Sunday, 30 December 2012

Done with my jacket and 2012

Just a lil post to show off my finished fur coat and the dungaree dress I whipped up a couple of days ago! It's super hot here in good old New Zealand but I'm so desperate to wear the coat that I'm ignoring all weather conditions for the time being.
A quick shout out to the dress which hasn't been mentioned on this blog at all previously, the fabric's one of my choices off Spoonflower and it was made with the impending summer holiday with the boyf's family coming up in 2 days. Getting ready for fun in the sun is a true challenge, but I'm doing my best. As a side note, I might start adding these chest pockets to everything I make, they're so handy dandy and sometimes people slip gifts into them when I'm not looking. I've previously come home with several varieties of flower and a lighter.
Try it yourself!!
So long, and bring on 2013 :-----)

Friday, 28 December 2012

Progress reports + Spotlight haul

My rainbow 'n' black yeti coat is well on the way to completion! Joseph and his technicolour dream coat better get out of the way, because there's a new sheriff in town.This sheriff is framing up to be one of the warmest things I own. It better be, because currently my carpet is just not surviving every time I give one of the seams a bit of a trim. Which is often, if you want any hope of seeing where you're going. Again, all that's left to do is the lining, which is boring as hell but it needs to be done, I s'pose. uuuuuuuuugh.
To add insult to injury, I'm headed on a summer holiday in a few days, so this baby will have to wait even if I DO get it done.

TO SPOTLIGHT ------------>

Thursday, 27 December 2012

(Potentially) underrated products: Hair chalk

On christmas, I was lucky enough to recieve something I have been curious about for quite some time: Hair chalk. Just rub it on some damp hair, and hey ho, you've got a new hair colour!
There's better versions out there than the one I received, I am led to believe, like the Colour (color?) bug bye Kevin Murphy. I've tried it out, and it's fabulous, but I can only ever afford one colour at a time- but surely the point of this kind of thing is being able to change your hair colour every day, or have heaps of colours in at once?
I'm pretty pleased with these bad boys- the only problem is that they can make my already brittle hair even more so, resulting in non compliant hair when you're trying to style it. Lucky for me, I'm a fan of an explosive hairdo. I dare say if your hair hasn't been ravaged by years of dyeing, it'll hold up just fine.





Wednesday, 26 December 2012

Sam (reluctantly) models his new coat

My lovely boyfriend has a severe aversion to photographs, but is too nice to say no to the people wanting to take them. I have to say that I probably have contributed to his fear of the camera, as his chronic eyes-closed problems is a source of much amusement for me.
For example, the last time I made him something and needed to photograph it for my portfolio:
Aaah, Sammy. you can't say he's not trying his best. The coat I made him this time is along the same lines as this one, it's from the same pattern, but the key difference is the fact that I didn't have my sewing teacher holding my hand throughout. There was a lot more guesswork involved than I care to admit. It's times like this when I am pleased that Sam (slash anyone else I sew for ever) doesn't know all that much about fabrics and therefore can't laugh at my inability to get things right. For the same reason, I tend to shy away from showing really really experienced sewers things I've made.
The new coat is as follows:
(P.s. The hem looks uneven, it's not really, it's just Sam doing some artistic "modelling". Same with how wide it makes him look in the second one. How did he even achieve that?)

Despite the look of exasperation on his face, he assures me that he really does like the coat. I do too, the colours do look quite fetching on him. All in a day's work!!!
We refreshed ourselves after this challenging photoshoot by having an indoors picnic- a boxing day tradition of ours (well it is now), but it was pissing down with rain. Ingenuity in action, or what?

