Replace the Back of a Denim Jacket

 Hello Readers. This white denim jacket seemed perfect. It was soft and broken in a bit. It was the right size and it was a bargain at a neighbors yard sale. My friend E bought it and took it home and realized it had 2 large unicorns on it. The unicorns were attached with all the power of the universe it seemed. She was not loving the unicorns so... let's fix that by replacing the back of the jacket. 

Old jacket-new back panel.

Someone decorated this jacket with a couple unicorn patches and they were the most secure patches I have ever seen in my sewing career. I thought I could just remove them but I was wrong.

 

I worked on removing these patches for a while and it wasn't going well at all. There was some kind of adhesive as well as stitching and I could not remove it. 

 

After a while I had to give up. I moved on to Plan B because this was messy and sloppy looking. I never like to give up so if things don't work out the first time, there is always a Plan B.

 

 I decided to cut the back of the jacket out. I cut out the three back panels and shoulder/neck panel. You can see my cutting expertise here. I used my sharp scissors to get a clean cut edge. I cut out the fabric inside the seams, leaving the seams in place to keep the structure of the jacket intact.

 

This fabric was in my stash and it was very close to the weight and feel of the white denim. I pressed it nice and flat with a hot iron. I wanted it to be a smooth as possible before I cut it. 

 

I used the piece I cut of the jacket to cut out a new jacket back. I cut around the white denim piece and added about 1/4 inch all around the piece. That would give me enough room to sew it to the jacket. I did not want a big seam allowance because I didn't want to change the size of the jacket at all. 

 

Now I had a piece of the new fabric that was exact shape of the old back of the jacket. I could sew it into the jacket and it would fit right in. 

 

I used my serger to sew all the way around the piece to prevent fraying. If you do not have a serger that is OK. People sewed without sergers for decades. I also sewed without a serger for decades, you can too. Use a zigzag stitch on the edges to prevent the edges from fraying. It will work out just fine. 

 

I pinned the new piece into the jacket. You can see the blue pins here. This would hep keep everything in place while I sewed. 

 

I pinned all around the new piece for the jacket. I did stab myself with a pin, but I persevered.

 

I stitched the edges all around to sew it into the jacket. I tucked the new piece inside the opening I cut from the jacket and sewed right on the edge of the jacket seam with a small zigzag stitch to cover the cut edge of the jacket. It was easy to use the edge of the jacket as a guide for where my stitches should be. 

 

I stitched on the outside of the jacket so I could see where the edges of the jacket and the new back piece overlapped. I wanted to make sure the new piece was tucked into the jacket neatly.

 

The piece I cut out fit into the jacket well. The jacket came together quickly and easily. I liked how the new fabric looked too. 

 

I tried to make the design of the fabric well centered in the jacket, you might not have a design or pattern in your fabric to worry about, a solid block of contrasting color would be fun too. Use whatever fabric you like. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

A Skirt From a Jacket

  Hello Readers. I liked the fabric of this little jacket. I just didn't like it as a jacket that much. I decided to make a skirt. 

Before and after.

I cut the sleeves and shoulders off the jacket. I am going to flip this upside down and it will be the basis of my skirt. 

I cut the sleeves into strips so I could add a ruffle to the hemline. They will add some length to my skirt. 

I sewed one long strip of fabric together. I need to sew this on the hem of my skirt. I also need to gather it into a ruffle. 

 

I used clips to space out the fabric along the hem. 

 

It turned into a cute miniskirt. I liked the fabric as a skirt a lot. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Year End Update***- This skirt is a bit short but its super cute. 

 

 

 

 

Dramatic Jacket

 Hello Readers. I saw this jacket from Mood Fabrics. It was so fun and cool and dramatic. Then I thought some more.... I had clothes that I could use to make that jacket easily. 

The inspiration is on the left and my imitation is on the right. Mood is an amazing fabric store but they also share patterns and ideas. They are a great sewing follow.

This cropped jacket was a refashion from last June. 

This dress was a refashion from last summer too. 

I cut the sheer layer from the dress. It is tulle and doesn't fray so it is easy to cut off and work with. I cut it open along one seam so I could spread it out on my sewing table.

 

I sewed the tulle to the hem of the jacket. 

 

I decided to add some trim just for fun. It would add to the drama right?

 

The tulle is so fun. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Year End Update***- I love this jacket and it was so fun to put together.

