Why Yes, I AM Wearing a Curtain

Today, I'm still somewhat homebound because of Hurricane Sandy, so I did another refashion. I actually did 2 but didn't take any "before" pics of the first one and it's ugly anyway, so onto this one.

I bought this brocade curtain at Unique (in Union) a couple of months ago because I LOVE the fabric. I really want to make a short skirt with it, and wear it with tights, but I don't know what color tights or top would go with it. I'll work on that another day. 

Instead, I started draping it on my dress form. A dress? Nowhere to wear it. A top? Only if it's easy. So a simple strapless top it is.

A dress?

A top with straps? Eh, those are too wide.

 

I had some problems making it though. I wanted it to lay front across my chest ie: I didn't want to use elastic all the way around it 'cause then the fat near my armpits would moosh over the top - ladies, you know what I'm talking about.

I thought about doing a zipper in the back, but my measurements would need to be precise, and I'm not about precision. Snaps? No, one deep breath and I could see them busting open.

So, I went with 2 small pieces of elastic. Eh, mixed results. It gave me the flexibility I needed to get it on and off, but I would have liked the top to be a bit tighter. But hey, it fits and I can wear out with the girls next weekend in New Orleans!

With a low sash?

Or a high sash that ties in the back?

Or no sash...

I went with low sash tied in the front. If I actually had my hair brushed and some makeup on, I could go out right now!

T-Shirt to Shrug

I'm too lazy to put it on.

Tonight I finally made a t-shirt shrug. I have been holding onto this t-shirt since...well, let's just say this shirt traveled with me through Central America and across the US during our "career break" which means it has spent a lot of time in a back pack. I was sick of it. I threw it in the "refashion" pile (which is a real thing - want to see pics?) and waited...

Tonight I finally went back to my Pinterest board to find the inspiration and did it.

Let me tell you how easy this refashion is...it took me all of 20  minutes. And it would have been even easier had I not kept stopping to take sips of my martini. (Rough day at work, don't judge.) So for you folks who sew sober, this should only take about 15 minutes. Nice.

Grab a t-shirt and cut it up the front center and cut out the neckline. Doesn't matter if it's v-neck or crew. Mine even had a nice stain on the front. You really can't sweat the small stuff here.

After cutting, pin a hem (with the rough edge on the inside, seriously I actually did this wrong the first time) about an inch wide all around the cut edge. You are now making a case for the ribbon you'll use to tie it together in the front. Once pinned, sew it up all around.

Pin, pin, pin. 

 Once you sew a casing, thread a ribbon through the casing and tie in front. I tied a ribbon to a large bobby pin and pushed that through. Use a safety pin, or whatever works for you.

I don't think my ribbon was long enough. It got all the way through with barely enough to make a bow. I wish I could tell you how to measure, but my ribbon was at least 2 feet long, and I wish it was longer. Next time, I'll measure.

Uh, cute or what?

Then I realized, I wanted a purple cardigan to wear with this refashion -- but I'm not going to buy a new sweater. I can wear this t-shirt shrug with it. Ta-da!

Refashion, meet Refashion. I'm sure you'll get along just fine.

80's Fab to Now Wow (ha)

When I bought this dress at the thrift store, it was a stretch. The fabric is pretty bad, it's sort of slippery in a plastic way; the shoulder pads were overwhelming, and I wasn't even sure it would fit overall. But guess what? I liked the pattern (yeah, that's a theme with me.)

Nice sleeves. And neck.

So - I brought it home and threw it on my dress form to consider the possibilities. First things first - those sleeves had to go. Not to mention the neck.

That's much better. 

Next - pin up those jagged edges and sew in a hem. Easy peasy.

Then I wanted to do something about that rounded neckline - just to play around I tucked it in and sewed in an asymmetrical neckline.

Pinning the neckline and sleeves. 

I think it came out okay - not great, just okay.

Next up, loose some of the  length, add a sash and done. New updated dress to wear to work! I don't know, not bad for $9.00.

Ready for the office.

From "Meh" to "Fun!"

I gotta say, I dig this one. I actually bought this dress about 2 months ago - because of course I loved the colors. It buttons up the front and has a collar -- I'm not really keen on collars, but I was willing to give it a shot.

When I first got it home and put it on my dress form, I thought there wasn't much I could do to it. Maybe shorten it a bit, but that's it. So I put it away and pretty much forgot about. Here it is at the end of summer and I finally took it back out yesterday to give it another look-see.

As it turns out, yesterday I was messing around with some no-sew DIY halter tutorials from Wobisobi. Although the tute was really easy, mine didn't come out right -- but I'll try again because it was still really cute. So with halter on the brain, I turned to my dress and thought - that's it!

And here's how it went... 

Here's it is as purchased ($7.00 btw). Nice print, blah shape.

And from the back - this is where the magic happens on this one.

First, I cut out from under the arm and around the neck, leaving the collar and the fabric under the collar in tact.

This made the back very loose - I have pinned it here and later took that in a few inches.

Then I pinned all around the cut-out part.

All pinned.

All sewn up. In this pic, I have already sewn in the back seam to tighten up the dress. 

I also took about 6-8 inches (I don't measure) off the bottom and hemmed it. With the fabric from the hem, I made a sash to give the dress some more definition.

I don't like the way my hair/face looks in these pics so you only get a picture of me in the dress from the back. Trust me, you don't want to see me from this front in this -- it was 9AM.

I'm pretty happy with what turned out to be a sassy little dress! I plan to wear this in November in New Orleans on my Girl's Weekend! (Weather permitting.)