Tuesday, 25 December 2012

The promised Christmas post

I really think that the only reason I am making this post is to do with the fact i have a new computer to do it from. Yes, that's right, my darling parents provided me with a Macbook Pro ("for studying") this fabulously hot Christmas morning. Shouts out to them!
All day I've been so hot I felt like I was going to burst into flames. At 28/29 degrees, it's, I think, the hottest Christmas day Wellington's had since the 1930s. It certainly felt as much. You can tell my passion merely by the fact that I am even talking about the weather to begin with.
Anyway, because the funnest part of christmas is about giving, I'm going to show some substandard photos of what I rustled up for my lovely sister. The great thing about Kate is that she's up for anything, style-wise. You don't have to worry about her never wearing what you make which is brill.

Onwards:

Monday, 24 December 2012

That's immoral

Yeah, hi, sorry I've been gone a bit lately- it's not because I haven't been doing fabrics, in fact, quite the opposite. I've been doing SO MUCH fabrics that I haven't even thought of documenting my progress, I'd need five posts a day to keep up.
I've taken a couple of photos so I'll chuck those up tomorrow, in the meantime, let's discuss the last few days. I often listen to the Hamish and Andy podcast while I sew, and in the last few days I've gotten through fourteen hours' worth of their beauty. I am oh so up to date on their adventures of 2009.

The "immoral" activity referred to in the post title is about some sewing I recently did for my 7 and 8 year old cousins. My aunt drops them off at sewing boot camp for the day, in exchange for babysitting wages paid in fabric shop vouchers. It would be soooooo much easier if I could measure them and then they would fuck off, but, you know, the kids like to feel as though they are helping, even though they only have a very vague grasp of how to use a pin correctly.

This is all well and good, but the eight year old wanted a dress that looked a bit like these iconic items.
I'm pleased to say that her version is more PG, but through the whole sewing process I couldn't help thinking of these beauties. Feelings of unease were in the air.

The other outfit I made was for the 7 year old, who has a thing for mermaids and has been begging me to make him a mermaid costume for about two years. I finally complied, although I didn't know what the fuck I was doing. Heroes of our time. This kid heckled me throughout the process, actually shouting out sewing tips to me from across the room. M8 I kknnnoooowwww how and when to use elastic, stop shitting yourself.

The kiddos look oh so cute though, I'd put up pictures but I feel a bit weird putting youngins on the internet without them knowing.

Merry Christmas my darlings!!!!!!!!

Monday, 17 December 2012

Sparkles and Dinosaurs

Dear friends,
the tinsel pants I pitched a few posts ago have reached completion! It was a long and traumatic journey, which involved nearly passing out from inhaling too much superglue and a 12 year olds' production of Bugsy Malone.
The original fabric was a bit flimsy for what I had in mind so I had to get a bit creative in sturdying it up and so on. They also kinda itch quite a lot, even though I actually overlocked the inside seams for once.
As with all of my clothing choices, I will overcome this issue by simply pretending that they aren't causing any form of discomfort.
The boyfriend (who's meeeeeega into acting) would approve.
The "dinosaur" portion of the post title is to do with this sick top I made out of fabric gifted to me by my Grandmother. The best part of this is the fact that I actually started making this two years ago. I made it, it didn't fit me at all, and I, disheartened, dumped it in the corner of my sewing room and pretended it never existed. It was only out of sheer desperation/hatred of my wardrobe that I salvaged it and made it look remotely like an item of clothing.
Anyway so click read more if you wanna hear more about the actual process of making them.


Saturday, 15 December 2012

'Tis the season to do fabrics

The following purchases were made within twenty four hours of myself uttering the phrase "hey Dad, you know how you're santa...?". Manipulation 101. Dad disagreed that he was responsible for my stocking, however, it was agreed that we would stand next to these rolls of fabric in the store and loudly talk about how it would be super cool if these fabrics appeared at the end of my bed come christmas morning. Good old Kevvo, always willing to help me contact Santa when necessary.

I considered it highly necessary to contact Santa in this situation. I have been eyeing up this fabric for about a year now, and every time I go to buy it it's out of stock. I wasn't about to let this beauty slip through my fingers yet again.

