Wardrobe Refashion

A long and winding introduction

Greetings Refashionistas!

My name is Sabrina and I've been following the  reworking, recreating, and outright fashioning going on here for several months now and every story I've read has inspired me.  I learned to crochet when I was too small remember exactly when, learned to sew in seventh grade, and picked up painting and beading because the battle cry in our house when I was growing up was not only "I could make that," but "I could make that better," whether better meant "for less money," or "to fit me," or just "in a color that doesn't suck." 

It was fun, too!

The problem was I didn't really have any confidence  in my abilities.  I promptly put those skills away when I moved out on my own as too time consuming and, secretly, because I didn't think I had the skills to make anything "nice enough" for the "real world."  I'd see something I liked, think "I could make that," and then break down and buy it because I didn't have the money to buy supplies and didn't really believe that I could make it "as nice as store bought."  For over ten years, I let those skills languish, all the while reading crafting magazines and sites like this one and wishing I could do things as cool as the ones I was reading about.

I started crafting again back in June when I learned a friend and coworker who was due in July  didn't have anyone in her family to crochet a blanket for her first baby.  Everyone should have at least one hand made baby blanket, so I picked up the hook on my birthday in June and put the final stitches in the edging the day her daughter was born a month later.  That blanket was a complete hit, and it opened the floodgates for me.  All those years of doing nothing had built up, and I just had to start making things again.

It's been nonstop ever since.  I even finally learned to knit back in August.  I just started keeping an (extremely self-indulgent) little blog at www.starscrossing.com at the start of this month and I've put a few of my projects out there.  I've been working on more things, but most of them are holiday gifts for people who actually read my blog, so I can't post about those projects until after December 25th, but I have a few projects set aside for Wardrobe Refashion that I can share before then.

I'm looking forward refashioning  in December (and I plan to resign in January after the "Wardrobe cleanout").  Hopefully I can give back some of the inspiration you've all been giving me. 

Invites are all sent!!!

I have sent out invites to all of you that emailed to sign up.  If you are a resigner you don't need to do anything, just carry on as you are.  If  you have not received your invite then please email me again.

I have decided to have a Wardrobe Refashion clearout at the end of December, it looking rather messy inside.  So, if you want to continue with your pledge in January you will need to sign up again.  I'll post more details on this later in the month but it will basically be the same process although i may ask for more details to help me stay organised behind the scenes.

I will not be adding anyones links to the sidebar until the new year, i'm sorry but i just don't have the time at the moment.

Viva La Refashionistas!!!!

nearly done!

My 6-month pledge is almost done, and I think I might sign up for a shorter one after a break, when I feel I can post more consistently.
If I am given a coat as a gift, it shouldn't count, right? It feels like I should use my freebie on that one, but instead of worrying about that I'll share a small victory:

My long-term obsession seems to be creating sweaters. Someday, when I'm not so afraid of my sewing machine I would like to be able to make a dress shirt.

Thank you all for your helpful posts!

-Caroline

Tiny Christmas Finery

When my niece was born in Philadelphia far from me, we started a tradition that I'd make her Christmas dress so the time I couldn't spent with her I could spend on her. It's also a shopping date for her mom and me every fall. Now Ruby's pushing 3 and has a brother, so one dress has become a dress and a little suit.

I love my sister-in-law for wanting to dress her children like children (instead of mini adults).

The little dress was made from a thrifted  uncut pattern, style kids #2875, and some sale velvet the little girl picked out herself. Couldn't  have sewn more smoothly. But the little guy's outfit was a nightmare - simplicity 4711 purchased new - mostly because simplicity friggin' chintzed on the directions. It's a pattern for  a dress or a romper with the same bodice, but the direx were written for the dress, with the romper specifics at the end referring constantly back to the dress pages. Back and forth, back and forth -- in the confusion, I ended up missing the collar step and had to rip out a lot of stitches and reset it, crying in such a way that the velvet and satin wouldn't spot .

No more simplicity babies for me. 

