Save the Dress!

Time for Portia Lawrie’s  The Refashioners 2018 challenge! This year we had to find a look/garment we loved and produce a version of it, by refashioning unloved/unworn items. I found lots of looks I loved but was scared off by the thought of trying to recreate. I actually started with a Dries Van Noten outfit, but shelved that after messing up the first piece.

Then, I came across this beauty from Save the Queen! I love the stark black/white/red colour combo, the sporty proportions, and the gorgeous playful penguin print (would love to get a hold of a few yards of THAT).

So, off to the thrift store… I knew it wouldn’t be easy to find the right print with enough fabric to make me a swingy shift dress shape – I’m not a petite woman. I was really hoping to find a maxi dress for extra yardage, but no luck.

Finally, I found a great dress with a strong graphic black/white print and it looked hardly worn. Also picked up a red shirt to cut the sleeves from. Everything was marked down further, so spent $7.75 total (including a pair of trousers for my son).

Unfortunately, I couldn’t cut the whole dress out of the skirt panels, so I had to use part of the bodice which had shaped panels, but at least the busy print hid the seam lines.

I made the sleeves from the red shirt sleeves and the bottom of a black dress I’d previously chopped into tunic length. The trim was thrifted by a friend and gifted to me a while ago.

I’m not sure about the collar on me so I faced the neckline and just tacked the collar on for now. I didn’t want pearls and beads on my collar so cut up a press stud bracelet I made a few years ago and stitched on a few of those for an embellishment.

 

All in all, I’m pretty pleased with the result!

 

 

Flying by the Seat of Someone Else’s Pants

I was excited to join in with Portia’s therefashioners2017 this year. The hashtag was “suitsyou” – we had to take a suit and refashion into another garment or accessory (by October 31st).

I was SO organized – bought a dark pinstripe suit from Goodwill weeks ago. Suddenly mid-October was here, so I got around to cutting into it.
After much stitching/swearing/trying on/unpicking/stitching/swearing/cutting ……..you get the picture……….I gave myself permission to surrender, and not feel bad about ditching the challenge this year.

Three days later –
I fought, and lost, the urge to just take a peek in the men’s section of Goodwill. Of course, I found a really nice checked suit, just waiting to come home with me.

Bonus: Using my amazing powers of deduction……..well, Google, and the name label conveniently sewn inside, I concluded the suit had been made for a local sportsman…surprising what you can pick up at Goodwill!

OK, time to get creating – need something to listen to – plumped for Jason Isbell. I decided to make a skirt, but it needed to be fast. Of course, Fit Athletic Man is in much better shape than me, so I couldn’t do a quick trousers to skirt conversion. I needed to add some panels in somehow to size up for Not-So-Fit Middle-Aged Woman.

I started with the trousers, retaining the “sides”, keeping the hip pockets, and back welt pockets, planning to just add front and back centre panels, like I did in the Getting Legless project. Realizing the silhouette could use a little more width at the hem, I inserted part of the sleeves into the side seams, leaving the cuff buttons in place as embellishment.

Oh no…..evening of October 29th, was going to spend hours sewing today, but spent a lot of the day taking my rescue dog to a fundraiser event at his foster home. Running out of time (but at least it was for a good reason)….I think I’m going to give up again.

October 30th – at work all day, at peace with my decision – pressure off, I’ll be more organized for next year’s challenge!

October 31st….OK, I have till 5pm pacific time (midnight UK time). Stitched in panel at centre back. What the hell am I going to do for an interesting front panel? I looked at all the pieces I had available…ooh, I like the jacket front with the two pockets!!

OK, chop and sew (and drink coffee). Right, it’s done. It sure isn’t perfectly sewn!

Oh, damn, need photos;

• hmm, there’s only the dog and I home
• I don’t own a selfie stick
• Sheila, my dressform doesn’t wear my clothes very well – everything’s too big because she keeps losing weight (at least that’s what I like to believe is happening)

Bingo, just noticed my laptop takes photos on timer. I didn’t quite get them in focus, but they’ll have to do.

Next year, I’ll have it done by mid October (I’ll also be 20lbs lighter….yeah, yeah!!)

Keeping My Belly in Check(s)

Self-discipline regarding food and drink is NOT my strong point. As a result, my mid section is not what I’d like it to be (in fact, it’s way more). I do quite a bit of sucking in, but sometimes I’d just rather wear a loose top, and breathe easy.

I’d had these two Goodwill bargains hanging around for quite a while, and thought it might be fun to combine them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I cut most of the blue sweatshirt off (another piece for the fabric stash), and cut the XXL men’s shirt across at the armpits. I switched the shirt to button down the back. It was wide enough to make pleats – one inverted at CF, and one either side of the button band on the back.

I stitched the chopped off garments together, and overlocked the edges.

Well…..not the most imaginative of refashions, but it’ll help to hide the belly until I wrangle my appetite under control!

