Studs and Pearls

sharpie diy: Marker & Dye Jersey Vest

Here's another one of my Stained by Sharpie projects! My first one, the Geometric Lace Top, is one of my favorites (I wear it all the time). This Marker & Dye Jersey Vest is a different take on the Scarf Vest. You can go a million different ways with the print and design, and customize it as much as you want.

Supplies:
- About 30x30 inches of jersey fabric, color of your choice

- Stained by Sharpie markers

- Scissors

- Measuring tape

- RIT Dye, color of your choice

- Paintbrush

- Plastic cup & water

- Access to a washing machine

1) Prep some fabric dye.

2) Paint stripes - or whatever you'd like. Keep in mind that when you throw it in the wash, the dye will bleed. I wanted to go for the watercolor effect, but still keep the stripes somewhat visible.

 More stripes.

Finished!

3) Throw the fabric in the wash, and let dry.

On a scrap piece of fabric, draw some doodles to figure out what kind of pattern you'd like to create.

Left: Stained by Sharpie, Right: Original Sharpie

 Both on jersey fabric

Proof that the Stained by Sharpie markers are different than the originals! The brush tip of the Sharpie fabric markers create a brighter, more vivid streak of color.

I decided on black feathers and diamonds, with purple dots...

...accented with red.

4) Cut two slits; these will be your arm holes. I used the Scarf Vest as a guideline, but this may differ for you depending on the size of your fabric, your height, etc.



AND: Sorry I've been a bit MIA with the projects lately - I had a bit of a medical emergency recently. Not fun. I'm in the process of figuring everything out though, so I'm hoping S&P will be back to normal soon.

sharpie diy: Geometric Lace Top

I think you'd agree that Sharpie markers are a staple in every home (and office, and classroom, and studio)...well, I'm beginning to think their new fabric markers - Stained by Sharpie - should be a staple in every DIY'ers supply stash. I had an opportunity to try out these markers, and have created a few projects to share with you guys. Here's one of them - two more, coming soon!

While normal Sharpie markers are permanent, they may fade over time on fabric that regularly goes through normal washing and rinsing. Stained by Sharpie markers are specially formulated for use on most fabrics, so they'll withstand said washing and rinsing.

They also have these awesome brush tips. Love!

I decided to bring together two of my favorite things - lace and geometric patterns - to make this top. It's a different take on the Ombre Lace Top (which is a dyed version of my friend Mackenzie's Lace Top). The concept is subtle, but different.

Supplies:

- Lace, about 1 yard

- Scissors
- Sewing machine or sewing needle

- Coordinating thread

- Large piece of cardboard
- Scrap cardboard

- Stained by Sharpie markers* I used black and blue.


*Available in sets of 4, 5, and 8 - on Amazon, as well as stores such as Office Depot. You can also buy the 4 or 8 pack at Blick Art Materials' website!



1) Fold lace in half, so that the edges meet on the bottom.

2) Trim according to your preference. I took off a decent amount, as I didn't want to this particular shirt to be too loose and "flowy". This is totally up to you, though.

3) Fold the shirt in half again, from left to right. Cut out your neckline in the top left hand corner. As always, don't cut out too much too soon; you can always try the fabric on and trim accordingly.


 

4) Unfold the fabric and lay on top of the cardboard. 

Cut out a triangle from a piece of cardboard to use as a pattern. This can be as big or small as you'd like.

5) Use the fabric marker(s) of your choice to draw triangles along the neckline.

6) Fill the triangles in! Make sure your brush strokes are all in the same direction.

7) If you'd like, add in some more triangles/shapes. I drew smaller triangles in blue, and later went over them  in black to add some dimension.

8) Trim the bottom to your liking. You can keep it long/tunic length, or make it into a crop top. (Or in between).


Sew down each of the sides; I drew arrows where I decided to sew mine.

9) The sleeves might stick out a bit, depending on how much fabric you used. If you want, you can turn the top inside out, and stitch a diagonal line as I did above. This will "soften" the arch of the sleeve.

The finished top. I love how the ink brings out the lace's pattern.

Of course, you can go a million different routes with these fabric markers by Sharpie. You can create a pattern along the bottom edge of the shirt, or maybe along the edge of the sleeves. You can add more triangles in different colors - or just not use any triangles at all, and draw other shapes instead. You can draw stripes all along the shirt, or maybe on just the one half of it...I can go on and on with this!

diy: Painted Seashell Earrings

Nothing says summer like seashells, especially in a bright shade of coral. These earrings are handmade versions of the "SHREVE,CRUMP & LOW Estate Collection Coral Shell Clip Earrings", found on 1stdibs.com. Super cute, but also $4,250. Obviously the 14K gold might have something to do with it, but I could personally care less about that part. I made my own version for about .00000362% (or so) of the original price.

