Posts Tagged ‘Fashion’
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Crafty times: the zipper flower part 2
Well crafters, there’s good news and there’s bad news.
The good news is, the zipper flower is done. Ish.
The bad news is that it just about defeated me and I’ve finished this project with one zipper amoeba and a whole new appreciation for Velcro, snaps and ties.
Zippers are a tricky business, and to turn one into a flower, well, I think that takes a little more dexterity than your correspondent here could muster. Only those who play fast and loose with the whole representational thing are likely to call my little craft a flower. It is a zipper amoeba.
Here’s how I did it, along with a few tips on how NOT to do yours.
First, I consulted a very handy tutorial on craftster.org. Once I had an idea of what I was doing (or thought I did), I gathered my crafting components: needle, thread, scissors and zipper. I had run out of black thread and so had to buy more, which nudged my costs above the £5 mark, but not too far out of reach: all in, my bill was £6.30.
Everything you need to make a zipper flower
Posted in Crafting, Fashion, Uncategorized
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Crafty times: the zipper flower part 1
If there’s one thing you can rely on, it’s the fact that every December, most women buy a new dress for the Christmas-New Year party season… and most of us buy it in black.
But this year, I’ve got a bit of a problem. You see, I did a bit of a closet re-org last weekend and I counted EIGHT black dresses… none of which I’m prepared to part with. I also counted a great deal of non-black dresses, leading me directly to the conclusion that this year I will NOT buy a new dress.
What to do? Accessorise, my dears, I must accessorise… and happily enough, I know just how: with a zipper flower.
The raw materials... a zipper. Photo by Uwe Hermann @ Flickr.
Over the past few months, I’ve spotted zipper flowers on a few well-accessorised fashionistas around town. They’ve also been featured on some crafty/style blogs, like The Best of DIY and Chictopia. I even spotted a couple for sale in Topshop, but they don’t come cheap — the one I liked was £25!
Clearly, a bit of craftiness is in order if I want to update my party wardrobe on the cheap (and chic).
Can it be done? Absolutely, and I’m setting a spend limit of £5. I’ll post back with my results and the official OolaMoola zipper flower how-to.
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Last year’s clothing, this year’s trends – part 2
Earlier this week I described two easy ways to get an extra season out of boots (toughen them up with boot straps or even skinny belts) and lightweight jackets (stitch in some shoulder pads).
For this post, I’m trying out a third way of extending the wardrobe into Autumn/Winter 09: switch up the buttons on your winter coats.
For my first foray into button swapping, I’m using a grey wool Banana Republic coat. I bought it two seasons ago but have only worn it a dozen or so times, so it’s still in very good condition.
As you can see, it’s a fairly low-key topper: slightly cropped sleeves, hits athe high hip, minimal detailing, and just the four plain dark buttons. This coat needs an update if it’s going to get any wear this season.
Posted in Fashion
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Last year’s clothing, this year’s trends – part 1
Every season, fashion nudges us in new directions – or at least directions slightly different to the ones we were moving in the season before! You can spend a fortune keeping up with trends by replacing your clothing every season, or you can get a little crafty by adapting last year’s clothing to this year’s trends.
Perhaps one of the biggest Autumn/Winter 09 trends is the re-embracing of that old eighties standby, the shoulder pad. What works on the runway isn’t always necessarily meant to work in real life (case in point: huge shoulder pads are toned down to a more high-street friendly detailed shoulder) but something we’re seeing a lot of, and will only see more of in the months to come, is the shoulder pad.
Posted in Fashion
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Beauty case giveaway - Day 1!
London Fashion Week kicks off at Somerset House this Friday, with some of the hottest designers showing their latest collections. To celebrate the arrival of style in our capital, Oola Moola has teamed up with Beauty-Boxes.com to give you the chance to win a fabulous beauty case every day of London Fashion Week.
Today we’re giving away this gorgeous, Cream Valene Case:
The Valene would grace any dressing table, bedroom or bathroom. With stylish chrome hinges and black handle, the case opens to reveal two soft lined compartments, perfect for storing make-up, brushes or hair accessories. The deep bottom tray securely holds bottles or pots, whilst the lockable catch on top means that all your beauty secrets stay that way!
Want to be the lucky winner? Well, you CAN! But first, we have a question for you…
Which designer said: “No, I’m not a French designer either. I’m from nowhere. I’m a European, old European is all I am.”
For your chance to win, tweet the answer to us @oolamoola on Twitter before 9:00 am Friday 18/09/09. That’s tomorrow morning!
When the deadline is up - we’ll collect all the correct answers and draw a winner, who will be announced here at our blog before the end of the day.
By participating, you agree to the full Terms & Conditions found here.
