DIY: Vintage Night Table!

First let me just say I havent updated my blog in a very long time, and for that I am very sorry! But im back to warn you that if you have old dressers or night tables that you really want to throw away... DON'T! I have a step by step tutorial below to show you how to fix up old furniture pieces and have them mesh beautifully in your home.

So my inspiration wasn't actually something I saw on pinterest or online somewhere, it was from a sander that was on sale at Canadian Tire, I thought I'd buy it and force myself to make use of it at home. This is the model I purchased.

This is what the night table looked like.

To achieve that Anthropologie/Upscale/Vintage look you will need the following:

1.Sander or Sand Paper (I used 3M paint stripping sand paper. This is good for more stained surfaces cause the paper is more coarser.)
2.Screwdriver
3.Bowl and 1/2 a Lime
5. Primer sealer (I used ultra white)
6. BEHR Interior Semi-Gloss Enamel (Pure White 3050)
7. A mini paint roller w. tray and paint brushes

Total time with dry time: 3 hours to complete and 5 hours to dry.

Step 1: Take a screwdriver and unscrew the handles. Filling up either a bowl or container with water and lime juice have the handles sit in there while completing this project. (this is done to create a polished look)

Step 2: After loading your sander or using the sandpaper, add some pressure and go in a circular motion until you see the actual bare wood or until the surface is dull. Keep the same motion for the drawers as well. *be careful, when using a motor sander its crucial that you still keep the grooves and design that was made originally and not to sand all the way down* 

Circular motion with an electronic sander is seen below.

the 'swivel' motion 

And the finished product of what the sander should have done to your table is seen below:

*The sanding alone took me about an hour.

As you can see I didn't completely sand it down. When it came down to the embellishments I sanded over them , quickly and gently for approx. 30 seconds

Step 3: Either taking a damp cloth or paint brush dust off the residue from the sander. After that, it's time to paint!

Step 4: First, take your Primer (I purchased mine from Home Depot click here for details.) and saturate your paint brush. Paint: drawers, tables and legs in one direction for best results. Once dry, use the BEHR Semi-Gloss enamel paint with the roller

*I used 1 coat of primer

*I used 2 coats of interior paint

Step 5: LET IT DRY, LET IT DRY, LET IT DRY!

Step 6: Drain your lime water, dry the handles with a paper towel and screw them back onto the dresser.

My side table looks like this!

Special thank you to my sister Segen for helping me take photos and paint!

Let me know what you guys think, and if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or tweet me (@sewitums)

Sewit!

xo.

Livid

Guys, you know I'm a social networking freak and when I came across what I'm about to share with you I was simply outraged!! Remember back in 2008 when Matthew Williamson did a Spring Summer collection of "Ethiopian Inspired Traditional Dresses?" well its back again! This time Urban Outfitters!! Not shedding a lick of recogintion they have this dress on their site titled "Vintage '90 Linen Dress" Im sorry what!? Last time I checked it was called a Zuria. I guess its cause im from Eritrea and a fashion enthusiast that this news rubbed me the wrong way! So anyways, I was on twitter when I heard the news and shared it with my followers, THUS! the power of social networking whisked me away to a page that looked like a petition (whoooop whooop!!) Im simply writing this post so members of this blog can show a little support and sign the petition too!! The link is righhhhht here:

https://www.change.org/petitions/urban-outfitters-stop-appropriating-traditional-cultural-designs-from-ethiopia-eritrea 

This is a traditional Zuria or Hager-Leb Dress worn by Eritrean and Ethiopian Ladies

And here are some photos from Matthew Williamson S/S 2008

And here is the photo of the Urban Outfitters dress:

I would like to S/O Lolla Mohammed Nur from St. Paul, United States for tweeting me her concern  and creating the petition! I wish her luck in bringing light to this fashion injustice!


If you have any questions hit me up on twitter (@sewitums), follow @lomonur or comment on this post! The petition takes a second to virtually sign!

Thanks,
Sewit xo!

DIY: Balmain on a Budget

PART I

Ahhh Balmain! So this blog post is another DIY shirt, something similar to the Celine Shirt from my last post! After looking at such a beautiful ready to wear spring 2013 collection designed by my hubby Olivier Rousteing, it made me look back at the other pieces before his beauty took over! So Christophe Decarnin did his thing at Balmain for like 9 years, and his last collection included this gem. The tank goes for like a gizzzilion dollars... close to $1500..So I decided to make my own, it's actually from SS11 if you wanna check it out!!


My Balmain Inspo...

So this is what you'll need:

Sorry y'all was super excited to use this new 3D filter app on my phone.  But thats the white tank top!

• White tank top! Mines an old one from American Eagle, racer back
• Paper (something a bit more stronger than regular paper but thinner than cardboard, like you know that kleenex tissue box type of cardboard? That!
• Sharpie Marker
• Some paint (navy blue and red)
• Paint brush
• Scissors  

Total Time: 2 hours to complete and a day or two to dry!

