DIY Inspiration - Stella Jean SS 2013

I haven’t posted a DIY project in ages and by ages I mean for about two weeks now. That however, doesn’t mean that I haven’t been getting my hands dirty with some diy, I actually have – I’ve just been overwhelmed with work and other activities life requires J and so since they are all half way done, I’ll just wrap them up and present them to you in a bit!

Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your braids!

Let me break it down like this – I love am obsessed with braids. I began wearing braids since like, 1995 but actually began DIY- ing or should I say DIM – ing (do it myself :-) my braids circa 2003. Unluckily for me though, I didn’t inherit the ‘good’ hair genes in my family so I have been extra careful on my braids journey with my hair  and hair line so it doesn’t recede or totally disappear -  scary thot!  

How to make a Bib neckpiece

Hello all! Hope you having a great week so far? I know I am J well, asides the too few hours the days seem to have.

So The tutorial we going to be having today is on how to create a neckpiece using fabric buttons and a minimal amount of beads and trimming, although I prefer to use more of the beads and trimming when making mine. With a  bib neckpiece, trust me – u can jazz up a simple outfit  ‘just like that!’ so without further ado, let’s get right to it.

you'll require:

fabric buttons

scraps of fabric

trimming (optional)

now, out of nothing but sheer laziness, i'll show how to create the 'foundation' and then continue with a previous one I already had sewn because i really can't get on a machine right now :-)

they look like this basically after being sewn/before being embellished or accessorized - i'l be making use of the pink.

and from scratch.... fold a square piece of fabric in two, measurements would be determined by what size you actually want.

cut out a piece for the 'neckline'

cut a second piece which would act as the interfacing

iron on some stay to ensure thicknes 

after this, u sew up the bottom curve all the way up, and insert string at the top. Please have a look at the finished ones above.

this is what it should look from the inside out, well, if you used white stay of course :-)

then you begin sewing on your buttons

roll up your fabric scraps thus...

and stitch to your bib, it should look this way

same goes for the trimming, only you roll it up in a circle

after you've stitched them all on - beads, buttons, fabric rolls, you should have something like this..notice the top is unfinished

stitch it up neatly in a hem and cover up with trimming or fabric which ever you want. I normally use decorative stitches though but they all serve the same purpose of giving a neat finish.

and here's our finished bib!!! have fun making yours and be sure to post pics! would love to see!

here's one I made recently...no buttons involved tough! :-)

xoxo,

Onnari.

I apologize for picture quality!

twitter: @thatssewnaija

Trending Bags

Get ready for some eye-candy and also to be shocked at some of the bag trends for fall you’ll be seeing. For example, Items such as clutches which are not really ‘fall’ bags are very on trend!

Shoulder Bags

Making Trends Work For You

Welcome to a new feature on this blog! – TSN Nugget: its all about say, 3 to…..8 lines? Or not,  of helpful useful tips and tricks we can use to add last minute touches, creative tweaking ideas and so on, to our clothing, home, etc so watch this space!

      Combining style/fabric/trends in a flattering way requires skillful use of design elements such as line(silhouette),detail/texture and colour.

As three basic influences on our decisions are current trends, - ourselves, trends, other people, the trick is to play those influences together.

More after the jump.

Fall Trends

Gearing into the spirit of fall/winter 2013 and what influence 

 the new trends would have on me, my wardrobe and 

 designs, I decided to study them and think of ways to work  

  with them in different ways, fabrics, and interpretations – 

and of course share some of those trends with you.

More after the jump

Fringe Benefits (2)

Hi all! as i promised earlier on the 'fringe benefits' post, here's the 'eye full view' of the fringe neckpiece worn with an ankara skirt. 

Collar Me Bad

It’s been a rush of events, tasks and activities lately and more so being the start of a new week, a lot of plans to be created and carried out but however, I did make out time to create some fancy detachable collars inspired by my love for all things African as well as vintage. Jump in and see the tutorial cos we are making ‘em together!

Charmed In Seconds!!!

Today being Sunday, I kind of had some ‘free time’ to myself after church so I decided to de - clutter my closet and re – organise it. I came across two pairs of ear-rings I have never worn, and I mean NEVER, plus a pendant I haven't worn in a looooooong time so I decided to keep them aside to create something I would appreciate wearing, and soon too! So that birthed yet another DIY J

The Hunt For Fed Sequined Fabrics

I went fabric shopping the other day, as I was supposed to get a red sequined fabric for a particularly stylish lady J I really enjoy working with her. She thinks outside the box when we discuss fabrics, designs, aesthetics etc. and most of all she IS NOT scared of colour!  I searched through the fabric shops and this is what I came up with, along with the emerald green number. Couldn’t leave it behind.

To See Or Not To See?

''are those sunglasses?’’ ‘’Where did you get those earrings from?’’ …… these questions and more greeted my ears back in school and whenever I put on my ‘aviator earrings’ J

I first created these earrings circa 2007(I always like to look distinctive and as such, i'm not very comfortable when I am not – even if it’s just a little tweak here and there. Life looks better that way , at least to me it does!)when I saw a pair of aviator sunglasses and got them with the intention of not wearing it on my eyes or forehead. So I am going to share the tutorial with you so hopefully you’ll try it too because it’s pretty and trust me, would get you loads of compliments! 

Fringe Benefits

Hello all! Been off the blogging grid for a couple of days, but I must thank you for your comments and emails, I really appreciate them. Today I'll be sharing a DIY tutorial on a fringe neck piece. I looooove quirky neck pieces so when I stumbled on some pictures online showing fringe neck pieces I knew I had to make one!
However, I decided to make do with yarn, i.e knitting wool for this project as I hadn't yet found any fringe trimming (I did hunt though and luckily found some today so I'll be doing a follow up post with actual fringe trimmings subsequently *grin*).