Made By Lex

Wardrobe Staples- The Classic White Shirt

Alexis — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 03:11:37 +0000

I rarely buy trendy items. I like many trends, but prefer to put money towards staples- things I’ll wear for a long time.

Staple #1 in my closet- The classic white shirt.

I wonder how many 10’s of 1,ooo’s of blog posts have been done on this classic item. But it’s one of my favorites and had to make it my first intro to my wardrobe staples.

I have one that is fitted and a more feminine silhouette. I love it with leggings and flats.

I also have an oversized one that I love with boots. It amazes me that somethingso large and comfortable can be so chic.

I also love it with no pants. Around the house of course. :) Or over a bathing suit.

Is there anything better?

What’s your number one wardrobe staple?

New for Fall- The Striped Lex Top

Alexis — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 16:42:53 +0000

This is one of my first new designs for fall- the striped Lex top.

It’s based off of the nautical sweatshirt that I did. I wanted something dressier, yet still comfortable. It’s a thicker knit in black and cream striped fabric.

It has a slightly wider neckline so you can wear it off the shoulder if you’re feeling in the mood to do so.

It has a kangaroo pocket with two vintage buttons.

And meet my new FAVORITE accessory, the DonniCharm scarf. Just check out their website and see their great basic scarves and read the lovely story behind them. Then see their press page. They’re EVERYWHERE. I live in mine.

They have the cutest charms on them and you can customize yours. It adds a little something extra.

It’s for sale in my shop. I only have a few in this great fabric! It’s great to dress up with black skinny pants and heels, or with your favorite pair of jeans. I love versatile pieces!

Photos to send you off for the weekend

Alexis — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 00:34:08 +0000

I did an impromptu photo shoot with my gorgeous sister, Clare, last week to practice my photography.

This one is unedited and I love it as it is.

I sharpened her eyes on this one.

love the beer can at her feet

Boots. My favorite thing.

Glowy hair. I wish my hair glowed like this in real life.

This picture was a total mistake and I love it.

I wish you all a sweet weekend!

Nautical Sweatshirt

Alexis — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:15:23 +0000

I decided to throw out all my sweatshirts. I just get too tempted every morning to put one on. Then I decide no makeup, then why not just wear sweatpants? Awww… why not just get back in bed? (Am I the only one that does that?) It’s a vicious cycle. So I wanted to make something cute, stylish and comfortable. Here’s what I came up with.

It’s a sweatshirt material, although much softer.

I added a kangaroo pocket with vintage gold nautical buttons…

…with a cute striped lining.

I’ve got some coming to the store soon.

Fashion Show Looks 1-5

Alexis — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 15:08:33 +0000

When Stripe first approached me about the idea of the fashion show, I was thrilled and intimidated all at the same time. We had about 2 month to put it together. Maybe 2 month for a designer with no children would have been feasible, but since I’m a stay at home mom of three with tons of summer activities looming around the corner, I didn’t know how I could put together a 10 look show. The cost was also daunting! Think about all the fabric it takes for one dress then think about 10 looks! So the solution we came up was to reuse pieces to help with time and money. So you’ll see that as I describe each look.

As I’ve said before, the concept was “The Thistle in the Kiss”. We wanted portray pure beauty, then have each look progress to a more roughed up look, yet still beautiful. So each model came down 3 times and the looks were styled progressively to display that concept. The hair and makeup also changed each time down. You should have seen the madness backstage!

Look1:

Round 1- Tina wore a thrifted white leather skirt with a black top I made. It was heavily textured in the front and back. She also wore one of Nuala’s black leather cuffs with vintage jewels on it and a pair of grey suede wedges.

Round 2- we reversed the shirt so the back was low and added these chains draping the back.

Round 3- we added a clutch, boots, and a ruffled bustle.

Look2:

I found this amazing dress at the thrift store. I liked the bottom of it. So I took apart the top and redid with different fabrics so it gathered to one side. Then I added the piece I made at the shoulder, then altered the bottom to add more fabric and shape. It’s paired with wood heels.

Round 2- We added one of Nuala’s leather cuffs, an AMAZING bag she made and boots.

Round 3- Added a suede vest, lace and chain sleeve and thick wool socks.

Look 3:

Round 1- Distressed Jeans, clutch bu Nuala and this grey top I made. It had ruffles down one side and a rouching detail in the back, which you can’t see

Round 2- Switched to shorts, added a black ruffle and black heels

Round 3- Torn tights, and another voluminous ruffle.

Look 4:

I had to show a closeup of the top of this dress I made. I used a technique I had played with before where you get lots of fabric then flatten and stitch it. It creates this really textured top. I LOVE the look of this!

Round 1- Just as is.

Round 2- We pinned it up to create a shorter, flounce dress, added this leather pack by Nuala and chain straps.

Round 3- Big gold necklace, leather jacket and leather boots.

For the record, I’d wear ALL of these looks. It’s my favorite one

Look 5 (one of my sister’s modeling )

Round 1- I had found this gorgeous long wool dress at a thrift store about a year ago and bought it knowing I’d do SOMETHING with it. I got to use it for the show and what I did was make this layered white train from all sorts of different fabrics. Here’s a closeup of the back before it was finished. I used silk, tulle, lace, satin and silk.

Round 2- We tied the back up, added a chain belt and heels.

Round 3- Added two layers of torn tights and boots.

I’m seriously going to do a post where I show you just the hair and makeup. It was mindblowing!! For know, here are all the credits for the show:

All Hair and Makeup by L’Atelier Salon

Shoes provided by Bunny’s Shoes

Jewelry by at Stripe

Leather bags, jewelry and accessories by Terry McInerey of Nuala Leather

Organized and styled by Julianne Castro

Food by Anna St. John and Breanna Greene

Photographer Tim Cattera, Ferradas Photography