#on a whim….and pleather leggings

[offonawhim]

Key styling looks and tips for Autumn and Winter 2018/19

We talked to some fashionista friends in Japan about their favorite trends for fall, and got back some fantastic ideas and advice, not only fashion but home and health too! So, no more intro needed, just dive right into our fun Fall Fashion and Style News!

Fashion

AUTUMN / WINTER is by far my favourite season in Japan to spend time outdoors, eat, cook and most importantly – dress & style!

We are currently loving the extension of the LEATHER JACKET trend. Leather (or pleather if you prefer) pairs well with just about any outfit, from denim to dresses, skirts and pants. It’s all about the cut and style. If your style is more refined and classic, try a simple version with less hardware, rather than a biker style jacket.

WOOL COATS are oversized with the classic Chester coat shape still popular, and a fantastic addition to an A/W wardrobe. A good quality coat pulls a look together and adds polish to an outfit. Invest in a beautiful winter coat in a classic style and colour to carry through several seasons. Add a pop of bright with a sweater, bag, shoe or statement jewellery piece.

BOLD COLOURS are huge right now in knitwear and a fun way to add flair to your look. Fuschia, teal, mustard, wine and deep navy are lining stores this season. Look for natural fibres and shapes that suit your frame. Avoid a boxy look by juxtaposing shapes e.g. skinny/slim pants with a chunky, long knit or more relaxed pants with a fitted knitwear piece. 

BOOTS are square toed and chunky this season, however a more elongated shape lengthens the leg line silhouette. Don’t only follow trends but play with shapes and styles to create your individual look.

More and more items are streaming into stores now so have fun browsing! Don’t forget to DETOX your closet before adding new pieces to keep your wardrobe accessible and organized.

Corin Kanazawa is a Tokyo-based stylist offering Personal Styling, Closet Detoxing and Personal Shopping for women. Find her on Facebook or instagram@corinstylist

Add a Japanese touch

Another favorite item for autumn? Easy!

Drape yourself in a haori jacket. These beautiful Japanese traditional kimono vests are a fabulous alternative to any other jackets. Nothing can compare to their chic and all the beautiful patterns and colors they show. And ho, the feel of silk! Everything about the haori is sheer elegance, and this jacket will make you feel unique and beautiful in the blink of an eye! For all your relaxing moments at home or to make you feel your best for your outings in town.

For the house, accompany the beautiful colors of fall with cushion covers made of vintage Japanese fabrics! A beautiful, gorgeous, delightful, bright way to have an interior as magical as this beautiful season!

Tabitabiya Online, your shop in Tokyo to brighten your life with the little wonders of Japan

Upcycle something in the closet!

Autumn means it’s time to drag your old jean jacket out of the closet. Cheap and generic looking, but still so comfy and loved! Dominique at Three Houses Design recently returned to her love of hand embroidery, and decided to add a bit of color to the collar this year in the form of sweet little flowers. Then set her needle to her daughter’s jeans, then her old black Convrse knock-offs…..Long story short, nothing in her house is safe from embellishment.

Hand embroidery is an easy and inexpensive way to add memorable little details to clothing and accessories. Just get a needle, some colored thread, watch a few YouTube tutorials, and off you go!

Three Houses Designs specializes in personalized hand embroidery. Visit them on Facebook or follow on Instagram to see what’s currently being stitched!

Don’t forget the house!

While a lot of the country is still sweltering in the humidity of the summer, Iwate starts to feel the chill in the air shortly after Obon, eve as the rest of the country is still sweltering in the humid summer temperatures. As the days continue to shorten, the chill takes more of a grip on our lives as the locals brace for the first frost of the season, which will in turn open the door for the first snowfall hopefully towards the end of the year and not before.

The crisp dry autumn days in Iwate are a delight, with clear blue skies and a backdrop of russets and golds as the leaves change before falling. The farmers are on a race against time to get in harvests before the onset of winter, local markets are the place to pick up some great buys to fill your table with more apples, grapes and pumpkins than you can really eat. Making soups and pickles have become a weekend ritual for Deborah in between working outside in the garden and in her workshop with fabrics either at the machine or with a needle in hand for IRO IRO colour creations.

