Daylight Saving

Hello!

Wow I'm getting a bit rusty on the old blogging; need to find more time for it!

This one's just a quick outfit from a day I spent in the park a couple of weekends ago.

I'm trying to save a bit of money up (and not doing so well- summer sales are the death of any spare cash I have at the moment) before my holiday at the end of August so trying to go out less and do more fun stuff for free.

So with that in mind, me and the boy spent said weekend in the park having picnics/BBQs, sunbathing and kicking a ball around. It was pretty great thanks to the fab weather we're having (please don't go away).

Cat eye sunglasses: Republic

Gold hoops: vintage

Necklace: charity shop

Sheer leopard print top: Oh My Love

Printed bandeau top: Tinned Bananas

Levi cut-offs: Brag Vintage

Vagabond Flora sandals: ASOS

This sheer, cut-out back top from Oh My Love and my Tinnned Bananas floral/leopard bandeau top make for an excellent combination. Tinned Bananas have launched into sale so you should seriously go check them out for amazing bodycon styles and eye-popping prints. I think I used their generous discount code from Fabb Events Manchester pretty much the next day to bag this!

The shorts are new too, from Brag Vintage who have an excellent selection of vintage Levi's. These acid wash grey ones are a welcome addition to my collection!

My sunglasses were quite the bargain at just £1 in the Republic administration sale. I'm rarely without my Ray Ban tortoiseshell Wayfarers when the sun comes out but there are times when you just want a cheap pair of sunnies that you aren't going to weep over if they're sat on/lost/stolen/insert dire end.

And the hair is up again on the blog- what's going on? Free-flowing locks are far too impractical in this weather. Case in point, I was enjoying a beer last night when I was attacked by a wasp who proceeded to get stuck in my hair and was buzzing around angrily trying to escape right by my face! Of course the drama was overshadowed by said wasp shortly after flying straight into Chris' mouth and stinging him, resulting in a trip to A&E- he's fine. The wasp however clearly had issues so was swiftly put out of it's misery by half drowning in a puddle of man spit and finished off with a stomp to the head by a girl (me).

Play out, but stay safe.


Love,

Foxy x

Buy it, cut it, stick it, stud it, sew it, change it, rip - upgrade it

Sorry Daft Punk for defaming your lyrics...

I've been customising some jeans!

In my last post I mentioned my accumulation of thrifted jeans that I have long intended to turn into cut off shorts.

Well last week I had some spare time and, clearly nothing else to do, so I put my crafty hat on (can you imagine how that would look? I bet it would be covered in buttons and pom poms) and got to it!

Here are the results:

Sorry for the over-feature of my bedspread on the blog, it really is the best background!

These are my faves and sadly, too small for me. My good friend Clare is taking them off my hands though so they're going to a good home.

I buy all my studs from Chinese sellers on eBay. They typically take a couple of weeks to arrive but for £1 for a bagful you can't go wrong.

The leather inverted cross was made from the off-cuts off some leather trousers (also made into shorts!)

These beauties just about fit me; the dilemma being that I can't move. I'm hoping that if I get a holiday booked soon I'll have some incentive to get into them!

They were originally vintage Wrangler jeans picked up in a charity shop for £1.50.

My hoarding ways proved useful with these. I knew hanging on to the scrap of material that I once called a fancy dress costume would eventually come good...

With my uni ladies. On true form as well- being too late to get hold of one of the 'official' bar crawl t shirts!

These Levi jeans were another charity shop purchase at £2.49. The studs and fabric were left over from the American Flag jacket I made earlier...

Wish I could keep these but they're a bit too big so eBay they go!

I won't bang on about these ones as I already mentioned them in a previous post. The jeans really were the bargain of the century (okay, perhaps car boot) at just 50p!

and finally...

Okay so these aren't denim but needed sorting out nevertheless.

I bought the leather trousers from eBay ages ago; they were too small then and there's no bloody chance they'd fit now! I chopped the legs off (I have loads of leather left for other DIYs) and added a single stud to the back pockets. These are currently going on eBay too.

Well, I'm DIY'd out, how about you? Have you customised anything recently?

Love,

Foxy x

Found in Yorkshire

Man, this post has been a long time coming!

I went back home to the Yorkshire Dales to see my mummy and daddy for Mother's Day (Mother's Day I tell you!) and picked up some cool bits and pieces along the way.

First stop was Kirkby Lonsdale, to visit a quirky little army surplus shop.

I've wanted a lightweight military parka-style jacket for some time- all of my coats and jackets either seem to be massive faux fur coats or vintage Levi denim jackets (the sleeves of which are always rolled up!).

