Guest Blogger & Ikat

Good morning everyone!  I hope everyone had a beautiful Christmas!!  While I am galavanting around the south of France, hopefully having the time of my life, I have some amazing guest bloggers for you to meet!  Friday was Kelley from The Grant Life with an awesome & easy cookie recipe and today we are stepping into the world of fashion.  I will let Stephanie do the rest, but I am sure you will love it!

Hey there, Ma Nouvelle Mode readers. I'm Stephanie, from Luxe Boulevard.

I run a women's fashion and beauty blog, and create custom bridal pieces. When I'm not doing those things, I'm either reading or writing. Yeah, I'm kind a of a book nerd. But geek is chic. Don't forget it!

When Natalia asked me to share something girly, I immediately knew what I wanted.

IKAT!

i-kat: /ˈēkät/ (n) 

Fabric made using an Indonesian decorative technique in which warp or weft threads, or both, are tie-dyed before weaving.

This is one of my favorite trends right now. 

[Images via: 1 | 2 | 3]

There are so many ways you can spin this print. So many colors you can combine. And it's nearly impossible to go wrong with. 

How gorgeous is this dress? Doesn't it make your heart go all pitter patter?

{images via: 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8]

A mix of colorful ikat and solids is perfect for stepping out of the ordinary with your style and wardrobe.  It can be worn dressed up, like the shawl and skirt above, or dressed down like the knit sweater in picture eight. 

Or glam up that LBD with a print clutch. I'm actually working on a bangle bracelet tutorial where I'm making one in ikat. It's not even done, and already I'm in love with it!

images via: 9 | 10 | 11 | 12]

Ikat is one of the biggest trends in home decor right now. I just love how simple or grand you can make it.

Fill your walls or furniture or simplify with decor pieces. With so many different prints and colors, you can mix and match like crazy.

I really want to reupholster my sofa (it so desperately needs it), but it's hard where the hubs is concerned. He is a man and wants to sit on a man's couch. My desire is to reupholster it like that blue and white chair up there. Now, I am having a hard time finding blue and white ikat home decor fabric within my tiny price range, so I'm considering getting some plain white canvas and just painting it. Yeah, you can paint ikat designs. Hannah Flora gives a super simple how-to video here.

[images via: 13 | 14 | 15 | 16]

Oh, why, hello brides who love lots of color and can't decide on just two or three!

Give yourself an ikat style wedding. 

How sweet are those table runners draped across? You can easily paint that for your guest tables. Heck, you could paint all of this, even the pink chairs. 

Open up Gimp or Photoshop, design yourself a custom ikat wedding invite or program or thank you card for your guests.

And why have your bridesmaids in solid dresses? An ikat print dress next to a groomsman in his black tux and matching ikat tie would be stunning. Hit up your local thrift store, pick up plain white dresses and hand paint the designs onto the dresses yourselves. Such a fun way to spend some quality time with your girls. And make those boys paint their own ties. (Just don't be upset if you end up with clean up duty.)

I hope you love everything I've gone through. I would love to have you over to my neck of the woods some time.

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Thank you so much, Stephanie! I love it all!  Now go show Stephanie some love!