Balmain - Fashion

I have just finished the double page spread of the second assignment for my Fashion course - 'Review your favourite designer stating how their clothing excites and inspires you.' To be honest, I don't really have a favourite designer because I think each season the clothes look completely different but I was flicking through my 2 ton Love magazine and this particular label caught my eye:

I chose the designer Balmain as my favourite because I loved Christophe Decarnin's Spring/Summer 2011 collection. Especially the intense detailing of studs, safety pins and embroidery on all of the clothes featured. *sigh* If only everyone could pull of the heavy-metal groupie look. Oh well.

Lots of love, Jiji xxxxx

The Granny Shirt - DIY

This ones pretty simple but I was pleased with the result. Yes, today we are going to make over your nan's old blouse that you snuck out of her wardrobe the other day. Or alternatively, if your nan is very attached to her fine selection of blouses you could go for the charity shop option instead. I got this one for £2.99.

(I got the shorts which are Topshop off of eBay for £12.50)

I removed the sleeves from the blouse using my stitch ripper but the material was frayed so I sewed a large zigzag stitch using my sewing machine (alternatively you could sew by hand) around both of the now sleeveless sleeves to prevent it fraying even more.

 

I then folded over the zigzag stitch and sewed a small straight stitch over the folded material to make a neat hem. N.B: Remember that the bobbin (underneath side) is going to be the side that is shown when the hem is made so make sure that the bobbin thread colour is suitable for the colour of the material you are sewing on.

The side folded over here is the side that
will be shown when the hem is made.

 So now the sleeves are fully hemmed. I could have stopped here but I wanted the shirt to button up the whole way so I sewed one pair of poppers (a.k.a. 'snap fasteners') to the top of the collar of the shirt.

And the shirt is complete! Not a very complicated transformation but I like it all the same. Here's the finished result - and please feel free to notice my newly assembled blue wall hook:

Here's the before & after:

Lots of love, Jiji xxxxx

Jiji DIY Fashion

This is my Jiji blog. Basically I will be recording my personal alterations of different clothes that I find in charity shops, eBay and on the rare occasion when I want to spend more than £20 on one piece of clothing, vintage shops. I can honestly say that apart from 4 items, all of the clothes in my wardrobe were bought either in a sale, off of eBay or from a charity or vintage shop. But don't think I am some kind of expertise alterations seamstress, oh no. I am merely a 16 year old student who loves a bargain. Who doesn't? I hate buying something at the full price and then seeing it in the sale section 3 weeks later. But I also love the feeling of wearing something that is unique, that you can guarantee no-one else will be wearing the same garment the same time as you which is why I love personalising and customizing my clothes. Also finding vintage treasures in charity shops and getting them for £2.99 is equally satisfying. Warning: If you are someone who finds the thought of 'wearing something that someone might have died in' completely disturbing or simply thinks that being seen stepping into the British Heart Foundation is 'uncool' then this blog is probably not for you. But life goes on. So you should expect to see makeovers of pieces of clothing in photos and words over the next few months - and please feel free to ask questions along the way; I will try to answer them as well as I can. And in September I will be starting a Fashion B-TEC course (basically another form of an A-level) so there will be bits from my sketchbook thrown in along the way. Which is what my first post will be about. Time for a new paragraph I think.

So to start the Fashion course, we have all been given 3 pages of summer work to keep us... I think 'entertained' was the word used. Which actually isn't too bad. First assignment - You will need to produce a review of a current or past fashion trend that may have influenced your design style and is of interest to you. Ok, so I don't really know of anything that has influenced my design style (before I read this first assignment I didn't even have a design style) but here are the first ever pages of my sketchbook:

I hope you like the corrugated cardboard - my personal touch there. Yes, I chose lace as my favourite trend. Ok, I know its getting a bit old now but I like it all the same. And just to sound as if I know what I'm talking about I think that the long flowing drapes of laced material as seen on the catwalks of designers such as Valentino and Erdem (pictured above) create a romantic atmosphere which is exaggerated by the folds of the fabric, metaphorically representing the flowing of life. And yes, I did just make that up on the spot, and yes, I have just personally copyrighted that sentence, so if you are feeling lazy and you don't know what to write for your textiles/fashion essay which just happens to be on the trend lace, I will find you and I will kill you. But anyway, I hope you like my collage of magazine images and bits of ribbon and cardboard because I do. And drawing out the title took me ages!

Lots of love, Jiji xxxxx