 

 

 

 

 

Travel Refashion #9

   Hello Readers. I am going on a trip to England and I decided to coordinate my travel wardrobe. I am packing all new refashion projects and I will be posting about my journey and my outfit of the day along the way. This post is about a fun yellow blazer. 

Before and after.

This blazer is missing a couple buttons from the front. Otherwise it is fin. It isn't exciting but it is fine. 

I decided to crop this jacket. I cut the jacket a couple inches under the bottom button. I thought this length would be more fun.

I used my serger on the cut edge and ironed it in place.

 

 I added some easy to attach buttons to hold it closed.

These just pin in place, no sewing needed.

I think this cropped jacket will be great for layering with all the blue and yellow clothes I have been making. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

***Follow up review***

My trip was so much fun.- This jacket was perfect for everyday. It was cool in the morning and evening so it was a great light layer to add on. 

***Year End Update- This jacket was great as a light layer and the color was great for summer.

A Quilted Bomber Jacket

 Hello Readers. I made a bomber jacket from what I would call a "Grandma in Boca Raton" jacket. (If you have ever lived in south Florida, you know what I am saying!) Anyway. This jacket was light weight and I like the blue and white color scheme. And the quilting looked really good.

  Bomber jacket.

I forgot to take a before picture! What was I thinking??? This little jacket had no front closures, no pockets, no waistband, and no cuffs. I thought that would make it easy to transform this jacket because there was nothing in my way. Look at the quilting, it was nicely done.

I accidentally bought one gigantic piece of navy blue ribbing and I had to cut strips and make my own cuffs, waistband and collar. This is the collar piece right here. Measuring, cutting and ironing it myself took extra time but it wasn't difficult. 

I stitched the waistband on first. I think the navy blue color makes those big flowers really pop.

The next step was to add the wrist cuffs. 

I cut the original collar off and added the new navy blue collar piece. 

When I added all these pieces I used my serger so that it would keep the ribbing from fraying all over the place. It was a mess and there is navy blue lint all over my sewing room. Was this easy to sew using the serger? No. Was it a pain in the &$$%? Yes. The thread kept breaking and I had to re-thread the serger at least a dozen times. The needles broke a few times too. I do not know why this was so difficult to sew through. I even stopped to oil the whole machine. I got it done but the inside seams are not my best and I am never doing this again!

The last step was the zipper. I waited for this to arrive from Amazon because I really wanted a navy blue zipper to go with the navy blue ribbing I had already added to the jacket. The zipper wasn't that easy to sew on either. I was using a different sewing machine and a straight stitch at this point. My needle broke and it was difficult to get my bobbin tension correct. I still don't know why it was giving me so much trouble. Maybe the fluff of the jacket was unusually tough to sew through? I have no idea. I got the zipper in and top stitched every seam so they would lay as flat and smooth as possible. 

I really did like how it looked though. It is just a smidge big on me but that was perfect because it was actually for my daughter. She is taller than I am so this jacket will be a great length on her. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Year End Update- My daughter still likes and wears this jacket and is glad I made it for her.

Mother of the Bride Part 2

 Hello Readers. I am starting 2023 off with a mix of refashions that have caught my imagination. Today is a post about what was left from a December refashion. This was a mother-of-the-bride dress from David's Bridal. I loved the sage green but it was kind of matronly and boxy and much too long. 

Before and after I shortened the dress. I altered the jacket and wore it separately. 

Let's focus on the jacket. It was so pretty. The beading was gorgeous. The sleeves were an unflattering length that I could not push up. The jacket also had no fasteners so it had to stay open. The fabric was stiff and it gave the jacket a boxy cube shape. The size was right, maybe I could change the shape a bit. 

 

This was my inspiration, although my jacket doesn't look like this. The elastic at the sleeves and the matching tank/cami under the shirt are what started today's whole refashion idea.
 

I wanted to ad elastic to the cuffs so I could push the sleeves up. It would look better and make the jacket look less formal. I used beige elastic that blended with my skin tone so it wouldn't show. 

I used my sewing machine to connect the two ends of the elastic. It could also be sewn by hand. The elastic just needs to be connected into a loop.

I thought I might want to close the jacket so I added one of these tiny snaps. 

I had to sew this on by hand. I hate hand sewing but you gotta do what you gotta do. 

The jacket can stay closed now but it does hide some of the beading.

I like the jacket open and I wore it with a matching tank. It is sort of a blouse-jacket. The pushed up sleeves change the look for the better.Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

 

***Year End Update- To be honest I have not worn this jacket again. I still like it, I just haven't worn it.