FREEDOM FASHION: ZEBRA DRESS

  I wanted a black ´n white dress with print. That´s all the plan I had when heading for the fabric store. I found this unusual but subtle zebra cotton knit fabric, that I fell in love with right away. For once shopping was easy!

The texture is quite rough, but the fabric still feels comfortable to the skin and breathes so well.

I surprised myself by choosing to make a dress of the zebra print, because at a first glance it calls for a shirt. When accessorized minimally, the look stays casual yet interesting.

This outfit is a great place to wear my new MBT walking shoes (yes, I know they were a hit ten years ago, but to me they still rock  =), which also dress it down.

Instead of being cut on a straight fold, the center back seam sculpts the figure slightly. The weather is still mostly cool here (I´m even wearing my winter coat still), so I made the sleeves in 3/4 length to keep me warm enough.

With natural makeup and a pair of sleek earrings, this look makes a great staple for work. 

  Two funny occasions took place today, when wearing this dress.
  First at work a colleague of mine came up to me complementing my dress, and telling me she has made a sweater for herself of the exact same fabric! I mean, what are the odds to that?
  And then second, after work shopping for groceries, an elderly gentleman came to talk to me, calling me a princess, and telling me how I looked prettier than the newly selected Miss Finland... What a joke, but we both got a good laugh and he made my day. By no means do I think of him as a perverted weirdo, who ought to go where the sun does not shine. Just the opposite! It´s awesome how he spread a positive and playful tune around him. We need not be so serious all the time, even with strangers!

FREEDOM FASHION: DARK BLUE PRINT DRESS

  Wow, it´s been a while since I´ve sewn for my Freedom Collection, but it is still alive and kicking!

  This dress is brand new, and I even wore it to work yesterday, on my very first day back after maternity leave.

The fabric is super comfortable and quite stretchy viscose-like material that drapes well. The pattern I used to make the dress is the same I used for the light blue one for Imbolc, but now I added an inch wide elastic band to the waist for some definition.

The print is so dominating that the outfit does not need further accessories. The shoes give it a more sporty and relaxed touch.

Makeup is natural and fresh. Matte off-white and medium grey eyeshadow, warm pink blush, and sheer nude beige lipgloss polish off the look.

  Funny thing is that while my Freedom Collection was initially designed for off-duty days, now I strongly felt like wearing this dress to work. Perhaps it is out of humbleness. When I was a kid, we moved a lot, from one city to the next. When I was nine, I went to three different schools, all in different places. It was tough, but it taught me an invaluable lesson of what it feels like to be an outsider, the new kid. And back then I learned it´s best to cultivate some humbleness in the beginning. You know, sort of check out the mood and situation of the place before really letting myself loose. Like they say "you gotta know the rules before you can break them".

FREEDOM FASHION: BLUE SUMMER DRESS

  This is my second staple outfit these days. I made it especially for warm summer days, and boy have I needed it lately!

From summer cabin to jazz festival, clad in this lightweight blue viscose dress I have felt ready to go and comfortable. It is a great piece to take with me on the go, because the wrinkles don´t show from all the print. =)

Thin natural fabrics are the best choice for hot summer weather. This is actually the first summer I have ever tested them out in my own sewing projects. Glad I did!

The hem is in fact a huge ruffle that flows generously in the wind, maximizing the cooling effect.

In the front there´s a row of buttons, but only for decorative purpose, the front is made of  one solid piece. I wanted the dress to have a bit more of a tailored look. 

The back is gathered slightly with an inch-wide rubber band to show a bit of the arch. It gives a more feminine silhouette.

    Quoting tv-shops "How did I ever manage without this dress before"?!  =)

FREEDOM FASHION: GREY FLORAL DRESS

  This dress saves my butt during these hot days of late summer:

It is the first of it´s kind, and I designed and drew the pattern all by myself. I´m no pattern maker, so I´m positively surprised the dress turned out so well! Yay! Never before have I had a spaghetti strapped diy dress. This is too revealing for work, but it is a life saver on hot off-days!