Bunting works in different sizes to add either a subtle touch of color or a dramatic splash to your interior, hang it across a window or hallway, along a curtain rod and you’re set to go.

IRO IRO Colour Creations specializes in handmade bunting to add subtle or dramatic splashes of color to your home. Follow on Facebook to keep up with new ideas and arrangements, or put in a custom request! 

Accessorizing!

Adding some new jewelry to your fall fashion is a great way to spruce up the look! Rich browns and gold with pops of orange and red in sync with the changes in nature give you a connection to the world around you. Go with the rich burnt orange of copper combined with some bright accents and you’re all set!

Tassel earrings work well with sweaters and turtle necks, while short necklaces look nice with collar shirts and high-necked sweaters. Make sure your necklace is either above or well below the collar line for best matching. For a turtle neck, try a longer necklace with a statement pendant, using the sweater for a background to showcase your lovely piece! While bracelets are harder to show off with long sleeves, during the fall months when the temps are still up and down, a bracelet will give a nice bit of style when you roll your sleeves up for awhile. Try a cuff bracelet paired with a pretty chain and you’ll be set for the day!

Off on a Whim: handmade custom Japanese power stone jewelry and accessories

Aromatherapy Suggestions for Cooler Weather

Approaching the cooler season in Japan certainly feels good after the onslaught of a record high temp summer! If you love good smells and naturopathic support, we have a few key essential oils for you:

Help keep the sickness at bay during the colder months with doTERRA’s On Guard Protective Blend applied to the bottoms of your feet as well as the children’s (make sure to dilute with a carrier oil).  On Guard provides a safe, natural way to protect and maintain a healthy immune system. If you have allergies or little snotty noses come home from school try diffusing Easy Air oil at home or at work during cold and flu season. Easy Air helps clear airways and maintains easy breathing. 

doTERRA Essential Oils are pure, potent, high-quality essential oils that are safe, and very effective. If you would like more information about how to get these oils please contact Heather Minowa at heather@heatherminowa.com. Heather’s website is a great source of information so be sure to check it out www.heatherminowa.com

Another highly recommended essential oil is Young Living’s Thieves. Besides smelling amazing, it works a lovely magic around the house. This gorgeous blend is combination of clove, cinnamon, lemon, eucalyptus radiata and rosemary. Diffuse it to clean your home’s air, put it in a roller bottle with a carrier oil to build up immunity, or even try adding a few drops to your cookie dough! A few drops mixed into your honey will add spice and pop to your tea.

All about Thieves

For more information on Thieves and other Young Living product, contact Blanka Kobayashi at www.oilylove.me

But mostly, enjoy this beautiful in-between season, make the most of each day and put your best foot forward as you embark on the great adventures ahead!

~ Erinn at Off on a Whim ~

  Feeling the Fall Love Key styling looks and tips for Autumn and Winter 2018/19 We talked to some fashionista friends in Japan about their favorite trends for fall, and got back some fantastic ideas and advice, not only fashion but home and health too!

[sewsarahsmith]

#2017makenine luckylucille lucky Lucille 2017 make nine

#2017makenine 2017 make nine lucky Lucille rochelle

Happy New Year to you!!!! Hope you had a great time over the festive period! I relaxed to the point of almost total inertia; dividing my attention between my kids, a good book and the seemingly never ending supply of chocolate and cheese. I’m not usually one to sit and relax for more than 5 seconds, unless you stick a wine glass in my hand, so I guess the enforced rest has done me good. That said, I’m now really really REALLY ready to get back to sewing, so with that in mind…

…I’m sure you’ve seen Rochelle’s (Lucky Lucille) blog post on her sewing plans for 2017 and the inspirational #2017makenine tag she created. Yeah, I’m jumping on this one without any hesitation; as a mission statement it completely underlines the organisation of my upcoming sewing plans.

I was first compelled to tidy up my thoughts when I heard Anya (Anna.Zoe.Sewing) discussing how she organises her sewing projects using Excel spreadsheets on EP01 of the Style-Maker Podcast a few months ago. As a total spreadsheet nerd myself, I have no idea why I hadn’t already thought to do something similar, just that I…hadn’t! My plans, thoughts and inspirations were so multitude that it was starting to feel like a jumbled mess in my brain. Things are messy enough up there as it is, let me tell you. So I created my own spreadsheet with an attached ‘mood board’ for inspiration. And wow, not only did this immediately clarify my sewing plans but it also freed up brain space for more mess to be added later. Result!

