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wardrobe refashion: white cotton skirt

Three skirts down! I really wish I would have taken a before picture of this one. When I cut off the waist and flattened out the fabric, there was so much!

refashioned white cotton skirt

I used an a-line pattern I drafted for myself from Sew What! Skirts. I took about 5/8 inch off of each side after trying it on and will be adjusting my pattern for the next one. Aside from that, this was super easy. I cut it out a few weeks ago and sewed it up today in about an hour.

Usually I shy away from white of any kind on my lower half, but I fell in love with the detail at the bottom. Isn’t it lovely? (Yep, I kept the original bottom hem, which made this project go really fast.)

refashioned white cotton skirt

The skirt is a little sheer, but I’m thinking slip instead of lining. Any suggestions for fabric type? I worry that a traditional polyester slip might be too hot in the summer.

thrifted: I think this might be my last skirt from the Goodwill 99 sale. I can’t remember! Time to dive back into the stash.

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tropical tablecloth tote

I’ve started making some things for my shop again. There is some thrifted fabric in my stash that needs to be repurposed before I can go garage sailing again this year. I used a little bit of this tablecloth to make a small sock knitting basket a few years ago. Now I’ve gone in the opposite direction and made a big beach bag tote.

tablecloth beach tote

When I washed the table cloth, it lost a lot of the canvas-like stiffness that I liked, so I had to line it with something sturdy. I chose some heavy duty upholstery fabric to do the job.

tablecloth beach tote

I also tried something a little different with the gusset and added these vintage buttons on the side. Aren’t they cute? I love them!

tablecloth beach tote

I’ve got the rest of this tablecloth cut and ready for more totes. Not sure if I am going to make something different or make more of the same.

What do you think?

recycle: Tablecloth from the thrift store, lining from a garage sale, thrifted buttons. More photos in my shop.

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wardrobe refashion: linen skirts

It’s no secret that shopping for pants drives me nuts. And the capri pants I complained about last year didn’t even make it through the season. So, I’ve decided to make a bunch of skirts for this summer and yesterday I started with these two linen lovelies by Laura Ashley.

laura ashley linen skirts

No before pictures because I didn’t change that much. They were really long and too big in the waist. Here’s what I did to them.

  • Washed in hot water and tumble dried to preshrink them.
  • Chopped off about 10 inches and made a 1/2 inch double fold hem.
  • Used a seam ripper to open up the elastic waist casing.
  • Cut the elastic down to the right size and then sewed everything back up.

I am absolutely in love with the result. The linen is so lightweight and soft—perfect for summer. I thought about making them a little bit shorter, but spending time at the park today with our crazy Nebraska winds convinced me they are the right length. Also, I’m loving the fact that they have pockets!

thrifted: Bought these at the Goodwill 99 cent sale. That’s right! My Laura Ashley linen skirts cost me a whopping $2.

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wardrobe refashion: the first of many t-shirts

nebraska t shirt

You know you’re getting old when the phrase, “They don’t make them like they used to…” creeps into your conversations. But seriously, can someone explain to me how my Gap t-shirts from college are still going strong almost 20 years later, but t-shirts from the past few years are falling apart?

I have this grand idea of updating all of those boxy, over-sized tees into a more modern and flattering fit. First, I need some practice. I’ve made a few patterns from existing t-shirts that I like and I’m also trying out the t-shirt pattern in Wendy Mullin’s Sew U Stretch.

My first try was a thrifted XL Nebraska shirt. It turned out pretty good for a beginner shirt. The sleeves are kind of tricky, though. I definitely need a little bit more practice before cutting into my ol’ Gap favorites.

thrifted: I always try to practice on thrifted material and clothing first. I’d rather mess up on a 99 cent t-shirt than on the good stuff!

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once and awhile i buy something new

liberty of london target dress

I know it might be shocking to some, but this weekend I actually bought a brand new piece of clothing. Yesterday was Liberty of London’s Target debut. I have to admit that I was a little underwhelmed at the selection. Until I saw this cute dress for my daughter, that is.

liberty of london target dress

I really love this print. I’ve even set it as my desktop wallpaper (click on “pattern your world”). I’m a little disappointed in the fabric, though. In fact, a lot of the items didn’t even seem up to Target’s usual quality. But those flowers are so very pretty. I couldn’t resist.

Did you shop at Liberty of Target this weekend? What did you get?

refashion: After this season, I can easily turn this dress into a skirt for next year, don’t you think?

