Crop a Button-down

 Hello Readers. I am a little short so long shirts can seem really long. This green shirt was full of fun spring colors but it was so long. At least it seemed that way to me. Maybe it wasn't that short. It really needed to be shorter if I was going to wear it. Let's crop a button-down shirt. 

Before and after. 

The shirt was just too long on me but I liked those colors and stripes. 

I cut off about 8 inches of this shirt. I needed a bit of extra to turn under. 

 

I used my serger on the cut edge of the shirt. This fabric will fray pretty easily. 

 

I turned the edge under and sewed it down. 

 

I obviously had to shorten those pants. The legs were way too long. 

I hemmed the pant legs. easy-peasy. 

 

Everything is a better length for me and by that I mean everything is short! Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

 

 

Removing Patches

Hello Readers. These cargo pants looked good. They looked great. They has so many pockets. But those red patches... Why? They are so large. So red. So unnecessary. They were not the brand name. These were generic jeans from the thrift store and the red patches said, "JEANS". I didn't love the patches.

Before and after. 

Why is the red patch so big, so red, so disruptive?

 

I decided to remove the patches. I got my seam ripper and started removing the stitches a little at a time. 

 

This was a slow messy process. 

 

It was messy but it wasn't difficult or complicated.
 

Removing all this red stitching took quite a while. This red lint was everywhere. But I finally finished.

 

I was really happy to have the patches gone and to have some plain black pants with so many pockets. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.
 

 

 

Men's Tie to Headband

 Hello Readers. I made a fun head band to match my purple pants. Let me show you how easy it was. All you will need is a plastic headband, a man's necktie, glue, and scissors. You might have all those items sitting around your house right now.

Necktie to headband.

 

I found these fabulous purple corduroy pants at a thrift store. I could not resist the fun color. And they were only 50 cents. 

 

I wanted something to match that wonderful purple color. I had this tie and I guess I could have worn it around my neck but that just doesn't seem comfortable. (My heart goes out to all the men who have to wear a tie for work. It seems awful.) I decided to use the tie to make something else.

 

I wanted to make a headband so I used one of these plastic headbands as my base. These were really inexpensive but the colors were very neutral and very ho-hum. That was OK because I was going to cover the headband anyway. Use any narrow headband you have on-hand.

 

Neckties come in every color and design imaginable so there is always something you can coordinate with. Raid a man's closet and steal a tie, he won't mind. I wanted to use only the narrow side of the tie. I held them together just to see how much tie I needed to fully cover the headband.
 

I cut off some of the excess to get it out of the way. It would make it easier to work with. I made sure there was about an inch of extra tie hanging over the edge of the headband. I just wanted a bit of extra tie to ensure the plastic headband won't show at all when I am done. Don't worry about that cut edge. I will fix that in a minute.

I got out my trusty glue gun. (Be careful. It is so hot. It will burn your fingers if you get hot glue on them.) The back of the tie had a seam that was directly in the center. That seem was a guide as to where I will  my glue. 

I started gluing the finished end of the tie to the headband. The end of the tie that had the small triangular end was a good place to start gluing.

I added small squirts of glue on the tie and pressed the headband into the glue while it set. I kept adding glue and holding the headband to the glue along the headband. 

When I got to the cut end of the tie, I wanted hide the cut edge. I squirted some glue into the middle of the tie and tucked the edges into the middle of the tie. The glue would hold the cut edges inside the tie and keep the cut edge from fraying and falling apart.

The tie looked really nice and smooth over the top of the headband. The plastic is hidden well and all that is visible is the beautiful silk fabric of the tie. 

I liked the pop of bright purple that coordinates with the purple color of the corduroy pants. It keeps my hair in place too. That is always a plus. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

 

 

 

Add More Coverage

 Hello Readers. Sometimes I find fun items at a thrift store but they don't always fit my style exactly. This sparkly sequin top was like that. I like sparkle and shine as much as anyone. But, these thin straps were a bit too narrow and the v-neck was a bit revealing for me. (Like what bra would I wear with this???) I had an idea to fix this problem. And there is NO SEWING NEEDED!

 Before and after. 

 I know this is a spaghetti strap top but spaghetti straps don't suit me very well. I wouldn't want to wear it by itself. (If you want to wear it alone go for it. It is cute, it's just not for me.You should wear what you like.)

 

What if we pretend it is more like a vest. Like a sweater vest. It could be worn on top of something else to add more coverage. It could go on top of this black blouse. The blouse has a bit of sheen and is a bit dressy already. It would be a really fun match to the sequin top. 

