Upcycle Before You Toss It!

In the spirit of being economical, frugal, cheap, responsible, what have you, I like to carefully examine every garment before I throw it out or thrift it, for refashion possibilities. I found two such items in my closet the other day. One was a previous refash, the other a semi formal I'd only worn twice. I searched high and low for the original picture of this first one and concluded that I either deleted it, or never took it, it was a dress that I turned into a maxi skirt, pictured here.

Really not super exciting to me, although it feels nice. It's a bit heavier fabric than what is usually used for maxis. I wore it once, it's just not me. I thought about passing it on to someone else or the the thrift store, but thought I should remake it again to give it a face lift. Here's what happened.

Much more better! It's still subtle, but more chic. It can be played up a bit with a colorful belt or jewelry that pops if I want. It's quite comfortable. Still not my favorite outfit, but I can hang on to it a bit longer now. :)

My second refash is a bit more exciting, a bit more me.

Original:

This wasn't a thrift store find, I'm almost positive I got it from Papaya a couple years ago on clearance for $10, which is still a decent price for a, what is this, semi formal? More of a clubbing dress, but anyway.. I wore it to my brother's rehearsal dinner, and maybe one or two more times. I don't party, so it was kinda just taking up space in my closet. The lace around the sleeves was starting to die, so I thought I'd try a little summin summin on it. Here's what happened. 

I chopped it. That's it. No sewing, nothing, just a chop.

Much, much more better!!! I love it!!! I don't know if I'm finished with it, I may have to sew the two layers together because the lace wants to ride up and leave the bottom layer behind.. not the end of the world, but I'm uncertain how I will be able to put it on if I sew them together.. For now, I'll leave it. I really, really love this one!

What Took Me So Long? Simplest Refashion Ever.

Well I have had this pretty thing in my refash stash for at least a year. I had hoped to make some kind of Regency era inspired costume out of it, but it really wasn't long enough, and after the last refash I did with a very similar lacy gown, I knew just what to do!!

Really there were several possibilities, but all I ended up doing was removing the sleeves and of course the shoulder pads. The sleeves weren't that bad after the shoulder pads were gone, but I tucked them in to see what it looked like sleeveless, and loved it! It suits spring/summer better anyway.

Very elegant and streamlined. I will get a longer slip to go underneath it, but that's it! Btw, those shoes were originally $40, and I got them for $5!!!! Win!!!!!

The good thing about the buttons is that I could unbutton most of them and pair this with a cami and pants, that seems to be a new look that can work (but only with the right combination of color and such.) I like versatility, especially when the original garment is so inexpensive! This was $5 or less, I don't remember exactly...

Lacy Green to Vintage Theme

Back again!! It's been ages! Hubs and I are planning to relocate to ATL!!! I'm so excited! It's becoming the Hollywood of the Southeast, and hopefully this will further my acting career significantly. In the meantime, I was busy and unmotivated for refashions, then suddenly did three! Here's the first one, which I'm most excited about!

I actually found a dollar per pound thrift store, and while you have to dig for buried treasure, sometimes your labor is fruitful!

It's much uglier on the hanger. Size 18, with corset ties in the back, which I really like. I didn't straight up love the color, but thought it might be much nicer once I finished it. I actually had a moment of buyer's remorse later in the day, but shrugged it off. Once I got home to look at it, I felt very inspired. I took off the buttons and sewed up the front, much in the same way that I did with the red dress for the premiere ball gown a few months back. Then I removed the shoulder pads and sleeves. Much more better already! I took in the sides from the bottom of the sleeve down to the waist, and left it at that to see how it looked. Since the dress was too big for me, there was a chance the fabric would flare out a bit and give me a more defined waist. It worked rather well too. Last thing was to fix that neckline. I cut straight down the back of the gown about an inch, also an inch on both sides of the shoulders, folded it all under and sewed. I had to do that twice before I was satisfied with the look. That seemed to finish it all very nicely. It is very much see through, so I put a black slip and tank top underneath it. And voila!!

Very nice I think! I plan to find a poofy skirt to add underneath it a la 50's cocktail dress, for more formal events, but I really love the look of this! Black gloves and pearls, ya feel me? But this will do for the picture.. (can't wait for post Halloween sales, omg!)

I still think it needs a leeeetle something, maybe black lace at the collar? But the joy of refashions is how much you get to play with an outfit! And this is just un-costumey enough for church or something.