Softening Denim & A No-Sew Cold-Shoulder Top

Hello Readers. I wanted to do an experiment. I read online that you could soften denim with salt water. Was it true? (Short version - Not really, no. Don't do it.)

I found these stiff jeans at a clothes swap and it turned out that they were not very comfortable. They were young men's jeans and very heavy weight denim. I thought I could break them in and make them more comfortable. I also wanted to do something with this shirt that was making me look 5 months pregnant. I liked the stripes but the fit was awful.

  

Why shirt? Why do you hate me?

I cut them off into shorts because they were so thick and unbending to wear as pants. I figured less denim could only help.

I followed the directions I found using Google by adding salt to a gallon of water and...

soaked the shorts for a few hours. I couldn't feel any change to the fabric. I soaked the shorts longer.  And longer. After 3 days of soaking, I gave up.

The directions also said you could use your washing machine. DO NOT DO THIS! I added salt to the wash like soap and washed the shorts. My washing machine got very upset and refused to work at all. I eventually got it working again but I thought it really might be dead. The shorts didn't feel much softer to me. I can't call this salt idea a success.

DO NOT PUT SALT IN YOUR WASHER!

I wanted to make the shirt a cold shoulder top. I cut the shoulders out and used scraps of the shirt to tie at the neck and sleeve to gather the fabric.

The shirt is like a tank top with little sleeves that hang down. They look like little bows with the ties on them. I took the sides of the shirt in a little to help it fit better too.

Are the shorts softer now? Maybe, but not much, but it was not worth the fear I experienced thinking that I broke the washer. They just look like basic denim cut-offs. All I can say about them is, "Blah."
 The shirt was fun and different for summer. With the shirt resized and tucked in I don't look pregnant anymore.

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

But DO NOT put salt in your washer!

 ***Year End update-All I can say is I learned not to put salt in the washer. I ended up with plain out cut offs. I was not impressed.

The Warm Shoulder Top

Hello Readers. Let's just get right to it. You are looking at the picture below and wondering what unskilled child drew it. You are thinking, "It wasn't Chickie, was it? Wow, she can't draw at all!" You are right, I can't draw at all. I admit it.

I didn't get a photo of today's project before I did my sewing. I usually like to spread the garment out on the floor so you can see the clothing clearly. When the clothes are on the dress form or worn they can be harder to see in some ways. 

This is a cold-shoulder top. It has the shoulders and upper arms open. These are cute, stylish tops. I don't have any because as the name implies, it leaves the shoulders cold in the Winter. I hate being cold. The open shoulders let you sunburn in the Summe and I sunburn in under 5 minutes. These tops just don't work for me.

This top isn't even mine. It belongs to my friend Erin. She liked the material this shirt is made of but didn't like the open shoulders. She thought the opening could be closed and it would make a cute fluttery cap sleeve. I pinned the opening together and stitched it closed. It had a thick edge that helped stabilize the fabric as I sewed.

The pictures below show the loose fluttery sleeve and the little tuck I made at the base of the sleeve. The tuck gives room for the bust line and looks nice when worn. 

Here is a front view on my dress form, it didn't show the sleeves well so Erin tried it on. Her shoulder is now covered and comfortable. The sleeves have a casual but very feminine look.

Erin is a wonderful children's author. You can see more at her website, here.

Thanks for reading, now go make something fun for yourself.