New MissStefanie Necklaces: Vintage, Upcycled, Valentines

Just in time for Valentine's Day, I've added upcycled and vintage necklaces to my MissStefanie Etsy shop.

Some are vintage, featuring brooches, clip-on earrings, pendants, or charms hanging from the necklace. Others are upcycled, with single or multiple pieces from thrift store jewelry on the necklace. Sometimes the necklace has a chain from a thrift store necklace, and other I make the necklace using recycled material from black T-shirts (softer than a leather necklace; other colors available upon request). The necklaces made with the T-shirt material are 22-24 inches in length, but can be adjusted to be shorter or longer. You can wear one or layer two or more. I photographed the necklaces with a white button-down shirt, to show how they look styled with a shirt; I usually wear mine with my usual uniform of a tank or T-shirt under a cardigan or jacket.

So, Valentine's Day. A few necklaces have hearts, flowers, or bows. One has a heart and skull and another is a locket with flowers and a unicorn (a unicorn!). And here's the thing about Valentine's Day: it's a Hallmark holiday, sure. But I've always loved little trinkets and started a tradition years ago of treating myself to something for Valentine's Day. You can have someone special in your life or you can fly solo--but treating yourself is always a fine idea. Chocolate, check. A one-of-a-kind necklace in the $20 range? Check 'em out.

Shirt Mannequin

I've been looking for a better dress form or mannequin to use for photographing the shirts I remake and sell for my Etsy shop. Walking in Venice, I spotted this. Look at those feet!

Miss Stefanie Etsy Shirts Modeled

My sweet friend Madelyn modeled some of the upcycled shirts I made for my Miss Stefanie Etsy shop, to show how the shirts look layered over a long sleeve shirt. Shirts in a woman's size small or extra-small are shown here to fit her frame (various sizes are in the shop); I get the shirts from thrift stores, so what I get is what I remake and they're all one-of-a-kind. She's also wearing the denim nautical-style bracelets for sale in the shop, made from denim scraps from rescues pairs of jeans. (The Mickey Mouse shirt is the one she kept.) Note: Holiday sale going on now! Save 15% through December 5 by entering HOHOHO as the coupon code. MissStefanie.etsy.com.

Miss Stefanie Giants Shirts: Baseball, Football

This is a tale of two upcycled Giants shirt: one baseball, one football. Above, my lovely and amazing friend Rebecca is wearing the SF Giants shirt she bought from my Etsy shop. I'm demurely modeling my own NY Giants shirt and hat (go Giants!). Her SF Giants shirt was given a v-neck with a ruffle made using scraps of fabric from the cut sleeves; my NY Giants shirt has the neckline embellished with denim and fabric scraps.

Rebecca has encouraged me to make add more sports shirts to the Miss Stefanie Etsy shop, pointing out that many girls don't like to wear square and boxy T-shirts when showing their team support. It's the very reason I started cutting up my own T-shirts and re-making them a pair of scissors and needle and thread. For the shop, I remake shirts found in thrift shops or other secondhand sources, so inventory is limited to what I find. Upcycled sports shirts currently stocked in the shop: "Fight On" USC shirt, Seattle Seahawks football shirt, Oakland A's baseball shirt, Los Angeles Lakers basketball shirt, and NY Yankees Derek Jeter baseball shirt. More added when I find 'em and fancy 'em up.

MissStefanie Shop: Happy Customer Leah

Here's another happy customer modeling one of my MissStefanie upcycled shirts, available from my Etsy shop. Lovely Leah purchased a Red Hot Chili Peppers T-shirt I recycled and remade by hand; I cut off the sleeves and used the fabric scraps for a ruffle neckline.

Rainbow Bright: Eco-Friendly Flip-Flops

Thanks to the Sweet Greens blog for posting about the super-cute and eco-friendly flippies from Simple. A pair of flip-flops made of recycled soda bottles, rubber, and paper--and they're this cute?

Miss Stefanie Etsy Shop: Denim Necklaces

This just in at the Miss Stefanie Etsy shop: new necklaces made from jeans I've rescued from thrift stores. I've reused scraps of the denim to braid lariat-style necklaces that are finished with a vintage button (silver, brass, or black plastic).

Designer Boards, Bags, More

Refinery 29 featured the painted boards by designer Alexandra Cassaniti; I also like the board bag, vial necklaces filled with sand or compost, and bags.

Cynthia Rowley's Surfer Girl Roxy Clothing

The Cynthia Rowley for Roxy collection is out and it's super-stylish. Not surprisingly, the focus is on pieces meant for post-surf life (sandals, dresses). I like the board shorts best--cute and functional.--Stef McDonald

Earth Day Shop Launch: MissStefanie on Etsy

Earth Day was the official launch of my Etsy shop: Miss Stefanie's House of Crafts and Collectibles (easy-to-remember web address: MissStefanie.etsy.com). Everything in the shop is eco-friendly: vintage clothing and accessories I find during my shopping adventures; thrift shop T-shirts I recover and remake into more flattering styles; and other accessories I make using fabric scraps. My lovely and amazing friend Kristine is pictured, modeling her purchase: a Wonder Woman tee I remade with a pair of scissors, needle, and thread (all my work is done by hand). Reuse, recycle, recreate--rock on. . . I'll post more photos of happy customers as they come in.