It was therefore relatively easy to pin down my Make Nine plans. These are not cast in stone and I reserve the right to completely and utterly change my mind on a whim, haha. That said, I know myself well enough to know that I’ll be wanting to fulfill this checklist now it’s ‘in print’ just so that I can give myself a resounding pat on the back at the end of the year!

In no particular order:-

1. Sewaholic ‘Fraser’ sweatshirt

Bit of a no brainer really this one. I love their Renfrew and,  whilst this is very similar, I have to have me this one too. I’m still on a bit of a knit kick.

Fabric wise, I’m thinking of doing the contrast in …pleather? I may stick on elbow patches too. Just because.

2. New Look 6095 Jersey Dress

Ah this one. Recently I saw another mother poolside at my daughters’ swimming lesson wearing a fairly fitted striped jersey dress. I stared at her without reservation whilst mentally cataloguing the details.  I found this very similar fabric at Girl Charlee and ordered it immediately. They had a mere 35 metres left. Oh my goodness, I thought, what if everyone sees this woman today and decides they too must make this dress?! Order the fabric now, I told myself, and beat the inevitable stampede. I then Googled for a suitable pattern. This is the closest one. I figure it will look just as good with flip flops/sandals during a day at the beach, as it will dressed up at night with heels. Oh, I lead such an imaginary life ;-)

3. True Bias ‘Emerson Crop Pant’ – hacked 

Two inspirations behind this one, firstly these pics above from my mood board. I was looking for a wide legged pant that I could wear with a more fitted top; a 1950s vibe.

Secondly, the aforementioned Anya also recently hacked this pant to make it full length; in fact to be worn with heels with the hemline just skimming the floor. Honestly, she nailed it. It was the hack this pattern needed. I may hack it further still to reduce some of the leg width if they’re wide enough to flap and cause me to fall over. I am a clumsy oaf after all.

4. Coppelia Wrap Cardigan by Papercut

Not much to say on this ballet wrap cardi except I need it in my life. Oh and that every time I see this picture, the shorts make me full-on cringe! Anyway, the cardi itself is a bit of a classic and the pattern also comes as a full on sweater version too.

5. New Look 6327 – a simple Overlay Skirt

Rather more ‘girly’ than other skirts in my wardrobe and sewing plans but I found myself repeatedly thinking about swanning around in something like it. In a pinky nude colour? In reality, I’m not much prone to being swan-like but make this simple skirt I shall.

6. Cigarette Pant, Gertie Sews Vintage Casual

I’m thinking I’ll maybe crop the leg length a bit. Fabric wise, houndstooth to start with, natch. Then a black pair. I love that the invisible zip is at the centre back seam and, crucially, they have pockets.

7. Marlborough Bra by Orange Lingerie

If I don’t work this pattern until I end up with the ultimate fitting bra, I shall consider it more than just a sewing fail; I will berate myself as a total failure of a human being. No pressure there then. I am only partly joking.

8. McCalls 6696 Shirt Dress

I bought the Sew Over It shirt dress pattern ages ago and it’s festered in my collection. Don’t think it’s ever going to happen; I’m scared what looks glamorous on others will just look ‘mumsy’ on me so, like a gazillion other people, I’m making this one (View A) instead. I’ve yet to try a pattern catering to different cup sizes so I’m really keen to give this a go.

9. Grainline Linden Sweatshirt 

I’ve recently made my first one and, with some fit alterations, my next version will probably be one of my first makes of 2017. I’m adding it to the list then merely so I can check it off straight away, hahaha!

***

This is by no means a comprehensive list, I have patterns and fabrics lined up for other specific projects too but these are the ones I’ll kick myself for if they don’t make it to my sewing machine. Any here that you’re planning to make too? Any you think I’d rather do instead?!

Here’s to a great year sewing in 2017 eh!

Until next time,

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  # 2017 Make Nine : Organising my Sewing Plans Happy New Year to you!!!! Hope you had a great time over the festive period! I relaxed to the point of almost total inertia; dividing my attention between my kids, a good book and the seemingly never ending supply of chocolate and cheese.