Ms. Brightside

Imagine starting your own jewelry business and in under a year your pieces are featured on "Gossip Girl," beloved by Natalie Portman, and carried in stores such as Henri Bendel and Harvey Nichols. For sisters Danielle and Jodi Snyder this is their reality. The Florida natives felt they could capture the polarity between "rough and edgy" and "soft, feminine and dainty" to fill a need that just wasn't being met by other jewelry designers. With this concept and a little manipulation of their names, Dannijo was born. Favoring neon colors, heaps of delicate chains, and interesting textures like yarn, the line has a decidedly tribal feel sure to brighten any ensemble.


What You'll Need:
Rubber tubing (I used an old stethoscope)
Strip of tie dye felt or fabric
2 yards suede or hemp string
2 yards chain
Beads (optional)
Copper wire
Necklace clasp
Super glue
Pliers

First, cut your rubber tubing to the appropriate length. The tubing should circle in front of your neck ending at just about your shoulders. Next, lay the piece of felt face down. Spread a line of super glue across one edge and place the tubing on top. Be sure to bend the tubing as straight as possible and hold in place for approximately 30 to 60 seconds. Continue coating the felt with glue and twist around the tube in sections, making sure the felt is pulled taut. When the entire tube is covered, cut the excess felt off in a straight line and glue the edge down.


There should be some extra felt on either end of the tube. Pinch it together and tightly wrap wire around the end of the tube, similar to how many pieces of candy are wrapped. Next, take a 4 inch piece of wire and insert it into the middle of the pinched fabric, pushing it down into the tubing. Put a few drops of glue where the wire enters the fabric to ensure it doesn't slide out. Using your needle nose pliers, make a loop out of the remaining wire sticking out. This is where you will attach your chain. Repeat for other side.


Next, you need to attach your tubing to a chain that will go around your neck. If you already have some heavy duty chain that will work well and yield a similar result to the original. I made a beaded chain using this wire wrapped loop technique. Measure around your neck to determine where your necklace hits and how much chain you'll need. Cut the proper length, then cut that chain piece in half. Attach your necklace closure at one end of each chain and attach the other ends to the wire loops on the felt tube at either side.

Lastly, tie a piece of suede string on a wire loop near the clasp. Twist it all the way around the necklace, and tie it off near the clasp on the other side.

Repeat, twisting the opposite way around the necklace to form X's out of the suede. Repeat using two pieces of chain.


xx,CC

Mirror, Mirror on the...

Skirt!? Apparently Thakoon Panichgul took it upon himself to rewrite the famous fairy tale line when designing his Fall 2009 collection. The Thailand-born wunderkind added tiny bits of broken mirror to jewelry, shoes, and even a jacket and skirt for his runway show. No more interrupting your evening to run to the ladies room when you can check out your reflection on your own clothes! With just the perfect touch of surrealism, this piece travels effortlessly from catwalk to sidewalk. Whether partying with Patrick Bateman at Canal Bar or meeting your girlfriends for dinner at Espace (80's are so hot right now) Thakoon redefines basic black.

What You'll Need:
Black skirt
Mirror mosaic tiles
Fabric glue

Line up your first tile in the bottom left corner of the skirt, just above the seam. Glue to the skirt by rubbing some fabric glu directly on the material and pressing the tile on top [Note: If you can find mosaic tile with sewing holes on either side, I recommend sewing them instead] .


Next, work your way out from the bottom by gluing pieces above and to the right. Continue adding on until you covered as much of the skirt as you like.

Shown with hot pink DIY
woven lanyard necklace and Chanel
wraparound stilettos

xx,CC

Wallace and Grommet

The pages of Vogue, ELLE, and other fashion publications have screamed with headlines proclaiming the heavy metal look as hot hot hot with titles such as "Iron Maiden," "Rock Revival," and " What a Stud" over the past year. Everyone and their brother in the design world is capitalizing on the craze that swept the DIY blogging world by storm. Case in point (from left to right): Downtown kid Alexander Wang's grommet detailed sweatshirt, Matthew Williamson for H & M's grommet studded vest, and It-Brit (and animal friendly) Stella McCartney's silk grommet dress.


Just when you thought you'd scream if you saw one more editorial or blog post featuring biker chic wears (I may be a wee guilty on the latter point), Marc reinvents the wheel. For his Spring 2010 Marc by Marc Jacobs show he pairs heavy metal purses with tribal print clothes in vibrant oranges, yellows, purples, and blues. The resulting look is quite a departure from the tired neutral hues found on most rocker garbs. His collection is the refreshing oasis we all needed to liven up the rather barren season thus far.


xx,CC

Bonus: The bucket bag is the new "It" shape on the rise, so this little baby is screaming for a DIY!