Gimme gimme more ------------>

Wednesday, 12 December 2012

Progress reports

Let the record show: I have an awful attention span. It's a complete necessity for me to have roughly 3 projects on the go at any one time. This is heightened around christmas time, as I have problems with time management as well. I'm really not selling myself here. Anyway.
 Here's what I have on the go at the moment.

PROJECT ONE: MEN'S WINTER COAT


As I mentioned a few posts ago, I planned on makine a new winter coat for my boyfriend. As you can see, it's kinda starting to take shape a little bit. Forgive the second photo, putting a man's coat on a female mannequin really doesn't show said coat in its best light. The fabric is proving to be a bit of a nuisance- it frays and it's itchy as hell. However, I'm going to slap on a brave smile when I hand it over to Sam. I might have to have a cry about this in the future as all the complex steps seem to be (inconveniently) at the end of the project. Like the collar. Don't even talk to me about collars.
ON ANOTHER NOTE: Check out that fucking welt pocket!!! What a legend!!!

SECOND PROJECT: WOMEN'S JACKET

Okay so this picture makes the beginnings of this jacket look like a pile of shit but I assure you that it's actually quite nice in real life. To my delight the fishy smell on the black fabric is dying away, so I'm feeling optimistic about the future. I'm tossing up a few ideas for said jacket to make it a bit less boring-- at the moment you could probably pick it up in one of those awful stores for middle aged women. I'm thinking a little bit of black lace or something.
 
THIRD PROJECT: RAINCOAT


So there's barely anything to show of this raincoat but I'm going to do it anyway. I got the fabric from work, it's just a laminated version of fabric we already sell so that's all very exciting. If you've actually read more than one post on this blog, you might recognise this print from elsewhere- It made up part of my ball dress a few months ago. I'd just like to take this opportunity to point out the pockets (oh and the hood as well)-- I took clear vinyl and lined it with the white lace. Not only is this kinda cute, it also stops (or at least partially alleviates) the issue of the vinyl fogging up!!
Ingenuity in action or something.

Tuesday, 11 December 2012

Fashion rules to break, maybe?

You know, I'm not sure how I feel about making a post like this. I don't feel like I have any authority or place in telling you what to do with your life. These will just be a few observations I have made in my dress sense today. When you're not going to school, and therefore not sprinting out of your house at top speed every morning, you gain some free time to really look at what you're wearing.
This is not always a good thing, as today I have realised that my outfit today makes absolutely no sense.

Jacket:Secondhand, Cardigan:H&M, Top:Sydney markets, Collar:Trademe, Shorts:Etsy, Socks:Topshop (they have sheep on them okay) Shoes:Dr Martens
Is it wanky to do these little caption things? I don't know. Whatever, I'm committing now.
 
The first rule to break today is the opressive idea of having different sets of clothes for winter and summer. Is it the kind of day where it's a happy medium between hot and cold? Then feel free to chuck on a fur coat with your short shorts. Especially when the coat in question is a $7 masterpiece from a second hand store in Wanganui. (Or Whanganui to some.. I don't even know anymore)
This kind of look is the best of both worlds (hi Hannah Montana) for me because I carry all my fat/insulation in my bottom half, but my upper half is a little baby wimp in the cold. As much as this clothing combination doesn't make sense, it would make even less sense for me to own a matching pair of fur cow print pants to go with this jacket. Although that would be amazing.
I don't think I'll rule that out, actually.

The second rule to break is the one that says your cardigan should be on the right way up. I beg to differ-- Cardigans are so much more fun when you put them on upside down. Not only do they look more fun, but it's also fun to challenge yourself to try to do your buttons up. This is a great thing, you can pretend your cardigan is a whole new item, and a much more artsy fartsy one at that.

I reckon I could make a whole series on "things that Tess wears that don't really make sense if you think about them for longer than 20 seconds" but I feel as though that would be exhausting. Not to mention a bit eye opening in the word possible sense of the term.

P.S. The next post is going to be mega fabrics chat. Like, MEGA fabrics chat. It's kinda good to have a little bit of an outcome after being holed up in your sewing room for two straight days.

