Plumful lipstick by MAC

Purchased last week, Plumful is a great addition to my lipstick collection. It's incredibly sheer so I had to layer in on to get this pigmentation, though the plus side is that it's also really moisturizing and glossy.

Xx Raghda

OOTD ~ My First

This'll be my first OOTD. I just thought I did a good job with the pinks :) This was for school, by the way. Everything's from H&M except for the shoes which is from Spring or CallItSpring, however you wanna call it. And the ring's from a store in P-Mall. Reminded me of the Mother of Dragons from Game of Thrones.

Holika Holika

Yo! I found this new place that just opened up in P-Mall and I'm totally in love with it. It's a Korean made cosmetics company called Holika Holika. This is what I got.

Heartful Moister Lipstick in RD808 Kissing Red

I got more, obviously, but I was too lazy to take pics of 'em. Google 'em if you'd like. My sister brought to my attention a site where you can get these for cheaper but this site doesn't have all the items, like this lipstick.

http://cosmetic-love.com/

M.

OOTD: Heatwave!

Heya guys, Raghda here and boy has it been hot in Toronto! To deal with the heat, keeping your hair up and away from your face is a must, so I went with a qt sockbun. (though I can never do away with my bangs!!) Some comfy DIY shorts are a major plus, I used a tutorial from andrea's choice rainbow shorts video.
Now one thing I couldn't decide on was if I should go with the much more practical vest

or tucked in lightweight flannel

 never tuck my shirts into pants or shorts, so I was surprised by how cute it looked and decided on the shirt. If I get heat stroke, at least I'll look cute! haha

Do you ever sacrifice comfort for fashion?

xxRaghda

Nails ~ Floral Nail Stickers

I've been meaning to try this new trend of sticking lacquer strips on your nails instead of painting them. I've seen some friends and gurus try this out and their nails were to die for.

The ones I used were TrendTips Real Lacquer Strips Sephora By OPI in SE637 Floral.

Turns out my nail shape/size is wonky 'cuz none of the strips fit my nails perfectly - they were either too big or too small. I merely skimmed through the instructions and went straight to the sticking. Whatever was on my skin I tried to get off by scratching at it or filing it (which wasn't good for the skin). Stupid little me didn't realize that nail polish remover would've worked better :P I top coated it with Seche Vite and finito!!

This was really fun to do and it looks amazing so Imma do this again with other patterns and I'll also try other (and cheaper) brands to see the quality difference.

<3
M.

Edit: These were b**** to take off. The package said use ordinary nail polish remover but there was so much residue left over the sticky part of the stickers. I never used a base coat and only a top coat so let's try it with a base coat and no top coat :D

Nails of the day

A bit messy, but F21's Love & Beauty in Mint with Essie's Navigate Her on the pinky.

Colourful nails and colourful jammies, happy Sunday!

DIY: Summer Dress

Hey guys, Raghda again with another DIY! This one is a bit more complicated then the last one, and it requires either a body form/ seamstress mannequin, or constant fittings since you'll be making your own custom pattern. I recommend trying this out if you know your way around a sewing machine or if you're just feeling particularly brave. 

You will need:

Muslin (cheap fabric, about 3 yards)

about 3 yards of fabric of choice

elastic thread

loads of pins

measuring tape

body form (optional, recommended)

So I decided that I wanted to make my sister a dress with a sweetheart neckline and circle skirt for her vacation. Easy peasy, no zips or buttons, but stretchy back panel to get in and out. 

Bodice:

The first step would be getting measurements. With this, all I needed were bust (measure all around from largest point), waist (smallest part of body), area just above bust (where top of dress would hit), and measurement of right under arm to waist (length of bodice).

At this point, cut long rectangular panels and begin pinning and cutting and cinching and folding and pinning and pinning your muslin to your body form. when you have the rough shape you're looking for, go back to your original measurements and be sure that the length of the bodice is similar. 

*Always leave at least an inch of extra fabric at ends of fabric so that you can pin and sew pieces together.

*Try your best to keep your pieces symmetrical. the back panel should fold in half perfectly, the front panels should be mirror images.

Skirt: 

This is my take on a circle skirt. Take the waist measurement and divide it by 4, take fabric and fold it in half and in half again. Take your new measurement and measure a quarter circle from the folded corner and that will be the waist. While the fabric is still folded, round off and cut off the ends and the new waist. This waist will look too big, this is where elastic thread will come in.

Sewing:

Wind elastic thread around bobbin by hand and sew half inch lines across entire back panel of the bodice. Sew with elastic thread across waist of skirt. With regular thread, sew together bodice and do a fitting while the skirt and bodice are still separated with bodice and skirt inside out. Pin bodice to skirt, evenly spacing out fabric that elastic waistband has brought together. Sew top to skirt, hem and trim everything that needs to be hemmed and trimmed and do another fitting for skirt length, remove as much as you'd like.

Throw on a belt and enjoy!

<3 

What's your favourite thing to DIY? Let us know below!

-Raghda

How To: Cut Oversized Tees

Hey guys, Raghda here!

