Posts Tagged ‘leather’

Sewing Style: Handprinted Leather Shift Dress

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This teal fabric was originally going to be a circle dress, but I passed it up for the pink and orange. I second-guessed my decision until the idea for this dress came along.

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However, the plain teal and patch leather pockets didn’t seem exciting enough. I’ve long wanted to do some serious block printing on a garment piece (like my printing idol), so I turned on some Project Runway and set to work.

And work it was! I had the blocks already carved, it was the printing that was hard to do. One of the stamps (mounted on MDF) rubbed my fingers so raw, I couldn’t feel my finger tips the next day. Next time I’m screwing on a make-shift handle to the block for easier to grip.

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The front and sleeves were printed in a cross-hatch pattern and the back was printed with a simple triangle pattern (previously used here). I like the mixture of both. It’s different.

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I used brown leather suede scraps scored from Michael Levine back in LA. It’s the softest, nicest suede I’ve ever felt, and because it’s garment weight, it doesn’t make the dress boxy or bulky at the hip.

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I see the flaws in my printing (so many little white blobs everywhere), but it creates a certain vibe.

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I’ve seen boxy fit dresses and tops go down the runway at NYFW lately, it makes me glad that I cut it a bit on the boxy side. It’s comfortable without, but I can go with the belt for a more structured look.

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This is my new g0-to dress. I think I’ll be making a few of these in the future.

Outfit details

  • earrings: H&M
  • necklace: c/o Tai Pan Trading
  • bracelets: handmade (1,2)
  • belt: handmade
  • dress: handmade
  • cardigan: c/o She Inside (here)
  • tights: H&M
  • shoes: thrifted

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On a related note, it snowed last week!! The first snow of the year had the biggest snow flakes I had ever seen. None of it stuck around for more than 24 hours, but it was quite the awakening that our carefree summer has ended. I still have a lot of weeding and yard prep to do before the real snow hits. And by real, it’s rumored that our neighborhood will get in the range of 10 feet this year. Chris and Penelope are beyond thrilled that they have their skis and gear all ready to rock and roll.

 

DIY Captain’s Mirror Art Frame Tutorial

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I love captain’s mirrors. I’m not sure what it is, perhaps the rounded shape or the leather straps?

Turns out they’re really hot right now, there are loads of DIYs for them, too (hello Pinterest).

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Here’s my version that takes a spot of glue and some embroidery hoops. If you’ve got a belt that you don’t wear anymore, you may already have everything you need on hand. These guys above are about 3 inches in diameter. Tiny art is so fun! I want to fill a whole wall with little art pieces like this.

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Supplies:

  • scissors
  • leather
  • pencil
  • embroidery hoops (2, the same size)
  • glue
  • q-tips
  • paper

Instructions after the jump!

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DIY Leather Cuff Tutorial with Ruche

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I’m over on Ruche’s Youtube Channel sharing how to make a simple (seriously crazy simple) leather cuff. You’ll have one whipped up in no time. Miriam and I are both sharing DIY videos from our visit to Ruche headquarters a few weeks ago. Be sure to check out her sailboat pendant DIY as well (it’s genius and adorable).

And it’s likely you have all of those materials on-hand.

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Supplies:

  • 2-4 oz leather
  • glue
  • scissors
  • paint (watercolor or fabric paint)
  • brushes

Read more below to see the rest of the step-by-step photos.

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Thrifty: Leather Sandals

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It’s been some time since I’ve posted any of my thrifty finds. Living on top of a mountain hasn’t really lent itself towards impromptu thrift store excursions. Seriously it’s been months since I’ve been anywhere to shop besides the grocery store!

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I found these adorable fisherman sandals (I call them Jesus sandals, anyone else?)  for $10 just outside of a great Mexican restaurant on Friday night. A couple of adorable women were closing up shop but stayed open for an extra 20 minutes so I could figure out what size to get for Felix. Of course the size they recommended was spot on.

I want to see Felix toddling around in these so bad! He’s slowly taking steps between Chris and me, but he’s still so far off from walking on his own. It’s certainly a source of frustration, but I’ll take every micro-milestone I can get.

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I bought so much fabric and talked so much, I am utterly exhausted from my fabric shopping whirlwind weekend. Things have been really quiet around the blog front, but I’ve got a full week queued up already. And I can’t wait to get my hands on the piles of fabric I just bought, you’ll be seeing more than a few sewing projects around here, too.

Wrap Bracelet “Tutorial”

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This is the most complicated tutorial on my blog to date. I kid, I kid. You probably already have everything on hand, it’s just a matter of repurposing. And maybe you’ve already done this before.

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Yes, make an awesome, hip, trendy, amazing wrap bracelet in a matter of seconds.
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Find the skinniest skinny belt in your closet.

Wrap it around your wrist a ton of times.

Fasten.

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Mind blown? I sure hope so. The gold belt above I scored as part of a sweater set at H&M. I made the hot pink one from leather cording and a lever-back clasp.

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I measured the leather cording to my waist and glued the leather into the end cups. Each wrap took 2 minutes to make and an hour for the glue to dry. So I can wear these as itty bitty skinny belts or multi-wrap bracelets. I like these as bracelets as they’re flexible, comfortable and don’t get in the way.

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Outfit details:

  • glasses: Coastal.com
  • scarf: thrifted
  • blazer: H&M
  • top: Forever 21
  • pants: target
  • shoes: thrifted
  • bracelets: handmade and H&M
Leather and clasps courtesy of endlessleather.com (cording here, clasp here).

 

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