Self-serving final project

I took a digital art class this semester and just finished up today-hurray! For my final project I wanted to do something that I could use once the class was over, as I have far too many old projects just lying around the apartment collecting dust. So I did a series of zombie t-shirts (a la my 28 Weeks Later shirt). The last two shirts I used the pic I posted below, and the top one is an image from a 2 Halloweens ago. As you can see, I'm not so keen on ironing.







The transfers I used are crap for sure, very plasticky and cracked as soon as I folded the shirt. If I do this again I will use my original method or find a better brand of transfer. But at least I have the images ready to go.

When at Work on What Should Be a Snow-Day, One Should Avoid Doing Any Actual Work, No?

I love Jessica's style over on What I Wore! Via WIW, I sometimes read her other blog, Love Puppy, on which she made a great point yesterday about designers borrowing (sometimes heavily) from vintage pieces. As I mentioned in a post earlier this week I can't and won't spend huge $$$ for something that is fairly trendy which I can find thrifting for potentially similar quality, in my humble opinion.

So, inspired by Jessica, I scoured eBay and etsy for products to make an outfit similar to this outfit Lindsay Price wore on Lipstick Jungle which is presumably new, pricey clothing:

image via celebutopia

Not identical, of course, but similar without the huge price tag, or sacrificing quality. Also, because these are vintage or handmade items one will not run the risk of seeing the exact piece on someone else. Ah well, if nothing else it was fun searching for the clothing and playing around in Paint on a day I should be home with the Husband who did not have to go to work!

Necklace made by wiyomu
Via eBay: jeans via kittens_treasure, shoes via lulamaybeholly, shirt via jtandcompany, jacket via leatherbarn

3 Things I Know For Sure:

1. Getting dental work done SUCKS!
2. Paying for dental work SUCKS!
3. Paying for dental work would suck a lot more without insurance, I'm lucky I have it! (Being positive about sucky things is a new thing I'm trying.)

Belated Happy Halloween!

Nothin' like a Halloween post less than 3 weeks before Christmas, but I just got this pic of my husband and me back from a friend, and couldn't resist a little picnik. We were 1980s Zombie Prom King & Queen, in case it wasn't obvious.

Thrifting for silk shirts <-- lame title

I really love all the ruffly blouses this season, they're festive, stylish, and oh so girly. I can't (won't) pay the price for one of these shirts in a silk fabric, I do not want to buy a cheaper polyester-that-looks-like-silk shirt. I could just search high and low for a moderately priced one, or I could use this as an opportunity to practice my sewing skills. I found three nicer silk shirts at Goodwill the other day (one is Max Studio, which made me very happy) for under $10 total. I'm not sure what I'll do to them, maybe remove the arms and create a ruffly collar with them, or a little ruffly yoke.

Halloween Decor

My rip-off (yet again) of Pottery Barn:



I should probably fill the glass jars with something, but with a week and a half before Halloween it's probably gonna stay this way.

A little late for a dress like this, but...

For a DIY version of the $98 Gypsy 05 dress my equation is as follows:

Vogue 8386 Pattern ($10) + Organic Fabric from Emma One Sock ($13.75 per yard x 2.75 yards) + RIT dye ($3.99 per bottle x 2 bottles- Kelly Green and Royal Blue mixed to make turquoise) = $55.79, plus or minus

The bonuses:
You now have the pattern, so you can make more of this dress in various colors
You probably have enough dye left to make a Kelly Green dress and a Royal Blue dress

So, with buying an additional 5.5 yards of the same fabric ($75.62) you get 3 dresses for $131.41 (less if you want to deviate from the higher end fabric), rather than 3 for $294.

For an even closer version, see this lovely lady's post on how to create twisted straps using Vogue 8386.

Or you could just wait for Forever21 to make a knock-off but where's the fun in that?

Fall wishes/desires/inspirations

Finally, the cooler, crisper weather is upon us here in northern New England, and a girl can't help but be drawn to cozy knits and crafty projects, which lend themselves so well to early evenings and cool temperatures. Nothing seems more cheerful and homey to me than something baking in the oven, me sitting on the futon knitting or crocheting (or at least trying to), Husband doing schoolwork, and a chill in the air. To me that beats sweating trying to cook supper and the inescapable heat and humidity of the summer months. Here are some things I've been thinking about doing to welcome the change of the season:

This is a bit Spring-y, but a sweater nonetheless from Anthropologie :


But rather than spend the $98, I'd like to try this
tutorial from Erica Makes Stuff.


More inspiration: pattern picture on the left, Diane Von Furstenberg on the right



The pattern for the green shrug is from Berroco. It tickled me pink to find the exact same mannequin pose for the pattern and the inspiration!

French women

So, my obsession this week is French women and their seemingly innate sense of style with everything they do, wear, eat, live, et cetera. Julie, a friend and former co-worker of my husband, is French and when she lived in the states a few years ago she, my husband, and I would hang out mostly every weekend. I would secretly study the way she dressed or wore jewelry; she was so effortlessly chic, yet casual. From studying her style I saw how she wore a scarf gracefully (now much to my chagrin it's apparently a trend) and how she cuffed her jeans to just the right length to look ever so cool. She was fairly daring in her fashion choices and I certainly admire that as a fairly cautious (read: boring) dresser myself. So in lieu of studying Julie I'll have to search the Internet, here's what I've come up with so far:

Style and the City for Parisian street style

Ceci n'est pas une blog for pictures and musings on French style

To deviate a bit, this post from What Would Phoebe Do suggests that Frenchwomen appear stylish to Americans because they put together their outfits differently but not any more creatively than American women- certainly a valid point.

Here's one for fun, My Inner French Girl

This post is an article from The Sunday Times by Helen Frith Powell, who has authored some books about Frenchwomen.

Hmm, this seems too easy...

I know it has hidden casters- an element I don't care about- but this table from CB2 seems easy enough to make on my own. I think I'll go with pine instead of oak, stain it black, forgo the casters, customize the size, and make peace with the fact it won't be as streamlined and save myself about $200. I really need a narrow table for crafting and sewing, as well as a place for the computer, and this seems to fit the bill.