T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
DIY Simple Emerald Green Dangling Chain Earrings
Emerald green is the color of the year, according to Pantone. I find myself agreeing with their yearly color choices so I had to have an emerald green item in my closet. And because I love unique accessories, I went the DIY way and wrote a tutorial. To make emerald green dangling chain earrings, follow the steps below:
What You Need:
Jewelry-making pliers, 2 round emerald green beads, 2 flat head pins, 2 round silver spacer beads, silver chain, 2 jump rings, and fish hook earring backs.
How-To:
1. Skewer one emerald green bead and one spacer bead with the flat head pin.
2. Using your pliers, bend the other end of this flat head pin into a hoop. Do this slowly, so as not to ruin the shape of your hoop.
Do the other emerald green bead by following the previous 2 steps.
3. Take your silver chain and cut two 2-inch sections. This can be shorter or longer, depending on your length taste, as far as dangling earrings go. I like mine to not touch my shoulders because they can be rather annoying.
4. To the end of each chain, attach the emerald green beads. Simply yank open the hoop you made a teeny bit and hook it to the end of each chain. Lock the hoop back using your pliers.
5. To the other end of these chains, attach jump rings.
6. And to these jump rings, attach the fish hook earring backs. At this point, you’re pretty much done with your chic and trendy emerald green dangling earrings. Go ahead and rock ‘em with your favorite summer pieces. However, for a bit of pizzaz, you might want to do step 7, too.
7. This step is optional. I decided to add white beads to my earrings, following the same steps above. The chains I used for the white beads were shorter, though. Do this step if you’re looking to add more visual appeal to your dangling chain earrings. With white beads added, your earrings will look perfect for daytime wear; with black beads, you get yourself fabulous accessories for a date night.
I hope that you enjoyed this easy emerald green dangling chain earring tutorial! Go crazy with the color of your beads if you don’t like emerald green. Choose other shapes or even charms if you’re looking for something more playfully stylish.
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
Well, it’s true. The 90s are back. The catwalks are showcasing 90s-inspired fashion and the shops are packed full of ’last millennium’ shoe trends. I can’t believe that I’ve already reached that age where my teen years have become ‘retro’ and I’m seeing those outfits coming back the second-time-round. That’s the quickest way to make a girl feel her age!
But the good news is that, in truth, I’ve probably never really left the 90s. That was the best time for me: the music was my favourite cheesy pop and TV was not-to-be-missed – and not just because we didn’t have TIVO in those days – I loved Friends, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (remember rapping the theme tune?), Dawson’s Creek and even earlier Saved by The Bell? The only thing that was less-than-brilliant was the fashion - I looked a right state in the 90s and nothing like Cher from Clueless!
But hey, if the fashion world thinks that the 90s are due for a revival, who am I to argue? So in my own small way I’ve embraced the new footwear trends and got myself a pair of Spice Girls-esque sparkly Union Jack platform shoes, like Ginger Spice used to wear. But that’s not the only footwear trend to pop up again – there are plenty of 90s-inspired shoes out there at the moment including flatform shoes and platform trainers – yes, the ones that Baby Spice fell off and ended up with her ankle in a cast – do we really want a repeat of this?
Jelly shoes have wobbled their way back into the shops and I’m pleased to say that Doc Marten boots are back in fashion! I practically lived in my DMs when I was a sulky teen, convinced that I looked just like Claire Danes in My So-Called Life, but where are my old Dr Martens now? I want to get them out and wear them again but they’re nowhere to be found and I’m sure I wouldn’t have thrown them away after months of saving my allowance to buy them. Here’s a few trendsetters including Jessica Alba, Amber Rose and Gwen Stefani who’ve been spotted in Doc Marten boots time and time again:
So to avoid the pain of falling off a pair of platforms (or the pain of being ridiculed for wearing flatform trainers over the age of 13), the best 90s footwear fashion trend to follow this summer is probably the biker boots, especially the blood-red ones like those above. If you invest in a good pair of sturdy DM-style boots, they’ll last you for years (probably even until the style comes around again in another 20 years) and they are super-comfortable, and no-one can complain about that!
