Winter Series ~ Cozy Mittens

Second in the serie: a cozy pair of mittens!

I had been on the hunt for some nice mittens for a few years now. The ones I liked were mostly made out of wool. Which is nice, but not when you're cycling a lot. The wind (and rain) just goes right through them! If you can't find what you're looking for: make them yourself :)

And so I did. I used interior fabric, because it is sturdy and quite water- and windproof. For lining I opted for some fluffy shearling material. So soft and cozy! And an absolute dream to work with.

DIY ~ laptop sleeve

Last week I've made myself a new laptop sleeve! I've had this idea for a long time, cause the old one was actually not more than a T-shirt I cut and sewn to size. It was already shredded at the corners..

Awhile ago my mom got her hands on some interior fabric samples from a store. She said the best ones were already gone, but there are still some little jewels in there ^_^
So I've got a whole bag of samples. The nice part is, you have the same patterns in the same dimensions, but in different colors. It's a fun way to mix and match!
I've also made a little purse to hold my passport, phone and other stuff. It was perfect for my holiday in Spain! This is slightly more difficult project so that will be up after this. I'm also planning om making a shoulder/tote bag. So keep tuned for that as well ;)

In this tutorial I will show you how to make this laptop sleeve! Including measurement instructions so you can make your own custom pattern :)

My Projects ~ dark blue jacket with a touch of gold

I think I came up with the idea of making my own jacket/blazer about 3-4 years ago. Together with my mom I've searched fabric markets high and low to find that one perfect fabric for my creation. In a magazine I had already found the pattern I was going to use. After I found the fabrics I got to work. I altered the pattern so it would have long sleeves, pockets and it would fit my figure better. I was going ok with this project, but then I got busy or I got stuck.
So for the last 3-4 years I have worked on this jacket. I would work on it for maybe 3 days and then I put it away. Because the fabric gave awful blue stains, because the shoulders would look chunky, because I didn't understand what the magazine was trying to tell me, because I didn't have any room in my tiny blue apartment..
But last semester in March, I finally finished it! ^_^

Fortunately I still love the fabric even though it's quite a bit out there. Also, I found the most amazing buttons ever! At first I had silver buttons, but I think the gold adds just that little more 'oomph' to it. (I'm going through a gold-accessorize period right now)
I have sewn some bags and clothing before, but I was still quite amazed I achieved this, if I may say so about myself. It was a fun journey and I've learned so many new techniques ^_^ not sure if I'm gonna do it again soon though.. I'll tell you in about 4 years about that ;)

It's almost weekend!
Xx
Anne Lien

Gift DIY ~ wrapping paper (kraft paper look-a-like)

Here's another gift inspired DIY. This time it's a gift wrapping idea.
I really like how this kraft paper looks, but I didn't have any.. and it was already in the evening so I couldn't buy some. For some reason I always come up with an idea when it's getting dark, not a good thing when you're trying to make clear photos. Luckily I had my boyfriends camera now instead of my old iPhone ;)
So, I've used up a few rolls of wrapping paper recently and I kept the cardboard rolls that were inside.These have the same look and feel as the kraft paper. It's only a bit sturdier. But it does the job! I wouldn't try to wrap anything but box-shaped items though.

Gift DIY ~ birthday coupons

A friend of ours turned 21 recently. We got her some gifts, but we also made a little coupon book for her. I know it sounds kinda cliche and like something you would make for Mothers Day. But this study year we will all be doing something completely different in different cities, so we wanted to have some kind of guaranty we will meet up again. Also, it's a great way to come up with funny ways to spend time together haha

fashion DIY ~ little bow

Hello!
I'm back from my holiday ^_^

Before we left for Spain I had bought a nice top with lace detail on the top. Unfortunately there were some holes in the lace, but it was on sale so I didn't really care, I thought I would be able to fix it.
I decided to put a little red bow on top. This way you wouldn't notice the holes and it would add a nice pop of color to the top! 
I decided to go with a 'perfect' handmade ribbon instead of a normal knotted ribbon. Simply because it looks a lot more cleaner and pretty. 

Home DIY ~ pin board (out of foam and wallpaper samples)

It has been awhile! School has been crazy busy so I hadn't had much time to blog. Actually I'm supposed to be learning right now.. Time to take a break! ;)

I've made this pin board some time ago (can you tell I like penguins). It's still hanging and looking nice so I consider it as a successful project ^_^ (my little storage unit is also still standing!)
When I visited the hardware store I picked up some nice wallpaper samples. I didn't had a purpose for them until I wanted to create a pin board for my empty wall. The samples together make a cute and colorful surface for a pin board! I used foam because I needed a super lightweight material since I would hang it on the same wire as my photo ropes.

Home DIY ~ little storage unit

Today I'm feeling a bit restless. I finished up an earlier post, did a bit of homework.. I decided to clean up my apartment. There is this particular place in my room that has been bugging me for a while.. It is messy and I can't find my stuff when I want to go out. I decided to reorganize this area!

Since my apartment is soooo tiny and I have way too many things, it can become quite messy over time. When I'm not happy with the way my stuff is organized, I start looking for things around my apartment which I can use to create a new storage unit.

This is what I found:

Ok without the utility knife and the pen..
I found a box used for transporting some kind of fruit (from the grocery store) and two strips of mdf. I have a massive amount of scrap material from building models for school, so there is always something I can work with.

3D printing software

If you ever want to start designing your own 3D-printed jewelry or other amazing things in 3D, you have to learn how to use 3D software. There are many different programs at the moment. Some are free, or rather expensive. Some are quite easy to learn and others take some time to understand. Here I will list some of the software I know or use. There are many more out there, but this is a way to get started.
Shapeways also has a tutorials page to get you started. This will be helpful when you've started designing.

First I will talk about the software I use or have used/tried.

Rhino interface ~ own work (Girl Robot Ring)

Home DIY ~ photo clips

Let's begin with a very easy DIY project, the only thing you will need are paperclips! And your favorite photos of course ;)

I was into lomography for a while, I had some nice photos printed out but I didn't quite know how to display them. Since I have a rented apartment (and concrete walls), I can't hang photo frames on the wall. Lomo had some photo clips I thought would be really handy but they're quite expensive..