Later that same week…………….

Hmm, had left Sheila standing quietly in the corner for a couple of days, wearing this and thought it looked quite cute. Then, I put it on and had my husband take photos  – it looked terrible!!

I will use the idea of the chopped off T with a shirt bottom, but I guess Sheila can have this one – not that she gets out much, usually just hangs around the house naked!

 

Giving Me the Cold Shoulder

BAG SORTING…..REFASHION 2 – the Asymmetric Sweater

I do like asymmetry in clothes, although it’s always more work in pattern-cutting, and for cutting out (no cutting on the fold).

The second Goodwill garment I pulled out of the bag was a Cynthia Vincent lightweight sweater. I think it was labelled L, but was definitely not “L” enough for me! It’s a pretty sweater, but made for a slender girl (who doesn’t feel the cold on one arm, and doesn’t need to raise the other one very high).

The band at the hem was really tight, so that was a no-brainer to chop off.

Also, I am not wearing anything one-shouldered (and therefore braless), so that would definitely have to be changed.

After chopping off the band, I cut off some of the batwing – it was a pretty long sleeve. I figured I could use that fabric to make some kind of shoulder strap. I really liked the draped pocket on one side, so wanted to keep that.

 

This was one of those refashions I kept messing about with, not sure how it was going to turn out. I kept trying it on, and pinning scraps of fabric over my shoulder. In the end, I used some of the hem band, and chopped off sleeve fabric to make a wide shoulder strap.

So, the sleeve side now had a very deep armhole and was draping oddly because my hips were pushing it to its’ limits. So, I overlocked – green lines – to make a more modest armhole. Then, I cut up the side to release the hip drag – pink line. This actually created a cool asymmetric hemline – those happy accidents, eh? (story of my refashioning life)

SONY DSC

I overlocked all the edges and zigzagged narrow hems.

I need to try this on with a lot of things to find the best look, but it’s something different for me for the princely sum of $3 again!

Shorter and Wider

I pulled a really cute grey dress out of the refashioning bag – it was too tight around the bust area, and a little too short for me – creates an attractive picture, eh?

I liked the neckline shape, and the print combo, but this wasn’t going to work without some changes.

 

SO, first thing, cut out the plain grey lining, and shorten it to be a top – that bit was easy….tape measure, shears, overlocker.

NEXT, make it wide enough – not so easy……inspiring music, a strong coffee, and some thinking.

I decided to cut down the centre back, and use the grey lining fabric to make button and buttonhole bands adding an inch or so around the body. Well, that inch wasn’t really enough, so what now?

GOT IT – grabbed a piece of black sweatshirt fabric from the mess stash, and added a panel down the back. I didn’t bother with buttonholes, just stitched buttons through.

Isle of Man Expansion Project

I loved the retro look of this Isle of Man T-shirt I snagged from my son’s outgrown pile. Of course, it was too snug for me – looked like I was trying to squeeze into my kid’s clothes……………huh!!

First thing I did after practically asphyxiating while wrangling it off over my head was open up the front and back necklines.

• The ideal track to accompany this project was Motorcycle by The Rumblestrips, though my favourite on the album is Alarm Clock (who doesn’t fantasize about taking e sledgehammer to their alarm clock, at least once!)

 

It was a heavier cotton jersey with very little stretch, so I toyed with adding panels down the sides like I had done with a previous T-shirt “expansion”…

…but, in the end, I replaced the back with a contrast, looser, ribbed jersey to add some ease. I unpicked the sleeves off first, did some chopping, then added the new back piece. I overlocked a contrast neck band on, too. At this point, I was going to keep it sleeveless with black trim around the edge, but the front armholes were not a very snug fit, so I thought sleeves would disguise that better. I used the old sleeves as a pattern piece, cutting the black ones shorter, to make more of a cap sleeve.

And, voila, expansion plan complete!

       

Not Ready to Retire

I decided to organize my giant bags of potential refashion victims.

So…..BAG #1

• took everything out
• folded garments
• put aside things to try on if they might only require a quick tweak
• listed everything in the bag to cut down on future rummaging

…………..3 days later

• try-ons are still folded on the sofa
• BAGS #2 & beyond remain unsorted, because I did actually achieve 2 refashions before I ran out of weekend.

REFASHION 1 – the Python (?) Print T-shirt

When I was a student, I loved wearing animal prints for their kitsch and retro quality. Now, many years (and lbs on) I fear me, clad in printed animal skins, may give off more of a Golden Girls/Florida Retirement Home vibe!

Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained, and if the whole project goes pear-shaped (to match the bod), I lose a couple of hours I could have spent cleaning the kitchen, and $3 to Goodwill, not much of a risk.

Needed music that was upbeat – Eight Legs kept me going.

Before

I pinned the shirt together at shoulder seams, so CB and CF were on a fold, and cut a slightly deeper neck at the front, and a square one on the back.