SHREVE,CRUMP & LOW Estate Collection Coral Shell Clip Earrings
Photo Courtesy Of: 1stDIBS.com 

 

Supplies:

- 2 seashells, from the beach or the store. I got mine at M&J Trimming in NYC.
- 2 gold charms

- Jewelry pliers
- Wire cutters (if your pliers don't have them)
- E6000/super glue
 - Pair of earring posts and backings
- Paintbrush
- Acrylic paint of your choice. I mixed neon pink & orange (& later some white)
- Metallic acrylic paint (that matches your charms)

I got these little guys at Beads on Fifth in NYC. Any kind of marine life charms would be perfect for this; seahorses, starfish, boats, or even more seashells.

1) Paint the shells whatever color you'd like, and let dry.

2) Twist the loops off of the charms with the pliers. Use the wire cutters - or the wire cutter part if your pliers have it - to even out the metal.

3) Glue the pieces onto shells.

 4) Accent with some metallic paint, if you'd like; I used gold. Let dry.

5) Glue the earring posts to the back of the shells, and let dry overnight.

 Mine kind of look like strawberries! I'm loving the summer-y coral color

Also: S&P's July sponsor, Smashion, is havin an awesome giveaway! Once they reach 4,000 fans on Facebook, they'll be giving away a gift card prize. AND, the next one will be double the amount of this one. Just head on over to Smashion's fan page, "like" the page and enter the giveaway in the "Promotions" tab. Good luck everyone!

In other news:

Today's my 23rd birthday - thanks soo much to those of you who have already sent me messages/tweets/etc. One of my oldest and best friends (I've known her for 22 years) is bringing me to a martini bar this weekend. I looked up the restaurant's menu and found this:

"cocaine lady - vanilla vodka, amaretto, coffee liqueur, ice cream & a splash of coke"

That exists?...Ice cream? In a martini? Yes please.

<3!

diy: Side Lace Sweatshirt

I realize it's July...but you know those chilly summer nights like to sneak up on us once in a while. I've had this navy blue Hanes sweatshirt for a while, so I thought it'd be perfect to make a semi-casual cover up for those nights. I also had some lace leftover from the Ombre Lace Top, so I wanted to use some of that up.

Supplies:

- Sweatshirt
- Lace. 6 inches wide & 25 inches long should be more than enough.
- RIT Dye (I initially used Teal, but re-dyed with Navy Blue)
- Water and bucket/tub

- Rubber gloves
- Scissors
- Sewing machine and thread

1) Dye the lace. You'll need a little patience for the lace to start absorbing the dye. As I said when I made the Ombre Lace Top, RIT Dye isn't made for polyester, so your lace won't be a rich shade of color.

With that said, Teal came out as baby blue on lace. I wasn't really feeling that shade, but thankfully, with DIY - anything goes. I dyed it again in some Navy Blue, and it came out in this purple-y blue shade. Loved it!

Rinse, until the water runs completely clear.

2) Cut off the bottom band of the sweatshirt.

3) Cut both bottom corners of the sweatshirt, like above.

4) Take those cut out triangles and place them on top of the lace for guidance.

5) Cut out the lace, about an inch bigger all around than the sweatshirt triangles.

6) Sew the left and right sides of the triangle to give it a clean edge.

7) Pin one side...

8) ... Sew

9) And repeat on the other side.

10) Cut off the collar. As always, cut really close to the seam, and then cut more from there if needed. It's better to start off with cutting too little than too much.

If you'd like, hem the collar and bottom. I preferred the raw edges, although I might change my mind at some point.

I was really close to holding this one off and waiting until the fall to share this, but I was outside last night around midnight and it was pretty chilly. Needless to say I thought, looks like I'll be posting that sweatshirt after all. I'll probably end up using this for the late nights by the pool or at the beach!

Also - I'm starting up a mailing list, where I'll send out e-mails whenever I post a new DIY. Aside from S&P's Facebook fan page and my Twitter (@kirstengail), it'll be another way to keep up with new projects. Leave a comment with your e-mail to be added, or send me a message at kirsten.studsandpearls@gmail.com.

xo :)

Margo
Margo
Margo