Tell me about it, stud

I love studs.

 I've already got 11 of the little bastards pierced into my flesh.

So when the whole obsession with studs on clothing began, I was all over it like a rash. Tops with studs on. Shoes with studs on. Blazers with studs on. You name it, I loved it. But still, the gypo in me refuses to pay for it.

This shirt is divine. Anyone who denies it is a liar. But it... 30 quid from River Island. For a student, £30 is 6 Fab tickets. Or a fortnight's worth of food. So I just can't justify it.

So that's why I do studs like a cheapskate. Oversized shirts are really easy to find in charity shops - most of the time you can actually find really good brands (I found a tartan flannel Ralph Lauren in Marie Curie going for £6) so there's no excuse to buy a shirt brand new. Just grab one from a jumble sale and it will be easy to make it look good. And all of the shirts that I own are men's ones, because they are just generally easier to find and have a looser, comfier fit.

Here are my hints for making any shirt look like it fits:

If it's too big in the body, tuck it into your jeans or tie it in a belly knot. (I am rocking this look as we speak.)

If the sleeves are too short, roll them up and sew them in place.

If it's too tight over your chest, wear it open with a cool t-shirt underneath.

Simples!

Similarly, River Island are flogging this little number for £20. Wtf?! It's just a black t shirt with a few studs round the neck. Evidence that the high street will rip off people who are uneducated in self-customizing.

So. How does one go about studding?

(That sounds dodgy, soz.)

Adding your own studs to clothes is easy, and it's a great way to bring an old garment up to date. Take the shirt that I wore today, for example...

 

 I bought this for £2 at my local charity shop. It was a bit of a boring shirt before - I'd only bought it because I liked the colour... So I went on eBay. And I bought some studs, and did this...

The amount of compliments I have recieved is unreal! Just go on eBay and type in "studs for clothing" and there are pages and pages of gorgeous studs sold by independent sellers for really really really cheap prices. And I mean really cheap. Like so cheap. (I wouldn't bother with Amazon though, they don't have little private sellers on there so they tend to be a bit more.)

You get sent a little packet of them, and then you just pierce them through the material where you want them to go, and flatten the back down with the end of a fork or some scissor handles!

Voila!