I was really pleased to pick up this little beauty for a measly £15.99:

Details

It's a vintage Italian army parka. I love the fact that it's slightly worn and you can even make out a trace of a name written in marker pen on the velcro badge!

When I got home I was delighted to find that this one is exactly the same as one that ASOS were flogging for £65 under their 'ASOS Reclaimed' brand!

ASOS Reclaimed Italian Parka, originally priced at £65!

I also picked up a German army shirt for just £4.99

It's actually REALLY long so I'm thinking of taking it up a bit; scared of ruining it though. The shop's owner said that these are getting harder and harder to come by as they stopped producing them about 20 years ago.

On the Sunday, we went to the car boot sale at Clitheroe. Might seem like odd practice for Mother's day but not if you know my parents!

I didn't buy much but this is what I bought:

A grand total of £4.50

Anyone who knows me should be well aware that I'm a sucker for 80s gold bling so i didn't hesitate in snapping up these earrings for £1.

The watch was £3 and perhaps, dare I say, a bit pricey for a car boot. I really liked though so took the plunge. Glad I did after Googling the brand; it's by Rotary and as it turns out, their watches don't come cheap!

The black Levi jeans were my buy of the day however, at just 50p!

I've since hacked these up into shorts (natch) and added some studs. I'll hopefully get some outfit posts up soon.

Have you snapped up any bargains recently?

Love,

Foxy

x

Denim and turquoise

I wanted to share another pair of shorts I made. I made these a few days ago from some Lee jeans I got from COW vintage on the sale rail for £5. I figured that I'd pay about that in a charity shop so didn't hestitate in buying them.


Here they are!

Hair: bush, depths of hell- you decide! Debbie Harry T-shirt: Ben Sherman Plaited leather belt: Topshop Tights: Primark (originally un-ripped!)

I have lots of denim cut-offs, but love these because they're the only pair that don't cut into my thighs! I'm cursed (some might say blessed- I think it's a pain in the arse!) with a little waist and bigger hips/bum/thighs. Needless to say, it's quite a challenge finding highwaisted clothing that fits well in both departments!

These are quite big on my waist but look okay drawn in with a belt (if you look closely you'll see a bit of a paperbag effect going on). I also love the washed-out colour as all my other cut-offs are darker shades of denim.

I like having a raw, frayed hem but also love turn-ups; these are the best of both worlds.

The 'turquoise' refers to these new rings.

I've been after one for aaaaages after falling in love with the YSL Arty version, but for over £100 (and it's not even gold!), I was hardly going to buy it was I?

The beautiful YSL Arty ring in turquoise

I'd seen lots of stuff on the Topshop semi-precious stone rings, and at an average of £10 they seemed a steal! The YSL one looks pretty, granted, but the stone isn't even what it seems- it's glass!

So I hit the high street and left with these beauties!

The one on the left is from Forever 21. Now, I'm not a big fan of the shop; I completely bought into the hype in the run-up to its opening in Birmingham, then was left disappointed when it finally arrived. The best way I can describe it is simply, 'an American New Look'- similar styles and prices.

I've been and looked at clothes in Forever 21 a handful of times and find that what they sell is very hit and miss. Yes they do pretty cheap clothing, but a good proportion of clothes aren't great quality- worse than Primark in many cases.

However, I'm so chuffed with this ring! For around £5, I can't tell you what great quality it feels, it's really heavy!

I was after a gold ring really, but couldn't resist this. I love the detail on the sides and the cracked effect of the 'stone', which is in fact plastic! Though someone thought it was an expensive one last night!

The second ring is Topshop. It's one of the semi-precious stone ones but was only £8.50 (even less with my student discount).

Afterwards, I realised I'd seen it on Ashleigh's 'This Stylish Life' blog- doh! We do seem to have very similar tastes though... (for some reason I can't link to the post, but it's a fairly recent one on her blog)

I'd definitely recommend that anyone going shopping in Birmingham soon checks out Forever 21 (never thought I'd hear myself say that!) but honestly, their jewellery selection is brilliant! These are my faves:

£4.80

£3.80

£4.80

£5.80

Foxy

x

A bit of leather (nearly)

First off, sorry for neglecting this little space for a while, I've been super busy with uni (final year- sure you understand!) and in particular, my project, which I'll tell you a little about at the end of this post.

I wanted to share a recent (easy) make with you.

I've wanted a pair of leather shorts for a good few months and, after having a little look around, I concluded that they're pretty expensive things- I'm talking to you Topshop!

So I decided to grab myself a cheap pair of unwanted leather trousers and make some myself. I got a pair from eBay which were great leather, but unfortunately more like a size 8 than a 10.

I nabbed another pair in a size 12; however when I checked the label, I found that they weren't real leather! Pretty good imitation though (Marks and Spencer PU no less), plus the seller gave me some money back so they only cost me around £2!