Still not convinced I could pull off the print as is, I decided to add a contrast neckband, hoping it would look a bit more sporty. I used a striped scrap from the stash, and stitched on one continuous band running from the vertical side of the back neck around the front to the other side, and a short band across the horizontal of the back neck. I stitched on 2 straps in a V for extra detail.

Not bad, hopefully it will look OK with faded jeans, or denim skirts (I’m partial to a denim skirt or two in the summer – disguises my bum better than jeans do!).

And, Refashion #2 follows…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sharing the same jeans/genes ?

Youngest son cleared out his closet before leaving for college, and put a lightly worn pair of Hollister jeans in the thrift store pile.

I like dark denim and need some more pants (I prefer skirts, but need pants for walking to work).

Now, youngest son and I may share the same genes, but I could not wear his jeans without some major “up-sizing”!

By the way, today’s refashion is brought to you by the album Well, Well, Well by Milburn. I actually listened to it twice all the way through because I got involved in the project and forgot to change music.

I just decided to kind-of-randomly chop away/add in some contrast fabric/do a lot of pinning and trying on/cross my fingers………..in other words, wing it. I used a really muted tartan from Cali Fabrics as my contrast.

Unsurprisingly, I ended up doing a bit of patching together, due to my complete lack of planning, so had to add some pockets to cover unwanted seams. Luckily, I had cut quite a bit off the leg length, so had some scraps to work with.

Well, now I can get them on, AND do up the buttons (grrr…darn button fly, prefer zips).

Not bad for a Sunday afternoon’s work and a little fabric from the stash – thanks, son!

Saunio cardigan

The February pattern for sewmystyle is the Saunio Cardigan from Named Clothing. I decided to make this a combo Sew-from-Scratch/Refashion-Project.

First things first – I put on Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly . I had heard a couple of songs on Lastfm, but only just got round to buying Searching for the Hows and Whys. A good purchase!

I found this cosy ribbed knit in my out of control toppling mountain of fabric stash (one of those pieces of fabric that looks kinda familiar, but I don’t exactly remember buying….can fabric multiply and breed???)

I only had enough of this rib for the back and front pieces, which is where the refashion part of the project comes in.

I had picked up this big sweatshirt at Goodwill a couple of months ago – I liked the frayed hems, and I know I’ll always use T-shirts or sweatshirts for something because they’re somewhat forgiving on size and quick to sew.

I wanted to cut off and open up the shirt sleeves and keep the original frayed hem cuffs.

Uh-oh ….PROBLEM: the sweatshirt armholes aren’t as deep as on the Saunio pattern. Therefore the sweatshirt sleeve isn’t wide enough.

Oh well….SOLUTION: I figure nobody’s going to be doing underarm inspections on me (that would just be weird??), so I pieced the sleeves together, overlocking scraps of fabric on either side.

I just managed to get the facings out of the body of the shirt.

The whole cardigan is a quick sew – it took longer with the swearing (a frequent part of my sewing projects), the sweatshirt deconstruction and fudging the pattern layout.

If I make another, I’d bring the neckline a little closer in and make the body longer, but it’s more comfortable to wear than a jacket. It also looks good in a variety of fabrics (see #sauniocardigan on Instagram)

 

 

Hungry for a new shirt – out with the Toaster!

After doing a test run with the Toaster #1 from Sew House 7 (using an oversized golf shirt to make a top), I was ready to cut into a lovely black and white knit from Cali Fabrics.

It was an easy pattern to use and to sew, and I was done in a few hours. It’s a comfortable top to wear and could be sewn in a lot of different knits.

I’m keen to sew Toaster Sweater #1 (included in the pattern) as it may be a little more flattering on my body, which seems to be lacking any shapeliness it once had (chocolate, wine, burritos, perhaps)……….but I think I’ll get a lot of use out of this one – it’s a more interesting choice than a plain old sweatshirt.

And, in case you were wondering what accompanied me….Will Varley, Postcards from Ursa Minor.

Testing out my Toaster

I joined the Project Sew My Style sew along organized by Alex at Bluebird Fabrics. Each month, we will all sew the same pattern, and post pics on social media.

The first pattern is the Toaster Sweater #2 from Sew House Seven. I bought a black and white knit fabric from Califabrics for this, but wanted to make a quick toile to check the fit. So, I picked up a very large man’s shirt at Goodwill ($3).

I knew I wouldn’t be able to get long sleeves out of this shirt, but figured it would give me an idea of the body size anyway.

First issue was the button front. I couldn’t cut around it, so switched it around to be on the back and just left one button on.

I was able to cut the back and front from the shirt pieces and made the sleeves as long as I could using the existing sleeve pieces.

The pattern is a pretty quick make. I think it’s going to be more flattering in my softer black and white fabric, and with the long sleeves, but I’ll wear this top – for an investment of $3, and a couple of hours, it will be a useful T-shirt alternative.