P.P.S. Quote of the day:
Me: Yeah I don't think I trust anyone that doesn't do fabrics
My sewing teacher: Yes, yes, perfectly understandable.
The hilarity of this lies in how serious we both were. Or maybe it just wasn't hilarious to begin with. I don't even know any more.

Saturday, 8 December 2012

I'm pretty much Santa

Today I am feeling extremely self-satisfied because I have gotten about 70% of my christmas shopping out of the way in one fell swoop. It was an epic journey, with my Mother, her car, and her wallet in tow. This generosity turned out to be a ruse, as she held the purchases for ransom until I completed a variety of cleaning tasks. I tried to tell her that witholding fabric was considered a felony in a variety of countries, but unfortunately she didn't entirely agree.

On that topic, my Mamma is a nightmare to go fabric shopping with. It's like having a toddler in many respects. More than once she has threatened to throw rolls of fabric in a javelin-like fashion, to which I relaliate by giving her a swift pinch. Actually, just thinking about it, we're both just toddlers at our core.

Anyway. Read More and so on.

Wednesday, 5 December 2012

You can totally wear that again

Yes, I've stolen the post's title from a project runway episode about bridesmaids' dresses, what a sad life, ha ha ha, okay now let's move on please.
I'm feeling quite pleased with myself, and not just because I have quite clearly mastered photoshop (check out the below pictures). I've managed to re-wear an element of my ball dress, a feat which I have been attempting to achieve fore approx. 2 years. I've never managed it/I've never wanted to manage it because I always end up hating my ball dress a few days after the event.
I decided to not connect the top to the skirt for this reason- I was determined to make the jump to frugality. Even if I only wear the top once, this day will always go down in history as the day that I tried.


I was feeling angry with my face today, I looked under the influence in every single photo I took, hence the somewhat crude editing you see above. Nah but who cares, check out the cute rainbow embroidery I did. I know I talked about said embroidery last post, but shut up, I wasn't prepared. Is it nice to call people out on their lack of preparation skills?
Oh yeah and I bought these pants like a month ago and haven't mentioned them till now. Sorry.
Gr8. Who knew that being a "blogger" would mean I would so many guilty feelings on a day to day basis?

Tuesday, 4 December 2012

Ball 2.0

Hello my friends, today's blog post will be exclusively to do with the fact that my High School had its ball last night. Because I know you don't care about anything else, here are some photos of what I wore to this event. (I'm just going to assume that you care about this as well) (I'm going to put this under the cut because it's quite long and boring if you don't care)



Saturday, 1 December 2012

Why I wish I could knit, reason one

I have such trouble with knitting. This is upsetting to the highest degree. The upsettingness of it all is heightened because I work in a store that specialises in knitting and embroidery products, so I can answer approx 1% of questions customers ask me.
I'm not really sure why this is. I can knit a square, do a few different stitches, and read a knitting pattern, but the second I try to follow said pattern things just go tits up. It's just a big loopy mess of wool, not even close to remotely resembling a clothing item.
I have cheated in the past, just knitting a giant square and then cutting pattern pieces out of it and sprinting to the overlocker, but it's just not the same as having those nice bound edges.
I wasn't too worried about this until I found this book of knitting patterns that my Nana gave me a few years ago, and I want to own pretty much every item in it.
I could either waste time and money and get an outcome that's about a tenth of the quality of the items here, or I could grovel to Nana, who can knit without looking but also slightly terrifies me.
It's a hard choice.

P.S. Just before the photos, I'd like to chuck in some fabrics bitching. I've finished the two ball dresses I previously mentioned, and oh god the second was traumatic. The first's fitting took about two minutes. The second meant hours of fiddling around with darts and pleats and it still doesn't look quite right. Maybe I should take up professional sims-3-ing instead.

