Downed by the flu

I've been 'offline' for a few days, both literally and metaphorically as I've been laid up by the flu for three days straight. Now I'm back in the land of the living I'll have to slowly get back on track with my #restyle2013 pics since I'm quickly falling behind...

The 4th of August called for 'mixed prints' which is a look I love although it can be tricky to pull off (unless you wear everything with confidence - then clash away!) Once again I already had a dress in the cupboard that was op-shopped years ago that I specifically bought because it had two mixed prints in the one dress.

The sea-green colour is gorgeous and the overlay is slightly see-through (as you can see at the knees).

Sorry I don't remember where I bought it from or how much I paid (for either item shown); the second item described is for the 5th of August the theme of which was 'sequins'. 

I've already shown you my completely over-the-top sequinned butterfly top so here is a much more sedate sequinned top: this black t-shirt uses chain-links to give a sequin-effect and is comfortable as well as easily dressed up or down.

Layering it under a cute jacket with tight jeans and heels lifts this shirt beyond the ordinary tee.

Restyle Photo-A-Day OpShop Challenge Begins!

Not only did I have an awesome excuse to go op-shopping over the weekend, as usual, I found some amazing pieces and had a blast at the same time.

Now it is the first of August and I get to show off the first of my opportunity-shopped wardrobe. I've been an avid op-shopper for years, so many of the pieces you'll see here I've had for months or years, so I don't remember how much they cost me. However any of the items I've bought for #restyle2013 I'll tell you how much they cost and where I bought them.

Let's begin! The first of August calls for pink - not a colour I wear a lot of and not usually something I steer towards in an op-shop. So I was surprised to find I already owned a pair of pink op-shopped trousers. I bought these trousers years ago and the lining is nearly thread-bare. They are a deep pink and white woollen tweed fabric and were originally flared.

Now that slim fitting trousers are in fashion and I wasn't getting much wear from these pants I decided to take in the fit. This was my first ever attempt at taking in trousers (that's the great thing about op-shopped clothes, if you ruin them then it's not the end of the world). On the first attempt the crotch looked REALLY weird so after some unpicking and another go I am happy with how these pink op-shopped trousers turned out!

To start #restyle2013 with a bang I've taken a picture of me in top-to-toe op-shopped clothes including a close-up of the pink trousers described.

The worst part of this experience so far was making my boyfriend take pictures of me! That is why the second photo here is a self portrait taken in front of my bathroom mirror. How does everyone else take such professional looking photos?

Upholstery 101

Over the weekend I attended the first of four Saturday afternoon upholstery courses organised by Perth Wood School and it was so much fun! The tutor Randa was so passionate about soft furnishings and her excitement was catching. Luckily the course also involved enough physical work to keep us warm since it was a very cold day in the workshop.

Perth Wood School supplied the benches (like a long ottoman) that we are learning to upholster. I’m taking detailed notes to help me remember all the steps; I’ve done enough courses to know that if you don’t repeat the steps you learnt very quickly after leaving, you forget and lose confidence quickly.

Since I have a large chair base at home (that I found on a verge) which needs to be fully reupholstered, I should be using the skills I learn within a month of leaving. But in case I don’t remember all the steps I’m writing everything down and taking pictures as I go.

Randa is teaching us to upholster with minimal waste and using natural materials (as much as possible), which is exactly my style so I’m thrilled to have a like-minded teacher. I’m already looking forward to our next class on Saturday, and in the mean time I’m window shopping for fabrics.

I’m so excited I’ve even started a new Pinterest board for inspiration. I’ve been dreaming of having some Emily Ziz wallpaper in my new house one day but maybe this is an opportunity to use one her patterns in a fabric instead?

Here are some of my Emily Ziz favourites