First I chopped a big chunk of the legs off.

Then I tried them on, turned them up (I planned to have them as turn-ups), and estimated how much more I needed to snip.

I then hand-sewed the raw edge up- only making a very thin hem as I got a little scissor-happy!

Then I turned them up once more, and here they are! I'm hoping they don't look too plasticy!

I didn't sew up the final turn-ups so that I can alter how short they are easily.

Earrings: gift (boyf/camera man), All Saints Necklace: gift (boyf) Blouse: £2.29, charity shop Belt: 50p, charity shop Ring: Primark Shoes: Office

Also thought I'd do a few close-ups.

Probably my favourite shoes ever- and the most I've paid for flat shoes!

Necklace

Earrings

A few of you wanted to see a close-up of the shaved section of my hair. It's grown quite a lot now so when I re-do it, I might post a little tutorial.

My Project

Okay so now let me tell you about my 'baby' which I'll be nurturing for the rest of the year!

I'm producing a creative fashion magazine as my third year uni project. The magazine celebrates money saving, recycling, creativity and individuality in fashion and is concerned with all things crafty, vintage, thrifty, customised, handmade, quirky and cool.

I thought I'd let you guys know all about the magazine as I think it'll interest most of you!

My blog is also going to take a bit of a backseat due to the workload so I thought I'd share the magazine's official blog (also run by me). Just click the screengrab below to go to the site. It'd be great if you could give it a read and if you like it, add it to your reader or subscribe.

It'd be great if you could follow the magzine's twitter too: @TrashionMagazine or join the Facebook page here.

Thanks in advance for any support and any feedback would be appreciated :)

Foxy
x

Odds and ends

This post is a collection of recent random musings/observations/purchases that don't really justify an individual post so basically I've chucked them together here, like some kind of horrible junk-filled charity shop in a bad area- sift through at your leisure.

Spotted in This is England

So firstly, I was watching one of my favourite films the other night- This is England. I know a few people who dislike the film and feel it's overrated due to the amount of acclaim it's received; I however love it for what it is and the film's concept appealed to me from the moment I first heard about it.

I'm really interested in the skinhead subculture (the harmless kind of course) of the 60s, having grown-up listening to my Dad's extensive ska collection, so love the soundtrack in particular; not forgetting all things mise en scène too- the fashion, the northern 1980s council estate setting and general direction by Shane Meadows.

I was re-watching the film in anticipation of the upcoming drama series, This is England: -'86- following the group three years on.

Anyway let's get to the matter at hand- I'm now thinking I could've definitely justified an individual post for this! So I'm at the point where our main character Shaun goes off to a shop with his Mum to get himself a pair of iconic Dr Martins, and I suddenly got a pang of deja vu.

I'm sure there's an easier, more technically-advanced method of getting an image of this point in the film but being pretty dense, I thought taking a picture of the TV would be the best option!

Looking familiar? No? Let me cast your minds back to this post.

So yeah, this was a pretty obscure shop I found in Kendal, Cumbria not too long ago. Maybe This is England's one of their faves too! No Dr Martins in sight here; although some of the gear in the shop wouldn't have looked out of place on the set at Shaun's house.

Burgandy? I'll have a glass of red thanks!

Remember my questionably attractive burgandy shorts I crafted from some vintage deadstock jeans? (see here if not)  Well, well, imagine my surprise at the discovery that they are in fact not burgandy, oh no, they are wine.

Yes wine, one of the new must-have colours for A/W if you take notice of that sort of thing. I believe I said something along the lines of 'they might look alright come Autumn'- did I predict it or did I predict it ey? Yes okay, one might argue that I could have easily looked through photos for the A/W '10 runway shows by the time I wrote that post; however being a mere mortal (and having a slight tendency to be lazy), I don't have time to trawl through pictures as soon as they're posted online, I usually just wait for the all-important September issues to hit the shelves to find out what's going on.

Don't look too shabby in this new climate do they?

No comments on my appearance please, your author was very hungover and in desperate need of a good shower

 A mosey around Settle

Ahh the small North Yorkshire town I call home. You may have cottoned-on to the fact that I'm back up here for a few days.

Firstly, as I mentioned here, I decided to go check out my main local charity shop (Age Concern- not yet making the switch to Age UK in these parts!) in my quest for a fur coat.

Now, with no disrespect, my local Age Concern has a pretty ridiculous policy on fur/ faux fur coats- in my opinion anyway.

Basically, the upstairs of the shop is quite unusual. It's quite an extensive 'dressing-up' area, in which clothes and accessories can be hired for around a pound an item- to the best of my knowledge.