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
DIY no-sew contrast pockets
Have you noticed that pockets are everywhere this Spring/Summer? On a recent shopping trip down the high street I spotted pockets on almost every item of clothing and I love the contrasting pocket look. Although I want to follow the trend, I’ve never been one to spend my hard-earned cash on something new when I can recycle something I already have or funk up charity-shop find, and in this instance, I picked up this slouchy tee from a charity shop for only a couple of quid, but you could use a t-shirt you already have at home
You only need a small scrap of fabric to make the pocket and you can often find small pieces in the remnants bin of haberdashery shops. The only difficult part of this project was choosing which colour and pattern to use. I decided on a contrasting pink floral fabric for Spring/Summer and set to work on creating my pocket and attaching it to my t-shirt, adding a little button embellishment on top. You could always consider adding a pocket to the sleeve of a top, or putting a couple of pockets on the front of a skirt to be bang on trend for this Spring/Summer.
You will need: T-shirt, small piece of fabric, iron-on hemming web (if you don’t have webbing you could use fabric glue), card, scissors, needle and thread, button.
- Decide on the size and shape of your pocket and cut a piece of cardboard (I used a cereal packet) to shape to use as a template. Your pocket could be square, with folded corners like mine, or with a traditional ‘pocket-shape’ pointed base – whatever you prefer.
- Draw around the template onto your contrasting fabric then cut out with an extra 1cm hem allowance all the way round
- Fold the edges of the fabric over the cardboard and iron to create hems on all sides.
- Place the iron-on hemming web underneath the hems and follow the instructions on the webbing packet until the glue has melted and sealed the edges of the pocket.
- If you want to add an embellishment or button to your pocket, now is the time to stitch it on – I added a small purple button to tie in the colours of the fabric with the t-shirt.
- Position your pocket on your garment and use more iron-on hemming web to glue it in place along the sides and bottom of the pocket.
All done – Enjoy your new t-shirt. And don’t forget you can add contrasting pockets to anything else that takes your fancy too!
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
Top 5 Fashion Trends of Spring 2013
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
DIY: Inspired By Colored Glass
I cannot count the number of times I have had to get rid of perfectly good vases and candleholders because I simply don’t know what to do with them. Think about what’s left after the flowers die or when your candles’ wick is no more….what do you do with all those perfectly fine glass bottles and jars?
Add some color to them and—ta-da!—you have a new place to put pens and pencils or to hold your makeup brushes. I decided to turn three of my old vases into candleholders inspired by my favorite piece of room decoration. Since Tamagotchi L.I.F.E is all about color, I’m pretty excited to show you how I added some color to my room.
I had purchased these from a thrift store before coming to college and it is the only piece of decor I have kept throughout the years. So, I decided to create my own colored-glass inspired candle holders.
Materials:
- ANY glass (so many possibilities…revive old vases, retired candle holders)
- Glass paint
- Paintbrush
Directions:
1. Apply tape wherever you would like a distinct border between glass colors
2. Begin layering paint
*There is no wrong way to do this. The paint dries quickly and layers thinly so you are able to ‘fix’ any decision you aren’t thrilled with
3. Allow to dry
4. Remove tape
5. Layer paint
6. Repeat steps 1-5 to achieve the look you want
This is truly a DIY based on individual taste. The best part of this DIY is that you can achieve a ton of different looks based on your color and tape decisions.
Blog Post By: Keanne Okabayashi, Los Angeles, California
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
The Cake and Rice Krispie Pops Flower Bouquet
A bouquet of flowers are nice to look at but a bouquet of cake and Rice Krispie pops are pretty to look at it AND delicious to eat! The good news is that the recipe is easy and versatile, so you can make it work for any occasion. Tamagotchi L.i.f.e. is all about spreading the love and you can surely do so with these pretty and delicious treats!
