Lately...

Hello!

Today I bring you a really lazy quick post to show you what I've been up to recently.

I have an Android phone and was a little too excited to finally be able to get Instagram a few weeks ago!

I'm hoping that the app will get me posting a little more regularly; it's pretty addictive and I'm finding that I take more photos when I'm out and about which can only be a good thing, right?

So here's my little 'Life in Instagram' montage:

 

1. Gorgeous flowers and card from my workmates at Flannels Fashion- I start my new job tomorrow, eek!

2. Last day at work treats.

3. Customising thrifted denim

4. Curry at my fave Indian restaurant (Mughli in Manchester)

5. First time using my lovely teapot and floral tray (even though I've had them about half a year)

6. New TIGI hair products, Rockaholic Fun Times flexible hairspray and Groupie texturising spray, from TK Maxx (the best place to buy TIGI!).

7. New hair via Toni & Guy

8. Being broken down and rescued by the RAC

9. Vintage typewriter spotted whilst charity shopping in Didsbury, Manchester

I was reading up on creating these grids but wasn't keen on the idea of faffing about with html; the intention was that these posts would be nice and quick to do.

I have an Instagram widget at the side of this blog and then discovered that I could embed a larger version in a post and, voila! Very very easy. the widget is from SnapWidget if you're interested.

Only problem is that you can't pick and choose from the images you've uploaded to Instagram- not too much of an issue, presuming that you liked all of the images you originally posted.

If you'd like to follow me on Instagram, my username is the same as my Twitter- 'katieafox'. Please feel free to comment with your username too if you have the app.

Would you like to see more of these types of posts?

Love,

Foxy x

Wicked and I'm lazy...

I know, I know, I promised to blog more now that I've finished uni! Truth be told, I've generally been revelling in  having very little responsibility while it lasts. In all honesty, for the most part I've been either drunk, hungover or working (in the bar) since handing all my uni stuff in.

Here's a little update anyway. I'm dying to get into doing some more DIYs now I have more time on my hands, it's just getting around to it...

Here's a really easy thing to do:

Men's Tshirt, £2, Charity Shop

I hacked the sleeves off a men's tee then simply cut thin strips (about 1-2cm wide) into the bottom. Looks really effective and great for summer (if we're going to get one!) of course.

And excuse me having NO makeup on here, think I'd just got out the shower after the gym!

This one isn't really a DIY, but I thought I'd show you my new bargain playsuit.

Belt, 50p, Charity Shop

I don't usually pop into COW vintage (Digbeth one, Bham) because I find it a bit overpriced but on passing I thought I'd have a little browse.

I spotted a rack of playsuits marked half price. This one was originally £8 so I got it for just £4!

It was a little longer, which annoyed me in the end so I took my scissors to it (more often than not the case with all my clothes!)- and voila!

And yes it DOES look like a dress, but looky here:

Definite playsuit from the back!

So yeah, I definitely want to do some more challenging customisations soon! On my list is...

This T Shirt which I have been dying to make ever since I saw it on the Di$count blog.

And I really really want a body harness!

I thought I could probably have a go at making a chain one like this:

£15, ASOS

But I really want a leather one like these BEAUTIFUL ones by Zana Bayne (thoroughly out of my budget unfortunately!).

I'm thinking I could re-work a cheap bondage version from eBay?!?! 

Haha what do you think?

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

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!).