It's a truly amzing place to be. Genuine garments from every era conceivable; some pieces being very quirky and rare. Heaven you'd think? Absolutely not.

Why? Because you can't buy anything! The staff at the shop are so committed to stocking this area, that any unusual, vaguely old wearable items entering the shop go straight upstairs- never to see the light of day again (unless of course they're hired out, which isn't all that often).

Tis a tragedy of shakespearean proportions. Just my luck then that EVERY SINGLE fur coat making its way into the shop is considered 'fancy dress'. One of the volunteers looked baffled when I explained that I wasn't attending some pimps and hoes affair, I actually just rather wanted to buy one. "You mean for everyday wear?" she questioned. Believe it or not sister, people sometimes wear these things for reasons other than jest.

Anyway, the volunteers are relentlessy loyal to their policy of not selling anything from the 'fancy dress' section and I was told that the only way I could have a coat is if, by some miracle, there were any that hadn't made that final journey to the top of the stairs. PRAISE THE LORD! behold, three fur coats hadn't yet been exiled to the top room. Unfortunately they were ugly, too big, too long and brown- Miss Fox didn't approve. And so it was that I walked away empty handed.

I also visited the 'All sorts Market' held at the Victoria Hall. I was just passing and thought 'all sorts' might include some fabulous bargains for me- it didn't, and I left 50 pence out of pocket from the entrance fee, boo!

As I was nearby, I also popped accross to the small weekly car boot to see my lovely Gran who has a stall there every Saturday.

I came away with these cool earrings:

They were 50p-a-pair. The black ones are clip ons and the gold ones are studs. Excellent additions to my collection!

Happy Birthday Nanna!

To round off an utterly thilling morning, it was my Great Nanna's 90th birthday- I hope I'm still throwing parties at that age (not that I'm likely to get that far at the rate I'm going).

She showed me up by quaffing champagne whilst I stuck to the J20s- suffering from the night before!

Wow that actually turned out to be a rather long post ey? Still, I've decided to keep it all together; I haven't the heart to uproot the different little sections, not after they've bonded and got to know each other- that's unethical.

Some serious denim...

I'm in a great mood today- why? Because I'm about to embark upon project denim shorts!

Daisy Duke- the denim shorts poster girl

So, as I'm back in Yorkshire for summer, I decided to go and pay a visit to my grandparents today.

Now, this set of grandparents, like many others I'm sure, are serial hoarders. I mean, seriously.

For a while, I've been talking about getting some vintage jeans (preferably Levi's) and cutting them up into shorts for summer. This hadn't proved very successful as most pairs I found were around a tenner- I couldn't bear to chop them up (not to mention the possibility of butchering them into unwearable shreds!)

However today my Dad mentioned that my Grandad had a shed load of old jeans which he bought to sell, and inevitably hadn't had any luck in doing so- always out to make a quick buck (usually selling old junk) my Grandad is.

Anyway, my Grandad handed over about 10 pairs of these jeans to me (and more to come tomorrow)- and behold! A stack of brand new/ old stock vintage American denim dating back to the 70s/80s I would say.



There's no wonder he couldn't sell these; the style is outdated. The jeans even proudly display the width of the bottoms on a label- 20" for most pairs!

The daft bugger's also been selling these at the wrong places. With the largest waist size being 29" (a UK 10-12), he's hardly going to shift many pairs at autojumbles! (It's a well-known fact that motorbike enthusiasts are dainty little creatures now isn't it?)

So the question became, 'what do I do with a load of old, tired jeans, sizes 25"-29" in summertime?' The answer? Make vintage denim cut-offs of course!

And here's my first pair...



I decided to make these into turn-ups rather than raw-edged shorts.



All I need to do now is stitch the turn-ups in place and it's job done!


(I haven't quite got Daisy Duke's figure, hence my pair being slightly more forgiving!)

Not bad considering that they initially looked like this!



ANOTHER YORKSHIRE-BASED UPDATE

So as I'm back on home turf, I paid a quick visit to the two charity shops in my small town.

Here are today's finds:



In the first of the two shops (its name escapes me), I bought this cute vintage perfume bottle and the small gold watch.

I haven't really been in this shop before in all honesty (once, a few years back looking for pirate-themed fancy dress items), and I actually found it to be quite expensive- as far as charity shops go.

I almost didn't get the perfume bottle, which was £5, but as I'm moving to a new flat soon (automatically equates new décor darling), I've been on the lookout for little nick nacks to spruce up the place.

The watch was only £3- which didn't exactly break the bank.

The second shop I visited was Age Concern where I got the scarf (seen underneath) for £1.50 and the gold necklace for £1.

All in all a great day for Katie- minus the sunburn (ouch!).