Black Swan vs. White Swan

Our Costumes were a hit and I must say although there were tons of Black Swans, none of them were accompanied by a White Swan.  Soooo here are pictures!  Enjoy!!

All Hallows Eve, The Witch is in!

She's baaack!  Esmeralda the Witch will be making an appearance for one night only on All Hallows Eve.  There will be lots of tricks followed by treats and a guaranteed good time!  Please come by with your trick-or-treaters for some wholesome Halloween fun and help Esmeralda mix up some potions!!

Here's a look back on the set up from last year...

Can't leave out the original witch!  (haha just kidding mom!)

So Fascinating!

A great costume alternative for Halloween is to wear a great themed fascinator.  A great way to be stylish and festive for a work party, teachers, greeting trick or treaters, or walking around with your kids while they get candy.  There are hundreds of styles available online but these were some of my favorites:)  I think I need to make one for myself!

Click on the photos to go directly to the pages I found them on!

Super Easy Tree Skirt Tutorial Part 1

I am not great at sewing.  I am sure that if I applied myself and really concentrated, I would get better, but I just don't have a lot of time for that.

Last few years I have been using some fabric wrapped loosely around the bottom of my tree.  So I did some research and realized making a tree skirt isn't so hard and so I decided to give it a shot.

If you are capable of sewing well, then choose whatever fabric you please.  If you are like me I recommend fleece or burlap, and to expect a shabby chic look!

I chose burlap.  Here we go!

1.  Spread fabric out on the floor and find the spot you would like for your middle,  I measured the width and divided it by half and used that as my middle.

2. Tie a marker to a string and tape the other end to your center spot.

3.  Draw a circle with your marker

 4.  Cut your fabric along the marked line.  I cut along the inside of the maker line so that it was cut off.  Although you can see where I messed u a little.  You can flip over the fabric if that happens.  If you are using Fleece you will have a nice clean line that wont fray.

5.  I decided to add a ruffle using burlap ribbon.  Making ruffles with burlap is sooo easy.  At the edge of your strip you can just pull a string of the burlap the runs along the top and it gathers right away.

6.  I did run a loose stitch through the ruffle to sew it to the skirt.  It was nice and sloppy because I plan on covering it up.  It could look cool to use red embroidery floss to run a thick craft stitch along the top.

7.  This will be in part 2 of the tutorial which I will post in a couple of weeks.  I plan on bordering the entire ruffle with these rosettes made from Muslin.  I will show a tutorial for the rosettes this week!

I hope this was informative and inspires you to make one for yourself!!

Black Swan Makeup

So, I am still trying to figure out how to achieve Natalie Portman's Porcelain skin tone.  I have very light skin but it looks like a deep tan next to this.  Also, when I do the makeup on the day of the party I will have to thicken the sides to the full height of my eyebrows... and I will make sure someone helps me take pics so I can get a good straight forward shot.

I love some of the makeup I purchased to use for this look.  I tried to make smart decisions and purchase makeup that I will use again (minus the theatrical white and black face paint)

I spent an hour in Sephora trying on every silver eyeliner they sold and of course a million other things.  I just can't help myself in that place!  That being said, I managed to control myself and leave with only 2 items.

The silver is Urban Decay Liquid Liner in Revolver

I am absolutely in love with this color.  Its a gorgeous metallic gunmetal.

I also bought Sephora Collection silver glitter liquid eyeliner.

This will add a little pizzazz and highlight the gunmetal color.

Then I went to the MAC counter at Nordstrom and played around with lip colors.  

We decided to go with Mac lipstick in Red

MAC lip pencil in Nightmoth

MAC lipglass in Russian Red

So basically I put the nightmoth all over my lips and then add the red lipstick and a dab or two of the Russian red lipglass... In the above pictures I did not put liner on the center of my lips.

This is what the color looks like with more liner, but I may make it even darker.

I am super excited about these red colors to use throughout the fall and winter.  They are the perfect shades of red that I can use with just the gloss or wear a power pout using both... and who know's I might be caught wearing the deep red look too!

