Paper Bag Waist Shorts

 Hello Readers. I had a vacation t-shirt to refashion and I wanted a new pair of shorts with a paper bag style waist. I had all the materials and supplies I needed thanks to my mom and a friend. (Thanks Mom! Thanks Sue!) They gave me a these hand-me-downs. 

I started with this souvenir t-shirt. White shirts are always easy to wear with anything. Let's make this one less souvenir and more dressy. 

I cut the graphic out of the shirt. I like to cut out the parts I want to remove out of a garment first so I can really see what is left.

I stitched that opening back together and gathered the fabric a little while I stitched. 

I liked the shape of the shirt in general but it did not look very good yet. That's OK, we are not done,  trust the process. 

I added some narrow trim on top of the seam I had made. It really helped dress up the shirt and cover the rough seam I had sewn. I also cut the neck band off because I like how the open neckline looks. It feels more comfortable to me as well. 

I decided to cut the sleeves shorter to remove the end. Then, I cut the sleeve straight across the top and tied a knot. It made the sleeve more interesting.

What will I wear with my new shirt? Some new shorts! My mom gave me these elastic denim jeans. They did not look good on me at all. I was going to donate them but then I had an idea. 

I added a grosgrain ribbon as a belt. I stitched it to the jeans in the back and on the sides so it would stay in place. I cut the jeans off to make shorts. 

The jeans were roomy enough that I could tie the ribbon belt closed in the front and it made a paper-bag waist. The denim has enough stretch to pull the shorts on and off. 

My outfit was finished and I was ready to celebrate my anniversary.

Over 30 years ago my mom went out of town and I had a small party at my house. (Yes, I was a bad kid.) I invited this guy to the party. 6 years later we go married. We look like children but I swear it was all legal.

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

***Chickie's Year End Review-I really liked this outfit. It will be out again in the summer. The husband is still around too. ;)

5 T-shirt Dresses

 Hello Readers. My sister-in-law was super nice and gave me 5 t-shirt dresses. That's right. 5! She said I could wear them or refashion them. I loved them but they were a little long and a bit tight in the bum. So, I got to work refashioning. 

This was so much fun because I could try so many different ideas. The dresses were all exactly the same size but the colors were all different. 

I will show you what I did with these dresses. I wanted some pajamas/lounge wear and t-shirts.  I  used leggings that I already had as a pattern. I cut some stretchy shorts out of the blue dress and the gray dress as well. The hem of the dress became the hem of the shorts. I folded the waist down and it was the waistband. No elastic needed.

I was able to make them into shorts in no time. I like these because I can wear them for pajamas and They are tight enough that they do not shift around and get bunched up. And I can wear them under dresses and skirts. (Have you ever worn a wrap dress on a breezy day? Has the wind ever blown that wrap skirt straight up in the air showing God and e'rybody your bum and more? Did it happen at a church? Did you sell your house, leave the church and move out of state? Yes, me too. OK, we were planning to move anyway but I was so happy about it after that.)

Let's take a look at the other 3 dresses. I also cut them into shirts. They just made great t-shirts and I didn't want to give them up. What did I do with the bottom of those dresses? I simply cut them into a shirt length. This idea is easy, there is no sewing involved. I used a shirt I liked to get the right length. T-shirt material does not fray. You do not have to finish or hem the bottom of the shirt if you don't want to. 

I rolled the extra material up and I had an instant infinity scarf. It might be hot today but cooler weather is coming.

I liked this idea so much that I did it with this red and black dress too. 

And one more time! Seriously, I just cut them and I was done. I have worn and machine-washed all of these new shirts and scarves. They never fray.

This one is my favorite. I love the yellow and orange together. The colors are going to be fun in fall too.

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

***Chickie's Year End Review-All of these pieces are living their best life. I like and wear all of these items.

Capri's To Shorts

 Hello Readers. I have been having fun with a big pile of hand-me-downs that I was given. I have been trying to make them work for me. Refashioning is always a lot of fun and it's a great way to get a wardrobe that is really personalized and suits me.

