An Over-All Disaster

Hello Readers. Prepare yourself for a sad, messy, failure of a refashion. Things don't always go as planned in sewing. That's life, right?

This dress had a lot of potential. I had an idea in my head for short over-alls. (Shorter-alls?) The top was already the right shape and the zipper would be perfect for getting the over-alls on and off. Sadly, it was not meant to be.

I started by cutting the top off,  just under the zipper. I planned to turn the skirt into shorts and then reconnect them. It seemed easy and I thought it would all go well. It did not all go well.

It is hard to believe but I used a pattern to cut these shorts out. As soon as I cut them I realized they were too small. I folded the pattern wrong and cut out super small shorts. I thought I could fix the shorts so I didn't panic yet.

I guess you could say I "fixed" the shorts by adding the cute yellow floral fabric at the sides. Unfortunately, the shorts were still too tight. I hated the yellow fabric, and it wasn't cute at all.

 I hate these over-alls. I will never wear them. This was a total failure.

I decided to save the top, maybe I can use it in the future. The shorts are beyond saving. That's it for now folks.

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

 *Year end update-This was the worst of the worst. It's just awful. I can't even look at it.

The Pleated Dress Skirt

Hello Readers. My last post was about a skirt that became a dress. Today's post is about a dress that became a skirt.

I really liked this pleated dress. It had great spring colors that I loved, but the bodice was too small/too tight/ too low for me. (No photos, just take my word for it.) I decided to make the dress into a skirt and wear it with the navy blue shirt you see here. The navy shirt was a little big but I could fix that. It seemed to match perfectly.

I started working on the navy blue shirt first. It was cute and I could wear it with other things. It just needed to be a little smaller. I took in the sides and took a little fabric from each shoulder. That raised the neckline a little, so it fit better and was not so low cut.

I cut the dress off about an inch above the elastic waistband. I folded the fabric under and used a zigzag stitch to keep the waistband stretchy. (Elastic waist = comfort.)

I liked the navy shirt with the skirt. I wasn't sure how I felt about the pink belt that came with the dress. The belt just seemed like too much. What do you think?

I thought the skirt and shirt were great by themselves.And I was right about that elastic waist, it is very comfy.

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

 *Year end update-I loved this skirt and the colors and the whole outfit. I think I gave it to my daughter.

The Maxi Skirt Dress

Hello Readers. I love warm weather when I can wear comfortable sundresses. An easy way to make a great sundress is to refashion a maxi-skirt.

Maxi-skirts never fit me correctly because I am very short. I like them because they give you so much knit fabric to work with. I could have just shortened the skirt into a shorter skirt but, let's make a dress.

The first thing I did was cut off the finished hem at the bottom. I made sure to cut off the complete seam with all its stitching and I saved it for later.

I made a new hem at the length I wanted. It is nice to refashion your own dress because you can choose the length you want. It could be a mini dress or it could be below the knee. You're in charge!

Now back to that cut off hem from earlier. I used that to make some straps and the leftover piece made a great little belt to tie around the waist. It gave the dress some shape.

The finished dress was so comfortable. I know not everyone likes spaghetti straps and it is easy to cover my shoulders with a little cardigan.

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

  *Year end update-This was a great summer dress. Perfect for a hot day when I had to look like I made an effort to dress up but I didn't really want to.

The Boring Brown Shirt

Hello Readers. I try to save all my sewing scraps when I refashion. Today's post is about a shirt that started as the top of a boring brown dress.

Here is the scrap piece I had left after a refashion. It is basically a loose flowy tank top. It is very soft silk, which is why I have been saving it for so long. Everyone loves silk, right?

I used the bottom of this brown dress in another refashion project and the top of it has been waiting to be used for something. (Yes, that is my actual lazy dog. He did nothing but nap while I was sewing.)

I didn't want to turn the cut edge under because it would make this little brown tank a little too cropped for me. (My belly-button is my business.) I decided to use some light brown bias tape to finish the bottom of this shirt. The golden bias tape would add a little extra color to this plain brown tank.

Here is the finished shirt. The bias tape was also silk so the weight of the fabrics was a nice match. This will be a great summer shirt because it is sleeveless and the silk will breathe really well in the heat. The summer heat and humidity are coming, it seems far away but it will be here before you know it.

 I needed a sweater to stay warm while wearing this top today. The length turned out right at hip level. That was great because I wanted it long enough to cover my tummy even if I raised my arms.

 The original refashion was a couple years ago. It was called "The Boring Brown Dress", you can see it here.

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

  *Year end update-This was great in the summer heat. It looks a little dressy but the silk is so comfortable in hot weather.

The Ribbon Candy Shirt

Hello Readers. Button down shirts are always great to refashion. There are so many possibilities. 

 Do you remember ribbon candy? That is what this shirt made me think of. Beautiful ribbon candy that was too pretty to eat but of course I ate it. It was candy. 

My mom handed this shirt down to me. (Thanks Mom!) It looked so fresh and perfect for spring. It was super cute and in great shape. It did not fit very well though.

I started by taking in the sides a bit and removing the sleeves completely. 

I cut the sleeves into pieces so I could make a little belt. I wanted to cinch in the waist a little.

I liked it but the shirt seemed a little long for this skirt. I gave it a cut and a new hem and it was ready to go.

What should I wear with it? I thought this skirt was perfect. My daughter handed it down to me. It was too short on her. (She is taller than I am.) I took it and decided to play with it. It was a little big but it had a side zipper. I couldn't take the side seams in without taking the whole zipper out. Could I just take some excess fabric out from the back? Would the skirt still be shaped properly if I did some kind of new back seam?

I did it. It sounds crazy and a little lazy but I wanted to see if it was possible. It worked so well! I stitched straight down the back of the skirt. I pressed the new seam and it was ready to go. Lots of skirts have a back seam so I don't think anyone will ever know I altered it. Unless they read this.......

My bright candy colored outfit was ready for spring and it was 34 degrees outside. C'mon Spring!

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

  *Year end update-I still like this combo and it is great for a little dressy summer look.

The Denim Do-Over

Hello Readers. I had a great denim shirt. It was from a nice lady. (Thanks Jessica P.) I loved the shirt but the sleeves? Ugh, way too long!

The sleeves were SO long. The body of the shirt fit fairly well, the shirt and white buttons were in great shape, and it had a soft broken in denim feel to it. It would go with everything, if I could fix the sleeves.

I decided to make the sleeves much shorter. I cut the sleeves off and finished the cut edge. Then I pulled the fabric together and made a little box pleat. I stitched it together by hand and added a coordinating button.

I also had a knit skirt that fit great, was comfortable, and I really liked. It had a cool gathered detail on one side too.

Here was the problem. It got hit with some white paint or an iron. I am not sure what happened. I cut off the damaged section at the bottom of the skirt and gave it a new hem. 

That is it for today! Small changes made a big difference.

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

 *Year end update-I don''t think I ever wore these together again. The shirt matches everything.