Thursday, 29 November 2012

New kids on the block

Now, if you replace "kids" with "apparel" and "block" with "my wardrobe", you have a sentence that almost nearly makes a little bit of sense. Good job, me.
Today's post is not at all fabrics related, however, you may be lucky enough to find some bitching about fabrics at the very end, if you stick around.
The first new kid is my pink docs, and they have settled into the new environment nicely. I thought that they would involve a bit more screaming in pain, as the leather is really stiff, but I'm pleased to announce that is not the case! In the battle of Tess vs.footwear, I'm currently winning, and yes I am unashamedly bragging.
Here are the beauties.

 
I feel happy just looking at a photo of them. I think this is what love is like.
The second new item is my High School leavers letterman jacket. We went with the letterman because it made us feel like American Jocks, even though about 10% of our year actually plays sports. I think that tells you a bit about my school on its own, actually. Anyway, here it is.

How thug is that??? I'm so happy they didn't go with our actual school colours, green and gold, otherwise we'd all look like Australians. Bloody insulting. I would just like to take this opportunity to point out the "gang patch". If you look closely, you will discover that my friend Tina, who designed/drew it (hi Tina) has quite successfully encompassed everything that is great about Wellington High. First off, there's a gorilla and a unicorn. Which is excellent. Then we have the buildings of high, good job, and Jala's, Jack's bakery, and Mcdonald's, which makes up the staple diet of the WHS student, especially the loose change menu. Lastly, up the top, we have a picture of our dean in the sun, like the baby in the teletubbies.
I can't think of a better group of images to sum up the Wellington High School experience.


FABRICS BITCHING:
I can't say no when someone asks me to make them something, so now I am making two ball dresses by tuesday, as well as finishing my own. Booohooo. Except I've actually nearly finished one today but u know.

Tuesday, 27 November 2012

Hogwarts N Sequins

I've finished the jacket that I mentioned a few posts ago- the one where I made a tie dye monster and got really excited about it. It turned out pretty damn well if I do say so myself. The tie dye wasn't quite enough for me, so now it also has shoulder pads of festive fabric, Harry Potter house patches, and sequins in shapes like dinosaurs and teddy bears.
it's all fucking hand sewn as well so I want some applause for that thank you very much.

I think now would be the time to talk about the kinds of trashy TV that I watch when I'm hand sewing, cos it's the only way I get through life. In the case of this project, it was Soul Surfer and Angry Boys. Both eeeeexcellent background noise. Project Runway and America's Next Top Model are also faves, but the former makes me feel a bit bad about myself.

Monday, 26 November 2012

In The Press


Sorry for my slight absence folks, I haven't really been up to anything interesting of late!!
I'd say "until now" but Julia and myself actually did this in like July so that would be a bit of a lie.
So yeah I just thought I'd do a quick post about this, my Dad showed this to some of his journalism friends and it all kind of snowballed. 
We were so lucky the schools were good sports, because myself and Julia have actually spent quite some time discussing what would happen if the schools decided to charge us with trespassing or something. We would quite like to not have a criminal record that just says "crossdressing".
This isn't the whole story, but you get the vibe. I don't say anything remotely witty or intelligent throughout the piece, but that's fiiine I suppose.
I was also roused at 7.25 this morning by my mother saying "you're doing a radio interview in five minutes".
All in all, an eventful day. 
Not as eventful as the day we actually did it, though. 
XOXO

p.s. I don't know why I bothered to block out our names because it's kinda easy to find it online now, but I've started a tradition and I thought I'd stick to it.

Wednesday, 21 November 2012

Discrimination today

Hello, Tess speaking. I would like to tell you all about a serious issue that I encountered today while browsing Ebay for some new wardrobe items that don't cost the same as a black market chimpanzee.
Kid's clothes fucking rule. A lot of kid's clothes are a whole lot cooler than their adult counterparts. They're not so seeerious all the time. When you're a kid, getting dressed in the morning is some fun ass shit. Skirt or pants? Why not both??
Plus they're a whole lot cheaper, so basically they're the best fashion industry ever in a lot of ways.
I have compiled a list of clothing items that I love, but are manufactured in children's sizes, cutting me away from the possibility of owning said items. The worst part is that since I'm teeny tiny, I'm only a liiittle bit too big for these items, which definitely adds to the heartache.
I could probably squeeze into some of the jerseys and T shirts, but it's the principle of the matter.
P.S. The things I would do for that Rugrats jersey and moose backpack.

