DIY idea: the blackboard tee

via printasmile

A used t-shirt which black is not so black anymore due the amount of washes will be the perfect cloth to copy this look. A fabric pen will be your chalk and you're ready to write your motto on your "blackboard tee". Otherwise you can make a real blackboard tee with a fabric called chalk cloth that is a pliable fabric/vinyl where you can write on it with real chalk, erase and write again a message according to your mood of the day.

Una t-shirt il cui nero è ormai scolorito per i troppi lavaggi sarà il  capo perfetto per riprodurre questo look. Un pennarello bianco per la stoffa sarà il vostro gesso e siete pronti per scrivere il vostro motto sulla vostra "t shirt lavagna". Oppure potete realizzare una maglietta che sia una vera lavagna utilizzando il "chalk cloth", una stoffa in vinile che può essere utilizzata come una lavagna vera: potrete scriverci con il gesso, cancellare e riscrivere un messaggio a seconda del mood della giornata.

The Peter Pan collar DIY + free pattern

Vi servono: stoffa, un nastrino e il modello

Piegate la stoffa a metà e appuntateci il modello come mostrato

Seguendo il modello ritagliate la stoffa

Aprite la stoffa e avete quasi finito!

Tagliate il nastro a metà e cucitene le estremità sul bordo del colletto

Wear it! Ultimo step: Indossatelo!

Today I made this Peter Pan collar using a sequinned piece of fabric. It's a really quick DIY project and you can make yours downloading the free pattern I made for you.

Download it

Print it

Own it

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DOWNLOAD The Pattern

Oggi ho realizzato un colletto tondo da indossare come collana ritagliandolo da una stoffa in paillettes. Potrete realizzarlo anche voi scaricando il modello gratuito che ho realizzato per voi!

Penumbra's January Issue Now Released

Penumbra's January Issue Now Released

Dianna L. Gunn

Penumbra has just released its January issue. This issue's theme is sports and includes not only great stories, but a few excellent non-fiction articles as well. As one of the editorial interns, I'm even more excited about this issue of Penumbra than I was about the December issue.

The Fiction

This issue includes five stories of different lengths, from just about a thousand words to around three thousand words, focusing on a wide variety of sports. Not being a big sports fan, it's interesting to see how the addition of speculative fiction elements can make even the most boring sport fascinating. Check out these stories:

The Substitute by Chris Ward—This story is about a whole new kind of cricket player.

Best Football Game Ever by Brian Griggs—A face off between an ordinary football team and one that's anything but.

The Reckoning by Bruce Golden—The story of a one season star pitcher and the sacrifice he made.

Piss Match by Alistair Ainscott—A new kind of game with sometimes dire consequences.

Faerie Football by Catherine Warren—The turning of the tables in a bloody game of exploitation.

The Non-Fiction

In this issue there are three non-fiction features, including a brand new column I'm thrilled to introduce.

The first non-fiction feature in the January issue of Penumbra is a short biography I wrote of Homer Eon Flint discussing his work and his life. His story is a fascinating one and I'm honoured to have had the opportunity to share it with the modern world.

This issue of Penumbra also features the launch of a monthly column called Back of Beyond. Written by Lori Basiewicz, one of Musa's team of editors, this column discusses folklore, mythology, and the place of each issue's theme in speculative fiction. Lori's fresh perspective and unique voice make this column a great new addition to the eMagazine.

Finally, this issue includes an interview with Arley Cole, debut novelist at Euterpe, Musa's YA imprint. The interview discusses this rising star's life both as a writer and outside of writing.

You can buy the January issue of Penumbra here for $3.99. If you'd like to get speculative fiction stories for the whole year, you can subscribe to the eMagazine here for $36.00.

5 tips to decide what to buy at sales

In the fashion calendar, the winter season is over. This means that jumpers and coats will be available to buy at a reduced price. Good news for us since our calendar says winter is just started and will have still plenty of time to wear our cosy winter clothes.
Sales can get you drunk sometimes because there are too many pretty things we would like to buy but only a  few we can take home with our budget (no matter how big the budget if you have an expensive taste!). How can we make a choice? How do we decide what to buy and what not to buy?

Today I would like to share with you some of my rules in matter of sales.

1. Buy what you need have a look at your wadrobe and list what you think are the missing pieces (they can be jumpers or patterns or a top to match a previous purchase) then take the list with you and look for them. Ok this is mom's rules for sales. While it seems to make the shopping experience less fun this rule helps you to keep focused on the target. Shopping it's an emotional experience: we see something we like and we instantly feel we have to have it so before you buy the latest thing you fell for try to remember your primary needs. I would rewrite the rule this way: buy what you need first then buy the rest! (sorry mom).
2. Know your territory Visit the stores near you (and your favorite online shops) before the sales starting date, try on what you like and find your size when there's no rush; mentally record the price. When sales starts you can buy your chosen items quickly avoiding changing rooms queues and other stress.
3. Don't buy black buy bold in other words don't buy basics in high street shops. We don't wear every day feathered skirts or mongolian coats or fringed dresses so we may have find them too pricey at the beginning of the season. Now we can add them to our collection at a reduced (guilt free) price.
4. Go for classic designer pieces Some pieces of wardrobe are timeless see a Burberry trench or a camel Max Mara coat, they will never get out of fashion (and won't look different next season) so if you want to own a designer piece skip the seasonal trend and buy classics (good for you if you can afford both!) at a reduced price.
5. Sales are not the best time to experiment new looks. If you're willing to change your style, to get out of your comfort zone and try new looks avoid doing it during sales. Sales means quick shopping with often little time to think twice. You may end up buying something that you're not going to wear.

