Street Swagger Haman Bling and Nails Construction post!

The Chain itself is made from Super sculpty. After I baked it I sprayed it with several layers of gold spray paint and a few layers of clear to seal it. I drilled the hole at the top for the jump ring too before I started to stone it.
I got about 6 different kinds of rhinestones at Hobby Lobby in white and red, in varying sizes. I applied them individually, it took a while to find the rhythm with the easiest way to get them on there but here’s the order of operations I used.
1. Spread tacky glue with a brush on a small section at a time.
2. Take and orange stick and dip the tip in a tiny amount of glue, blow on it to make it tacky.
3. Use the now sticky orange stick to pick up a rhinestone on the top and them carefully press it into the glue on the pendent. You have some time to slide it around and work it into just the right place, so it’s actually very forgiving.
(HINT: When your orange stick gets all gummed up on the tip, use a pencil sharpener to get a fresh tip!)
4. Once all my rhinestones where set, I painted the white stones with a black-light sensitive fingernail polish top coat and the red with a normal clear nail polish, before I sprayed about 5 layers of clear on the top. This top coat will ensure you never loose a rhinestone!
5. Put that bad boy on a chain, and get to banging on the radio!

The nails where a set of fakes that I painted a deep crimson. On the thumbs I did a rhinestone design and put many layers of clear on them (even so I still lost a rhinestone. Get crazy with the clear if you want to make sure they won’t come off). I used an actual Gundam Marker to put the lettering on the nail, i felt like it there was more an appropriate tool for this job! I sealed the nails with black light sensitive top coat too.

The Zeon earring is just a shrinky-dink I put on an earring hook!  Easy Peasy!

I put together an easy step by step tutorial on how to wrap a hoodie up in fabric! This is the first style I learned to make, and it’s easy just, follow along!

Step 1: 

Measure and cut out a perfectly sqaure peice of fabric. I like to use calico cottons. The fabric is going to seem HUGE compared to your item, but trust me on this one. I usually use a 45in sqaure for everything.

Step 2: Lay out fabric like a diamond. Put item in the corner closest to you.

Step 3: Fold corner over item. this corner should cover just over the halfway point of the item.

Step 4: Keeping the fabric tight, near, and wrinkle free roll you item upward 3-4 times just passing hte halfway mark on the fabric.

Step 5: Fold the top corner down a little, so the point touches the item that you are wrapping. This is going to give you a nice clean edge line.

Step 6: Fold that top flap over the top, and make sure the nice folded edge is centered on your item. It’s important that everything is straight, and neat at this point. If you’re doesn’t look like mine, take a moment to fix your folds.

Step 7: On one side, carefully pinch the side falps together, this is going to make your twisting much easier and neater.

Step 8: Now twist it tightly, careful not to over twist it and mess up the shape of them item.

Step 9: I will usually pin my sides down after I’ve twisted each one so that they won’t unwind while I’m working with the other side! Repeat steps 7 and 8 on the other flap!~

Step 10: Now take the twisted flaps, and bring them to the center, and then around each other.

Step 11:

Take those two flaps around the back and tie them together with a Square knot (right over left, left over right) Tuck the ends in.

Step 12: You’re pretty much done, now take a few minutes, to tuck and straighten the fabric so everything is sitting perfectly and pretty! And that’s it, you’re done! You have just created Furoshiki! This same technique can be applied to anything from your lunch box, to books, I even us it to wrap items people buy from me on my webshop! It’s a much more ecofriendly way of wrapping presents, because you can still reuse the fabric for something!

Today as I was working, I stopped along the way to make this short tutorial on how to make a basic stencil, with an aged look. I’ll be using an Apeture Science logo as the base of the tutorial, but they principles apply to any design you want.

Things you will need:

Some thick paper (you can do it with regular paper but it’s a bit tough)
Exacto knife
paint
green scrub sponge
Shirt, hoodie, or whatever you’re stenciling onto
Piece of Cardboard
Image I found this Vector on Deviantart most handy for making any size you want.
Stencil glue or a glue stick

Use an exacto to cut the image out where you are want the paint to show through. DON’T BE STUPID-use a cutting board, and don’t cut yourself.