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

ass-tronaut pants

Look at these pants I've gone and made!!
Okay, wait. I'm going to let you in on a secret- I actually finished up these pants a few weeks ago, but the card reader for my camera wasn't working so shut up.
This was a terrifying project to undertake as the fabric was $22 a metre and I am prone to fucking things up. Especially because this is my first foray into pants making. Lucky I have my trusty sewing teacher who is perfect in all the areas I need her to be perfect- being sassy, and being so good at sewing that it doesn't make any sense. Seriously. I want to be her when I grow up. I've offered to her the possibility of me taking up the duty of becoming her posse- lurking around behind her and saying "yeeeeeaaahh" every time she burns someone. That's my back up career plan, I think.
These were actually a bit of a pain in the arse because the two leathers I used to make them are different weights and ugh they're just suspiciously unyielding in the knee area. But who gives a shit as long as no one can tell??
It's also annoying because the wrong side of the fabric is sack coloured and it just doesn't go too well with the overall look, especially when you're like me and have to cuff your pants fifty times to make them fit. How does one resolve this issue? I considered lining it but I'm unsure if I can be bothered. Would it be possible to dye the underside perhaps??? I will get back to you all on this.
Also the silver coating is peeling away in places!!! It's not too bad at the moment but it's one of those things you look at, and you just know it's going to get worse rather than better.
I'm really not selling these pants to anyone reading, am I?
Woo yeah these are the best pants ever yay yeah yay.
That is all.
P.S. Finished my last exam today!! Getting passionate about the women's suffrage movement in NZ, you know how I do XOXO
P.P.S. Turns out the black docs from my last post are out of stock so I'm just getting the pink ones :'''( Oh well, more money for me motherfuckaaa!!!

Sunday, 18 November 2012

Snaps for: My Dad

My Dad is a legend, even though he doesn't have eyebrows. (that's a story for another day). He's decided to go all "proud Dad" upon receiving the information that I got into university, and has henceforth bought me a lil gift.
This gift stems from the fact that platforms and high heels are banned at my university of choice, and following the tragic demise of my faithful jellies I have no shoes that fit this description.
I've always loved these lil low cut Doc Martens, but they are pretty damn impossible to find, especially in my size, in New Zealand. I don't know why I never thought to look online, but hey there you go.


The above were $55 USD and the below were $108. Aren't they just delightful?? I had my heart set on the pink and then white monochrome ones- you know, the ones with the matching coloured soles and everything, but then it turns out they were sold out in my size and the owners of the website forgot to update that lil fact :( Nonetheless I am bloody pleased.
We went halves on the order (I'm not c o m p l e t e l y spoiled) and now I am poor as hell and goddamn i hope they get here soon because shipping was 60 bucks. What the fuck, man.

Thursday, 15 November 2012

Livin la Spoonflower Loca

So Spoonflower's having a free shipping day today, and naturally I am freaking out as much as would be sane if all fabric was 100% off. This is a remarkable case of me spending money I don't have and then hoping things will all work out.
I'm planning on justifying it by being all "ohhhh but it's a Christmas gift" when really all I want to do is look at the fabric and cry tears of joy.
I think I need to get a less expensive hobby or I'm never going to move out of my parents' house.
Under the cut lies my current shopping cart, I'm planning on pouncing on my Dad with my fucking irresistable puppy dog eyes when he gets home.
It's a plan, Stan.
Oh and if you wanna buy any of the below fabrics, just click on the picture and wooo yay you SHOULD be sent away to their page on Spoonflower.com. Technology!