The material is thin, well-draping viscose. With nothing underneath the dress, it feels heavenly to have the wind swish the hem around, cooling me down pleasantly.

The top part caused me to use my grey brain cells a few times. I wanted it to be loose too to maximize ventilation, but was not sure how to prevent it from looking like a huge tent. But then I realized that adding a simple strap around would do the trick perfectly. Now it is still loose, but slightly gathered.

No makeup is needed on off-days, especially now when the skin is tanned and the weather sweaty. I like to accessorize even when I´m not wearing makeup. Here the sun hat, aromatherapy bow earrings, and nailpolish separate me from shabby (I hope!  =).

BAG-IN-A-BAG: FREEDOM STYLE

  So far I have made only sabbat related handbags. Now it was time to make a pair of timeless, year-round, bags for my Freedom-collection. That´s the one I wear the most during these maternity leave days anyhow.

See the whole deal in my column Nelland Living on PaganPages.org!

  I surprised myself by the sleek and modern outcome. Cool!

FREEDOM FASHION: BLACK & WHITE STRIPED TUNIC

  Time to push the boundaries and make the most modern outfit yet for my Freedom Collection.

White stripes on black. On one hand a classic print, but on the other hand a modern pattern to use it in. This is a timeless look that would suit women of all ages. I can easily picture it on a ten-year-old and on an eighty-year-old (considering her posture was still relatively normal). I do not yet have age crisis, but I notice liking age-neutral pieces of clothing. Beauty and style are not dependent on age you see!

At home I can walk around without leggings with the tunic (especially on this hot balcony on a sunny day), but everywhere else I go, I pull a pair on for sure. =)

Silvery aromatherapy earrings keep the look modern, and when essential orange oil is added, they keep me smiling! (Speaking of smiling, I can see my teeth look quite bright and white in this picture. I want to believe it is due to my healthy diet, avoiding just for the very reason, red wine, black tea, cola, coffee, and tobacco too. Last winter I had my teeth checked for laser whitening, but they sent me straight home saying if they did anything to my teeth at all, they´d end up looking ridiculously white. Yes, it must be my diet... Another good reason to eat healthy!  =)

FREEDOM FASHION: GREY WATERFALL SHIRT

  It was time to make a bit darker shirt to my casual, classic, comfortable, yet modern Freedom Collection (free from work, peer pressure, and excess hassle).

Still digging the basic greys and blue jeans. But this shirt introduces the waterfall neckline to the collection.

Only little, and very natural makeup is worn with Freedom clothes. The earrings are my own aromatherapy ones again, what else?! It seems I can´t do without essential oils anymore.

The back is simple. Freedom collection is the most simple and modern of all my collections. So modern in fact, that I´m wearing store-bought jeans even.  =)

It all started with this fabric. I had no plans to make this shirt overall, but when I saw this soft, well draping, beautiful grey knit in the fabric store, it hit me instantly. I "needed" to make this.

  Hail freedom!

FREEDOM FASHION: LIVING THE DREAM- SHIRT

  The mind is a powerful force. It can make us either happy or unhappy in our lives, depending on how we look at things. I try to stay on the positive side, and to boost that I made myself this inspiring shirt:

A basic off-white shirt combined with jeans is a timeless classic everybody looks good and fresh in. Regardless of age. But have you ever seen a seventy-something wearing this? I have not. It´s a shame really. I think women can be gorgeous at any age, and there are no such things an elderly woman could not wear. As long as my posture stays good and healthy, I ride towards old age with pride and confidence, looking forward to what life has to offer.

Back to the issue... It says "Living the dream" on the bust, to remind me that I am the most important person in my life. I need to take care of myself first, and then I can be my best to others as well. The world is out there for me to grab bits and pieces from, to build the best life I can for me and my family. That´s the attitude I feed and keep in mind, and try to pass on to my kids. Anything is possible, and I need to be grateful for the little things in life.

The back is plain. As can be seen, I like slightly loose clothes. Especially pants. And I admit: I hate skinny jeans. I don´t know who they look good on.