Enough for now, I hope you liked my tips,any advice you would like to share?
Happy shopping!

Secondo il calendario della moda, la stagione invernale è conclusa. Ciò significa che cappotti e maglioni potranno essere acquistati ad un prezzo ridotto. Buon per noi visto che nel nostro calendario l'inverno è di fatto appena entrato e potremo sfoggiare i capi invernali ancora per qualche mese.

I saldi però possono essere come una grande ubriacatura e potremmo finire per comprare dei capi che poi non indosseremo. La  lista dei desideri è spesso più lunga di quanto ci consenta il nostro budget (e non importa quanto sia grande il budget se avete gusti costosi). Come fare una scelta allora? Come decidere cosa comprare e cosa non comprare?

Ecco alcuni suggerimenti da tenere a mente mentre sarete presi dalla foga dell'acquisto

1. Comprate quello che vi serve. Passate in rassegna il vostro guardaroba e fate una lista dei capi che secondo voi mancano (maglioni? stampe? un top da abbinare ad un precedente acquisto?); portate con voi la lista e cercate i capi ai saldi. Anche se questo può sembrare un suggerimento scontato, vi aiuterà a tenere a mente i vostri obiettivi. Lo shopping è anche un'esperienza emotiva: vediamo qualcosa che ci piace e avvertiamo la necessità di possederla, quindi prima di comprare l'ultima cosa che avete visto e di cui vi siete innammorate ricordatevi delle vostre necessità primarie. Riscriverei la regola così: comprate prima ciò che vi serve poi comprate il resto!
2. Conoscete il vostro territorio Fate un giro nei negozi  (e nei vostri shop online preferiti), provate i capi che vi piacciono con calma quando non c'è ressa. Quando i  saldi cominceranno potrete acquistare velocemente i capi che avete pre-approvato evitando lo stress delle code ai camerini.
3. Non comprate i capi basici nelle catene low cost. Non indossiamo tutti i giorni capi decorati con perline o con piume per questo ci sono sembrati troppo costosi ad inizio stagione. Questo è il momento di acquistarli ad un prezzo ridotto.
4. Acquistate capi classici firmati Alcuni capi non passano mai di moda (e non saranno molto diversi la prossima stagione), pensate ad un trench Burberry o ad un cappotto Max Mara. Se volete possedere un capo firmato comprate i classici ad un prezzo ridotto.
5. Non sperimentate nuovi look durante i saldi Volete cambiare look? Osare uno stile che non avete mai provato? Evitate di sperimentarlo durante i saldi. Spesso lo shopping dei saldi è veloce ed impulsivo: avrete poco tempo per decidere se quello stile vi si addice o no e rischierete di acquistare qualcosa che non indosserete.

E voi, avete qualche suggerimento da condividere? 

 Buono shopping a tutti!

Congratulations to Rebecca Treadway!

Travel Beyond is the winner for December Art Contest!

You can see more of Rebecca Treadway's work at her site. 

How to make jump rings + leaves necklace DIY

Here we are, this is the first post of 2012 and it's a DIY tutorial, I hope you'll enjoy it! A while back I was drawn to jewelry inspired by nature: gold leaves and branches. Today I was lucky enought to find some jewel findings with the shape of leaves so I could make my dream necklace and earrings. You can them on ebay browsing keywords like leaf charms or leaf findings.

Today I'll show you how to make your own jump rings out of metallic wire so you can untick them from your shopping list and save some cash.

After making your jump rings use them to connect your findings to the chain and your findings to earrings hooks, add a snap hook to close the necklace.

Cominciamo il 2012 con un tutorial su come realizzare una nuova parure. Qualche tempo fa ero stata attratta da dei gioielli ispirati alla natura costituiti da foglie e rami dorati. La parure prende ispirazione da quei gioielli ed è stata realizzata con dei charms a forma di foglia. Potrete trovarne di simili su ebay cercando parole chiavi come leaf charms o leaf findings. Oggi vi mostrerò come realizzare gli anellini dorati che vengono utilizzati per connettere due elementi di una collana; potrete così realizzarli in casa rismarmiando i soldi dell'acquisto.

Dopo aver realizzato i vostri anellini utilizzateli per connettere i ciondoli alla catenella e ai ganci per gli orecchini; terminate la collana aggiungendo un moschettone per la chiusura.

your supply: metallic wire - jewelry findings - chain - pincers - earrings hooks - snap hook

I added a few beads

putting all in place

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

From all of us at Penumbra and Musa Publishing.