Oh and yesterday I found out I got into the Fashion Design course at Massey University for next year! Snaps for me! I'm a bit too keen on the idea of my next four years being almost 100% fabrics related.



Tuesday, 13 November 2012

Underrated Products: Crimping irons

I think my appreciation for crimping irons has gone a bit too far. It's gotten to the point where if I even have five spare minutes before I head out of the house, I will crimp. It will invariably happen.
It's just such a nice texture! Running your fingers down a crimped section is a great way to while away a lazy afternoon or a particularly boring lesson.
I've found you've got to be careful about crimping, though, or it can quite quickly look like your head's just exploded, which is a bit avant garde I suppose but otherwise undesirable.
Otherwise, go for gold, I say. If Betsey Johnson is doing it, why can't we??


Sunday, 11 November 2012

Beware the tie dye monster

This post will be highly immature in content, as the only thing I have to say today is look at this:

Look at it!!! It looks like an octopus monster!!! It's amazing!!
This has been a highly informative lecture on tie dying.
Come back tomorrow after I pour toilet bleach all over the octopus to see what happens.

Things I suck at: Looking clean

Today I was privileged enough to be invited to see Giselle by the RNZB free of charge with my boyfriend and his family. This is fabulous to the highest degree, and the show was off duh chain. Except I don't actually know anything about ballet so don't hold me to that. However, everyone who actually knew their shit about ballet seemed to like it. It was the last night tonight anyway so there's no point in telling you to go, but yeah.
Sam's family has very much introduced me to a world I'm not quite sure about, but I'm doing my best. For example, I have no fucking clue what to wear to a ballet. My keyword I used as a starting point was "clean", which if you have read this blog previously, you will know this is not my strong suit by any means.
I am disappointed to say that I did not really at all achieve my keyword in any area.
I am pleased to say that Sam's mum and grandma said I looked nice anyway.
S-s-s-s-score.


I have found that the eyebrows and the bun work wonders if you  are trying to distract your companions from the rest of your face and your attire. The eyebrows especially make you look much more interesting than you actually are, especially if you get pencil shavings in them, from a poorly sharpened eye pencil.
I also haven't worn this lipstick in aaaaages, it's airborne unicorn by Lime Crime and aaah yeah I'm feeling the unicorn vibes.
You can probably spy out some Jeffrey Campbell skates as well, assuming you can use your eyes. Again, I haven't worn these in aaaages. So long, in fact, that when I pulled them out of my wardrobe the other day, they were coated in a nice green mould. 
Pleasing.

P.S. I did, in fact, make the dress I'm wearing, this is a fabrics blog after all.
P.P.S. Other things I suck at: having a camera and taking decent pictures with it. I'll sort it out one day.
P.P.P.S. I say I will, but I most likely won't.
P.P.P.P.S. Extra for experts: leave your eyebrows on overnight. They look their very best when they've been smudged right up your forehead by your pillow while you sleep.
XOXO

Friday, 9 November 2012

Snaps for: The Rock-oco Collection

Just got a bit overexcited when I saw this collection on Topshop.com. This is maybe a bit more sophisticated than I'd usually go for, as I really don't pull off that kind of look too well. I'm too dead set in my ways of looking like a tacky, dirty, five year old. But yeah, ho dang, these things niiiice. If only I didn't have to buy christmas things like a good citizen.

If you have more money than me, click here

Otherwise, join me in my drooling journey below.


Look what the cat dragged in

Following my last emotional rollercoaster day at school, I indulged in some much needed retail therapy. I took some meaaan as photos of the fabric (for once) but now my card reader isn't working. Boo hoo, why do i even try.
This is quite a long one so you can locate it under the cut and stuff.


