Sep 8, 2010 | DIY
I have such a thing for accessories, and Japanese magazines such as Vivi never fail to supply an endless source of ideas and inspiration. Always torn between whimsically feminine and punky/edgy, I constantly vascillate back and forth in my own outfits…but when it comes to frilly, flowery, and girly pieces Japanese mags always beat the rest. This flowered hair clip (similar to one featured in Vivi May 2010) is super-easy to make, but lends a pretty and feminine vibe to anything you’re wearing.
You Need:
*silk flowers (mine were cornflowers, daisies, and forsythia…and a white plum or something but I’m not sure)
*tiny white seed beads
*stiff black felt
*hair clip
and…
*hot glue gun + glue stick
*hand-sewing needle
*black thread
*scissors
*toothpick
*craft glue
How-To:
1. Separate the silk flowers from their stems.
If the flowers have jutting base stems, cut those off.
2. Cut a small piece of the felt in a oval shape. Mine was about 4″ long by 3″ wide.
3. Spread a tiny amount of craft glue around the center of the main daisy. Use a toothpick to position the seed beads in a ring around the center. (You could also potentially do this after you’ve glued the daisy to the felt base, but I found it easier to do it first.) Allow to dry.
4. Use a needle and thread to anchor the hair clip to the felt oval. (Remove the center prong first and then loop the thread around the clip base.)
5. Spread some hot glue on the underside of a flower and press onto the felt. Add more flowers, clustering them close together. If the petals begin to separate, add more hot glue in-between the layers of petals.
Use the toothpick to prevent the petals from tangling on one another. 
6. Trim the edges of the felt base so it can’t be seen from the front.
And that’s it! Soft, slightly curled hair works best with this piece – or you could try this in front of a ponytail (again, going for the soft look).
If you want more security, you could also make this attached to a thin headband, or add a pin-back to use it as a corsage pin on a jacket or a bag.
I’d love to see your combination of flowers and colors on this little piece!
Happy DIY’ing!
xoxox
Carly
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Sep 7, 2010 | By Carly J. Cais
Finally I’ve gotten my act together and made some fur tails for my Etsy shop. I currently have both White and Brown-tipped versions, with and without the pewter fox charm. Just like those we’re beginning to see adorning the bags of hipsters, bloggers, and other stylish people (and making their way down the Louis Vuitton Autumn/Winer 2010 RTW runways!), this version is cruelty-free and animal-friendly. I am donating 10% of all sales of this item to the Humane Society (U.S.), who works tirelessly to end the fur trade and educate consumers of fur products. For those of you who expressed interest in these faux fur tails, they are now available here.
I’ve also stocked my Etsy shop with Rock Candy Rings, some more Cross Rings (and a couple new styles added), as well as some Chandelier Earrings and Pendant Necklaces.
I’m still working on some cross-adorned cuffs and trying to source some soft material for some scarves I’ve designed…the cotton gauze I found turned crunchy and evil when washed, so I’ve given up on it. Plus in the coming weeks I’ll be listing many items that you’ve seen my DIY or write tutorials for on this blog, so stay tuned:-)
xoxox
Carly
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Aug 6, 2010 | DIY
Myself and 9 other DIY bloggers were selected to compete in Style Sample Magazine and New York Design Shop’s Create Couture Challenge.
We were all sent the same box packed to the gills with trims, studs, and flowers, and were asked to make “one or more projects.” I made 12!
The leftovers.
I used almost the entire contents of the box, hoping to create as many different projects as possible that could appeal to a wide range of ages and styles, as well as making the projects as simple as possible (so anyone could replicate them) and using as few outside materials as possible, in order to truly showcase New York Design Shop’s products. But I wanted my finished creations to be durable, wearable, and look polished – and be pieces that could potentially stand up to scrutiny in any retail store.
So here’s another of my projects:
Feathered Cape
You Need:
*White Feather Fringe
*Baby Single Face Satin Ribbon in Cream
Additional Tools/Materials:
*scissors
*fabric glue
*hot-glue gun
*lighter
How-to:
1. Cut Ribbon in half.
2. Squeeze a small amount of hot glue into the ribbon opening on the top of the Feather Fringe, and stuff the end of one piece of the ribbon inside. Do the same for the other piece.
2. Cut a small piece about 1″ long from either end of the ribbon, and heat-seal raw edges with the lighter.
3. Use fabric glue to glue the small pieces of ribbon around the raw edges of the Feather Trim top.
4. Cut the ends of the long ribbon pieces on an angle and use an open flame to seal them.
You’re done!
Feeling angelic and light as air all swathed in feathers…
If you enjoyed this project I’d love to have your vote!
(One vote is allowed per unique IP address, anywhere in the world. You don’t have to register or leave your name or anything! But if you do leave a comment in your vote, you are automatically entered to win one of the projects by the Contest Winner. Now that’s a great way to share the love!!:-)
Thanks for looking!
xoxo
Carly
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Jul 26, 2010 | Beauty
Add a brooch to a folded wide scarf for a headband-look. (Fold scarf into about 3″ wide to replicate this.)
I know you guys are probably completely sick of my going on and on about my favorite magazine Vivi, but I thought this particular editorial on styling with hair accessories was really useful. With summer here I’m suffering from bad hair day after bad hair day (what with the hot, dry Oregon summer and me growing my hair out n all) – so hair accessories for me a MUST to induce a little bit of chic-ness into my outfit when everything on my head has fallen flat.
So here you go – I made these extra big so you can click on them and enlarge to see the how-to. Hope this is helpful and gives you some styling ideas!
Bohemian-style hair: using an elasticized headband and a flower headband.
Using scarves: 1) Regular Bow (uses 30″ square scarf) and Big Bow (uses 69″ long scarf) , 2) Petite Ponytail Scarf (uses 19″ square scarf), 3) Turban (uses 63″ long scarf)
from Vivi Magazine August issue
xoxox
Carly
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Jul 23, 2010 | DIY, From You
from formspring.me:
Hi! Do you have any tips on how to recreate this necklace? http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/5264/dsc0749.jpg Thanks!
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