Please refer to the directions and ingredients listed on the Rice Krispie and Red Velvet Cake Pops.
Ingredients/Materials:
- 1 pkg. cream cheese frosting
- Sprinkles
- Skewers or lollipop sticks (can be found at craft stores)
- Red Velvet Cake (Pkg. Cake mix, water, vegetable oil, eggs)
- Rice Krispie Treats (Rice Krispie cereal, marshmallows, butter)
Directions:
1. PACKAGE DIRECTIONS:
Follow the directions listed on the cereal and cake mix packages for Rice Krispie treats and Red Velvet cake
2. COOL:
Allow baked cake and Rice Krispie treats to cool
3. PREPARE THE POP TOPS:
Cake- Finely crumble cake and mix with 2 TBSP of cream cheese frosting. Compress the cake crumbs into 1-2 inch balls
Rice Krispie Treats- Compress the Rice Krispie Treats into 1-2 inch balls
4. FREEZE:
Freeze the pop tops for 30 minutes
5. PREPARE THE POP STICKS:
If you are using skewers for the pop sticks, cut the skewer to the desired length and remove the pointed ends
6. CONSTRUCT THE POPS:
Remove the frozen pop tops and carefully insert one stick into each pop top
7. DECORATE:
Frost each pop with the cream cheese frosting and decorate as you wish!
Be sure to let the cake and Rice Krispie Treats cool down before forming the cake pops!
After crumbling the cake, mix in two TBSP of cream cheese frosting.
After inserting the pop sticks into the pop tops, place on baking sheet and freeze for 30 minutes.
After removing from freezer, frost the pop tops as you’d like. This is a great chance to customize the treat for the occasion! For the Fourth of July, follow the same directions, using red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting, and just add blue sprinkles to achieve a patriotic look.
Inspired by: Flower Bouquets
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
February Sweetheart Styles: DIY Caviar Manicure
February is the Month of Love and that means it’s time to put together those February Sweetheart styles. Along with the perfect dress, shoes, and accessories, a bright and fun manicure can help pull the whole look together!
Tamagotchi L.i.f.e. is all about trying new trends, and what better time is there to try something new than in the Month of Love? Caviar manicures have been seen photographed on many celebrities and all over fashion runways. There are nail kits out there that sell caviar nail polish for about $25 a bottle, but these nails can be easily replicated with microbeads from a craft store like Michael’s and your favorite nail polish.
First, you want to make sure to pick a nail polish color that matches the beads in case the beads don’t completely cover your nail. If you will be doing a complete caviar manicure, it is important to paint one nail at a time so that the beads will stick before the polish dries.
Once you paint your nail, you want to immediately pour the beads over your nail, using a bowl to catch any beads that fall. If your manicure looks bumpy you can push the beads down with your finger to smooth it out. Be sure to let the nails dry completely before moving around too much so that the beads don’t start falling everywhere! Also, you might be tempted to add a clear top coat to seal the beads, but you shouldn’t because, trust me, it will make the beads bleed color and not look as 3D.
Once your nails are dry, that’s it! It’s so simple and looks just like the caviar manicure you would get from a kit. You can also change it up by only doing a caviar nail accent or mixing two bead colors together. However you do this manicure, it looks chic and stands out – just like you will this month!
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
Do you remember collecting as many Tamagotchis as you could get your hands on, as a kid? In the upcoming app, you can unlock and save original Tamagotchi shells to your collection and finally get the entire Tamagotchi series all in one place! This app is releasing very soon, keep checking back for more updates!
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
Tamagotchi L.i.f.e. App – Unlock New Shells!
This new screen shot shows that players will be able to play to unlock new outer shells for their Tamagotchis!
T-L.i.f.e. Blog:
Tamagotchi L.i.f.e. App – TOY Mode!
In addition to the exciting new features, full color, and mini games, the new Tamagotchi app will also feature “TOY Mode.” Play the original game, which was introduced 16 years ago, and raise your Tamagotchi the same way you did when you were just a kid!