Monday, 5 November 2012

Remember this moment

I have just returned from my last ever day at school.
We had our leavers' assembly, when everyone made speeches saying their final goodbyes, and honestly, I have never seen so many people crying their lil hearts out.
My school tends to be adored by all who attended it, so the goodbyes are always the hardest part.
For me, personally, it is very much a bereavement, leaving high school. I moved there after a truly awful first year at an all-girls, uniform school, and I've never ever looked back. High helped me find my passion and helped me find myself, and I couldn't be more grateful for the experience, nor could I have asked for a better group of people to grow up with.
Enough on that now.
But yeah. It needed to be said.
Bye bye Wellington High xxxxx

P.s. most emotional part of the day- a year 12 who is shaping up to become the "me" of next year (the overly passionate fabrics student) wrote me a letter telling me how hard my shoes would be to fill. Brb just crying a river over here.
Except she's kinda pretty much the shit and a super genius so she needn't worry.

P.p.s. the tears began: When a group sang the friends theme tune, you know, I'll be there for yooooooouuuuu

Sunday, 4 November 2012

Why am I not: Kate Sheppard

Let's all take a moment to appreciate just how fabulous this lovely lady is. For those of you who don't know/care, this is Kate Sheppard, largely (but probably not entirely) responsible for gaining the vote for women in New Zealand. We were also the first country to get the vote, so to me that spells "Kate Sheppard and our suffrage movement is the motherfucking shit".
Anyway, I've been pondering in history class, the way the women dressed in this era was just so nice. (Yes, I do notice these things, no matter how interesting the topic is)
I thought I might make a replica of the top she's wearing in this photo, it would be like my own little secret homage to her. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and because I can't imitate her by getting the vote again or making awesome speeches, I think that it's best to imitate in the best way that I know how.
I'll keep you posted.
And you know what? Kate Sheppard will have another role in this process!
She just can't stop being involved in my life, can she? Can't say I'm complaining. 

Thursday, 1 November 2012

I have a massive bone to pick with this particular colour

Now I don't know if this rant is fueled by the fact that I haven't slept properly in months, but I am still mad about it. This morning on the bus, I was idly viewing the various shops as I drove past. Although I have been making this exact same bus journey for four years, something caught my attention that doesn't usually.
There is a certain shop that uses one particular colour for its logo and all of its decor. I won't write the name here because I don't want this petty post to come up when the name is googled or anything. How considerate I am.
But ANYWAY their logo is done in the worst colour known to mankind. I promise you, this is the only colour I feel any kind of passion for, either positively or negatively. I hate it on a highly irrational level, and I can accept that.
I even used the colour finder on the Resene website to try and find a sample of said colour. This is getting out of hand. Whenever I realise I don't like something, I tend to find out as much as possible about it, until I feel satisfied that I don't like it for good reason or until I realise my life is a sad abyss. Whichever comes first.
UNSURPRISINGLY RESENE DOESN'T HAVE A COLOUR THAT MATCHES IT JUST RIGHT, BECAUSE IT'S THE WORST FUCKING COLOUR EVER.
LOOK AT THAT FOUL STUPID LITTLE COLOUR
SITTING THERE ALL ARROGANT LIKE IT'S EQUAL TO THE OTHER COLOURS IN THE SPECTRUM.

Okay let me tell you my backstory for this colour. I was, about three months ago, gifted a piece of fake fur in this colour by my fabrics teacher. I was excited because I can't afford fake fur, and although I was skeptical about the colour, I was willing to make it work because it was free, you know how it is.
THis probably would have been okay if the piece was a bit bigger. It was too small to make a whole separate garment out of, meaning that I would have to combine it with another piece of fabric to actually make something.
NOTHING in my fabric collection matches this stupid colour to my satisfaction. NOTHING. I don't know WHY this has happened but it feels like a personal attack against me.
I WILL ACTUALLY GIVE YOU FIFTY CENTS IF YOU CAN FIND SOMETHING THAT MATCHES WITH THIS SHIT. I'M NOT READY TO GIVE UP ON THE FABRIC JUST YET.

DO NOT SUGGEST THAT BLACK AND WHITE SHIT BECAUSE I'VE BEEN THERE AND DONE THAT.
This has never happened to me before and it's shaken me right to my core.