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DIY Punk Tom Binns style safety pin & skull necklace

November 29, 2010 by

Like many others, I’m entranced by Tom Binn’s jewellery which fuses a punk aesthetic with high couture for a unique finish.

Fab, right? But it costs over 600 pounds!!

Some of the best DIY’s I’ve seen on this are from Monoxious  and the letter CH, but hell, just get googling and you can find more. Here is mine:

Cobweb top – Alice Auaa
Corset – Gallery Serpentine
Sequin Skirt – Sportsgirl

What You’ll Need

1. A necklace – I chose one with multi strands of chains so I could get a chaotic, layered effect

2. Skulls, beads, charms, chains, maybe little bones…and safety pins! Raid your jewellery drawer and craft cupboard – you never know what you’ll find.

What To Do

1. Have a good look at your chain and work out where to put your various elements. I decided to only use the chunkier chains in my necklace for the bulky skull beads etc.

2. Start placing the beads and charms, attaching by means of safety pins or existing link chains, and take off again if they don’t work.

3. At a certain point you’ll need to affix your chain necklace to something that will keep it steady while you add more beads, chains etc…Otherwise the little beads may end up on the wrong side when being worn. I discovered this was happening with my little bones especially. I used a foam mannequin head and stuck pins through a couple of the chain loops at the back to hold it firm.

4. Keep going, adding and subtracting elements as you see fit. In my case, I took off the skull earrings as I felt they looked a bit tacky, and added more skull beads in various sizes instead…and more safety pins! (I had to rush up to the dollar shop for more, heh).

5. Try the necklace on, to see if the effect when worn is what you’re after. And make a bracelet to match, while you’re there! (Toyah Wilcox/Siouxsie make-up entirely optional)

(And, erm, take out the trash before you take a photo, OK? You’d THINK hubby would’ve noticed that before he took the pic – sigh…..)

There are lots of other exciting things you can do with safety pins and chains – why not pick your fave designer and attempt a DIY? This blog Brook & Lyn took a Moschino jacket and copied it using lots of tiny gold safety pins around the collar.

For myself, I’m eyeing off Balmain’s latest military jackets that have chains adorning each buttonhole and frogging, and the dress completely covered in fine gold chain. Hmm, gonna need a whole lotta chain…..

Have you DIY’d anything with safety pins? What would you like to make, if you did?

Filed Under: Alternative Fashion, Blog entry, DIY, gothic fashion, Outfit posts Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Final Episode

November 4, 2010 by

So, sometimes I’m a wee bit slow. I’ve just discovered this fantastic website that launched in September, and I’m drooling.

It’s called “Final Episode” and it showcases the work of accessories designers who are extremely innnovative and fashion forward – think Camilla Skovgaard, Dries Van Noten, Opening Ceremony, Jeremy Scott and more.

I love their attitude: “fashion is a tool to flaunt one’s individuality and express one’s sense of self”. Hear, hear! It MUST be hip and happening – Grazia put it on their list of things “Going Up” last week, right next to the pic of Alexa Chung. I likewise appreciate their ethics: “Here at Final Episode, we believe everyone should make an effort to reduce their environmental impact. Wherever possible, our paper and packaging items are sourced from recycled materials”.

But enough theorising; onto the products themselves.

My unrequited love for extreme platforms and studs finds an object to lust over in these “Samantha” shoes by Tristan Blair:

 

Although there are some beauties by Camilla Skovgaard that are also tempting.

Then there are the improbable but loveable shaped sunnies from Alexander Wang and Jeremy Scott (alas, now sold out):

 

Those of a dark and gothic persuasion will adore the jewellery, and especially that of Julia DeVille in her Disce More range, where bird skulls, talons and crossed bones feature..

 

 

There are a whole lot more quirky accessories, including belts, scarves and bags, so it is well worth a look. If you sign up to Final Episode, you get access to special offers, releases and product launches too. For any enquiries, email: info@finalepisode.com.au

Or you can follow Final Episode on Facebook or on twitter.