Skirt to Dress: The Easiest Refashions of them All

I actually did this one a few weeks ago but never got around to posting it. This started off as a Goodwill find -- a loooong pleated skirt that was too big for me, but I liked the coral color and the pleats. Bonus - it had a sash already attached! How convenient for making a halter-style sun dress.

Before I enlisted help with photos...

I actually don't have any photos of the in-process refashioning because 1. I didn't have my dress form yet, so I was really just winging it. 2. I didn't know I was going to blogging about these things.

Basically, I took in each side several inches and then cut out that excess fabric. I also chopped a few inches off the bottom -- I didn't hem it (mostly because I hate hemming) but it didn't seem like the fabric would fray. If anyone can tell me which fabrics are prone to fraying, please do!

So - here it is. I actually have worn this out a few times.

That tie thing is actually the back of the skirt, so technically I'm wearing it backwards.

I'm a photo-bombing dork.

From Indian Tunic Top to Cute Dress

This is my new favorite refashion! The thrift store I've been going to seems to have a good selection of these Indian tunics that women wear over pants. They are usually longer than a regular top and the sides are open from the hem to about the hip. I've done two of these so far. (Pictures of the other one coming "soon".)

I loved this one right away because of the color and because it has gold sequins all over it! This one is pretty straightforward because I liked it so much as is. For now, I'm going to wear it as a dress, but I might cut it even shorter and wear it as a shirt at some point.

I like the neckline- I even like the sleeves.

I love the detail and sequins on this fabric.

The inside of the fabric - I think those sequins were hand-sewn. Nice.

Pinned up those side slits

After that, I just took off about 5 inches from the length, hemmed it up and done. I could use the bottom piece as a sash, but it actually had a nice enough shape that it didn't need it. This pic isn't so great (I actually put this back on after going to the gym - so my hair is gross.)

Something New - And Something New from Something Old

Full disclosure - I bought something new. I would like to try to justify it by saying, "I had no choice" but it drives me crazy when I hear other people talking about doing things because they "had no choice." There is always a choice -- it might not always seem like it, but there is (sometimes, it's two bad choices, but there's still a choice.) That's an idea for a future blog.

In any case, I discovered that all 3 of my bathing suit tops had their elastic completely disintegrate. My choices? Don't do anything that involves a bathing suit this summer. Wear my old one piece from 2000. Or buy a new top (the black bikini bottoms are fine.) So I bought a $10 bikini top that should last me a while. But that's it -- a full 6-months into the year and that's all I've bought "new" that wasn't on the pre-approved list (1 pair sneakers, underwear.)

Something new from something old
Today I thought I'd post some of my refashions - I'm slowly getting up to speed on the basics and have worn several of my items out socially and no one has mocked me (to my face anyway.)

I have a few more, but I need to get better pics. In the meantime, I hit up a new-to-me thrift store today (where I got the red dress below - which was $6.00 by the way) and bought another 4 or 5 dress that need serious help. I'll be working on those during the week - hopefully the heat wave breaks and my own personal sweatshop will become comfortable for sewing. 

Before: A large skirt -
way too big for me, but I liked the pattern and light material.

After: A cute over the shoulder summer dress, with an asymmetrical hemline and matching sash. Drinks with the girls? Although it's pretty short - may be a standing around dress rather than sitting on a bar stool dress. 

Before: It doesn't look it
but this is a size 18 dress. I liked the print.

After: A me-size dress, sleeves removed,
matching sash (hard to see in this pic.) I'll wear this to work.

A Year of Nothing New

It's a simple idea. A year with no new clothes. Or shoes. Or accessories. That about sums it up. But people I've mentioned this to seem to have questions. So...

When I say "nothing new", I really mean "brand new". For one year, I'm committed to only buying used, from thrift shops, Goodwill, consignment, etc. The ONLY exceptions are: underwear, and 1 pair of sneakers for the gym.


I started in January 2012, and in the interest of full disclosure, before I added "accessories" I bought a $4 headband for a Gatsby-inspired event. I wore it to a work-event as well and plan to give it to a friend who will wear it to another event, so it's not a "one and done" purchase. In retrospect, I didn't need it.


The big question I get is "Why?" I have no real answer and I keep asking myself "why" also. There's no big social idea driving this, no financial hardship, no real goal.

Although, whenever I find myself in a shopping-situation, and I'm thinking, "Oh cute - I want that!" I stop. There it is. I "want" that. Do I "need" that? No. The answer is always no. No matter what it is, I don't need it. Another skirt? No. A new bathing suit? Nope. A cute new purse? Ohhhh....kinda...no. No. Don't need it.

And I guess that's the point. I'm forcing myself to know the difference between "want" and "need." Yes, we all already KNOW the difference, but I want to live the difference.

And so here I am, 5 months into a Year of Nothing New. I'm learning to 'refashion' my thrift store finds, which is becoming a hobby I really enjoy. My inspiration - refashionista.net - does it way better than I ever could, but I have fun trying.

So -- I'll keep you posted on how it goes. Will I crack at some point and splurge on a brand-new pair of gym shorts? I might, but I hope not. And I'll post pics of my thrift-store finds, and refashion efforts. And maybe, just maybe, this experiment won't just be a year, but a lifestyle.

Here you go - recent Goodwill purchase. Pink, short-sleeved button down from Express, $5.00. White (it really is white, I know it looks yellow, and I actually NEEDED a white dress shirt) button-down from Ann Taylor, $5.00. Reversable tank in turquoise and fuscia (so it's like 2 shirts in one!), $5.00.