Step 1: Draw stars on your paper and cut them out (cut a few cause they'll eventually get soggy from all the paint.

Step 2: Either laying your shirt on the floor or have it hanging (like mine) visualize the center and tape it straight down and to the right *leave an allowance for the stripes at the bottom* I left 5 inches! 

Step 3: With the cut outs in hand plop some blue paint in a cup or paper plate and saturate your paint brush.

Step 4: This part is actually fun, you pretty much place the star anywhere in the area you decide to be your "50 states"and paint over the star, pretty much stenciling your shirt. When the stars are done it should look something like this:

Step 5: Now once the stars are complete, instead of having bright red stripes run across your shirt, mix it in with the blue giving it that deep red almost purple but still red colour. Mix that with some water for your first stroke to see if you like the shade. Your consistency should get thicker when you've got the right colour!

Step 6: Let it dry!

Alright. so the next two photos are just a closer look on the 'distressed' look I was going for! 

Alright, this is how I styled it!

The Details:

Balmain Inspired Tank

Ripped Boyfriend Jeans-Celebrity Pink

Wilfred Reusable Tote

Sand/Offwhite TOMS

Extras:

Matte Leopard Sunglasses- Le Chateau

Butler Please- Essie Nailpolish 

Rose Gold Mesh Watch (The Moment on Karmaloop) 

I hope you guys enjoyed this DIY and if you have any questions let me know in the comments below or hit me up on twitter (@sewitums)

Corny, I know! But I love me some Lana Del Rey...Enjoy!


xo!

Celine T-Shirt DIY

A HYBRID of  DIY & FASHION

I really really really wanted to call this post "RIH RIH AINT GOT NOTHIN ON ME ME" cause she has the same shirt....but, yea.

Alright, so to be completely honest I created this t-shirt a few weeks ago, BUT! went ahead and made a new one so I can rock one while the other one well, ill just probably give away! Anyways, ill be sharing with you step by step how to create your own Celine t-shirt!! You can, without a doubt purchase the t-shirt online but the sites I came across were a bit sketchy and eBay was...well...eBay, some are from China some a from the U.K. Uber confusing, so I decided to create my own! Creating t-shirts have become a popular trend for bloggers and DIYers from the Chanel logo tee all the way to the Karl Lagerfeld logo tee. This DIY was pretty easy for the most part, for the logo itself has some jagged edges, so it doesn't have to be perfect! :)

I was forutnate to come in contact with a fashion blogger to lend me the Celine template she used for her shirt-- for the ones on google images are quite small and are just pictures of the shirt, so if you guys need it just send me an email and ill forward you the image!!

So lets get started! If you want your Celine T-shirt to look something like this: 

I'd suggest, if you're buying a basic white tee, to try either Old Navy or H&M , also try getting one that's a cotton and polyester blend (60% cotton, 40% polyester) so its not,for the lack of a better word, "rigid" or gym t-shirt looking,yenno? I purchased mine at Old Navy after having no luck whatsoever at H&M,so if you're there I got it in the women's section and the label inside says "Perfect Crew." in a bright white. 

Things you will need:

• fabric markers- The Uchida brand is ideal or Crayola 
• fabric paint (but I used acrylic at the end to clean up the edges..oops!)
• paint brush
• white t-shirt (Old Navy Small) but if you want to roll the sleeves go a size up!
• tape (optional: just to keep the logo in place) on the hardcover book
• hardcover book/cardboard
• a printed Celine logo

Step 1: Tape the Celine logo on the hardcover book and flatten any wrinkles on the front and back of shirt and place the hardcover book horizontally in the center of the shirt.

Step 2: Making sure you can see the logo through the shirt, begin tracing the letters. TIP: as a tracing tool either use an eyeliner pencil or dull wooden pencil to lightly trace.

Step 3: Once tracing is complete, color in your letters with a fabric marker, Uchida says you dont have to iron it, but if you choose to just use the fabric marker I suggest you iron it on super low heat. I used acrylic paint (eeeekkk..) for touch ups, and ironed it on low heat.

Step 4: Leave it to dry, laying flat for a day

TIP: I guess this tip is a bit common sense, but dont wash it with regular clothes, whether you used fabric markers or paint, it might flake off and might bleed onto other clothes, so hand wash and stay on the safe side!

After that, its a done deal!! 

This is how I styled it!

The Details: 

Celine Shirt (Whoooop!)

Leather Leggings, Le Chateau

BDG Burgundy Cardigan, Urban Outfitters

Orange and Brown Clutch, Roots <-----deff a Joan Clayton clutch!

Leather Booties, Steve Madden

Nail Polish: A toss between OPI Mrs. O'Leary's BBQ and OPI Lincoln Park After Dark

Gold Fossil Watch

Arm Candy: Assortment; Pandora single red leather bracelet and Wooden Bracelets.