Lots of women like Capri pants in the summer. But they do not like me. They make me look very short in the legs and just short all over. I am short but these Capri Pants just emphasize all the wrong things. I look like a Hobbit delivering a ring. I could get upset about my Hobbit legs or I can make these Capri pants work for me.

I knew these Capri pants would suit me much better as shorts. I cut them off, hemmed them and made the waist a bit more fitted. This was a fast and easy sewing project.

So what about this dress? It was a little tight around the hips and in the bum. This photo is awkwardly edited because I took a weird picture but the dress looked pretty much like this.

I decided to shorten this dress into a shirt. It was a perfect fitted style t-shirt. I can be rough on my clothes so a fresh new t-shirt is always a good idea.

I was done sewing and I had a fun casual outfit ready to go. 

Thanks for reading along, next time I am going to show you more details about this dress. I had this blue t-shirt dress and 4 more like it to refashion in different ways. See you next time.

*If you have been following along with my 2021project to refashion for free all year, the year is 2/3 over and so far I am making it! I have not bought anything but needles and thread. And...well, a serger.*

***Chickie's Year End Review-I still think Capri pants are the worst thing I could wear. They look awful on me. Shorts are a better choice.

The Crazy Low-Cut Dress

 Hello Readers. My last post was about an ultra-marine dress and this post is too. I really love this color! This dress was 100% silk. I knew I wanted to try and make it into something, I just was not sure what. 

This dress was so pretty but it was the lowest cut dress I have ever had in my life. It was crazy low. It was also completely back less.

 

 I did not even know what to do with all this lack of dress. The fabric was thin and there was no way to wear a bra for some extra coverage. What would my 49 year old mom-of-3 body going to do with this dress? It would not be good that's for sure. 

So... I decided to make a top I could wear with a normal mom bra. (That's who I am. Normal. Simple. Vanilla. It's fine. I'm at peace with it.) This beautiful silk would be sure to make a pretty top. I cut the halter top off the skirt. I was going to use the skirt piece to make a new shirt. (I will get to that halter later.)

I wanted to keep that ruffle at the hem so I cut the skirt of this dress into a loose flowy top with wide shoulder straps. There was not enough fabric to make sleeves. That was OK. Sleeveless silk would be great for summer. I went over the edges with a tiny zigzag stitch to reinforce the ruffle.

The only complicated part was cutting this silk because it was so slippery. I had to cut the lining and the outer layer. Neither layer was cooperative and I may have called it names.

I connected the 2 layers around the neckline and around the armholes. This gave the shirt finished edges all around. Then I connected the shoulders. There was a lot of turning it inside out and then right-side out, back and forth to do the sewing from the inside. 

It was like 2 shirts really. It came together well and I liked how it turned out. It had a nice shorter modern length that was long enough to cover my stomach. And it was so soft and light.

 This top was pretty but I could dress it down with jeans and flats and wear it casually. 

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. And if you are wondering about that halter part of the dress, we will get to that project very soon. 

***Chickie's Year End Review-This silk shirt is a favorite. It feels so good to wear and it so light in summer.

Dressy & Casual

 Hello Readers. I love this ultra marine color. I always want the clothes I see in this color. When I saw this dress I thought for sure I could make something I liked with it. 

When I tried this dress on at home I thought it fit well but it was just too long on me. I didn't think this dress needed a huge change to be great. Look at the satin ribbon belt and the cute collar and buttons. This dress was great.

I wanted to cut off 5-6 inches. 

I used my serger to stitch the edge of my new shorter skirt. Then I turned the edge under and stitched it down with my sewing machine. I did not want to turn the edge under twice and stitch it down because I thought it would make a heavy, bulky hem. I thought a lighter weight hem would look better.

You can see how much shorter the dress is now. 

I liked this dress so much. It was dressy but still comfortable. 

But what if I want to be casual? This dress can do that too. I put on a white t-shirt and knotted it in the front. I tucked the knot under.

It's perfect for a movie. I went to see the new Black Widow movie. How long has it been since I have been IN a theater? I can't even remember. Why did I bring that big purse? It might have sushi, brownies and an adult beverage in it. Shhh.... don't tell anyone.

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

***Chickie's Year End Review-I still have this dress and I still like it an think it has a great retro vibe to it.