Swapping body parts

It all started when I visited a local eco fair and saw some cool shirts for sale on a soft toy booth (Indy Plush). Basic T-shirt shapes are not flattering on me, but I loved the unique prints, so I snapped one up in the largest size they had – I knew I would end up refashioning it in some way, so wanted as much fabric as possible.

The weather finally started to cool down a bit, and I realized I don’t really have any long sleeved T-shirts (I’m rarely cold enough for sweaters).

I dug out the T-shirt, popped on some inspiring music (The Fratellis), and pondered.

After a bit more rifling through the refashioning bags, I found a $3 thrifted bargain – a huge, soft man’s shirt, new, with tags.

I chopped off the sleeves off both shirts, and trimmed the grey ones to flatten the sleevehead more like the ones from the blue T. I overlocked them on, and did a topstitch around the seam.

Then I cut away the neck, and used the hem of the man’s shirt to make a contrast edge, again overlocking on and topstitching.

It’s still a sloppy shape, but will be a cosy winter top that I can throw on with jeans!

Too square, too sheer

I had a lightweight T-shirt with a logo I liked, but a shape that did nothing for me. Basic Ts are not my best friend – they just accentuate the thicker shape I’ve become in middle age 🙂
I prefer a heavy weight shirt, too, so this definitely wasn’t going to work.

 

OK, on with the music – Skinny Lister’s newest album, The Devil The Heart & The Fight, and out with my favorite piece of equipment…..a large pair of shears….

I laid down a tank I like and did a quick trace of the basic shape, cut off the T-shirt sleeves and lowered both front and back necklines. But this still didn’t solve the sheer problem, so I took a deep breath and ventured into the refashioning pile that’s threatening to topple and suffocate my family. I was trying to find a white T to cut up and make a lining.
Bingo! – I left the huge heap (to tidy up another day), because I realized I had what I needed already.

I stitched the back and front of the tank together to make one thick layer, and used fabric from my stash to make a striped back.

In the striped fabric, I cut the same basic shape, adding a little flare through the body. Then I slit up the center back almost to the neck. I twisted the middle twice and sewed the center back together again.

I stitched back and front together, finished the armholes, hemmed the bottom, and added a narrow black band at the front neckline, and I now have a tank that I’ll actually wear!

Snip it, and Rip it (rip it good!)

My last skirt for therefashioners2016 challenge at Portia Lawrie’s site , was one of those ideas that kept morphing into something else, mainly due to the amount of fabric yielded by the jeans.

 

From the beginning, I had wanted to create a plaid or check using strips of different shades of denim. So, throwing any idea of pattern cutting by the wayside, I got out a pair of my trusty old shears, and began to snip and rip. I have to say, I find a weird satisfaction in the sound of fabric ripping (probably drove my husband nuts while he was trying to hear the TV).

After snipping and ripping two pairs of thrifted jeans (a global project – 1 bought in Wales, 1 in California), I realized I wasn’t going to be able to create a piece of fabric to fit around my hips with all the seam allowances taken into account.

I rifled through my refashioning heap, and found a skinny pair (unfortunately), then took a peak in my son’s thrift store donation bag – bingo, 1 more pair!

By now, my husband had given up on TV, and I needed something to give me a kick up the bum to get going with this project…..Gogol Bordello (Pura Vida Conspiracy) – that did the trick!

I stitched a panel of stripes, and liked it, but I was still sold on plaid. So, I made another panel adding the horizontal strips – it wasn’t exactly what I wanted….hmmm, time for some thinking nutrition (strong coffee and a mini Bounty)….it morphed into a wavy plaid.

Despite the extra jeans, these 2 panels wouldn’t be big enough, so I used leftover leg pieces to make side panels – cutting and pinning till they fitted.

The top edge was finished off with a scrap of the lightest weight jeans, and I added metal buttons (from my stash) on the side, and one pocket on the back.

Nearly done, except it’s a little too short for me. I did the last few rips, and managed to get 4 panels to use as a hem border, fraying out the bottom.

That’s never going to work!

For my second attempt at a jeans refashion for Portia’s challenge –  the refashioners2016 , I grabbed 2 pairs from my $1 a pair Goodwill haul.

One pair were medium weight, with a little stretch. I really liked the other pair (Banana Republic) – lighter weight, with a texture that almost looked like a faint tartan to a pair of old eyes. They were wide leg, so even though they were smaller than I wear, the extra fabric seemed to offer up more possibilities.

I don’t know quite what I was thinking (maybe it was the vision of tartan imprinted on my brain), but I started pondering KILTS…..a totally inappropriate garment to make out of a limited amount of fabric that’s already cut into shapes and stitched together!! I guess my mind could have gone a ridiculous step further, and considered a sari..or maybe a wedding dress with a 10′ train  🙂

OK, back on planet earth…. unless I drop about 10 sizes overnight, I”d never be able to cut a kilt out of 2 pairs of jeans. So, my skirt kind of evolved – I cut front and back panels from the heavier jeans, using the outside leg seams as my CF and CB.

