Thrifted Thursdays: Blue Velvet DIY

 Oh good Lord what am I wearing you ask?

This is a velvet dress that I found at VallueVilliage two years ago. At the time I had a friend who was good with sewing so hemming it wouldn't have been a problem. Unfortunately that never worked out and this sad dress - full of potential - sat in a drawer.

Luckily (for me) velvet is everywhere on the runways these days so I finally bit the bullet and decided that I would hem it myself. I have a whole week off school and the dress only cost me $7 so why not?

I should mention that I have absolutely no sewing skills whatsoever. Still, I am a determined, independent young lady so I would not let that stop me. I found some no-sew hemming tape and got to work. Again the dress was only $7. Even if it didn't work out I would still have had a crafty afternoon which I haven't had for a long time.

 First to go were the shoulder pads.

I cut off about a foot of fabric. The circumference of this dress was so large that the resulting scrap piece of fabric was about 7ft long. One thing I knew about altering clothes/fabrics is that before you do anything to them test it out on a small hidden piece first. I grabbed a chunk of the scrap piece and tested out my iron on it (apparently irons and velvet don't always work) as well as the hemming tape to make sure that it would stick. Both were successful!

I ironed the (inside) panels of the dress to make sure that I had a straight, flat hemline.

Next I lined the pieces of hemming tape a long my new hemline. I bought a PeelNStick version for roughly $6. Other versions of hemming tape require heat to activate the glue but my kind was sticky enough without heat. I was reminded of this fact repeatedly because while trying to place the tape carefully it would get stuck to my fingers and then I would need a new piece.

After aligning my tape along my new hemline I would pull off the paper backing and carefully fold over the excess fabric. Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of this step.

This is the final product. I was very happy with the results. The only thing I regret is that it took me two years to get this done!

Dress - ValueVilliage ($7)

Pride & Prejudice Scarf - Gift from roommate

Belt - Colorblind

Tights - Walmart

Boots - Aldo

Headband - Target

LORELAI: She's a craft person now, so it's not safe to leave anything around her anymore.
RORY: Maybe that's where crafty comes from.

-Gilmore Girls, Season 4

Hehehe I couldn't resist a Gilmore Girls there! But that is me being 

Just Jacklynn

Reading week

It's Reading Week for me and that means that it's back to Goderich for a chance to recharge my batteries. Most of my assignments and midterms were before Reading Week so I can actually enjoy my time off and not spend all of it studying.  I cannot slouch off entirely though.

 Luckily the Goderich Library is really cool and a great place to study. It is in an old triangular building with a turret that is now a reading room. They expanded the year I moved to town so I never had the chance to explore it in its original condition but you can still see parts of the original exterior while sitting in the new Great Hall.

 

Tea & Music are study essentials no matter where I am.

I thought my scarf with a excerpt from Pride & Prejudice was fitting for the library.

 

Just Jacklynn

Thrifted Thursday

Introducing a new thing that I will be doing here - Thrifted Thursday!

I love thrift shopping. It is a great way to pick up unique clothes and it is relatively easy to do even if you have a small budget. Kitchener-Waterloo has a great amount of thrift shop/consignment stores. Because of this wide selection I have quite a few thrifted goodies which should allow me to do these posts with reasonable frequency.

 This first Thrifted Thursday features a great way to keep warm out while it is still cold outside. Nothing says warmth like a cable knit, wool sweater. What caught my eye about this sweater in particular are these tiny little pearl beads woven throughout the front. It adds such a delicate touch that makes this just that little bit more special than a regular cable knit.

I get incredibly pale during the winter. Lipstick helps give some more color to my face. I find that even on mornings that I have to be at school early (8:30 am cognitive neuroscience labs ugggh!) I like to add a dab of lipstick. It helps me feel a little bit more prepared for what the morning will bring and keeps me from looking like a tired, pale dungeon troll.

Sweater - White Tiger Vintage

Tank Top  - Buffalo

Pants - Gloss

Necklace - Aldo

Ring - Ardene

Winter Layers

     Brrrrrrrrrr it has been cold out lately! Maybe it is due to this polar vortex thing (or you know it's January in Canada) but it is bone chilling freezing outside. Now I am a girl who prefers dresses and skirts to pants and I have been known to weather the winter (hehe) while still wearing my beloved dresses. However this winter has been rough. Although I love reading personal style blogs and tend to get most of my inspiration from them, most of the bloggers (that I follow) experience milder winters. Tights underneath shorts and a pair of ankle boots are cute but it simply will not cut it! So I thought that I'd share my favorite way of keeping warm.

