DIY Valentino Rockstud Heels

I saw these shoes months ago, and instantly fell in love!!! The price point was just a touch too high, plus the lizard version I loved was no longer for sale. But DIY-ing a shoe is impossible…..right? I thought I would wing it, but only of I could find a great shoe to build from.

I found the Sam Edelman sling backs on a crazy sale ($40 down from $120) and I knew I was meant to DIY them!!

This is a rather intermediate DIY, for the fearless DIY-ers out there!!!

Tools & materials:
- a well made pair of sling-backs to build on
- a square foot of leather (I found mine at my local Tandy Leather, only $14 for a meter!)
- studs, I ordered these ones, and I used around 30 studs
- a very sharp pair of scissors
- a craft knife like an X-acto, I used a wood carving knife because it was right there!
- the strongest super glue you can find!
- a needle and thread

1. Cut out a template for the pieces you’ll need. I drew approximate pieces on paper, then held them up to my shoe and trimmed them to fit. I used five pieces, one around the toe, one attached to the sling back, a strap around the ankle, a piece to connect the ankle strap to the toe, and one around the middle of the foot.
2. Lay out your pieces on the leather and trace them with your craft knife. Use a light hand, the knife will leave a visible mark in the leather.
3. Once you’ve traced it, use your scissors to cut the leather. I left the leather edges unfinished, because it doesn’t fray and looks great!

4. Using my craft knife I made two holes in my leather strip, inserted the stud and closed it in the back with my fingers. I spaced the next stud holes 1/2 and inch from the first stud (see below) and that seemed to my the perfect spacing.
5. Once I added all the studs to the leather I noticed that the leather puckered a little on the edges, so I simply went back with my scissors and trimmed the edges straight again.

6. I first tried sewing the leather to the shoe, but I didn’t like the look, so I turned to super glue…I figured if this guy trusts his life with glue, I could trust my shoes with super glue!
7. To make sure everything would fit, I did lot’s of gluing with my shoes on, then I took them off and glued all the corners and spots I had missed. For the toe and the sling back, I attached them directly to the shoe to retain the integrity of the shoe.

8. I connected the long strip from the toe to the ankle. The strip across the middle of your foot is connected to the two ends of the sling back and the long strip down the front.

9. For the ankle strap I pilfered a small buckle from pair of sandals and simply secured it to the end of the ankle strap with needle and thread. I poked a few holes in the other end of the strap to complete the buckle.

Then I ran around the house with my shoes on to test the durability, and so far so great! I can hardly believe this DIY turned out so well, but once you get your head wrapped around the idea, it’s basically just adding strips of leather to a shoe.

Shades of White

My absolute favourite thing to wear in the summer is a beautiful, gauzy white dress with interesting detail. A little white dress can be simultaneously youthful and timeless, begs to be worn barefoot running around in the sun, and looks good on everyone. Another bonus to the summer white is that you can find gorgeous options at every price point as displayed here!

Dresses from left: Dolce Vita, DIY Fish Scale Dress, London Times, DIY Zimmermann Applique Dress

Cheers!!

Alana

DIY Pearls and Olivia Palermo Inspired Top

Extending my underwater obsession into a literal translation, the look seen here was inspired by mermaids, pearls and an amazing Chanel runway show!

All the DIYs were super easy and took under 20 minutes each!

I paired my DIY Olivia Palermo inspired top with a leather panel pencil skirt from Club Monaco, and my DIY Chanel Crystal Cuff. The result was floaty and romantic, anchored by the black pencil skirt. I like to balance out anything über girly with something more structured.

To create the DIY off the shoulder shirt I started with an American Apparel chiffon t-shirt and cut off the collar to widen the neckline. To created a simple hem I cut thin strips of peel & stick fabric fuse, lined the inside of the newly cut collar and folded it over. This creates a smooth hem, no sewing required!

For the arm ties I found chiffon ribbon , secured it to the arm with strips of fabric fuse and tied a bow!
Super easy!!

To create the pearl pins, I simple took a few faux pearls, some craft wire, threaded the wire through the pearl and twisted it onto the loop of the bobby pin!

For the pearls down my back, I found these Martha Stewart adhesive pearl embellishments at Michael’s and secured them to my back with eyelash glue. Use a friend for this project, as it’s hard to make a straight line in the mirror!

Happy Independence day to All my lovely American readers!

Xo

Alana

Summer Lookbook: Chanel/Olivia Palermo Inspired

Perhaps completing my transformation into a mermaid I went underwater crazy this week! Inspired by the stunning and whimsical Chanel Spring 2012 runway show, I embraced the classic pearl in an unusual way!

It’s not every day that I would wear pearls in my hair or down my spine, but it was really fun! I can’t wait to play more with subtle and unexpected pearl embellishments this summer so stay tuned! I also fell in love with the beige top seen above (worn by Olivia Palermo, designer unknown?) and I knew it would be a perfect DIY!

Come back on Wednesday for DIY Chanel pearl accessories and no-sew DIY Olivia Palermo inspired top!

Cheers

Alana

DIY Fish Scale Dress

Today I bring you the DIY dress seen here!  Inspired from the amazing Antonio Berardi and my life long dream of being a mermaid, this dress reminds me of some sort of magical sea creature. The opalescent leather sequin creates a subtle shimmer and you can really do anything with this technique!

Supplies needed:

a plain dress

strips of leather

nail polish (I used just under 1 bottle)

Scissors and super glue

scrap paper for protecting various objects from super glue!

To create a leather sequin (also seen here) I took strips of leather, spread nail polish on the surface and let it dry.