I hand-printed the text on with fabric paint and stamp letters. Then I added delicate pearl white drops of another fabric paint to give it slight contrast and to make it three-dimensional. Very subtle.

  Living the dream... What better attitude to have towards my life?

FREEDOM FASHION: DENIM-LIKE TUNIC

  My Freedom Collection bases on denim. Besides pants, denim can be worn in tops too. This time I made a tunic that looks like denim, but is in fact soft and stretchy jersey. Comfortableness comes first!

Here I go with my favorite tunic pattern again... A simple look with no gimmicks. The only trick is in the choice of fabric. From this distance it is not yet obviously denim-like, but when seen up-close, the ocra top-stitching steers the feeling right into the world of pure denim.

This tunic is worn with leggings, so I added an inch (2cm) to the hem to make it more decent...

My designs are often quite streamlined and simple. They give room to and let the focus be on the face, which in my opinion is more important than any piece of clothing. Clothes and style is for us, not vice versa! Therefore I find it important to choose the colors for my garments so that they suit my skin tone. It can be easily checked by placing my hand on top of fabric or any colored surface, and seeing how it makes my skin look. If it is lively, with a warm glow, the color is right. If my hand looks pale and colorless, I should avoid the color. If done in good light, this works every time!

  After making this piece, there was still a generous piece of the fabric left. And that´s what I used to make him his t-shirt. How handy, and green, is that?!

FREEDOM FASHION: CLASSIC GREY SHIRT

  A long-sleeved t-shirt is the root and stem of my Freedom Collection. The beginning and end. This look goes anywhere and anytime. It is as classic as it gets:

Women of all ages look good in this type of basic grey shirt. As a matter of fact, I dare say it makes one look more youthful in a mature age (I´m not there yet, but will keep it in mind for the decades to come =). Adding more jewelry makes it more feminine, but for now I need to settle for only little; my one-year-old loves everything shiny and dangling.

My favorite shirts are well fitting, but not tight as a sausage peel. Nobody should (try) hide inside a gigantic tent, but be proud of themselves just as they are. No weight issue, disability, or deformation etc. makes a person less worthy. It is how you treat yourself and others that counts! 

Free, young, and happy! That´s the spirit!

  If kept well, this shirt will follow me for years and years (and it even has extra room in case I happened to get fat...!).

FREEDOM FASHION: BEANIE AND GLOVES

  It is freaking freezing outside! We even got first snow yesterday. So I really need these:

Fleece to the rescue (again =)!  A pretty basic beanie and gloves to keep me warm. I prefer fleece over knit because it stops the wind from blowing through my head, you know, from one ear in and the other one out... Black is always stylish, and crap won´t show so easily in the gloves. Practicality is the key to easiness.

Couldn´t resist adding some detail. These buttons are from my old stash. They give the gloves a nice finished appearance.

Same with the beanie. This is nifty because metal is rarely seen in hats. I simply hand-sew this chain (from a craft store) onto the edge of the beanie. It is super simple, but looks interesting.

The recipe for the gloves:

a hand
a piece of paper
a pencil
30cm fleece
thread

+  Place your hand, fingers spread, on the paper. With the pencil, draw the outline of your wrist, palm, and fingers onto the paper. Add 1cm seam allowance all around. Cut out.
  Place the pattern on a double layered piece of fleece. Cut around the edges of the pattern. Repeat to make a glove for your other hand too (if you have it).
  Stitch close to the edge with a sewing machine. Cut a few openings to the seam allowance between the fingers at the lowest point. Turn right side out, slip them on, and feel the comfort.

  Nothing beats a custom fit in gloves!

 P.S. You can find a very similar pattern for the beanie here.