I saved the zip and sewed it into the back seam. I then cut 4 hip panels, shaping by eye and adjusting on my body. To save fabric, I folded and stitched a couple of narrow seams down the panels to suggest stitched down pleats.

I thought the wide leg jeans would give me a decent amount for side pleated sections, but found they had a sneaky bias seam.

I used them anyway, even though those seams caused some bulk and twisting. I unpicked the the two back pockets, stitched them together, and added them to one side. I cut fabric from the deep hem allowance to make straps for the other side, and added a couple of rings from my stash.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, it’s not exactly a kilt, but it’s definitely more useful than 2 pairs of jeans not in my size!! The finished skirt is a little twisted and stretched in places but wearable, and will definitely get a lot of use – certainly worth the whopping $2 outlay!

 

“In my former life…

…I was a pair of jeans”

So happy to be taking part in Portia’s  the refashioners2016. The challenge is to refashion jeans into other clothing/accessories.

For my first try, I grabbed a pair of my son’s jeans, rescuing them from his Goodwill donation bag. I often sneak jeans from his giveaways, and stash them away for a project. I generally prefer skirts to pants, and like the casual look of denim skirts, great to wear with flat sneakers and T-shirts ( I don’t lead a very “dressed-up” life).

I started by spreading the jeans out to see how much fabric I could get out of them – my son is an tall adult, but I am a wide adult 🙂

As I spread the jeans out, it struck me that the inside leg curve could be flipped upside down to form a side seam flare. I wanted to try something different from adding a triangle at centre front and centre back to add flare.

Two legs joined together were not going to be enough to wrap around my hips, so I kept cutting pieces, and pinning them together on myself until it fit. The only extra piece of fabric I added was a scrap from my stash to make the button strip on the left front.

When cutting the outside seams open, I saved the seam allowances, thinking they might come in handy as a trim. Sure enough, I ended up using them down the front.

I used the original waistband, but, of course slimbo son’s waist is smaller than mine, so I cut the band in half and stitched the ticket pocket at centre back to fill the gap.

As I was making it up as I went along (nothing new there), I hadn’t planned the hem finish. The skirt was a little shorter than I like so I didn’t want to turn it up, and I didn’t have enough scraps to make a border, so I just stitched a couple of lines, washed it, and frayed the hem.

Refashioners 2016 skirt

I like the way it turned out.

Thanks for the motivation, Portia, and all the other Refashioners!!

PS. I went to the Goodwill outlet and snagged 5 more pairs of jeans ($1 per pr), so more refashions to come….

Winslow Culottes

I’m a total novice with downloadable patterns – I’m an old-school pencil and dot & cross paper pattern cutter. So, when Helen of Helen’s Closet put the call out for pattern testers, I thought it was a good opportunity to step into the 21st Century!
I was very happy to be selected as a tester. I walk to work a lot and had been toying with the idea of drafting culottes – I prefer skirts to trousers, but they can be problematic, in a breeze, trying to keep up a brisk pace, taking long strides, static, etc. I don’t want to be flashing anything to the neighbourhood (perish the thought!)

Printing the pattern was not difficult – if you read the instructions, duh!
I accidentally scaled the pages, so put all the paper back in and reprinted on the other side. As it’s a straight leg shape, you don’t need to print all the pieces for the longest version, but can just extend the side seam lines. I plan to make a mid calf version in the future, and will probably just chalk the extra length directly onto the fabric.

The cutting was straightforward, and the sewing instructions good. The only issue I had was cutting a 14, when my waist size is probably a half size bigger ….I didn’t really measure, just assumed (rookie mistake), and my fusible interfacing shrunk my fabric a little.
No problem, though – an easy fix was to cut a longer band, interface it, then remeasure and trim down to my desired length. It was easy to reduce the pleats – I really only had to take out about 1/8″ from each. I hadn’t done an invisible zipper for ages (and it showed), but am now determined to keep practicing and perfect them.

I used a lightweight twill with a slight stretch – it was in my stash, and I was keen to get going without waiting to go fabric shopping. Looking at the pics, I was a little concerned I looked like a WW2 soldier in khaki, oversized shorts – but overall, I’m happy with them. They are excellent for walking…..and have pockets, yay!

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

A couple of weeks later, I visited my favourite purchase-by-the-lb fabric store and picked up a retro looking print for pair #2. I really like these – very “skirty”! Should have ironed them for the pics – sat down for a long birthday dinner in them the night before….by the way, they cover a belly full of good food pretty well!

SONY DSC

SONY DSC

I have another print lined up for a 3rd pair, too.