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Rubi Rocket Jewellery & Accessories

July 10, 2010 by

As mentioned in my Worn Wild post from last week, I introduce to you the very hip

Rubi Rocket is a fun jewellery line that specialises in laser cut designs – often in perspex, sometimes in felt. I fell in love with their bright colours and humour; see this Zombie necklace I bought: for the “i” it has a zombie man with his head lolling to the side ROFL!

It has something for most alternative subcultures too – there’s the Graveyard Treats and Monsterfied sections for horror buffs, goths and deathrockers,

Hotrod Style and Tattoo Culture for the vintage, rockabilly and tattoo scene,

Neon Retro Pop for electro and 80’s babes,

Nameplates for princesses (or ghouls) who like to wear their own name, and Roller Derby Baby for…well you figure it out.

There is even a Twilighter section for Twilight fans (hey, they’re people too – don’t hate on me for mentioning them 🙂

The Rubi Rocket brand has been around a few years, been worn by celebs like Jane Gazzo (seen below at the Arias in 08) and featured in too many Polyvore sets and magazines to mention!

Jane is in a Tokyo Joe dress

So you just KNOW it’s cool! I’m certainly going to be wearing my Zombie necklace and skull hairclips out tonight.

The prices are very reasonable, so if you’re looking for fun jewellery for yourself, or a groovy gift for a friend – head to the Rubi Rocket website – because you are going to find something really unusual and fab!

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Tattoo Inspired Jewellery from Robinson Designer Goldsmith.

January 15, 2010 by

I wasn’t going to do a designer feature again so soon, but I disovered this fantastic jewellery designer today and just had to share.

Do you like tattoos? Do you like skulls? Do you like bling? If you said yes to all three, then you’re going to love RDG Jewellery. AKA Robinson Designer Goldsmith, from Takapuna, New Zealand.

Ken Robinson established the business in 1986, but he’s joined now by his sons Michael and David. And look what Michael came up with.

This piece is called Skullduggery. Michael says “The platinum skull is pavé set with 2·4 ct of collection-grade diamonds. The 18 ct rose and yellow gold swallow is set with orange and yellow sapphires, and the 18 ct snake is set Tsarvorite garnets and topaz. Black diamonds highlight both animals’ eyes.”
Or how about these by David. This one is diamond, pink sapphire and garnet skull & vine pendant, 18ct white and green gold.
Another Pirate skull pendant: a black and white diamond set skull pendant, in 18ct white gold.
 
And then there’s this gorgeous black and white diamond set skull pendant with a peridot and topaz parrot, in 18ct.
But there’s so many options; the nature collection includes frogs, bumble bees, swans, owls and even butterflies.
And what about this one, called “National Treasure”
This is real jewellery, not costume, so one of these will set you back between $2,000 and $6,000! A girl can dream…

They do commissions too, so if you would love to see a Japanese dragon or koi tattoo design made into a pendant, or perhaps a vintage burlesque gal, they could do that too.

 
For those with the cash, see the RDG website or Facebook page.
 
As for me, for now I’ll be sticking with my skull and crossbones costume jewellery from i-socks in Malaysia.

 
PS I should also give credit where credit is due. I read this in a fab magazine called Post Modern Ink, and I’ll let them speak for themselves:
“Not only is Post Modern Ink the only 100% Australian lifestyle tattoo and art magazine (we write everything from the ground up, locally – no syndicated editorial here), but we also go above and beyond to bring you the best of the best.

A great example resides in our current issue, on sale now, where the PMI team flew to Japan to check out the crazy world of Sabado The Monster, the traditional stylings of Tebori tattoo legend, Ken Horimyo and the stunning artwork of the geeky Osaka Ben.

We also took time out with Angelique Houtkamp, spoke to comedian Jamie Kilstein, looked at some Australian/Japanese history, explored the true origins of the southern cross symbol, looked at flower iconography in tattooing, spoke to Alexisonfire and heaps, heaps more. So really, what are you waiting for? Get out and pick up Post Modern Ink issue #4, on sale now.”

I can vouch – it’s a bloody good read, with great photography. The article on the Cowra breakout during WWII had me rivetted in my hairdresser’s chair. I can’t wait for the next one 🙂
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