Step 1:
I start off with a layer of tight fitting clothing. A tank top and some fleece lined leggings fit close enough to the body that I can wear them under other things and not look too bulky.

Step 2:
I add a pair of black skinny pants over my leggings. Up top I add my favorite chambray shirt which starts to bring long sleeves into the mix.

Step 3:
Finally I put on my sweater. I have not yet figured out a way to wear sweaters and not have it look a little bulky but that is part of the appeal. Also there is no way I am going outside in these temperatures without a sweater.

And there you go. This outfit formula has almost become my cold weather uniform. Luckily I have enough sweaters, button downs, and pants that it does not get too repetative.

Outfit Details
Tank Top -?
Fleece Lined Leggings - Gloss
Black Skinnies - American Eagle
Chambray Shirt - Junior's
Sweater & Belt - H&M
Cameo Necklace - Patina Vintage

Till next time I'll be trying to keep warm and being

Just Jacklynn

Last First Day of Class

       Wow I cannot believe that I am starting my final term of university! I know that the time will just fly by, and, even though I know I'll feel like I am tired of school by the end of this I am going to make the most of it. I love university and learning and know that this special little bubble that I get to live in as a student is pretty unique.

As you can tell by all the snow in the background it is still pretty cold out. I think that this week is one of the coldest that we've had all winter in this area. The day after these photos were taken it was so cold out that I wore my fleece-lined leggings underneath jeans and i still felt chilled. This definitely can pose a challenge when deciding what to wear in the morning.

Sweater - Value Villiage

Top - Naf Naf

Pants - Gloss

Earings - gift

I am still working out how to get the best lighting for photos. The above photos didn't show off the great plum color of these jeans so I threw in a photo taken from inside too. The closer look also allows the subtle pattern in the shirt to pop a bit more. I will be the first to admit that I am not great at taking photos. One of the goals with this blog though is to teach myself what works for taking photos - which I think I am doing, little by little.

As always, I will be 

Just Jacklynn

Just chillin

Sweater Dress - Dynamite

Coat - Le Chateau

Leggings - Gloss

Belt - Colorblind

Boots, Scarf, & Sunglasses - Aldo

Hat - H&M

I am back home for the holidays. The time between Christmas day and New Years Eve always feels like a much needed break after the stress of the exams. I like to bask in the fact that I have the freedom to do anything without having to feel guilty about how I should be studying.

My home town tends to slow down a lot in the winter so there is not that much to do. Luckily the town is so pretty that a lovely way to catch up with friends is to walk around town and talk with a hot cup of tea in hand. 

And I'm Back!

I think that I have earned the title of worst blogger ever seeing that has been almost a year since my last blog post. Eeeeppp that's bad! Anyways I am back and thought that I would do a quick round up of things that have gone on in my life since last November.

I have always loved thrift shopping. Macklemore ft Ryan Lewis's song thrift shop just encourage friends and I to dance around wearing fur coats. My partner in thrifting crime, Jess, and I even went to a Thrift Shop dance party in some of our vintage finds.

Some general silliness with chocolate mustaches while out and about on adventures in Kitchener.

I had the opportunity to go to Paris, France for a few days over my reading week. My friend and I visited the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the Catacombs, La Sorbonne, Montmartre, and so many other places. We ate gallettes, crepes, duck confit, and drank spiced wine while we walked around the city at night. My only complaint was that we had to leave!

 Notre Dame

The Catacombs were super creepy and utterly fascinating!

I still tried to take outfit photos ........ I just never ended up posting them.

I was spoiled this summer because not only did I get to eat buckets of cherries from the tree at my Mom's house but my Mom would also make fresh batches of homemade gelato.

(photo above featuring the Arkells)

The Welcome Back Week at my school featured a free concert that included The Beaches, Mother Mother, and Arkells.

This year I was able to cross something off my bucket list. Since I was fifteen I have wanted to go to a Halloween screen of the Rocky Horror Picture Show and this year I finally did it! Of course I left costume planning to the last minute so my Magenta costume was comprised of things I found around the house. The apron was made of a tank top tucked into my skirt and the straps were made of folded paper. Hey, I didn't have to spend anything which is always a bonus for a university student.

So that is my quick recap of my last year. I promise I won't let another year go by before my next post.

Forever

Just Jacklynn