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Friday, 13 November 2009

Thursday, 12 November 2009

  • What I Wore: An (Almost) Maternity-Wear Free Pregnancy




    A while back I wrote about having a stylish pregnancy on a budget, and now I want to share some photos that illustrate how I did it.
    My main strategy was buying only maternity trousers, and relying on non-maternity clothes for the rest, mostly stuff that I had worn before the pregnancy. Most of what I did buy were things that I could wear even after the pregnancy.
    I couldn't bring myself to buy maternity clothes that I'd wear for 9 months and then post-partum  just 2-3 months. (Maternity clothes are too big to fit in the first trimester, and after that, well, there is such a thing as seasons. I started my pregnancy in the fall, and then went from cold snowy winter to quite a hot summer. So stop telling me maternity wear is an investment.)
    To make the whole thing work, I used belts, leggings, belly-belts, and big jewelery.


    Here are some snapshots, of outfits that I found snap-worthy.

    All stuff, unless otherwise specified, is thrifted. Pardon the lack of shoes in most photos, I never wear them at home and forget to put them on for the outfit shots. Also, I'm no fashionista, so pardon the less-than-perfection of it all.



    Title photo (top): dress from Malaysia (thanks FL !), leggings from Pimkie



    Wool trousers from H&M I loved them, because I could unbutton the top buttons as my belly grew, and the lower buttons would keep the trousers nicely in place.
    Warm stole from Zaragoza street market, Spain





    I love the sweater, hate the shoes. But my black ones looked even worse. Actually the trousers should be longer; I've given them away for that reason. Nothing like taking outfit photos to learn what doesn't work.





    The belly is apparent only from profile. Zipper of the jeans is held by an elastic.





    White bead bracelets from India





    I made this high-waisted skirt from a10-year-old's dress. I just cut off the top part.
    Oh, and this looked much better after I put on hose.





    Nothing really interesting here, I just wanted to show how I used the same stuff for different outfits.





    Necklace is a gift from Bolivia, belly band from H&M (looks like it's a top worn underneath, but it's just a tube. It hides the open fly of the trousers.





    The gorgeous bat brooch on the scarf is from my grandma. I'm wearing matching earrings. The tunic from Avanti (C&A), cost around 6€ on sale. The jeans are maternity from H&M, I didn't like them very much because they were too roomy in the thighs.
    I wore this to some concert in the "lets do stuff while the baby still lets me" stage.




    Here I commit the cardinal sin showcase the avantgarde look of wearing leggings as trousers.
    Same tunic as in the above photo, it's wonderfully stretchy and it's not even a maternity tunic. Before you tell me that it makes my belly look huge, I'll tell you that my belly was huge. Really really huge.





    This dress always won me a lot of smiles, am still not quite sure why. The shoes are not clear in the photo, but I call them the Harlequin booties since they are half light grey and half dark grey.
    My belly was so huge that people would get nervous being around me. Blame it on the movies, which show women collapsing on the floor and screaming for ambulances. A real birth starts slowly, giving you enough time to walk home, feed the dog and watch a movie before you call the husband.




    I wish I had a better photo of this. It's an Indian Kurta-Salwar (aka Salwar-Suit aka Punjabi), stitched for western tastes. If you can get your hands on one of these (try Ebay), it's totally worth it. The roomy trousers and tunic are way more comfortable than any maternity wear, especially if you have a sensitive and itchy belly.
    I'm wearing it with a golden chain belt, and this peacock solitaire (from Bolivia) in one ear. The occasion was a Medieval Festival.





    My inner Hippie. This was almost the end of my pregnancy, which I spent among the Peonies.
    Dress is from Ebay, from Hongkong, I think.





    Photos: Eternal*Voyageur
    You might also want to read:

    * Maternity bra myths
    * Guide to Pregnant Backpacking
    * Malaysian postpartum belly wrap: Bengkung
       *more*

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

Monday, 09 November 2009

  • DIY Tutorial: Eyeshadow Palette From CD Jewel Case







    If you are like me, you hate having your eye-shadows and blushers in lots of tiny little containers. I often apply my make-up in the last moment, and I can never find the container that I want !

    So, I decided to put all my eye-shadows on a single palette, and blushers on another. I used CD jewel cases, and it took me around 15 minutes.

    You will need:

    • Eyeshadows or blushers
    • Empty CD jewel cases (look for thicker ones, not the flat thin ones).
    • A knife
    • Glue, or glue gun



    I didn't use the glue gun in the end, since I figured it could get quite messy



    HOW TO:



    ** Carefully, pry the eye shadow loose from it case.**

    You will notice that the shadow in in a little metal container, which is glued into the plastic base. Be careful to insert the blade between the metal and the plastic ! That means, outside of the metal rim !

    * Watch out: Be very gentle, and work slowly !
    If you don't do this part carefully, you might crack the shadow.
    If you do crack the shadow: Cover the shadow with a piece of foil or plastic bag, then press very hard with your thumb. Hopefully the pressure will squeeze the powder back together.
    * Watch out: not all eye shadows can be taken out this way ! Sometimes the metal rim is too soft, and starts bending. In that case, I guess its best to leave that shadow alone, otherwise it might break.





    **Remove the inner part of the CD jewel case.**

    Not all CDs have this ! If yours doesn't, make sure that it is the thicker, bulkier kind of CD case ! The thin flat ones are usually too thin for makeup.






    **Arrange you make-up in the case.**

    You might want to group it by colour, or by lightness/darkness. Or you might want to separate the matts from the glitters. My stuff had all different sizes, so I worked with that.
    Watch out: Try closing the lid of the case. Usually there is a gap on the left side, and small protrusions on the top of the case. If the lid doesn't close, you might want to move things around a bit.


    I left the black palette as is, because it was impossible to take out the pigments without cracking them (the metal containers were too soft). The lid and little feet of the palette have been removed, though.


    Glue the pigments into the CD jewel case:



    Top: eye-shadows.
    Left: blush & bronzers; right: eye-shadow from Dr. Hauschka. It's organic, and after I collect enough of it I plan to throw the toxic ones away.


    Finding it a bit plain ? Decorate away !

    You could use paint, ribbons & lace, rhinestones, decoupage...


    Ta-da !



    I used window colours on this one.



    Any idea on how to reuse these ?






    I hope that you liked this little tutorial ! I'm constantly making little stuff around the house, and I have realised that I could make photos and post little tutorials on here !


    Have you ever made something similar ? Do you have ideas on other ways to make a make-up palette ? Let me know in the comments !

    Photos by Eternal*Voyageur (me).
    If you use them, please link back to me !

Friday, 06 November 2009

eternalvoyageur

  • Visit eternalvoyageur's Xanga Site
    • Name: Starlight*
    • Gender: Female
    • Member Since: 10/26/2007

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