Copycat: Prada Jeweled Purse

I absolutely fell in love with this Prada clutch when I first laid eyes on it.

I just wasn't as in love with the $2580 price tag. Using this gorg purse as inspiration, I was determined to create my own gemtastic masterpiece!

With all the leftovers that I've accumulated from the thousands of dresses I've remade, I knew I could stitch up a pouch in no time. I thought that this lovely piece would make the perfect base because...

...after I trimmed it up...

...and turned it into this...

...I had tons of leftovers to play with! Nothing that a little dyeing can't fix to make this the perfect base!

With my pouch plans in place, Swarovski gems procured in the matching colors on the Prada purse (emeralds, yellows, golds, blues, clear)...

...and backings from EH Ashley in hand...

...it was time to get my bedazzle on!

I started off by putting all the backings on the rhinestones. You place the bottom of the gem into the backing and then pinch down the prongs on top to keep the gem in place. You can use jewelry pliers or just press them down yourself. (I even did a few by pressing them into a magazine I had on my floor - easy way to complete if you're sans pliers!

The crystal backing game began! I started little by little until I had my assortment of different Swarovski shapes and sizes complete!

With the gem front handled, it was time to get the purse portion created. Using the excess polyester fabric from that fab upcycled dress above as well as a white zipper...

I dyed both pieces using iDye Poly...

...into a gorgeous shade of emerald.

I measured the fabric to match the size of the zipper, turning it into a lovely little rectangular shape...

...and stitched everything in place.

I cut the excess material around the edges of where I stitched...

...and turned the pouch inside out to begin my gem affixing!

Look at all the gems!!

I had sew on backings for the rhinestones (see, you can see the holes in them!) to hand stitch to the purse. You can use flat backs and just glue directly to your piece or even just glue the stones themselves. Whatever makes the most sense for you is the most important element!

I started my stitching process and stayed on the slow and steady train until I was finished.

Voila!! My new Prada-inspired purse!!

I just love the different shapes of the stones and the color palette works like a gem! (Hey, pun!!)

It's the perfect going out, wedding, or everyday purse to glam up a basic ensemble.

And if you don't want to sew anything, grab a thrifted clutch or old makeup case and use that as your base!

I already started the weekend a bit early with my bag. You know, taking some shots with the sun in the background while sitting in standstill traffic!

Totally obsessed with how this came out!

Nothing like a little bling to kick off the weekend!

Gem Party!

My Swarovski-encrusted project is almost complete! I showed you this photo last week...

...and I've made quite a bit of progress since then.

Do you have any thoughts on what this might be turning into?? Share them below! You'll see the after look tomorrow, so stay tuned!

DIY: Upcycled Kitchen Towel

This project was a first for me! I love dyeing anything and everything, but I hadn't ever played with a resist of sorts (outside of rubber bands while tie dyeing) until today. And who knew...Elmer's Blue Gel was going to be MVP?!

Not sure about you, but most (er, 98%) of my kitchen hand towels are spotty and stained. I thought this would be a practical and cute way to upcycle those old towels into something a little fresher instead of going out and grabbing new ones. The most fun part of this is that you not only get to become creative with your color choices, but you can personalize the towels! You can pick a word, children's initials, the family surname, etc. to be what gets stenciled onto the towel. I worked with Rit Dye on this project, so the color options were going to be on point as well~

I chose the word "HOT", knowing that this towel would be hanging from the stove. Yeah, just had to go literal on this one!

Using painter's tape or duct tape, create letter stencils (like I did), use ready-made iron-on or adhesive stencils, or even print out on a sheet of paper to put underneath the towel to trace, for alternate stencil options.

Once the stencils are affixed to the towels...

...begin to add the Elmer's Blue Gel to the inner areas. Go wild and squeeze plenty of Blue Gel to fill in the open spaces.

Let the Blue Gel dry. (I let the towel sit overnight to make sure it got completely dry.)

Begin to set up your dye bath. I used an aluminum baking tin, but a bucket or big pot will work wonders as well!

To prevent the Blue Gel from completely melting off, I used non-boiling (yet still hot) water to create my bath...

...adding in about half of the bottle of dye along with a tablespoon of salt.

Mix the dye and salt into the water until the salt dissolves - I mixed my ingredients with a popsicle stick - and then add your piece.

To get a really bold color, let your piece sit in the dye for at least 15-20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, remove your piece from the dye bath and rinse it with cold water until the dye runs clear.

You want to make sure that all the Blue Gel gets removed from the piece, so if hand washing doesn't work, you can add it to the washing machine (solo) and run a warm or hot water wash to get rid of it all. After removing all the Blue Gel, add the piece to the dryer to dry it out. (If you do use your washing machine, make sure to run a wash right after with some bleach and detergent just to make sure it's free and clear from excess dye.)

I love that this was a not-so-white-anymore dish towel that was upcycled into a new piece of flair for the kitchen!

Such a cool way to teach kids words and letters too! My first word was "HOT" however I didn't have a kitchen towel to teach me. (I just hope that it wasn't because I touched something a bit too warm for my little fingers instead...)

I think there will have to be a sister towel with "COLD" stenciled on it to hang from the freezer, next go!

Let's get cookin'!