Use your stencil glue and apply to the back side of the stencil.

NOW STOP!

Wait ten minutes!! If you don’t the glue will stick to the fabric and won’t come off. The glue should be tacky, not wet.

Put a piece of cardboard under the fabric so you have a hard surface to work on, also so you don’t get paint on the floor.

Press it down hard, so it sticks completely.

Mix your paint. I used silver, blue, and a little glow in the dark. Mix thoroughly.

Time for that green scrubby! You can use a smaller piece than this if you want.

Dab your stencil lightly, don’t move it, or smear with you, or you will likely lift the stencil and you won’t have crisp edges.

NOW WAIT!!

Do not remove the stencil until it’s dry. Just be patient, this is a test. There will be cake if you pass.

When dry, carefully peel stencil off, and use a hot dry iron to set the paint. Wear and Enjoy!

Ok so now that your duct tape dummy is all covered, let’s draft a Princess Seam bodice!

Get your pattern fabric (i used an old, stained table cloth) Scissors, pin cushion, marking pen (sharpie in my case) and your design!

Just like before, drape your fabric for the center first, and mark it. be sure to label the piece, and the center line.

Trim and add on your SEAM ALLOWANCE! Do not forget this.

Do the same for the side, and side back. Leaving seam allowances, and marking around the arm hole.  when you do a new section, pin to the section before it, and make sure your line match up. the lines will be where you stitch.

And then your back. Easy huh?

So now your form should be covers from the center front to the center back.

Now take your pieces off and use them as pattern pieces, and cut out a draft. Two of each piece, except the center.

After sewing it together I find it fits well, only The neck line is much to high.

So I unstitch the center front, and mark where I want the neckline to be!

Cut, restitch, and you’re good to go. Trim the bottom and you’re ready to go! You can use the pieces as the lining if you want too!

You can do it!! If you have any questions email me @ lorelei@shinshayoriginals.com

So, I was going to do a full tutorial on how to make a duct tape dress form, but then I realizes the internet is FULL of them. so instead, this picks up where those leave off. We’ll first drape your dress form for a fabric cover, and then make your first garment pattern, a princess seam bodice made perfect for your curves.

So here’s my dress form in progress. Was kind of fun to be all wrapped in duct tape.

Start by pinning a piece of fabric to the shoulders of your dress form. Then carefully pinch and make dart at the stomach and breasts so that it hugs the dress form perfectly. Remember this is a purely FUNCTIONAL piece, it doesn’t matter what it look like, or what you make it out of as long as it works. It’s only job in life if to give you something to pin into. (sticking straight pins into the duct tape will result in sticky, gooey pins, and gunk on your garments.)

Use some kind of utensil to mark your dart lines and side seams. I used sharpie because it was handy. You can use whatever you want.

Mark your shoulders, neckline, and side seams.

Time to do the back. Hang your fabric from the shoulders. I used push pins to hold it there.

When you pin it to the side, don’t try and pull the fabric around the curves tightly.

let it drape from the shoulders naturally, then pin the sides.

Pin your back darts just like you did the front.

Mark accordingly

Stitch your darts!

Now trim your pieces but REMEMBER TO LEAVE A SEAM ALLOWANCE!! I cannot stress this enough!

Sew Shoulder seams on both sides.

Sew side Seam ON ONE SIDE!

Extra Step!

Use your embroidery machine to decorate the cover! I used wings from Urban Threads I picked up during a sale last month!

Hand stitch the open side, and around the arm holes (for me my stupid hanger was handing out the arm holes made it a pain in the butt to do.)

Trim and pin your neck hole, and bottom seams, adjust the way the cover sits (you can see mine is twists at the bottom in this picture)

And you’re pretty much done!! Time to make your first top!