I have to practice the makeup at least one more time, and actually have a picture of NP's face in front of me.  I can't wait to have it all on with the costume... But until Halloween I will be done posting Black Swan  Now I have to finish White Swan.

I love how this makeup looks in black and white:)

Black Swan and White Swan Costumes

Ok I wanted to share some more swan progress:)

So I had an old princess sequin crown from who knows when and I was just going to paint it black.  Until I ran across some paper clay I had in my stash...

It looked like this...

But then i covered it in paper clay let it dry out for a couple of days, painted it black, then rubbed on silver and put black, silver and clear crystals over it...

It's way sparklier in person, glitter and rhinestones are hard to photograph, especially with my iphone!

And here is the original

The original is a work of art, made from twisted and burned copper,,, I don't have that kind of a budget!

Next, the white swan head piece.  It is made of white feathers glued to a piece of felt and embellished with crystals.

Not quite sure what kind of fastening device we will use to secure it to the hair but I'll think of something!

And the original

Pretty close... I would have loved to use finer feathers for these costumes but for one night at a crowded party with thousands of people... I'll be happy if we leave with our tutus intact! 

And here's just a couple of me playing with makeup... notice the tiara before it was clayed...

I just used some water and black eye shadow in these pics, but you get the idea... I ordered theatrical makeup so that it won't smear and I am going to run by the mac counter and see what tips they have for me:)

This weekend I plan on finishing my bodice and next week get started on the white swan bodice... Katie is still trying to decide what to use as he bodice.  We decided not to go the leotard route since you basically have to get naked to use the bathroom.

ok well I'll keep y'all posted on the progress!

Cure-Couture

A friend of my Boyfriend and her partner have recently launched this great line of fun and functional hospital gowns, Cure-Couture.  And in honor of breast cancer awareness I wanted to share with y'all their fabulous products.

These girls are soooo sassy!  I just love that this is the picture on their home page!

They seem to be able to say it best so I have included the bio from their website,

Dear Friends,

     Life is a wonderful gift but at times can be a struggle. We all go through obstacles and challenging times, some more difficult than others. Even during these times, we know that looking your best can make you feel better. We bring to you an innovative design to make you look as good as you want to feel.

The original concept for what has now become known as Cure-Couture was the design idea of the late Linda Segal. Linda was a successful contemporary women’s fashion designer of more than 25 years. She was diagnosed in 2007 with breast cancer and began treatment with chemo-therapy. Her experiences in the chemo center at MD Anderson hospital inspired her to design a fashion forward, yet functional patient gown. Though she lost her battle with breast cancer in 2009, Linda’s idea lives on through us: her daughter, Ashley Segal, and her design protégé, Linsay Alvarado. This is our way of making a giant pitcher of lemonade from the lemons we were given.

     Why wear a boring patient gown that thousands before you have worn? Who wants to be just another medical record number? Not you! We have created a gown for anyone who wants to present individuality and their inner diva: whether you are going though chemo-therapy, plastic surgery, the joyous occasion of bearing a child, whatever your medical circumstance may be. These gowns can be worn in the hospital, doctors office, and even during recovery at home. When you wear a Cure-Couture gown you are giving yourself back some dignity and when you feel good about how you look you are that much closer to recovery…at least of the self esteem! You never know when McDreamy will show up as your doctor. Always be prepared and dress to impress with Cure-Couture!

I think it's such a beautiful concept and they haven't spared a single detail. Aside from the fun prints and designs, they really pay attention to what women need from a hospital gown.  Front openings in the chest area are great for those who are having breast surgery or breast feeding mothers.  They also have pockets for drains and many more features!

Personally, I would definitely wear one with my favorite cowboy boots!

Go check them out, like their Facebook, buy a gown for someone special and share them with your friends!!

Visit the website HERE 

Visit their Facebook Page HERE

Follow them on Pinterest HERE