Wearing the sequin top over the blouse is just as dressy but I can wear a regular bra with it. (Yay!) And it is better for chilly weather as well. I want to dress up, be sparkly, and be warm enough too.

I tried this idea with this cream colored sequin top too. (Similar here.) It was a gorgeous little top but it was also cropped and would probably reveal too much stomach for me. (I have 3 kids, my stretched out belly button is my own business.)

 

 I could put the sequin top over a dressy button-down top like this. It was in a similar color to the sequin top. It would add coverage without losing or hiding the sparkle of this fun sequin top. (Similar button-down here.)

 

 I really liked these two tops layered together. I would love to wear this combo to a party, dinner date, grocery store, wherever. Of course, everyone can wear what they like so use this idea if and when it works for you. Thanks for reading along, now go wear something fun.

A Shirt Sleeve Refashion

 Hello Readers. I liked the colors of this black and tan outfit. But it did not fit well at all. Let's rework this outfit from top to bottom and make something better.

Before and after.

 

The shirt was too long, the sleeves had weird cuffs that were too tight, the pants were too long... Let's go.

 

I started by cutting the sleeves. I angled my cut towards the shirt. This sleeve is really full and as a short sleeve it will be ruffled and cute. This also removes the long cuffs that were tight on me. Do I have big arms? I don't know, but this will fix the problem and look cute.

 

 I used my serger on the cut edge then I went to the sewing machine, turned the edge under once and stitched it down.

 

I cut the shirt shorter in length. It was very long on me and I knew I wanted to tuck it in. The original length was a little too much to tuck.

 

I used my serger on the cut edge again, turned the edge under and stitched it down with my sewing machine. 

 

The shirt had a new shape now. I liked the fluttery sleeves a lot. The weather will get warmer soon so short sleeves will be great. 

 

These khaki pants were also great but the legs were a bit too long. (#shortgirlproblems)

 

I cut off a couple inches from the pant legs. 

 

I made a new hem and the pants were done.
 

My whole black and tan outfit came together nicely. It has been really rainy here so this was perfect with my raincoat from last time. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dress to Raincoat

 Hello Readers. I found a very unusual dress at a clothes swap. It was made of plastic. Yes. It was plastic. Well, faux leather, I guess. But Faux leather is... basically plastic. It looked a little like a graduation gown. A plastic graduation gown? I brought it home because it was so unique. 

Before and after.

 

This dress had pockets too. I always like having pockets. I have important things to carry.

 

I turned the dress around and tried it on backwards. The neckline was more open and had cute little buttons. I could have worn it like this but I really wanted to make a raincoat. This "plastic" dress would make a great raincoat/jacket. The back of this dress will be the front of my raincoat.

 

I folded the dress in half and spread it flat on its side. I wanted to find the exact center of the front of the dress.
 

I cut the dress open in the back, which will end up being the new front. I needed to make it into a jacket that could open and close.

 

I got a long zipper to open and close the raincoat. This was a 24" separating zipper. It will split in 2 pieces instead of being connected at the bottom. It also had brass teeth which will be stronger than plastic. 

 

I wanted the cut edges I made to be strong so I ran it through my serger. It was not fraying at all but I thought it couldn't hurt to do this. A zigzag stitch along the edges with a sewing machine would also work for this.
 

I sewed the zipper to the front. I sewed one side of the jacket opening and one piece of the zipper at a time. I used my sewing machine to attach the zipper. I sewed the zipper to the coat with the teeth facing out. Then.....

 

I folded the zipper under once and sewed the edge down again. This will make a clean look. I sewed the other side of the zipper the same way. 

 

With the zipper sewn in I now had a jacket that could open and close. I also wanted to add some kind of a belt to give it a little shape.

 

I wasn't sure what to use to make this belt so I settled on this grosgrain ribbon. The ribbon seemed like a pretty addition. 

 

I sewed the ribbon into the side seams of the coat. I sewed one piece across the back and 2 pieces that would wrap around the front and tie in a bow.

 

 I didn't have belt loops to hold the ribbon so I sewed the ends of the ribbon into the side seam. I had to open the side seams with a seam ripper. I unpicked the stitches right above the pockets. I slipped the ends of the ribbons into the opening I made, lined up the edges of the jacket and the edges of the ribbon and sewed the sides back together with the ribbon.

 

I thought the belt added a nice touch. The black on black worked out well.

 

I could also tie the belt in back to keep it out of the way. 

This new jacket is light-weight which is great because it is getting warmer out there. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.