FREEDOM FASHION:THE MAKEUP

  My Freedom fashion is probably the most needed and used collection in my life nowadays. Besides being a stay-at-home mom for now (and wearing lots of Pure Home-fashion as well) I´m often running errands and need to grab an easy-to-wear outfit. That outfit needs a matching makeup, and it so happens that I have come to this conclusion:

As fresh and bare-faced as possible, with focus on the eyes. The idea is to look healthy and clean by nature, without any extra effort. As if I was naturally perfect, but totally oblivious of it. (Ha-ha, far from the truth, but what can I do...!)

On the skin I only added transparent mattefying finishing powder to maintain the natural, shower-fresh feeling. On the cheeks I dusted some peachy pink blush, to give a healthy glow. I´m in the process of letting my eyebrows get a bit thicker, on "brow rehab", to look even more natural and let the brows give more frame and character to my face.

On the eyelids I applied matte off-white eyeshadow on the inner half, and no darker shade anywhere. The idea is to brighten up the eyes unnoticeably. I also added off-white eyeliner to the inner rim of the lower lid for the same reason. It immediately loses the tiredness from my face (which of course I do not even have =) but still the effect is awesome).  The only thing that may be noticeable to the observing eye is the black liquid eyeliner I used, sparingly, to make the eyes pop out of the otherwise bland face. To the lips I applied a thin coat of subtle cool pink lipstick.

  At this time of year I am at my most tanned, even though I do not sunbathe or try to tan. But the sun works it´s magic no matter. As it does on my hair too! It remains too blonde for my taste, despite my attempts of coloring it a bit darker. So this look is quite different now than what it is, say, in February.
   Nonetheless the basics stay the same, and I can run my errands looking like this year-round. I´m convinced that this is such a classic look, that I will not have to be embarrased 10-15 years from now, looking back old pictures. A proof that fashions and trends come and go, but style is forever!

FREEDOM FASHION: SILLY LITTLE NECKLACE

  This necklace came out of the blue, when I saw the bag of alphabetical beads in a craft store the other day.

A subtle piece of jewelry that doesn´t draw much attention, but which completes an otherwise plain look. Until now I have not cared much for these types of necklaces or bracelets, but since this one doesn´t say my name, it is fine.

At a closer look it shows some color too. I´ve had the glass beads in my drawer for some years, and now, finally, they found their place.

Silver and black are the core colors of my Freedom Collection, so you see why I just had to get them? I wired the beads with an elastic cord, so the whole thing is easy to slip on.

  The project is totally easy, cheap, and fun to do with kids (and suits both boys and girls)!

FREEDOM FASHION: THE LITTLE BLACK DRESS

  The classic of all times: a little black dress. This one is not for fancy coctail parties, but rather for everyday wear. When worn with minimalistic golden earrings, it is very casual, but when loaded with fake gold jewelry like I did for this photoshoot, it goes well even for a night on town!

Since I´m so in love with the shape and wearability of this dress, I made one more with the same pattern (like so many other dresses this year  =).

The fabric is not entirely black, it has dark grey abstract and messy stripe-like rows running accross it. And that is the reason why I chose it. The print makes the whole more interesting, without drawing pretty much any attention to it. And it is more careless to wear. You know how well even a single blonde string of hair shows on plain black. But not on this baby!

At this point of year I want to show my natural tan and freckles. They are what give me the ultimate summer-look. Thus I want to keep the makeup natural, even when going out to town. Here I only applied very light and see-through finishing powder on my skin, to keep it matte. The eyes are lined with a black liner, and a peachy blush and lipgloss add the final touches. 

I was at my sister´s and, among other things, we went to taste Italian ice creams on a promenade terrace. I tried out cardamom and pistachio flavoured treats.

Hmm... tasting, tasting...

Yay! Excellent! Awesome! Very sweet and not too fatty. Too bad the cup was so small. =)

Moving on, by foot. I love strolling by the canal on a light and warm summer evening. I wish it could be summer year-round!

  In my sabbat-related wardrobes black is only used in Samhain Collection. But black is the basic color in my Freedom Collection, along with denim, grey, and white. This dress is the first black piece, and I must admit, it is a pleasure wearing it. So easy and care-free. Didn´t even have to worry about ice cream dripping on it!