M&J Blog

DIY Street Style Inspiration

M&J Trimming — Sun, 19 May 2013 13:00:11 +0000

We love looking at street style photographs for DIY inspiration. M&J’s Garment District location allows us to see many creative individuals on a daily basis. Although many people working in and around the garment district may not be renowned designers they are often the inspiration for many runway designs. Fashion styling is always open for interpretation. We love looking at street style for inspiration.

Editorial Prints Featuring Chains

M&J Trimming — Sat, 18 May 2013 13:00:12 +0000

Chains can be used in many forms especially in editorial prints. Chains can be considered glamorous, punk, gangster, or even precious based on how they are styled. Each of the following editorials have used chains in a series of ways yet one thing remain the same they are all created from similar metals. Similar to chains, people are born the same but shaped differently based on their culture, or upbringing. Fashion editorials may be selling clothes but they have can be considered an art form as well. Next time you pick up one of your favorite magazines try and examine the meaning or relevance of the glossy editorial. You may be surprised what you come across.

Top 3 DIY Chunky Chains

M&J Trimming — Fri, 17 May 2013 13:00:34 +0000

Chunky chains have been a DIY favorite here at M&J. These statement making trims can update any outfit in a matter of seconds. We came across three great chunky chain tutorials that we couldn’t wait to share with you. Bromeliadliving’s Runway Inspired Necklace Tutorial is sleek and elegant. While both I SPY DIY and Nest of Posie used bright colors to accent their chains. We can’t wait to try out these easy and fun DIYs.

Bromeliadliving’s Runway Inspired Necklace Tutorial

Nest of Posies Spray painted chain bracelet tutorial

I Spy DIY’s Chunky Chain Necklace and Bracelet Tutorial

Pops of Color Promo

M&J Trimming — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:00:30 +0000

Enjoy our pops of color promo…

Chunky Chains on Celebrities

M&J Trimming — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:00:10 +0000

Celebrities are often the first people to replicate runway trends. Chunky chains have been all over the place and we’re certainly loving the look. These chains can be styled in many ways depending on how you style them. We love looking at celebs for even more inspiration. People love to hate her, but Kim Kardashian can do no wrong with this simple peplum dress and chunky chain necklace. The chunky chain adds excitement to the neutral number. Cameron Diaz’s diamond encrusted chain has a perfect amount of glitz and glam. Gwenyth Paltrow and Rihanna dressed up their outfits with the statement making piece. No matter how you style your chunky chains be sure to show them off. This is one trend you won’t want to miss.

Kim Kardashian

Cameron Diaz

Rihanna, Miley Cyrus, Rita Ora, and Rachel Zoe all wearing chunky chains

Rihanna

Gwenyth Paltrow wearing two chains

Check out M&J for a large selection of chunky chains

Top 3 Ribbon DIY Bracelets

M&J Trimming — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:00:22 +0000

Ribbons can be used for many purposes. Due to the many types of ribbons there are many ways they can be used. We’ve dedicated this post to some of our favorite ribbon bracelet tutorials. Inspiration & Realisation uses silk ribbon and charms to create a wrapped charm bracelet. This bracelet is perfect for those summer days when you want to throw on a lightweight piece of jewelry. The chain bracelet has been a staple among the blogger community. The ribbon and chain contrast adds a hard and soft edge to any outfit. Trinkets in Bloom also toughens up her ribbon adding spikes to the often delicate trim. We can’t wait to try out all three DIYs.

Inspiration & Realisation silk ribbon wrap bracelet

Chain Bracelet tutorial via SheExists

Trinkets in Bloom Spike Ribbon Bracelet Tutorial

Check out M&J for a large supply of ribbons and trims.

