Fashion Fix: How to update a white shirt with mermaid style scallop shell beading

compilation courtesy of The Guardian

Sarah Burton at McQueen, Armani, Versace, Givenchy and Paco Rabanne have all paid homage to the briny sea nymph and now Lady Gaga has taken to leaving the house with little more than a scallop shell to cover her modesty, i think we can safely say the mermaid look is here for now. I've never forgotten the beautiful scallop shell design that covered Marion Cottillard's Jean Paul Gaultier gown the night she won best actress oscar. The scallop shape is undeniably associated with the female form, but if you're not planning on sticking them onto your bikini and reclining on a rock, here's a slightly more subtle way to 'do' the mermaid.

I gathered my pearlescent beads and scallop shell pieces from a lucky combination of broken necklaces. However, specifically shaped beads are very easy to come by at your local beading, crafting shop.

You will need:

• Assorted broken jewellery
• Needle and white thread

How to do it:

1. Arrange your beads around the collar and cuffs of your shirt
2. Hand-stitch in place.

This is the kind of project that might appeal to a Bride looking for a crisp, contemporary alternative. It is also an opportunity to reuse 'something old' into 'something new'!

Fashion Fix: How to make a Neon Toile Tote Bag

When I come back down to earth and can't use Handbags from Heaven's amazing designer handbag hire service, I need a bang on trend bag idea to tide me over.

This project is for all the fabric that you gather over the years but never know what to do with it all. What better way to showcase your favourite prints than with a simple tote. 

Buying fabric is an expensive business these days, yet this project uses less than a metre of fabric and it is so simple that you don't run the risk of ruining a favourite fabric by going wrong.

I was looking for an alternative tote project, and loved the idea of juxtaposing classical parisian toile with a punchy neon stencil effect.

You will need:

• 1 metre of mid to heavy weight cotton fabric
• sewing machine with complimentary thread
• dressmaking pins
• dressmaking scissors
• neon spray paint
• stencil
• iron
• stencil
• paper and masking tape to mask when spraying

How to do it:

1. Cut two 45cm  tall by 35cm wide panels from the fabric. Make sure the pattern is going the correct direction on both panels. Decide how long you would like your straps, would you like to be able to sling it over your shoulder? if so cut longer strips 6 cm wide.
2. fold the long edges of the strip into the middle and then fold once again hiding all the raw edges. Press and top stitch down either side of the strip. 
3. Repeat for the other strip
4. lay out your bag pieces wrong side up. fold down the top edge of your bag 1cm and press. then fold down 2cm to cover the raw edge. Machine a top stitch in place.
5. Pin the handle pieces to the top  edge of the wrong side of each panel 10 cm from the sides. 
6. machine in place.
7. place the two bag pieces right sides together and pin around the three sides.
8. machine a running stitch, take the pins out.
9. trim the corners,  turn right side out and press.
10. place your stencil in the desired area and mask off the rest of the bag. 
11. In a well ventilated area (and if under 18 with the help of an adult) spray your stencil.
12. Peel away with care almost immediately and leave to dry.

Use bright contrasting threads for your top stitching

Fashion Fix: How to embellish a collar: dark beauty beads and gems

Photos Luxo and Fashion Spot

Embellished collars have been adorning our necks for a few years now. They are a brilliant quick and simple Fashion Fix to update a shirt, or detached entirely they become a statement necklace.

I fancied piling on the gems with this collar and turn it into a bold piece of jewelry, perfect to update your Little Black Dress.

General How to:

Cut or unpick the collar off a shirt. If you are recycling an old shirt and need to make the collar smaller to fit your neck, sew a seam down the centre back and trim away any excess. You may want to decorate this seam with some trim to hide any raw edges.  

Sequined

Using All Purpose Glue and the head of a pin, randomly glue sequins, beads, small buttons and gems onto the collar points working your way along till you are happy with the shape. Replace the button with a pretty gem.

Like this? Why dont you try...

Studded

Buy screw in studs from a haberdashery or online. Use a fabric punch to make holes in the collar points and screw the studs in place. Add a bright grosgrain ribbon to add a pop of colour against the industrial look of the studs. Cut the ribbon in half and sew each piece onto the collar band so that they’re hidden from the collar. 

Fashion Fix: Stylist's special. Barnacle Heels for the Sea Nymph

 

This week I styled a Sea Nymph. 

The Nymph needed a pair of shoes. Naturally.

Starting off as a humble pair of white stilletoes, I gathered together bits of broken jewelry that could pass for barnacles and coral reef and araldited them into place.

Once I was happy with the look of the barnacles, a light spritz of white spray paint transforms the shoes  into a ghostly barnacle encrusted piece, that wouldn't look out of place in a Lady Gaga video.

                   

Since making these beauties, I used them to style the sea nymph on Clevedon Beach in the wind and rain. Shot by Carly Wong and Hair and Makeup by Sophie Cox, I can't wait to see what happens to the images, but I will get them up here as soon as I am able. 

Why not have a go yourself. All you need is a pair of unloved shoes in need of a revamp and piles of unwanted jewellery. I'm sure none of us will struggle to source such things.

Fix up look chic!

I'd love to see some of your crustacean creations!

It dawned on me recently that this might be an incredible wedding idea. Shoes seem to have come into their own as the little bit of quirkiness for an otherwise traditional all-ivory-and-tulle bride. A good opportunity to up cycle some old bits and pieces of jewellery to go from 'something old' into 'something new'!

Set Design: The Egg; once the lights come on...

Behing the hustle and bustle of production week on stage, is a secret world in half light that precious few of us get to experience. 

Once the set was built, lighting designer Anna Barrett created the hot, dusty Spanish villa that houses our characters. This is the side of the set you never get to see, but it had a magic all of its own with the beautiful bare brick wall of The Egg bouncing off the amber glow. 