I think the pattern is great as it is, but I can also see the potential for other versions – hem borders, side slits, yokes, etc. It was fun to test a pattern – took some self control to read instructions, and not “wing it”, like when you create it yourself. Helen’s support was great – she set up a Facebook page with photos and videos to show how the different lengths looked. The group was fun – lots of input and variety!

All in all, this was a fun experience. If you’re not sure that culottes are your thing, Helen’s pattern is a good way to try them out – the only tricky part is the zipper, but there is plenty of help online for that. When choosing fabric, I would drape it down your body folding in some soft pleats to get an idea if it will fall well.

Thanks, Helen!

Getting legless!

  

Snagged a brand new pair of trousers at the $3 sale a few months ago. They were too big and long, but nice fabric, so went onto the “think about it for a while” shelf.

After the “while” had passed, I decided to convert them to a skirt – my preferred garment.

Frank Turner on……………..First step was to cut the bottom of the legs off to above knee-length. I sewed straight down from the bottom of the fly and the bottom of the “bottom”, then cut off the excess. I wanted to keep the zip pockets, so to size the skirt down, I cut through either side of centre front and centre back.. After pinning to fit, I sewed the panels together, and topstitched.

To add length, and some contrast, I used the bottom of the Boho no-no, stitching the tie around the hem as trim. Added a couple of buttons from the stash….done!

A Boho no-no!

A funky find at Goodwill… a long bubble skirt with a tie on one side. I loved the fabric, crinkle finish, and irregular stitching, forming little drapes. The overall vibe of the skirt was Bohemian, though, which is not a look I can pull off!

It looked too small for me, but I was delighted to find I could zip it up (as long as I don’t breathe too deeply or pig out at lunchtime).

First thing to do was get rid of some length put some music on…..Winterhead by New Cassettes.

OK, second thing to do was get rid of some length. I cut the lining and skirt apart at the hem, to lose the bubble effect, then just kept trying it on, and chopping more off the bottom. I didn’t worry about keeping the hem level, as the crinkles and stitching gave it an uneven hem anyway. I saved the border with the stripe – I’m sure I can find a project that needs that.

I overlocked both hems, and done – didn’t even hear the whole CD!

 

Black and Blue

If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know I’m hardly a tiny wee thing, and the clothes I buy at the thrift store are often too small.

But, I always try to “expand” them with a design tweak here and there.

I bought a denim skirt at Goodwill thinking I might possibly squeeze into it – OK, scratch that idea!

I thought I’d go for a contrast – after all, if I’m going to add a panel, I might as well make it obvious. I cut up the CB seam, and added in a wide strip of black denim.

The front had a slit that was a bit too revealing when sitting down, so I used a rectangle of the contrast denim, and stitched it behind the slit, making a kind of “faux” pleat. As a finishing touch, I stitched the CB belt loop back on, but horizontal, with a couple of metal buttons.

Not bad….and pretty quick!

Finding a Dress in the Men’s Department

So, I found myself having three XXL long-sleeved men’s T-shirts to play with – two rust, and one striped. I cut up one of the solid ones and made a simple tank for exercising, but still had lots of fabric to play with.

I decided to go with a dress. I used a tank I already have that I like the fit of, and made a bodice, cutting it off just below the bust – let’s accentuate the narrowest part, which is definitely not my waist. I lined it with a contrast – one of my son’s old grey T-shirts, and added ties into the V neck on the back.

For the skirt, I just had to be creative with the fabric I had. I cut the front and back rust T-shirt across at the armpit, and down the side seams to become rectangular front and back skirt panels. I cut open the sleeves, and used them “upside down” to create triangles on the sides (no side seams), adding flare to the skirt. The dress needed more length, so I added two hem borders – one using the striped shirt, just piecing it together.

Knot a Major Refashion

One of my $3 Goodwill bargains was an XL dress in a great green. I really like the print, and thought I’d cut it down to be a sundress.

Of course, in my usual haste to get chopping and sewing, I forgot to take a before picture. Here is the top and the very long, full, button-through skirt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After some trying on and pinning, I completely went off making a sundress and ditched the whole project for a couple of weeks.

One Saturday, I got the music going and pulled out the masses of skirt fabric (saving the top for a future project). I didn’t really have a specific plan, just winged it until I ended up with an elasticated waist skirt with the original pocket in one side seam, and two long points to tie at the hem on the other side.

It’s no amazing example of pattern-cutting or sewing, but is comfortable, and lightweight!

So comfortable, I made a similar one from a full skirt I bought in a vintage store.

Identity Crisis

Another $3 Goodwill find – a Target T-shirt, new with price tag ($12). Forgot to take a before pic, but found this one on Ebay.

Identity 1: T-SHIRT

I decided to make a tank, but wanted to brighten it up with contrast trim from the stash. I started off looking for fabric that would coordinate tastefully, but old habits die hard, and I pulled out a garish stripe – YES-S-S!

