Silk Scarves ... or DIY After Shopping in My Own Closet

 If you like square silk scarves the way I do, you probably have more than one in your closet.  A couple of months ago, in August, I posted one video tutorial on How to Style Scarves Parisian Way  All scarves in the video were pretty large, I think they were about 41" squares and over.  This is exactly why those girls could drape them so well with generous knots in a luxurious non nonchalant way.

I wanted to do the same, went to my closet and pulled some of my scarves.  Then I realized that among a dozen of my beautiful silk squares I had only one scarf that I could work with the way I wanted, because this was the only large 43" square I have.

So, what do I do now? I have a lot of silk scarves, here are  some of them  but they are smaller than I need for the fall season.  I just had to find the way to style them the new way, at least some of them.

I decided to experiment.  Simple logic was telling me that if I have a lot of 34" squares, I can connect two scarves together and make a large scarf.  I just had to find the way to connect them so it looks nice.  I decided to give it a try.

First, I chose two scarves that I thought would look good together.  Then I went to  youtube  and learned how to do invisible seam on silk scarves.  Finally I put two scarves together by connecting them on one side with invisible stitch.  The result was even more than I expected. I LOVED IT.

My two square scarves became pretty much a silk shawl that I can drape anyway I want!  The interesting thing is that as long as color scheme of both scarves complement each other, it works, no matter how different those patterns are on each individual scarf.  Also, I liked that I did not ruin any of my scarves since I did not have to cut them.  If I decide to go back to the original two 34" silk scarves, I can easily remove my hand stitched connecting seam and voila!

After the success with my first two scarves, I found two more that I wanted to put together and I did.  I am happy to share my experimental DIY results with you.

Scarf #1

 Scarf #2

 Two scarves together

 Here is the closer look of my invisible seam, I used burgundy colored silk thread. Can you tell?

Voila!

I liked the result so much that could not stop and kept going...
 
Scarf #3

Scarf #4

One more!

The are many ways to style the scarf when it is in generous size. For this last pictures, I used the variation of one of my favorite style, and tied it  this way

If you will decided to give it a try, the only tip I can offer is to use good quality silk tread. This is what makes the seam disappear, regardless of the thread color.  I used Kimono Silk Thread #100  Japanese silk from   Superior Threads   and could not be more pleased with the result.


See you next Thursday, November 1, 2012!



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Silk Bead Bracelet... DIY

I did not post DIY project for some time and I am due to do that.

Please meet my new silk turquoise bracelet.  I love silk fabric for it's beautiful silky sheen and I also LOVE how it feels to the touch - smooth, sensuous and a little bit cool.  This is why I thought there is no better way to enjoy silk fabric than wearing it on my wrist.  I already made one  Silk Rope Braided Bracelet  and I really like wearing it.  Toggle closure works great on this kind of bracelets, so I used the same closure in my new  bracelet as well.  I also used the same golden chain for embellishment, small wooden bids and the same technique that I used when making my  Large Bead Necklaces

As you can see, the variation of making bracelets from silk are endless.  To make it happen, the only things you need to have is silk fabric, sewing machine to make a tube out of fabric (although it can be done by hand), toggle closure of your choice, small wooden beads, maybe some golden chain accent, thread and needle and Voila!

 
I like to wear this silk bracelet with one string of white fresh water pearls.  I think it creates nice contrast with intense turquoise color of the silk and allows it to stand out even more.  The combination of turquoise, pearl and gold also reminds me of Byzantine style jewelry, which I love.  Nail polish OPI Kiss on the Chic, #NLH31.

White large leather clutch in my hand - my DIY project as well, I will talk about it in my later posts.

I never talked about the source of my silks I use in my projects.  I find that the best variety of colors and prints, as well as different fabric textures, at the outlet fabric store.  Also, you should not forget to check your own closet.  You may find there the fabric you like but actual garment - not so much.  So, recycle and give that fabric new life! Pin It

Silk Bead Necklace - DIY

A couple of weeks ago I shared with you how I made a new   Silk Braided Rope Bracelet  After that project I had left some silk fabric and thought of using it for another DIY project.  Necklaces with large beads is so in fashion this spring, so this is what I did.  First I made my pink/coral necklace.   I made it pretty short, because I wanted it to be close to my face since its nice color really complements my skin tone.  This one is about 20" long.

I also had some silk fabric in dark contrast floral pattern left from another project and since the first pink necklace was so easy to do, I decided to make another necklace but much longer in length for different look.  This one is about 36" long.  For this longer necklace I used large and some smaller beads for uneven look.

This long necklace I like to wear with simple tanks or t-shirt in dark charcoal color.  The inspiration for the color combination of bright floral and dark charcoal color came from Roberto Cavalli ad campaign

Here is how I made my necklaces.  I bought large wooden beads, mine were about 1". Then I cut a strip of fabric 5.5" wide and sew it in length to get a tube, but kept it open on both ends and turned sewn strip to the right side.  After the tube was ready, I took one large bead, dropped it inside the tube, positioned the bead in the middle in length and tied a knot on each side of the bead.  All I had to do after that is keep going adding more beads and separate each of them by the knot until I got the length of the necklace I needed.  For the ends and a closure I used the same attachments as I used in my    Silk Braided Rope Bracelet   Let me know if you had a chance to make the same necklace!

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Spring is here.... Silk flowers accessory

Spring/Summer 2012 fashion season literally blooms in flowers.  Designers using flowers everywhere in different shapes, colors and forms.  Flower patterns on fabrics, silk flowers used as pins, bracelets or hair accessories, you name it.  Thinking of embracing this "flower power" trend I made some white camellia silk flowers.  I am not sure yet if I will be using it as a pin or a hair clip, or maybe both? Are you planning on using silk flowers as an accessories this spring?  If yes, what is your favorite way of doing this? Pin It

Silk Braided Rope Bracelet... DIY

Yesterday I shared with you how I like my silk scarves and enjoy wearing those because of their colors, prints variety and no less important how silk feels on my skin.  I thought it would be wonderful to have a bracelet made from silk.  This way I would have luxurious feeling of the silk on my arm all the time I wear the bracelet. 

I chose my silk fabric in pink/peach color with marble effect pattern.  As far as bracelet design, it was not hard to decide what I want to make since I like the look of braids.  I also should add that I wanted this bracelet to be big and chunky.  I like how larger size bracelets emphasize slim wrist and this looks beautiful! 

All I needed to make this bracelet shown on the top picture.  It was:

• silk fabric
• toggle closure
• some small chain for embellishment and closure function
• filler in the shape of a rope 

...and if you can make a braid and use sewing machine at a simple level - Voila! Let me know if you were inspired to make one too. Pin It

Silk Scarves

Ah, silk scarves... I have a lot of them and use them a lot too.  What I like about quality silk scarves is that there are so many interesting patterns to choose from and I love that beautiful silky sheen on heavier scarves.  Also I LOVE how it feels to the touch - smooth, sensuous and a little bit cool.  My love of silk fabric gave me an idea for the next DIY project in my accessory department. I will share my final product with you tomorrow.  Do you wear silk scarves?  If you do, tell me how! Pin It