THE BATTLE OF DIY

There are casualties in every battle, and that includes the fight waged by the Do-It-Yourself-er in an attempt to recreate designer clothes and accessories.  Especially at the moment, when more and more people are trying to save a little money and be frugally fashionable.  A trip round the blogosphere shows that, in the majority of cases, the DIY is successful...and items that were past their shelf life have been given new life thanks to the combined imaginative forces of designers and the rest of us (those who share their vision but lack the necessary funding to foot the bill).

What receives less press though are the failures; the vintage dresses hacked to pieces until nothing remains but a few remnants of fabric, the bath tub dye jobs that result in an unexpected and completely unwanted color, or any of the other incidents that create a panic induced longing for a trip in a time machine to the period just before “inspiration” took hold.  Not that the risk of failure should hold you back; as Leo F. Buscaglia said, “The hardest battle you're ever going to fight is the battle to be just you.”