Ribbon Accented Shirt DIY

M&J Trimming — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:00:19 +0000

Mixed prints have continued to receive mixed reviews from the public. Some people admire the daring looks while others argue that certain pieces simply don’t match. One designer that specializes in mixing prints is Mary Katrantzou. Each of her pieces are crafted with some of the more outlandish textiles yet they offer an elegant and sophisticated presence. We became very inspired by the unexpectedness of her pieces that we opted to create our own patterned shirt. Using our M&J Ribbons, we transformed an ordinary shirt into something extraordinary

INSPIRED BY

Mary Katrantzou’s Runway collection

SUPPLIES

25 MM French Double Faced Satin Ribbon in Aqua Style# 54789
25 MM French Double Faced Satin Ribbon in Black Style#54789
1″ Imported Chromspun Grosgrain in Aqua Style #02224
15MM Grosgrain Fantasy Ribbon in Wine Combo Style #34304
5/8″ Grosgrain in Polka Dot Style #39005
Glue
Scissors
Shirt

STEPS

Prior to setting anything down, lay your ribbon down on your shirt. Make sure you like the way each ribbon looks next to one another. Once you have okay’d the pattern remove the ribbon. At this point you should just have your shirt lying down on a flat surface.

One by one, glue each piece of ribbon down in a straight line. Place a small amount of glue on the ribbon and spread it out with the nossel of your glue.
This will prevent bumps in thinner pieces of ribbon.

Continue to glue down each piece of ribbon untill your pattern is complete.

If you had used a button up shirt flip your shirt inside out. By doing so you will be able to see where both sides meet and needs to be cut. Once you have assessed where the center is cut all four pieces of ribbon.

Now that the shirt has dried, cut the additional ribbon off of both sides. We used the seams as a means of measurement.

We wanted our shirt to have a more refined appeal so we added our polka dot ribbon as a finish.

After gluing the ribbon down we held it for several seconds, tucking in all of the excess fray strands.

Since we had some leftover ribbon lying around, we opted to glue it down on either side creating a slimming appearance.

We’re so happy with the way our our ribbon accented shirt DIY turned out.

Blogger Highlight: Jazzimcg

M&J Trimming — Mon, 13 May 2013 13:00:55 +0000

Jazzi McGilbert of Jazzimcg has been on our radar for some time now. We’re loving everything from her fashion forward DIYs to her amazing style and somewhat addicting posts. Her honesty and straight forward antics are something we look forward to each day. Who else would notify bloggers they’ve been busy with a selfie from the doctors office? Her fun loving LA/NY vibe is something we truly love not to mention her killer DIYs. Click on each of the images for the full tutorials.

DIY: Richard Nicoll Inspired Ribbon Cuff

DIY: Alexander Wang Inspired Sock Braces

DIY: DVF Inspired Pom Pom Hat

Happy Mother’s Day!

M&J Trimming — Sun, 12 May 2013 13:00:48 +0000

She laughs at our jokes
She’s always there to point out our mistakes
She always has a huge smile on her face whenever she sees us
She gives the best hugs
She’s kind and understanding
She’ll stop what she’s doing to help us out
She convinced dad to get us a puppy
She’ll take us to the doctor even when we’re old enough to go on our own
She pretends to enjoy doing our laundry
She stocks the fridge with our favorite foods
She’s a great cook
We inherited her goofy laugh and witty sense of humor
She tries to stump us on celebrity gossip…never going to happen
She brags about us to her friends
She always has dinner on the table when we come home
She surprises us with things that she thinks we’ll love
She’ll help us when she knows we have a lot on our plate
She always listens to us
She’s taught us so much about who we really are
She always knows what to say…because she’s the best mom in the whole wide world!

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms out there…

Last Minute Mother’s Day DIYs

M&J Trimming — Sat, 11 May 2013 13:00:06 +0000

It’s not too late to show mom you care this Mother’s Day. Rather than buying her something she already has, make her something she never even knew she wanted. Each of these DIYs are quirky and fun gifts any mom will cherish. A Girl and a Glue Gun created an easy to make sunglasses pouch that will make any mom smile. U-Create Crafts will make mom chuckle with their Pin-it pin cushion. The irony is so clever we wish we had though of it first. If neither of those are for you, maybe you’ll love Alpha Mom’s Sandpaper printed t-shirt tutorial. We can’t wait to try all three.

A Girl and a Glue Gun

U-Create Crafts

Alpha Mom

Don’t forget to tweet us @Mjtrim all of your Mother’s Day DIY Projects #mjtrimming