Magic Fix #23: Sew Love!

I find that when I sew, when I put my concentration on perfecting the detail and enjoying the process of creating, just loving and fully experiencing every moment spent, the resulting creation is sheer perfection for me!

I designed and sewed this costume for my daughters role as Fairy Godmother in Cinderella.

I have been so enjoying my lovely little sewing nook, it has been heavenly to walk in there, look around and admire my lovely sewing machine, shining tools, buttons and trims like treasures in a jewelry box and threads that appear like candy; lined up and standing to attention, the neatly folded bright fabrics like wrapped x'mas presents beckon my excited fingers to come unravel them!

I sew some of my own clothes, including the one I'm wearing here.

When that sewing machine begins to fill the silence, I slip into a blissful meditation and one stitch at a time, something new begins its journey towards its creation.

I made this purse for my little daughter and it looks a little tired from all the lov'n it gets!

The magic fix to appease boredom and entropy in any ones life is to do what you love to do and do it often! Have you seen the Holstee Manifesto, its great for any young person trying to find their way around this world...

What is your passion?

Magic Fix #21: Pinterest Perfect!

Pinterest has been the most amazing cyberspace discovery ever to have enhanced our family life. If there is ever a shortage of inspiration in our household, Pinterest has always been our magic fix lately.

I have put together, just some of the ways that Pinterest has added to the fun and excitement at our place!

We found ideas and inspiration for our halloween party:

Martha Stewart had a spooky idea!

 This was our version with witches, bats and zombies!

We thought this was a cool idea...

but here is ours! Mr Bones was a hit at our party.

We found inspiration for taking photos of our children:

If they can do it...

we can too!

Making any type of cake yourself is a breeze these days:

Awesome step by step instructions...

made our version a success!

When I needed to make a beanbag for my son's room, there were tonnes of ideas available:

How simple is this idea? But I don't knit, so...

I made one with Ikea fabric instead!

We have many more of their version/our version to share with you but this is all we have time for today. If you want to find the links for any of the above, please find a link to my Pinterest board on the lower right hand corner of this blog.

 How do you think we went with our versions? Are you inspired to give some of this a go yourself?

Magic Fix #5: Style on the Go? Mums the word...

My latest subscriber ;-) (actually my only subscriber!!!) commented on how much she enjoyed reading my post on styling kids. This post is on styling for grown-ups but from a 'Mom on the Go' perspective which I hope she will still find useful anyway(this is for you HG!)

Being a mom and being stylish is a combo that doesn't always mix too well. Believe me, I am nowhere stylish, but it doesn't stop me from trying! There are definite no-nos for mothers when styling oneself. In my view:

1. You don't dress like your children! Or worse, you don't dress your children like yourself! Simple!
2. You don't wear dangly earrings longer than say a centimetre and definitely no loop earrings if you want to keep your earlobes.
3. Nails got to be trimmed short unless you want child services on your back. Don't ask!

Now you are a 'blank canvas mom' ready to be styled!

These are some styling ideas that I use, which have been the 'Magic Fix' for me:

• I put on a great hat, great for bad hair days! Anyone would agree that any person who wears a hat just looks more confident with their fashion(but whether it actually looks good is entirely another story!)

Hat worn in Winter.

Same hat as above worn in Spring.This hat in felt works for autumn, winter and spring.  The black goes with all my favourite colours for those seasons. 

 A fabulous grey hat which I wore all summer long. I like grey hats for Summer.

This hat is a grey, woven hat but it worked for both summer and winter.

• I wear a great scarf. I love scarfs more than long chains because not only does it keep your neck warm and your children are also unlikely to choke you to death. I've lived to tell the tale.

I love this lightweight muslin scarf with great little pom poms.  It keeps my neck warm, and I feel like I've got a chain on at the same time!

• I try and wear a great belt to create an illusion of a waist!

I have quite a boyish figure, but women of all shapes and sizes should always highlight their waist more because it just looks more feminine.

• I try to make my style chic/classic, not consumerist/commercial. This means that I shop when I need something and not when I want to forget my woes. This means I buy fewer pieces which are better quality and more expensive(but heavily discounted hopefully) and not something that says 'buy two(zillion) and get one free! This means that I don't shop for every colour that exists under the sun but purchase clothes in a few key colours that work with my personality and personal style.

Above I wore the same top but in two different ways.

• I have a couple key pieces of jewellery (mine are earrings) that define my style that I can always keep on no matter where I go. I found out that it is better to invest in one good piece of jewellery that will last and look eternally stylish than buying dozens of cheap costume jewellery that used to just clutter my life and space.

I wore this sterling silver handcrafted Frangipani earrings by a New Zealand Maori artist every single day for a few years.

Now I wear this pearl drop that my hubby gave me, every single day!

I love wearing this antique chain that was given to me by my grandmother.

• I like to buy fabulous shoes but a few and not Matilda Marcos style cheap and cheerful dozens and dozens of shoes. I like to have a few good quality shoes, not cheap, that go with all my outfits. I have one brown boot and one grey boot that work with black, as well as all other colours. I have a high heel boot in a natural suede for when I go out on dates with my husband. I have one black high heel and skin toned high heel, a ballet shoe and a convers. That's it!

This is me, wearing my grey boots by the Spanish brand Camper.

• I like to have several lightweight jackets to give any outfit a lift and a more finished appearance.

I loved this pink jacket with sleeves that finished at the elbow for summer.

This grey bolero style jacket goes with any colour and outfit.

This jacket is fabulous because you could wear it with day and evening wear.

Comfy jacket made with jersey. Coco Chanel would be proud!

• Finally, I dress to suit my personal style and body shape and not get on the 'latest trend' bandwagon.

I found that after many years of wasting time and money buying the wrong type of clothes, I was able to finally streamline my wardrobe. Just as well because as a busy mom, I have no time to fuss with dressing up!

Magic Fix #4: Great Style for Kids ALWAYS!

Once upon a long time ago, I used to be a fashion designer, won couple of awards, had a shop and then settled down to do what I'm most passionate about doing that is bringing up my kids. I love to have my kids always looking really good with what they wear but don't really have the time to style their outfits each and every day. These are some of the quick magic fixes for styling kids that I tend to use:

1. I use loads of super cool head gear. From hats, caps to beanies styling starts from the head! Besides its a great way to hide my children's messy hair when I haven't had a chance to brush it before we whip out the door on our outings.

I like to accent with grey for winter.

Accent in white for summer.

I also like to accent with pink and sky blue for summer.

Occasionally, I would add pink and brown for winter.

Great summer hats that co-ordinate with denim.

2. I like to stick to one color story for each season. I always only buy black, navy blue and white for winter with a few accent pieces that co-ordinate easily like red, silver and grey. This way, what ever they wear for that season, it always looks good when they pick their outfits each and every time. I save a heap of time by not having to pick and choose their outfits for them, also they are free to be creative and express themselves.

I like muted tones like beige, black and navy blue for winter  jackets for boys and girls.

I like to accent winter clothes with red.

3. I try to buy the best quality stockings and shoes I can afford.  I always think that great shoes will make children look well dressed and finished always.

So there you go the tricks and cheats that I use to dress my kids stylishly each and every time!