Bite The Bullet

After much persuading from friends, family, and my loyal readers, I decided to take the plunge and open my own Etsy account. I originally started this blog to inspire individual creativity, but let's face it: there is barely enough time in the day to accessorize properly, let alone make your own accessories! At my shop you'll find some of the items featured on this blog, as well as my own designs. I'm also willing to create customized pieces...just email me and we'll collaborate! Below are just some of the items for sale. Expect many more to come soon...


xx,CC

Neat As A Pin

All the cool kids live in Brooklyn these days, including Lisa Mayock and Sophie Buhai, collectively known as Vena Cava. A wardrobe staple of Blake Lively's Gossip Girl character, the line is most recognized for its sexy party dresses and ornamental necklines. Although the two showed a more subdued collection for Spring 2010, they couldn't help but adding a little Williamsburg flavor to their collection with a safety-pin camisole. Their effort to make "wearable day pieces" certainly succeeded. Thrown over a basic tee or jersey dress, this makeshift suit of armor also comes in handy when your pants button pops or you need to pick a lock... which is far more frequently these days given the economy. Hey, I'm just saying.


What You'll Need:
Large safety-pins
Jump rings
Pliers

First make the bodice piece by connecting the safety-pins in a horizontal row long enough to fit loosely around your chest. Use the pliers to attach the jump rings through the top loops of the safety-pins and the bottom loops. Repeat for two more rows. Now use the jump rings to attach the three rows together. This allows the vest to lay flat, whereas if you actually pin them together it will get twisted. Finally, connect a row of pins for your straps and adjust the length.

xx,CC

All Points West

The best ideas seem to be born out of dorm rooms these days. Following in the footsteps of companies like Dell, facebook, and Google, sisters Katheryn and Elizabeth Fortunato started Lizzie Fortunato jewels while they were students at Duke University. After graduation, the two took their campus curios to the Big Apple where they launched their namesake line in 2007. In addition to putting out her own line every season, Elizabeth also manages to design the jewelry for Victoria Bartlett's VPL runway show. For fall the sisters were inspired by their roadtrip through the American West and aptly titled the collection "Long May You Run." Using stones reminiscent of the canyons and elegantly braided silk thread, these bracelets will certainly have a long run in your winter wardrobe.


What You'll Need:
Embroidery floss
Jewelry wire
Assorted beads
Chain
Bracelet closures
Pliers

There are many different ways these bracelets can be made. First I must note that instead of thick gold chain I decided to use strands of small gold beads that have been sitting in my jewelry box forever. For the longest part of the bracelet simply braid together the chain and/or embroidery floss. Finish off both ends of the braid by knotting it onto a wire-wrapped loop (click here for simple instructions on how to make a wire-wrapped loop). String your beads onto the wire, then finish off with another loop. Attach the chain and bracelet closures, then add any extra braids or dangling charms.


xx,CC

Border Embroider

I went camping last weekend for the first time in I don't know how many years. While laying in my tent, a symphony of crickets and critters serenaded me to sleep (READ: kept me awake and huddled in a corner away from tent walls). I started to think about my childhood summers spent in the mountains of North Carolina at sleep away camp. Aside from the lack of edible food, no air conditioning, 30 second timed ice cold shower thus being forced to shave my legs on my bed, rock sliding and ending up with scabs all over my bum it was generally a great time! Let's just say I'm an indoor girl. When I stumbled across this Larsen Gray shoulder vest dress, though, I was flooded with memories of whiling away the stifling hours making friendship bracelets in the rec room with my pals. The eco-friendly line comes from Pratt alums Nora Caliguri (the girl who made a dress out of a plastic blue lawn chair on season 1 of Project Runway) and her partner Rachelyn Porter. Made from organic fabric and a can-do attitude, Camp Cheerio would have to approve this DIY activity!


What You'll Need:
Dress
Embroidery floss
Ribbon (optional)
Needle
Thread

First, make yourself a whole bunch of friendship bracelets. Check out instructions here. Sew one end of the bracelets on the strap part of the dress. Personally, I think the dress would look a bit more polished if you then sewed a ribbon around the neckline to cover up the frayed ends at the top.

xx,CC