I cut off the sleeves, and reshaped and lowered front and back neck, and overlocked on strips of my striped fabric. Cut the threads, turned off The Paddingtons (No Mundane Options), and left the room. Done!

Identity 2: TANK

I get excited when I know I’ve got a fresh new garment waiting to be worn, so a couple of days later, I feverishly threw on my tank with a pair of shorts and looked in the mirror – what a disappointment – uninspiring and shapeless 😦

Time to get the scissors out again…….

I still liked the non-matching contrast trim, so this time, I cut off below the bust. Rifling through a lot of fabric, I found a crinkly grey knit piece. I cut rectangles for a back and front skirt, and then 2 triangles to make flared panels for the sides. Overlocked everything together, and my tank morphed into a dress.

Identity 3: DRESS

Just what I Needed

I found a great skirt at Goodwill a couple of months ago – dark brown soft linen type fabric, very full with giant pockets and an attached tie belt – sounds cool, right? Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention, it was way too small for me 😦

Undeterred by a little thing like being able to get it on, I bought it anyway – as you can tell, I didn’t iron it before the photo!

It had a CB zip, and I couldn’t add at the side seams because of those lovely pockets, so the solution had to be in the front.

Took a quick pause to put on Wishing Well by The Harrisons

I thought about using a contrasting fabric to make the waist bigger, but didn’t like that idea – if only I had some extra fabric………

…….Aha!….. that tie belt, which I didn’t really need (I could always tie a scarf round if I changed my mind).

The two belt pieces were stitched in under the belt loops on the back, so I just cut them off. Then I cut down the center front to the top of a pleat, and opened the whole pleat out, so I had excess fabric. I chopped the belt into equal length pieces and topstitched them together to make a rectangle big enough to fill the gap I’d made at the waist, and stitched it in place.

The Umpire Strikes Back!

It’s so annoying when you develop a “thing” about a style/color/pattern and don’t wear it because that “thing” sticks in your head. I bought a cute black and white vertical striped tank, put it on, and my son smiled and said “Are you going to referee a game today?” Aaarrghh…now all I can see is an umpire every time I put it on! I even tried dyeing it bright pink and black, but the fabric didn’t hold the dye. It’s now been relegated to the sleepwear division.

I still love those stripes (on other people), so when I got given a pile of unwanted clothes, I was happy, and sad, to see a striped blouse. It was a great style, with an open V-neck at the back. I tried it on, hoping I could get over my stigma, but nope!

Also, in the pile was an unworn black T-shirt. It was nice and long with a V-neck. What to do, what to do……??

OK, time for some inspiring, lighthearted music……The Wombats – A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation (LOVE the stripes, LOST the confidence to wear them, DESPERATE to make them work).

That’s when I decided I could handle being a ref from behind!

I separated the backs and fronts of each garment, keeping the blouse collar intact. Then I stitched them together. It pulls on easily because the front is jersey, so no need for buttons.

Result:      NEW TOP – 1, OLD STIGMA – 0

Easy, breezy!

Another $3 Sale at Goodwill – how I love that place! I picked up a very large blue linen mix dress – I like the basic shape and buttons on the waist, but it was somewhat sack-like

First, I shortened it to knee length, then took it in at the side seams. I had to keep it loose, because I want to be able to pull it on – no zippers! It was still a bit unflattering, though, so I used the piece I cut off to make some ties and inserted them into the side seams. I thought I was done, but it still looked kind of matronly.

Next move, drop front and back necklines, and armholes, and add some black knit trim……………now, I’m done!

 

…except for the after pic..must get on that!

“Measure Twice, Cut Once”

So, I know Measure Twice, Cut Once is the sensible way to do things, and that was our mantra when my husband and I laid Pergo flooring, but…………………….sometimes I go more along the lines of Wing It, Cut Once, Swear Many Times, Cut Again!

I’ve been on the lookout for a cardigan at Goodwill – I wanted to cut the sleeves short, and try this really cool look

http://www.creatinglaura.com/2013/05/no-sew-t-shirt-bow-sleeves.html

I am trying to do more second-hand shopping, but hadn’t found anything suitably fitted in good condition….so I ended up buying one at Target. (If it’s an excuse, I was killing time waiting for a prescription for my very sick husband).

It was on clearance for $6.88, so not too much of an investment if it doesn’t turn out as planned (like that’s ever happened, eh?).

I probably should have waited until the weekend to work on it, but I started hacking into it late on a Wednesday night. It was too tricky to unpick the sleeve head – the stitching was tiny. So, out came the scissors. I didn’t measure how much to open up the seam, and I didn’t pull up the photo on Creating Laura (oh dear, here’s the Wing It/Cut It part of the operation).