 

Set Design: The Egg, The fit up for The House of Bernarda Alba

I drew this set sketch back in February of this year. The set installation last week was a bit epic so I thought it deserved it's own documentation. Gemma Brooks masterminded the scaffolding structure that was then to be clad in beautiful knotty wood to create our rustic spanish villa.

Scaffolding is erected and the balcony floor is laid...

...flats and doors installed...

...venetian blinds installed...

...Carpet goes down...

...props and furniture set...

...set dressing and lighting...

Once our set was up and ready to go, the cast arrived and began to rehearse in the space. Paul Blakemore took some stunning production shots which are a few posts down on the blog.

Reading Room: Creating the Vintage Look by Ellie Laycock

This is a slightly biased Reading Room post, as it is also a little showcase for my latest illustration commission. Ellie Laycock has produced some stunning home wear projects for this book:

Creating the Vintage Look 

Published by CICO Books

Here are a few samples of the illustration style I adopted to furnish this book.

Crochet glass wear project

A new use for old metal jelly moulds

Vintage pillow case project

Russian doll light pull

Vintage tin clock

The book is released on September 30th and can be bought here. We had the launch party a few nights ago at The Old Cinema on Chiswick High Road

A little more about the author, taken from www.rylandpeters.com

'Ellie Laycock trained as an artist and works as a London-based professional photographer for clients such as Giorgio Armani, Sony Ericsson and Casa Vogue Brasil. A love of innovative design, stylish interiors, and rummaging for vintage treasures led to the founding of her new company, Hunted and Stuffed (www.huntedandstuffed.com), which specializes in luxury homeware made from specializes in luxury homeware made from upcycled vintage materials. Her unique cushions were selected to appear in the first major upcycling exhibition in the UK at The Old Cinema, west London, and are stocked in independent boutiques and online stores. She recently won the Platinum Brand Amplifier award for female entrepreneurs and the Startup Britain ‘PitchUp!’ Competition.' (CICO books)

Home is where the art is: How to make a patchwork quilt bedspread from embroidered linens

The tradition of quilting began with army wives waiting for their husbands to return from war, or expectant mothers making a quilt for their new baby. Usually hand-sewn, the quilt evokes a maternal and sentimental feel with each patch signifying a story of its own. I have taught beginner's Patchwork quilting courses over the past few years. I have acquired embroidered linens from various sources with little idea of what to do with them. I love them, but I'm not up for draping doilies around my flat, and there are only so many doily clutch bags I can use. 

I saw a number of quilts using embroidered linens in beautiful big houses in London that we use for photoshoot locations. I was struck by the 'French Chateau' appearance the quilt gave to a simple room and wanted a piece of the action!

You will need

• A range of fabrics for your patches
• Cardboard
• ruler
• Pen 
• Pencil
• Scissors and dress making scissors
• Dress making pins
• Needle and thread
• Double Duvet cover
• Lining fabric the size of your quilt plus a 5cm seam allowance all around the edge
• Long ruler

How to make

1. choose your fabrics and plan your design. I.e. alternating plain and patterns
2. cut out your template square from card. This will be your master template and forms the basis of your patchwork. A double duvet is 2m x 2m, therefore I went for a 25cm square, requiring 8 rows of 8 to completely cover one side of the duvet.
3. place the template onto the wrong side of your fabric and draw around it with a pencil 
4. cut out leaving a 2cm seam allowance.
5. take 2 fabric squares and pin right side together, matching up the corners.
6. join using a running stitch. 
7. Pin the next square to one edge and sew as before, making a row of three.
8. continue adding squares until you have the desired width. 
9. iron seam allowances to one side and continue to pin and sew rows of squares.
10. when you have enough rows you can assemble your quilt by pinning two rows right sides together making sure you match up the squares accurately. Find the centre seam and work your way out to the sides. Join with a running stitch.
11. once you have your complete quilt, press and trim the excess edges on the wrong side of the quilt.
12. Place onto one side of your duvet, right sides up, smooth all the wrinkles out, and work your way around the edges, turning under the raw edge, pinning in place and then hand sew an oversew stitch all around the edge.

Fashion Fix: How to make a cotton lycra pencil skirt from scratch

Images from www.messqueen.com and www.effortlessanthropologie.com

The beauty of this project is once you know the method you can make skirts of all lengths, mini's, maxi's mid calves and the good old classic pencil skirt. Be bold with prints and wear with a slouchy knit for these waning summer evenings.

You will need:

• 1 metre cotton lycra
• pins
• scissors
• sewing machine and complimentary thread
• iron
• 1 inch thick elastic the length of your waist measurement

How to do it:

1. Measure the width of your hips and the length from your waist to the desired length.
2. cut two pieces of fabric half the size of your hip measurement and the length of waist to calf.
3. on the front piece of the fabric mark two darts 12cm long and 8cm wide. do this on the back too but make the darts 15cm long and 8 cm wide.
4. tack the darts and sew in place 
5. with right sides facing, pin and tack the front and back panels together down the sides
6. using the overlocker, sew down both sides.
7. cut a piece of elastic the width of your waist and sew it around the top of the skirt
8. fold the elastic down and press the seams.

styling and skirt length ideas from ASOS and www.ipreferheels.com

Set Design: The House of Bernarda Alba Production Shots by Paul Blakemore

 

Here are just a handful of the brilliant production photos taken by Paul Blakemore of the production of The House of Bernarda Alba at The Egg Theatre, at Bath Theatre Royal. It was directed by Heidi Vaughan and I designed set and costume. I will be divulging behind the scenes shots and a step by step visual of the ginormous set being erected over the next week on the blog.

To see more production photos, click on my Portfolio link.