Designer Sunnies and their Gigantic Cases!

Argh!
Why does every designer brand and associated eyewear manufacturer make gigantic hard cases?!
With the amount of moolah they charge for said eyewear, the least they could do was make boxes that fit the darn things nicely instead of a 'one size fits all' lazy bum approach.

Case in point this time around -
the Dior So Reals are very slim yet the box is huge and squarish which means its a struggle to get it to fit into most moderately sized handbags and if you can get it in, it almost fills up the entire bag!
(Safilo have now started accompanying sunnies with the much slimmer black boxes, unfortunately, these still came with the giant white box)

*grumble grumble grumble*

Anyhoo, of course this is a good opportunity to custom make a box for the slim sunnies.

Presenting:

 

The custom case isnt tiny but follows the shape of the sunnies much better and fits more snugly than the original.
The side profile shows the uneven trapezoidal shape i made these in to follow the different slants of the front and back side of the sunnies. This shape is new to me so was an interesting challenge.

A little bit of casual neon polka dots on the side...

 

I made a large flap opening that opens up all most of the way for easy access that minimises the risk of squishing the sunnies or having to slide its way in which may inflict painful scratches.
The 'back' wall is lower for easy pick up because you know... its all rush rush rush lol

The inside is lined in emerald green scrap silk satin which you may remember i had also used as the lining for the 'wa! pucca flex sunnies soft case'.
The inner side where the front of the sunnies sit is padded - just like a silk pillow for the precious =)

With the finished case, i could have probably made it slightly smaller height-wise.

It was only after making this custom case that i found out the new black slim boxes were coming with newer models. The black case is slim and is the profile is actually a long triangle - which means its long and pointy at the bottom - probably not the best combination with soft leather lining in some bags.
Interestingly, the black cases are so slim that now you get the reverse problem where some sunnies like the Diorama barely fit in there - actually squishes the sunnies abit. You also have to slide it in and out to get it as on the top lifts up to open. Scratch central, anyone?
Oh vey =S

Alice and the White Rabbit Playing Card

Its been a little while since the last time...
so lets make it a good one!

i picked up a cute japanese craft book for making greeting cards based on Disney tsum tsum range.
totally kawaii!

Anyways, i took one of the card designs and appropriated it into my cartonnage - fabrics instead of papers.
Just a tad more challenging due to the tiny cuts that can be made on paper compared to fabric.

i turned this card design into a vertical top handle clutch purse/bag.
I used a push lock to secure the opening - first time using a push lock!

Here it is!
Adorable playing card design featuring Alice and the White Rabbit!

 Simple leather top handle with silver tone hardware

 My own little signature at the back

 Of course, how can i not include a giant mirror! Its totally what every bag needs to have built in (where possible)

Tiny little stitches... hand embroidered felt pictures...

Mini LalaLoopsy Dotty Gale Winds Mod

How adorable are the mini lalaloopsy dolls?
With their swinging legs and large button eyes. And im probably late to the game... as usual.

For the longest time, i had been meaning to do something with a couple of Lalaloopsy minis i bought.. for fun.
It was either going to turn into a bag charm or key chain/key ring.
And then it took even longer to find tiny eyelet screws... yep, it was hard.

i chose to try my hand at slight customisation on Dotty Gale Winds. Purchased on sale. In case i messed it up.
So this is what Dotty looks like from factory. Already very cute with her pigtails and sparkly red slippers.

Picture comes from LalaloopsyLand Wikia

This one is fairly simple mod.
First step was just to drill a tiny hole in the chosen position in her head and put in the eyelet screw so she could be hung.
I attached key ring rings to form a small chain and a larger one for attaching to an actual key.
There! as simple as that. Key ring done!

Being factory, a lot of the details molded into the doll (her dress in particular) are not that noticeable. Its really just a giant blue dress.
She needed more details ... or for the details to stand out more.

There are a lot of kids out there that customise their minis with acrylic paints and those are usually 'total' makeovers. Honestly, from what i can see, from a certain distance, they look fabulous. But as you get closer, the texture of the acrylic paint is very obvious and for me personally, i didnt really like the idea of changing the smooth texture of the plastic and ending up with a sandy finish. Plus, have to source some sort of sealer to keep the paint from chipping.
So i chose just to highlight some of her details and instead of acrylics, i just used nail polish o^_^o

The finished result:

 The wavy stripes on skirt of the dress were difficult to keep clean as the brush was crap and the plastic was super smooth, it slips! Hard to control.

I only used 4 different colours of nail polish.
Dior Tuxedo - navy blue stripes
Dior Diorling - gold buttons
Winmax glittery silver #11 - middle layer petticoat
Dior Perle - middle layer petticoat (over Winmax)

Winmax is a cheapie from Daiso.
The quality of nail polish made a big difference to the ease of getting this done.
Winmax and small fiddly details do not go hand in hand. In the end the coverage of the Winmax was too splotchy and way too glossy, so i went over it with Dior to give it a opalescent finish that is matte.
Dotty's sock frills shows the original Winmax glitter.


Now here's to hoping it doesnt chip as easily as nail polish does on nails! The overall texture and finish is much closer to the plastic than acrylics and you get the bonus of being able to use glitters and metallics that are harder to get in normal paint.

If i keep detailing mini lalaloopsys, i might need to expand my nail polish 'collection' =)

Cute Little Furla Spy... now even cuter!