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wardrobe refashion: pj pants to nightshirt

When I was at my craft weekend away, one of my friends was serging a nightshirt for her daughter. Another friend was making dresses out of t-shirt scraps. I blame them for this crazy idea: a nightshirt out of a pajama top and bottom scraps.

pajamas night shirt

This was a lot cuter in my head and my sketches than it turned out. I had hoped the skirt would be a bit more ruffled, but there really wasn’t a lot of fabric in the bottoms. I wound up piecing together the sleeves, too. (Sorry for the unstaged “before” photo, but I was really excited to dive into this project!)

pajamas night shirt

Thankfully, I tested this on the Mickey pajamas first. Although she loves Mickey, she loves her Minnie pajamas even more. I will probably use one of my old t-shirts for that refashion. I also might keep the sleeves at 3/4 length. Oh, speaking of the sleeves, check out this awesome rolled hem. Swoon!

pajamas night shirt

refashion: Even though the sleeves and legs of my daughter’s clothes are getting too small, the body still fits nicely. I’m getting lots of opportunities to be creative!

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wardrobe refashion: lollipop shirt

applique t-shirt

My daughter was absolutely devastated that her lollipop shirt had gotten too small. (Yes, devastated—three-year-old drama is so… dramatic!) So I did what any sewing mama would do: appliqué.

applique t-shirt

I used heat-n-bond and reinforced it with a zig zag stitch. My only mistake was leaving the extra heavy duty needle in the machine. I hope these holes don’t get any bigger!

applique t-shirt

refashion: Appliqué is a great way to give an old shirt new life. I can’t believe the new shirt is a size 5/6. My baby is getting so big!

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wardrobe refasion: adding long sleeves to a t-shirt

long sleeves on t shirt

I was putting away laundry in my daughter’s dresser and found her preschool t-shirt. I can’t remember the last time it was warm enough to wear short sleeves. I don’t think it’s even been worn once. I decided to add some long sleeves so she can wear it before she outgrows it.

(I know what you are thinking. Why not just layer it over a long sleeve shirt and save yourself the trouble? Well, not only does my daughter dislike wearing sweaters, she doesn’t like to layer shirts, either.)

I used a size 4-5 T sleeve to make the pattern and figured I’ll just roll them up for now. Maybe next fall, I can use them on a different shirt. Look at that beautifully serged seam. Don’t you just love it?

long sleeves on t shirt

recycle: I used the body of one of my old t-shirts to make the sleeves. I was going to post a tutorial, but this seems easy enough. What do you think?

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wardrobe refashion: denim skirt makeover

denim skirt refashion

This is the original skirt I was going to wear last weekend. It turned out a little too casual for the event. I was planning on wearing it with black tights and boots. Now I’m wondering if it might look better with a t-shirt and sandals.

I really hacked this poor thing up. I cut off the bottom two ruffles and took it in on either side, trying to make it more a-line and less Holly Hobby. (Not that there is anything wrong with HH. It’s just not a good look on me.)

denim skirt refashion

It’s been a long time since I’ve refashioned something. I can’t wait to dive into the stack of clothes that have been waiting patiently by my sewing machine.

refashion: This was an impulse buy at a garage sale last summer. I think it cost 75 cents. I’m hoping to use the leftover ruffles to lengthen some of my daughter’s jeans.

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the flower appliqué experiment

My daughter is a little heater. She takes after her father, who wears shorts in the winter. She’s never cold. She just wants one small blanket when she sleeps and she refuses to wear sweaters.

hand knit sweater with crochet flower applique

Her Grandmom loves to knit her sweaters, the warmer the better. Every time we talk, she expresses concern over my daughter not wearing her sweaters. I’m not sure if it’s because she’s afraid our child is really cold or she’s disappointed that all of her hard work isn’t getting worn.

hand knit sweater with crochet flower applique

I decided to do a little experiment and crocheted a flower appliqué for her pink fuzzy sweater. My daughter LOVES the flower, but when I asked her if she wanted to wear the sweater, she said no. Meanwhile, I’m wearing a sweater and bundled up in a blanket by the fireplace. Just looking at her makes me cold! I’m going to keep trying, though.

hand knit sweater with crochet flower applique

The only pink yarn in my stash was wool, so I had to make the applique easy to remove for washing. I stitched the petals on with a large piece of yarn and tied a bow in the back. It will also be easy to move to other sweaters in the future.

flower details: Flower is an Irish rose and the middle is a vintage button.