Style Statement at the Track

When we went to see the horse races at Santa Anita Park, I expected to see some women making style statements (big hats at the very least). I was surprised to see this gentleman, who appears to have dressed to match the linoleum floor. Impressive.

Seven Ply Skateboard Design

I heart Etsy in a big way and can pass hours clicking around the site. With the holidays looming, I got a little lost today, adding a lot of fun items to my cart for some loved ones on my list. Search the site for "recycled" or "repurposed" or "upcycled" to find artists and other crafty types who sell items that might otherwise end up in landfills. (Also try searching the stellar vintage section.) Seven Ply is a seller who offers jewelry and other trinkets made from discarded skate decks (above, earrings).--Stef McDonald

Recyling Jeans

I've always been a Levi's jeans girl and loved back-to-school shopping because it meant a new pair of Levi's jeans and a pair of cords. I still wear my favorite pair of 501s from high school (faded now to white and long ago transformed into a pair of cut-offs) and, even with a shelf full of denim options, I favor the skinny pair I have from their Levi's Eco collection, made from organic cotton. Two new cheers go to Levi's for encouraging wearers to line dry (to save energy) and donate unwanted jeans to thrift stores (to prevent overfilling of landfills).

Fashion Fun: Lines for Surfer and Skater Girls

We've read recently that two fashion designers are working on lines that we're going to want to check out (cause there ain't nothing wrong with wanting to look cute). Fabulous fashion designer Cynthia Rowley is teaming with Roxy for a line of surf and surf-inspired gear and Kit Scarbo, one of the past contestants of "Project Runway," is reportedly working with Etnies.--Stef McDonald

Football Thinks Pink

I knew I couldn't be the only one watching Sunday football and wondering if I could get a pink-brimmed hat like the ones coaches and side-lined players have been wearing in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The NFL store is packed with pink goodness and I'm particularly pleased about the fact that the colors for my team (Go, Giants!) are a good match for pink.

Splurge: Surf Hoodie

A gray hoodie is a staple in my wardrobe and I've got more than one (when one is in the wash, I've got a back-up). But I don't have one with a photographic print of the ocean on the back, like this one I found on Etsy. Wow, this one is cool. The seller also has tees. --Stef McDonald

Love Tennis: Style for a Fan

I didn't pay much attention to tennis until becoming mesmerized while watching Roger Federer win a match a few years ago--just when he was taking root as the best in the game--and now I am a full-blown fan of the sport. Federer was defeated yesterday in a stunning loss to a new guy on the scene, Juan Martin del Potro from Argentina. Following the match, I heard an NPR commentator note Del Potro's fierce forehand and make mention of his black muscle shirt. I was amused by the comment about the shirt but, among sports, tennis is arguably the most stylish.

The game's male ambassador for fashion is Federer, who always looks dashing and had a part in designing a line of clothing for Nike. I went to the Nike site and found that the sleeveless shirt Del Potro wore was actually from the Federer collection (ha). Also spotted while on the site: some good Federer tees. Maybe I needed something tennis-y in my closet? Because I like to sometimes wear my heart on my sleeve, the "Love Roger" tee for women could work, but I'm more inclined to favor the mens' "Advantage Federer" one. I had to also look into the shoes worn by rising teen star Melanie Oudin, whose pink and yellow Adidas sneakers were customized with the word "Believe," but I cannot settle on what my own shoe should say (and I'm not so sure of the colors). Finally, I went to Etsy, where I found a cute vintage visor to help me proudly proclaim my love of the game.

Wave: Art Restored

Driving up PCH last weekend, I spotted a new American Apparel shop. Yep, there's another one (everywhere you turn it seems, just like Starbuck's). But news via Racked LA: the store is in the same space that once housed a surf shop, with a wave mural above it by a surfer and surfboard shaper, and American Apparel commissioned the artist to restore the mural. Good nod to history. (Image from Racked LA).

Roadside: All Wrapped Up

Creepy roadside photo taken on Ocean Front Walk in Venice, where American Apparel was setting up for a pop-up shop rummage sale.

Mickey Mouse Watch (and Snoopy, Too)

I snapped this shot of a stylish girl at the Coachella Fest, wearing a Mickey Mouse watch. Last year, it was reported that cute and fashionable girls were wearing Mickey tees and sweatshirts. Then I saw that a designer had Mickey Mouse on his mind this year when he showed his collection on the runway during Paris Fashion Week. Some might argue that Mickey never goes out of style; I won't disagree, but I'd like to make a case for Snoopy. After seeing the Mickey watch, I pulled out my childhood box and found my Snoopy watch. It needs a good cleaning but started ticking when I wound it up. I'm wondering about a new band but might just pair it with some bracelets.