I cut some length off the sleeves and tried it on, scrunching it to simulate the middle of the bow – disaster! (Swear Many Times). I was tempted to chop off a big chunk of the sleeve head and try again, but decided not to. Since I had my scissors in hand, (Cut Again) I cut a slit down the middle of the sleeve, and used strips to edge the slit, making it a kind of keyhole feature – I prefer the word “feature” to “botch-up” 🙂

I overlocked the sleeves and armholes together again, and stitched the ribbed cuffs back on inside out so I could wear them folded them up.

Once again, an unplanned result, but at no great expense!

On second thoughts,….

When I bought the grey sweater I altered in Mixing It Up, I also got a purple and a turquoise (I think it was Buy 2, Get 1 Free).

Last year, I attacked the purple one with my shears, cutting the V-neck into a scoop neckline, and cutting off the cuffs.

I used a turquoise knit from the nightmare pile stash to finish off the neckline, and make some extra long cuffs (knuckle length). Inspired by a sweater I bought a while ago, I also added a star on the back. It was much easier than I expected – I thought the sweater would stretch, but I used some knit interfacing inside and sewed with a wide zig-zag and it was fine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, fast forward to this winter, and I realized that I’m rarely cold enough to wear a long sleeved sweater. Time to get the shears out again!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yep, definitely more useful for me!

“I would go out tonight, but I haven’t got a stitch to wear”……..YET!

So my friend invited a group of girls (I use the word ‘girls’ in the loosest sense, as we’re all rather mature) over to her house for dinner. What to wear (the eternal question)?

I’m still carrying a little Christmas weight gain, and, as she was taking the trouble to cook for us, I wanted room under the waistband for some good grub! Therefore, jeans came off the list of possibilities.

I decided to wear the denim skirt from my I’m no Goldilocks project. It’s got an elasticated waist and is very comfortable. OK, bottom half sorted out……now what?

I had a couple of hours before I needed to get ready, so I pulled out a T-shirt I got at Goodwill the week before.

I guessed it would be tight when I picked it up because it was only a medium, but I really liked the color, the double V-necks, and the sleeve shape. Sure enough, it was tight around the hips and the “keyhole” detail couldn’t be pulled very tight.

The first step was a no-brainer – chop off just under the bust.

I cut the ties off in case I wanted to use them later.

Then, I rifled through my stash hunting for some grey knit to color block with the purple. I couldn’t find any with the right amount of stretch, but discovered some lilac lightweight sweater knit I’d forgotten about. I cut a rectangle, made a tube, folded it in half and overlocked it on. Finally, I used the two ties across the back neck.

Done, in plenty of time. Now to add boots, and find a necklace.

Well, Morrisey, I found a stitch to wear, and I AM going out tonight!!

The Good, the Bad, and the Frustrating!

When my son requested an unlined coat inspired by Clint Eastwood’s duster from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, I thought I would jump on the internet and download a bunch of images.

Grrrr, not so easy……the only stills we could find were not very helpful for the details.

 Now we could have spent the afternoon, clutching the remote, doing freeze frames throughout the few scenes when he wears it. But, been there, done that, with a Star Wars-inspired project! (“Oh, damn…missed it…go back…stop…no…wait…missed it again…”)

We just decided to go ahead with the basic shape, and improvise the details. After all, it’s going to be worn on the streets in 2015, not seen on Clint in a sequel – so no continuity problems!

I bought a coat pattern to get started, as I’m not very experienced in men’s outerwear pattern-cutting. I drove home and opened the envelope, only to find it was the wrong pattern inside. What should have been a Vogue man’s overcoat pattern was a Simplicity toddler’s pull-on pants and T shirt pattern (definitely not the look my adult son was going for!)
Back to the store – I guess somebody wanted to save money and switched envelopes. Didn’t save me any money, had to use twice as much gas! Taught me a lesson, though, will never buy a pattern without checking inside first.

Got started a couple of days later. I made a rough half-coat, using some heavy cotton, and did a quick fitting. A few days later off to buy fabric – he chose a neutral color canvas, and some cool flat metal buttons (“Thank you, Mood”).

Had to clear off the junk mail end of the dining table, and put the leaf in, to lay out the pattern pieces on the fabric (why couldn’t my son want a nice cropped jacket??)

I got it put together over a few days, in bursts before and after work. The canvas was great to work with because it was totally on-grain, no twisting, really stable – the neckline didn’t stretch at all. But, this meant the sleeve heads and armholes were really unforgiving, no easing, or steaming to fit.

I was really nervous about the large welt pockets, as it’s been years since I sewed any. I put them off as long as possible, knowing that if I messed up, I would ruin the long fronts, and have to rush back to Mood for more fabric ($$$$). After a quick refresher course (thanks, nice lady on YouTube), I tackled them. Not perfect, but not too terrible.

There are a few things on the coat I would do better (I should have adjusted the shoulder line a little) but it needed to be made quickly, and he’s happy with it.