1. Who are you and where are you from?
My name is Dana. I’m a 32 year old stay-at-home mom with too many interests and too little time but enjoy what I can each day.
I grew up in Orange County, California in a family of 6 kids and loved it.
After finishing college I moved Los Angeles where I met my fabulous
husband. We’ve been married for 4 years, we have two sweet kids, and
we love our city of Pasadena, CA.
2. Why did you choose to start refashioning?
Looking back, it seems like a no-brainer, like I should have been refashioning for years:
A – I’m a cheap/frugal/thrift-finding/
B – Piles of potential “fix-up” projects had been taking over my bedroom drawers, just waiting for me to tackle them.
Whether I lacked the creative vision or the time to sit down and sew, it wasn’t until a friend told me about Wardrobe Refashion that it all came together for me. I fell in love with your site and immediately took the 2 month challenge. Refashioning completely changed my way of thinking. I started sewing more, shopping less, and with each project I gained more confidence. Now when I’m out shopping I look at clothing and think, I could totally make that! I’m not buying it! (pathetic that it’s often a kid’s tee for only $4). But I honestly attribute much of my recent sewing time and gained confidence from participating in your site. Thank you Wardrobe Refashion!
3. How would you describe your style?
I don’t know any technical terms for what I “am”. But I love ruffles and puffed girly sleeves (and will rarely say No to either). But I also love to keep things simple. Hmm, that’s a bit of riddle. So I guess I’m ruffley-yet-simple. I love solid colors but like to mix things up with a fun pattern splash. I like hair accessories. I don’t like things matchy matchy (especially when I comes to kids clothing). I enjoy vibrant colors. And I love dressing my little girl in skirts with tennis shoes.
4. Tell us about your favourite refashion.
My daughter had a bath robe we often used after swimming at the pool, to keep warm. But it was red, blue, and yellow and felt boyish to me. So I rummaged our linen closet and found a large white towel and some seafoam blue hand towels. Using the old robe as a pattern, I turned the white and seafoam towels into my version of a kid's Day Spa robe....with ruffles of course! I really loved how it turned, especially the colors, and wished it fit me! I'm sad my daughter has outgrown it for this summer. But hey, that only gives me an excuse to make another robe. Woohoo.
5. What inspires you?
A sunny day. Beautiful photography. Citrus fruit. The way light falls on objects. Places I’ve travelled to. Walking the mall and looking at everyone’s clothes. Fabulous craft and sewing blogs. Movies. The smell of fresh hay. Walking on the pier.
6. Tell us 5 random favourites (blogs/designers/people/
In no particular order:
* Tivo (or any DVR). If you don’t have one, IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
* My two kids. They say the greatest things, have the cutest smiles, and I love kissing their cheeks.
* Back to The Future. It’s like, my favorite movie.
* Music from the 80s
* My Canon Rebel XS camera (and iPhoto for making my pictures look extra spiffy).
7. What are you looking for on the Wardrobe Refashion site? Is there something you would you like to see here?
I agree with Kaori that a Project Runway contest would be super cool. But if that’s too time consuming to coordinate…..
How about some weekly or monthly challenges? Such as “this week, the inspiration word is: Grapefruit” (can you tell I love citrus?) and everyone refashions with that word in mind? Could be fun.`
Whether I lacked the creative vision or the time to sit down and sew, it wasn’t until a friend told me about Wardrobe Refashion that it all came together for me. I fell in love with your site and immediately took the 2 month challenge. Refashioning completely changed my way of thinking. I started sewing more, shopping less, and with each project I gained more confidence. Now when I’m out shopping I look at clothing and think, I could totally make that! I’m not buying it! (pathetic that it’s often a kid’s tee for only $4). But I honestly attribute much of my recent sewing time and gained confidence from participating in your site. Thank you Wardrobe Refashion!
3. How would you describe your style?
I don’t know any technical terms for what I “am”. But I love ruffles and puffed girly sleeves (and will rarely say No to either). But I also love to keep things simple. Hmm, that’s a bit of riddle. So I guess I’m ruffley-yet-simple. I love solid colors but like to mix things up with a fun pattern splash. I like hair accessories. I don’t like things matchy matchy (especially when I comes to kids clothing). I enjoy vibrant colors. And I love dressing my little girl in skirts with tennis shoes.
4. Tell us about your favourite refashion.
My daughter had a bath robe we often used after swimming at the pool, to keep warm. But it was red, blue, and yellow and felt boyish to me. So I rummaged our linen closet and found a large white towel and some seafoam blue hand towels. Using the old robe as a pattern, I turned the white and seafoam towels into my version of a kid's Day Spa robe....with ruffles of course! I really loved how it turned, especially the colors, and wished it fit me! I'm sad my daughter has outgrown it for this summer. But hey, that only gives me an excuse to make another robe. Woohoo.
5. What inspires you?
A sunny day. Beautiful photography. Citrus fruit. The way light falls on objects. Places I’ve travelled to. Walking the mall and looking at everyone’s clothes. Fabulous craft and sewing blogs. Movies. The smell of fresh hay. Walking on the pier.
6. Tell us 5 random favourites (blogs/designers/people/
In no particular order:
* Tivo (or any DVR). If you don’t have one, IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.
* My two kids. They say the greatest things, have the cutest smiles, and I love kissing their cheeks.
* Back to The Future. It’s like, my favorite movie.
* Music from the 80s
* My Canon Rebel XS camera (and iPhoto for making my pictures look extra spiffy).
7. What are you looking for on the Wardrobe Refashion site? Is there something you would you like to see here?
I agree with Kaori that a Project Runway contest would be super cool. But if that’s too time consuming to coordinate…..
How about some weekly or monthly challenges? Such as “this week, the inspiration word is: Grapefruit” (can you tell I love citrus?) and everyone refashions with that word in mind? Could be fun.`
Yay! Dana, I am SO not surprised to see you featured here. Thanks for inspiring us!
Posted by: Stephanie N | 05/19/2009 at 12:55 AM
Grapefruit! I'd love that kind of random prompt. I love watching all the pretty things you make for your daughter (my own is a bit too big for the cute stuff). Glad you were featured.
Posted by: Penny | 05/19/2009 at 12:22 PM
Dana! I just clicked over here from my email and was like, whoa, it's Dana! :) Congrats on being featured!!!
Posted by: Kristena | 05/26/2009 at 12:51 AM
Yay Dana! We definitely did not have enough sewing together time while we were in Pasadena!
Posted by: this is carrie | 05/27/2009 at 01:02 AM
OH Dana...you inspire me all the time. I am singing up for this because of you. I am not a sewer AT ALL, but I can do a little and I feel this will only improve my mad skills and I too can become more confidant. kisses!
Posted by: Kate Clark | 07/01/2009 at 12:31 AM