Next I simply cut out tons of small rectangles and leaf like sequins. How many you need to cut depends on how intricate your design will be.  I found a simple white dress, and I actually turned it backwards before I started creating my design. The shape of the back was a more interesting contrast to the embellishment, but any shape dress will do!

 I thought about the pattern a little bit, but started glueing freehand and let the pattern develop as it went. If that isn’t your thing, draw an outline on a piece of paper before you begin! With a piece of protective paper placed (holy alliteration Batman!) in between the layers of fabric, I began super glueing the leather sequins to the dress. With super glue all you need is a few tiny dots, as the stuff is super powerful (I think I’ve accidentally glued myself to every object in my house now!)

Feel free to play around the sequins, overlapping, only glueing one end of the sequin allowing the other end to hang out in the wind, there is no wrong way to do it! I wore it here with my DIY Chanel cuff and I had so many great compliments (the most flattering was from a 6-year-old! That’s a win in my books!)

Cheers! And Happy DIY-ing!!

Alana

Summer Lookbook: Antonio Berardi Inspired

The leather sequin strikes again! Taken from cues at the Antonio Berardi SS 2012 runway show (obsessed!) and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley I created this dress! The opalescent leather sequins remind me of a mermaid or fish scales which go perfectly with my under-the-sea theme!

Paired with my DIY Chanel crystal cuff , Vogue sunglasses and A red lip, this dress is light and easy with a touch of sparkle! It will be perfect for evening drinks on a patio, or paired with a blazer and heels for work. I wore it while hanging out with my local sea monster the Cadborosaurus who used to keep me company during coffee breaks at university!

Check back on Wednesday for the DIY instructions!!

Cheers!

Alana

DIY Antonio Berardi Inspired Jacket

I fell in love with almost everything seen walking down the Antonio Berardi Spring 2012 runway show, especially the jacket seen below! After a little research I discovered the sequins are made of embossed leather and I knew I had to make some myself!

Supplie needed:
- a plain jacket/blazer
- approx a square foot piece of leather
- coloured beads
- coloured nailpolish
- scissors, needle & thread and super glue

I began by painting my piece of leather with glossy red nail polish. I found this to be the quickest and easiest method to achieving a permanent glossy embossed effect on leather.

I also started stringing beads together on one long piece of thread.

I cut out several small leaf like pieces from the painted leather and secured them to the blazer using super glue. I didn’t follow a design per say, just took quick glances at the original and created my own pattern. The super glue holds the leather extremely well and is much quicker than using a needle and thread!

I kept the design fairly simple, but the great thing is that you can start with less embelishment to the design and add more after!

The leather sequins adds a nice touch to the blazer, making it less flashy but still embellished! I already have a few other projects using leather in similar ways and it’s really fun, as you can create any pattern, style, colour and effect with with the added luxe of leather accenting!

Cheers!

Alana

Cue the walk down the plank and the face plant that never was!

Summer Lookbook: Embellished Jacket

Welcome to my Summer Lookbook week 2! Today’s look was inspired by the incredibly beautiful Antonio Berardi Spring/Sumer 2012 runway show, where flowy pieces were embellished with embossed leather, and deep red was the standout colour. I love leather accents and the colour red, and these designs were incredibly intricate and beautiful!

I decided I has to try this for myself, taking the idea of an embellished jacket with red leather sequins woven down the arms. I used fewer leather sequins than the original to make it a little more wearable, but after looking at the pictures, I will probably add some more!!

I paired my DIY jacket with a plain soft t from Club Monaco, black pants from Zara and boots from Steve Madden. I plan on wearing this all summer to dress up a simple outfit of jean cutoffs, boots and a loose tank, or over a simple fitted maxi dress.  For some reason this jacket seemed appropriate for captaining a pirate ship, much to the dismay of a few children playing that day who thought I was goofing around on the job.

Stay tuned for the DIY jacket, and the DIY leather embossed sequin instructions and more summer fun all week! To see the other looks and DIYs from my Summer Lookbook click here!

Cheers!

Alana

Photos by Erica Parsons

Sunday Inspiration

Things that are inspiring me this weekend:

a living photo featuring the rippling tides of my DIY Layered Wave dress that simply had to be posted!

a fun #FridayFollow featuring little ol’ me! The company, Count Down Events from Vancouver BC,  has featured some truly talented ladies and is definitly worth checking out! Being interviewed is surreal, humbling, and super fun!

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend, and get ready for more fun this week as my Summer Lookbook continues!!

Cheers!

Alana

DIY Layered Wave Dress

As seen here, I have an affinity for ocean-esque clothing and this DIY flows like an ocean breeze and looks like the coast of Bora Bora. Inspired by liquidy blue dresses from the spring/summer runways, I wanted something “oceany” yet wearable.

In what could be the easiest DIY ever, I began with two identical (and affordable) blue dresses one size small and the other size medium. I used the smaller dress as the base and cut the larger dress a few inches above my waist. 

I finished of the cropped dress with a simple hem then hand stitched it on top of the base dress.

The result was a swingy, flowy dress that elevated a simple shift to something more! I can’t sop thinking of more variations on this, like colour blocking with two different tones and trying different fabrics. You could even skip the step where I sewed the two dresses together, keeping the pieces separate so you can mix and match colours!

So easy, so simple, so many possibilities!

I paired the dress with a gold cuff worn above the elbow, beige wedges (so great for elongating the legs,) my new favourite cat-eye sunglasses, and tousled Bardot hair. I’m going to wear this look all summer, especially for fun days out!

Cheers!

Alana