Good luck, and don’t forget to come back tomorrow when we’ll be giving away the St. Tropez beauty case…
Posted in Fashion
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Win a gorgeous beauty case every day of London Fashion Week
In celebration of London Fashion Week, Oola Moola has teamed up with Beautyboxes.com to give you the chance to win a stylish beauty box every day of London Fashion Week.
Beautifully designed and durable, the beauty cases come in different styles, colours and finishes. They’re the perfect choice to keep your cosmetic collection safe and organised, while you work or travel.
Visit Oola Moola every day from Friday 18th September for your chance to win.
Good luck! -
London Fashion Weekend 3 for 2 ticket offer
This year, London Fashion Week celebrates its 25th anniversary, so it’s not surprising the event is creating an even bigger buzz than usual with the fash pack. Opening on 18th September, the catwalk shows promise to deliver glamour and style as celebrated designers and new hopefuls showcase their latest collections.
With tickets to the catwalk shows dished out by the designers themselves, it can be tricky for even die-hard fashionistas to shimmy along to a show, unless by chance you are a fashion buyer, editor, or celeb.
By far the best way to get in on the action if you don’t happen to fit into one of the above categories, is to snap up tickets to the end of show celebration ‘London Fashion Weekend’. The show has a plush new home at Somerset House and Studio 180, where the catwalk shows are held, and is the place to find a fashion bargain. Savvy shoppers can pick up samples, exclusive event collections and even catch a catwalk show – all while sipping champagne!
Tickets to the event range from £12.50 to £37.50, and to celebrate the imminent arrival of London Fashion Week, London Fashion Weekend is offering Oola Moola readers a 3 for 2 offer on weekend tickets when they quote OOLAMOOLA upon checkout at www.londonfashionweekend.co.uk.
This offer is valid on Black tickets only (standard entry tickets) from 7th - 21st September and is subject to availability.
So, what are you waiting for? Call up the girls and enjoy a fab day of fashion!
For more information on London Fashion Weekend, visit www.londonfashionweekend.co.uk
Posted in Fashion
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My search for the perfect maxi dress
This summer I’ve spent a lot of time searching for the perfect maxi dress. I’ve hit up the high street and poked my head into haute couture, I’ve gone in-store and online, and I’ve shopped as far afield as Amsterdam and Paris, but no joy… until now.
Just the other week, on perhaps my hundredth try-on, I finally hit pay dirt, and at the most unlikely of places. This is a tale of shopping redemption, dear reader, and if you happen to be on the hunt for a maxi dress, may my tips and travails redeem you, too.
Maxi dresses look really easy to wear – just throw it on and out you go. But they’re a lot trickier to fit than you’d think. A few gathers in the wrong place and you look utterly tank-like; a slightly busy pattern and you’re all the eye can see for miles; a little extra fabric and you’re being offered a seat on the tube.
Posted in Bargains & Markets, Fashion
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Notes on New Challenges: Catwalk Fashion
Burberry
Rachelle has send us a challenge, and Oola Moola is on the case! She’s asked Oola Moola..
“…to recreate a very now on trend look straight from
the catwalk using pieces sourced only from charity shops … good
luck! x”Straight from the catwalk… hmmm, maybe I’m being a bit of an optimist…(& a fabulous copy cat!), but … Read full post
Posted in Bargains & Markets, Fashion, Vintage
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Make your own instant (bang-on-trend) wardrobe update for £5 or less.
Bang on trend, you say? For a fiver or less? And you want me to actually MAKE it myself? (*insert stunned silence whilst I pick myself up from dead faint*). Seriously guys, what are you trying to do to me?When I think of “wardrobe update” I think of hitting the nearest high street and shelling out the better part of £100. And you know I’m not exactly handy with a needle and thread (I managed to avoid using either in my last fashion-based DIY tutorial!).
So whilst I un-boggle my mind, let’s have a look at one of this season’s hottest trends for a wee bit of inspiration: fringing. The SS09 collections were a veritable fringe festival with designers from Alberta Ferretti to Alexander McQueen sending a flurry of feminine and flapper-esque frocks swinging down the catwalk.
I think I may just be able to do something with this – take a look at these utterly fabulous tiered fringe necklaces by ACB from Net-a-porter:
I like that these necklaces are not only (a) bang on trend, but (b) they’re both completely versatile and can be worn with several basic pieces (vest, t-shirt, dress) from last year’s wardrobe. Only thing is, they’ll set you back a cool £195. But I reckon I could have a stab at making something inspired by these pieces for less than £5. Maybe. I’m going to make a beeline for the nearest haberdashery now.
Check back here tomorrow to see how I go.
Images courtesy of Style.com and Net-a-porter.