If you're anything like me, you love band tee's but you hate the standard crew neck and sleeves of AA t-shirts? Love that grungy loose fitted DIY looking spring/summer shirt trend?

              

Well now you have the freedom of buying an inexpensive oversized shirt with an image you love, and recreating this style yourself! I cannot begin to tell you about the amount of shirts in my wardrobe that I've cut in this style. Not only is the larger neckline more comfortable, but the lack of sleeves also makes it less bulky when you pair it with a cute cardi or button up. With these easy to follow steps, you'll be cutting up your shirts in no time!

You Will Need:

Shirt (at least 2 sizes too big)

Scissors, preferably fabric shears

Bandeau (to wear underneath, large armhole will expose bra!)  

Step 1: Lay your shirt out onto a (relatively) flat surface and try to smooth it out and get the seams on both sides lined up and even.

Step 2: First we will be cutting off the sleeves. You'll want to cut on the side of the seam closer to the shirt.

Step 3:  Cut the collar along the inside of the seam as well. Use the front collar as a guide.

Step 4: Now you'll want to cut a little (roughly an inch) along the shoulder seam from the collar you've created, and down along the front of the shirt creating a larger neckline. It is important to only cut the neckline of the front of the shirt first because it will be much lower and wider then the back. 

When you cut the neckline of the back, instead of enlarging it, you'll want to cut off the extra piece of fabric now at the shoulder seam and smooth it out into the back neckline.

You can always go back and cut a little more if you like, but you can never add fabric!! Go a little at a time

Step 5: Almost done! Now we're just going to cut off the bottom hem. At this point you can decide the length of the shirt (when cutting a cropped top, cut a little at a time and keep trying it on), I'm just keeping it fairly long. Keep in mind that this step is optional. If you do decide to cut the hem, the next step and any washing after will cause the hem to roll up a little.

Step 6: Stretch. Just tug at the neckline, armholes and bottom of shirt, this helps the edges look a little less raw.

Step 7: Try it on and enjoy!

If you feel the need to make the armholes a little longer, cut more of the shoulder to give it a tank top look, or make the neckline a little wider, this is the time to adjust.

We'd love to hear if you've given it a whirl and how it goes! If you have any trouble, leave us a comment below.

Good luck and happy DIYing <3

-Raghda

OOTD: Work

Raghda here with a quick ootd of work early this morn. Im not a morning person, so I'm glad I ended up looking put together. :)
Black pleated f21 skirt, white floral lace v neck, navy box cut sweatery cardi with belt, pointed toe urban outfitters flats and tan pull and bear messenger bag.

Tailor ~ Pajama Shirt Recon

Yoohoo! Mila here.

I found this old shirt I used to use as PJ's and I thought "Hey, why not change this to something I can wear outside of the house!" Plus I saw a tutorial on something like this on YouTube by Threadbanger (check 'em out!). Here's how the shirt looked like on me before the recon. It was big, baggy, long, and the neckline was practically choking me.

And here's the after. All I did was shorten the length, enlarged the neckline and got rid of the fringes.

This was my first shirt recon and I'm planning on doing it again. Maybe a different style or not depending on my mood and level of energy. So this one isn't the greatest. Other than that, I had fun doing this :D

Cheers,
M.

Nails Of The Day

Raghda here with my nails of the day, OPI's Over The Taupe with a base coat of Sally Hanson's Hard As Nails. Unfortunately, quick chipping is what you get when you don't feel like adding a topcoat. Lesson learned! :P

Tailor ~ Pink Dress

Hey there peeps.

Since I now have more time on my hands to dedicate myself on projects and tasks other than school, this is what I've been up to. I stopped sewing after I graduated high school and, though I didn't hate sewing per se, I didn't love it either nor was I a professional on the task. Here's what I've accomplished.

Pattern I used by Simplicity No. 3503, Dress A

The layout and cutting it was a pain in the back

Front

Back

Accessorized with a thick, woven, black belt from Costa Blanca, black Aldo pumps, and a black tank underneath.

Yes, it's not perfect. The seams are wiggly, the hemming is sloppy, the raw edges are untrimmed, the gathering is uneven, the straps are misaligned, and it's just plain boring. I even bought myself a pair of pinking shears and it still didn't turn out the way I want it to. Oh well. I think it was a pretty good shot after, like what, four years give or take a couple of months. I'll try to improve my sewing skills in the future.

<3<3<3
M.

Nails ~ Gradient

Hello all.

I'm not a big nail polish person, unlike Raggies, but I do like to dapple in nail art from time to time. Though, due to my inexperience and lack of practice/knowledge on the application of nail art (like my academic words there?) you will see in the following photos of horribly hideous and disgusting fingertips :D Either way, please don't mind the errors of my nail art ways and enjoy my moment of temporary triumphant.

<3<3<3
M.

P.S. You might happen to notice little air bubbles on my nails. Well it's just that. Air bubbles. Not hives (if that's even possible on keratin).

OOTD: running errands

Old deep blue billowy shirt, tights, and my fave H&M leather shorts <3

The fact that its so warm out that you dont need a coat to hide your outfit is just wonderful. My favourite part of spring is finally seeing the personal style of strangers again!
xx
Raghda