Gold Statement Piece, Aldo

Earrings and Rings: H&M

I hope you guys are inspired to create a design or use a template of some sort for your own t-shirts but if you need any help let me know in the comments or follow me on twitter (@sewitums)

XO!

Songza Ain't Got Nothing On Me!

A little intro to the intro of this post LOL! I plan on doing this a lot just cause I'm always jamming to music, new school, old school anything really! Some posts will be a collection of genres put together but I'll try to sort it out so its easier to resort back to when its archived! So back to the actually post....

Nothing excites me more than loading my ipod with new music and taking the train to school! It's such a treat in the morning and late at night! You all probably have ipods and tablets jam packed with your favourite music so in this post I'd like to share with you the music I discovered recently and what's on HEAVY ROTATION!

1. Bondax- Gold

2. Just Us- Shlohmo

3. Lana Del Rey- What Makes Us Girls

4. Wild Belle-Keep You

5. XXYYXX- About You

6. ASAP Rocky -Fashion Killa

7. Toro Y Moi- So Many Details

8. The Virgins- Rich Girls

9. The Ting Tings- Soul Killing

10. Gossip-Heavy Cross

This list is in no order but I honestly hope you guys enjoy it. Youtube titles that stick out to you the most and let me know what you think. 

See, this one is my favourite right now and its number 4!

 This list screams out Spring, Can't wait!

What have you been jamming to? Share in the comments below!

XO!

Live n' Dine!

SEE WHAT I DID THERE?? So on Saturday night my girl Amanda and I decided to hit up Canyon Creek Chophouse for dinner. Its this restaurant on Front Street in Toronto that was showcased in Winterlicious' 2013 list. We thought this would be a wonderful opportunity to have a really nice dining experience than the typical Milestones or Moxies. If you aren't familiar with Winterlicious its this thing that the City of Toronto puts together, sorta like an event showcasing top restaurants around the city, if you decide to go for dinner you pretty much have a 3 course meal for about $25 and lunch for about $15. Amanda and I ordered two different things and I have a few pictures to prove it :)

156 Front Street West Toronto, ON M5J

The interior was pretty dope. They had stones on the wall opposite of this one.

This is my friend Amanda making her blogosphere debut!! WASSSAAP?! She ordered the Fried Chicken Burger with Coleslaw and French Fries.

This should be a picture of my Cesar Salad with Applewood Bacon but I forgot to take a picture. This was the main course: Herb Chicken with White Wine served with Mashed Potatoes and Broccoli

Guys I'm really sorry you can't blame my photography skills on this one, I tried with and without flash, this doesn't look appetizing for the simple fact that it wasn't :( It's called The Small Chocolate Brownie with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Caramel.

I had a good time, the company was awesome, obviously but the food wasn't amazeballs, the atmosphere and the service were supereb but if it was solely up to me to go back it wouldn't be the good ol' Chophouse, sorry! But it was nice to check it off my foodie list! :) Anywho, if you're in Toronto and interested in participating in the fine dining experience Winterlicious is going on until February 7th 2013. But not to worry, there is also a Summerlicious sometime in July which I'll probably go to wif ma gurl!  Here's a list of the restaurants that are "Prix Fixe", there's lots to choose from! Enjoy! http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/se/restaurants.nsf/Winterlicious?OpenForm Have you been to Canyon Creek Chophouse? What did you think? Sound off in the comments below!  XO.

What to do with a TOMS flag...

MAKE A TRAVEL POUCH!

Spring is quickly approaching meaning you're either going to purchase a pair of TOMS or bring yours out again to rock for the season! For those of you with a pair of TOMS, you all probably know that the shoe box comes packed with a bumper sticker and a flag. After playing around with my sewing machine and folding the edges of the flag, I created my own toiletry travel pouch! This also counts as my first project with my sewing machine so its perfect for beginners just like me!! After purchasing a zipper for $3 my project was underway and didn't even take long!! In this blog post I've posted all the supplies you need and the steps to take to create your very own TOMS pouch!!

Below are all the supplies you're going to need!

• An Iron
• One TOMS flag
• A Zipper
• Needle and Thread or a Sewing Machine
• Measuring tape.

*As a TIP: if they dont have your exact zipper in inches, go with a longer one because you can stuff the excess zipper on the side.

Alright, the first step is to iron the flag just so there aren't any creases when you fold horizontally or vertically. Then measure how long your zipper should be.

For the Sewing part: Fold the flag horizontally inside, and sew both sides. Once sewing is complete the pouch is inside out.

Because my zipper was an inch off I made sure to leave some room so I could stuff the excess zipper on the side...TIP: To guide your zipper accordingly make sure you iron the edges of where you want your zipper to lay making it easier to sew.

The final step of this project is to stuff some tissue paper or newspaper inside so it keeps its shape and does not worp. 

Your final TOMS Travel Pouch should look something like this!

This DIY was actually ALOT of fun, so if you plan on purchasing TOMS hold on to your flag!!

XO.