure the torso and arms are small on you, or cut and hem them to make them shorter) and one t-shirt that you're willing to tear up (again, any color, though I would make sure it looks good with the sweater).

Step 1) Make your sweater into a v-neck. Just put it on, and place a few needles in the material where you want your v-neck to stop; I made my own fairly modest, I don't want to run around with my boobs flying out of my top. Take the sweater off and cut the material, using your needles as your guide.

Step 2) Hem the raw edges of the v-neck.

Step 2) Now we turn our attention to the t-shirt. Cut off about four inches or so from the bottom of your t-shirt; make sure not to cut the original t-shirt hem. Do the same thing with the t-shirt's sleeves, and cut off the same amount of material, taking care not to cut the original hem.

Step 3) Turn your sweater inside out. Make sure the t-shirt material is also turned inside out. Attach the material removed from the bottom of the t-shirt to the bottom of the sweater, and pin it in place. Do the same with the sweater's sleeves.

Step 4) Sew everything in place and turn your new, upcyled cweater right-side out (note: the t-shirt may be too large for the sweater, in which case, all you have to do is cut off the excess t-shirt, and sew the material back together).

My own finished product (excuse the frazzled, bed-head hair; I'm pretty sick right now): I wore the sweater with skinny jeans and a silver Forever 21 necklace.

Coming soon {to a blog near you}

What do you think about bikinis? Because that's what I'm doing next. I just started, and it's going pretty well so far. This one is pink . . . ish, and I'm making it from a blanket, but I'll probably be doing another one out of a pair of uglier jeans soon after. I think a jean-bikini would be cute, but maybe that's just me. Anyway, the DIY will be posted late tonight or tomorrow.

And no worries, I won't be doing anything like wearing the bikini and taking a pictures. I fancy myself as far too modest (and dignified, really) for that.

DIY: Skinny Jeans {made from those pesky baggy ones}

Okay, for my first official DIY, how about something pretty simple? Making skinny jeans. You can take any jeans and make them into skinnies, honestly. They can be your's, your father's, your boyfriends, etc. It doesn't matter. For my own, I chose jeans that belonged to me and were my waste size, but were really baggy (and unflattering) and flared at the leg. Here was my result: 

 

 Step 1) Get your baggy/unflattering/outdated jeans. Turn them inside out and put them on, then pin the sides together close to your legs (as close as you think they should be, depending on how "skinny" you like your skinnes to be). I used safety pins so that I would be able to take them off easily before sewing, and because the jeans still fit me somewhat-well in the thighs, I only pinned the jeans up to about my knees (even though you can't see it very well in the image below).

Step 2) Take the jeans off, keeping them inside-out, and lie them flat on the ground. You can then sew them up to where the pins end (if you want to sew only up until the knee like I did, then making sure that your stitches end where the original stitches begin, at the seam, so that when you cut the material it doesn't look awkward).

Step 3) Once you're all done sewing, you can cut off all the extra material. Make sure that you don't cut too close to your stitches, because the material might fray.

 

Step 4) Flip your jeans right-side-out, and try them on. I liked the way my first pair turned out, so much so that I made a second pair! Leave comments as tor how yours turn out. Below are both of my new pairs of skinny jeans.

BEGINNING {of the end}

Dun dun dun.

The First Post.

This is where I explain what I'm going to be doing here. Well, gosh. This is harder than I thought it would be.

I'm DIY-obsessed, really. It's cost-efficient, and it allows me to aid our ailing environment in small ways; that, and, you know, I'm always trying to give myself this unique style. I have no money, so what's left? Well, I can stick with the clothes I have, or I can UPCYCLE! Yup, upcycling. I take not only my clothes, but my mom's, her boyfriend's, my friends', and basically anything else I can find--and then I make them into clothes that I (or anyone else) would want to wear. Everything I do is hand-sewn and created from my own brain, or at least inspired by fashion magazines.

Now, don't get me wrong. I honestly don't do anything very complicated. I make things more fitting, add or subtract items, cut and elongate; but I don't completely rip apart and put back together any of the clothing that I upcycle (and not everything I do is clothing--I also do jewelry, belts, shoes, etc). All of the DIY stuff that I post will include instructions on how I did it, and pictures.

I'll probably post the first DIY sometime tomorrow or Saturday. Both would probably be later in the day. I have school Friday, and then I'm taking a trip to the beach with my boyfriend on Saturday (I can't resist the loveliness of an empty beach on a chilly day). What should I post first? I have things like:  a dress made into a skirt, dress pants into shorts, tightening clothes, accenting dresses or shirts, and some DIY jewelry (earrings, necklaces, bracelets).