One jacket down, one to go...

Sorry I haven't posted in forever, school and work have taken over my life! It is finally getting chilly enough here for me to wear a jacket, and so I have started two, and completed one.

Here is my new (completed) holiday jacket:

And here is a photo of the other jacket pattern that I am currently working on:

I am making the McCall's jacket in a beautiful chocolate brown suede that was on super sale! More details and photos on my blog.

From the Rag Bag

I haven't posted in a while, but I wanted to jump right back in and share a refashion that I recently completed.  I took a fairly new t-shirt that had gotten some bleach spots on it, added more bleach spots to make it look intentional, folded over all the hems with some decorative stitching and then added some very cool recycled fabric patches.  You can see the step by step here.

Old Dress, New Top

Hurray!  I finished this in time for the holidays.  It started as a demure Land's End green velvet dress from about ten or twelve years ago.   

I decided to change the neckline from a little scoop neck to a deep V-neck, and wear it over a camisole.  I have a nice red one for the holidays.  I just made a cut straight down the middle, and folded the two flaps back from the center up to the shoulder seam.  Then I shortened it from dress length to about mid-thigh.

Voila!  I wore it to work today with a pair of consignment shop black pants. 

Vintage patterns

This is only my second post. I haven't had anything to really show but I have stuck strictly to the rules and have not bought anything at all since joining up. I have a number of projects I'm about to start on, but after buying these vintage patterns at the weekend these are my priorities.

The first is the beautiful green dress pictured in the centre. It really is just perfect. I can't wait to get started.

The second is my absolute favorite. This Simplicity pattern is wonderful. I'm going to make the dress on the right, with the scoop neck. I haven't yet get the right fabric however. It takes five and a half yards! so will have to shop wisely.

You can see more of the patterns I bought on my blog

for now
Ruby

Big Ideas...

I confess I'm addicted to sewing! I realised when on Friday we recieved mail about a Spotlight (fabric store) opening in South Melbourne- 20mins from where I live- and my sister and I planned all weekend our visit this evening. We spent 2 hours there, but I came away with a stack of fabric and some big ideas on what to do with them...

 

There is (from the bottom up) a pair of shorts, a pair of pants, a long sleeve, a shirt, a summer top, a wrap top, a dress, summer sleep wear and a red hoddie....hehe!

Another thing I would like to share is that I purchased a buttonmaker over the internet and I'm starting to make my own fabric badges to spice up my outfits and give away as presents to people for christmas. These are a few I've made so far, it's such a great way to use up my 2cm by 2cm scraps of material!

Enjoy!

j. xx

Dye-ing adventures

I spent the evening yesterday dying clothes in tiny bathroom I have at my disposal, trying not to stain anything else than the clothes while I was at it. I did manage to avoid that, but I'm not so convinced of the overall success of my ventures.

A before picture:

From the left: second hand slightly dingy and spotted linen placemats/napkins (they are square, so napkins perhaps?), a summery lightweight tunic in a color that makes me very pale, a very faded, but very loved a-line corduroy skirt, destined for a new life in a burdastyle Marie-skirt style, a silk dress bought from a catalogue that ended up being yellow-green, not blue-green in real-life, and a hand-me-down long t-shirt that was just too bright green.

I used Rit-dye, one pack teal, and half a pack denim blue. Drumroll:

First off: I hand-dyed these, because I convinced myself I needed the "control". I think maybe next time, the machine will be first choice to acheive deeper, more even color. I was a little impatiant, the proof of which is the napkins to the left, where two are lighter. I didn't do all the napkins all at once, so they weren't dyed under the same conditions. I think the cooling water also played a part. All over I thought the colors would be richer, but I think that also stems from the handdying and not letting the clothes be immersed for as long as they were supposed to (By the way, the picture is slightly photo-shopped to give the best illusion of the real color-outcome, just minus the flourecent effect!). But I really like how the corduroy-fabric turned out, and I'm looking forward to making an updated skirt out of it!