Its been a little... (or a long!) while since the last post... life got in the way unfortunately.
Its a new year so time to get stuck back into things :)

Here is a small start.

I picked up a leather Furla mini spy backpack on sale - very cute.
This is a stock image of it

Its a cute little thing with a very minimalist design with a chunky pale gold chain handle.

Now as if this wasn't kiddy enough (the SA asked if i was purchasing the bag for a child lol, nope its for me), I added two pom poms and here we have it.

Customised design and even more kiddy... i mean, cuter!

Great result and took less than an hour to do. Well worth it.
If i ever want to dress like an adult with this backpack, i can simply snip the poms out.

Burda Style Wrap Band Trouser Pattern Review

Its been a long while since the last post.
Time to back track a little now as the holiday has come and gone.

There are a lot of stories about western Europe (its meant to be the better/developed side of Europe right??) and petty crime, and the worst part of a holiday is when you have just arrived in a new place, with your luggage, and trying to find your way to the hotel. Unless you have been to the destination before, you will inevitably look a bit lost sometimes. That's bad for you but great for the opportunists.

So at the last minute i decide i need to find a pair of pants that won't be so easy for pickpockets and i wouldn't have to worry so much about my pockets when i'm lugging luggage around in a foreign place (you will never regret travelling light =) ).
The shopping selection is pretty dismal in Sydney anyway so it would be impossible in the short amount of time so it was time to pull out the good ol' Burdas.

Thank goodness for Burda Style 10/2014 #119 'Trousers with Wrap Band'.
The pants are a loose style made in a lightweight fluid fabric and it has pockets and the wrap around tie covers the opening of the pockets. Perfect for the summer and paranoia.

Being a a craftster that sews (what would you want to call this... a sewer? a 'sew-er' but it readers like 'sue-er'... like the pipes that take waste water =P ), i hoard fabric so i just had to shop from my hoard. I picked out a lightweight cotton/silk blend with stars and spots woven into it.

This pattern was simple and fairly quick - i think i made these in a week <-- this is actually fast for me =P
The sizing was true to size and the pattern pieces matched up correctly.
But Burda is Burda and the only problem with the huge jumble of almost indistinguishable patterns printed on top of patterns on top of patterns on the pattern sheets. I was in such a hurry to trace out the right pattern, i accidently left out the front fly flap... and i didnt notice until i got up to the part of putting in the front zip. Quelle Horreur!!!
Yep.. that means i had already cut out the fabric pieces (and i had already bought the matching blue zip in the right length *sigh*).

Part of being crafty is to be crafty as well, right?

Here is the finished trousers...

Front - tied up as they did in Burda images

Front of pants without the bands tied - you can see the pleating and pockets that sit underneath

The band is quite long so you can tie it up into a bow

And the back... revealing my hack...

The loose silhouette makes the pants look stumpy on the hanger... =P

My quick fix solution was to just stitch up the front and install an invisible zip in the back due to lack from front fly flaps. Benefit i found with this is that i dont have to until the front every time i needed to go to the toilet. Bonus!
And yep, the zip is black... i had a stash of black invisible zips and had no time at all to go out and buy a matching blue one.

This is a great pattern. I had no issues with it, other than my eyes going crossed from tracing out the pattern.
I would definitely recommend and re-make (if i was ever inclined to).

A quickie with Madame Nightshade (review)

Not much time lately to make new things... although i did find this totally awesome embroidery design. So here is a quickie.

Paris
Madame Nightshade's Beauty Emporium
Purveyor of extra fine beauty tonics & lotions
Est. 1889

This design can probably be considered the advertising shopping bag in the style of of late 19th century apothecaries - quite gothic.

This is an 'in-the-hoop' design which seems to mean that the embroidery design incorporates the 'sewing' together part of the item, and in this case, this becomes a drawstring pouch.
It absolutely made no sense to me at all o_O?
i even read the tutorial related to this particular design something like 10 times... and it still made no sense.

i resigned myself to just using the design without the 'in-the-hoop' part.
i stitched out the design and manually put the bag together... oh my, what a rebel =P

Voila!

Re-using ribbon taken off packaging (too much online shopping... and would be such a waste to just throw out)

Back - not much of a view here...

After putting this together manually, i re-visited the tutorial.
Now it makes total sense!
The method taught in putting the bag together was unusual. The way the drawstring is threaded in and tied was, in my opinion, completely unco!
It wasn't a 'real' drawstring pouch. Their ribbon effectively only drew together the front of the pouch (the back is still open) and would not stay cinched unless you tied the ends.
That is a terrible closure.
 Proper drawstring pouches allow you to pull two string outwards and cinches both the front and back of the pouch and will stay securely cinched.

I guess the manual sewing was required after all.

Average 45 Matches - Rebooted

Where there is a will, there is a way!

Previously i was not pleased with how the Sharpie Stained markers bled as it touched the fabric which kinda spoiled the look of the detailed image of my vintage match box design.

Well what the heck, might as well make use of my expensive toy - the embroidery machine.
After much time in front of the screen re-producing my design in photoshop and getting it digitized, im much more pleased with the (now costly) design on fabric =D

This time around, silver hardware with removable chain handle - so it can be used as a clutch without any strap, a hand held with a short chain strap, a shoulder bag or cross body with a longer strap.

Squeeeee!

Slidey, slidey, like a proper match

Push, don't pull...

Available at my etsy shop.
Since i'm still new to this, i'm open to feedback on my listings. Anything, let me know!