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wardrobe refashion: re-sized pajama pants

wardrobe refashion: resized pajama pants

Just quickie refashion today: some Eddie Bauer flannel pajama pants. Are you already bored with pants? I’ve only got a few left, don’t worry. I did do something fun with these, though.

wardrobe refashion: resized pajama pants

I fell in love with the super soft flannel and didn’t realize until I got home that they were a size petite. I figured because they were lightweight that I could do capri-style jammies and they’d be good until the temps got really cold.

To keep them as long as possible, I serged the bottoms and turned the hem under just 1/2 inch. I used a little lacy seam binding to hide the serged edge. I totally cheated and sewed the lace on while hemming them.

thrifted: Another 99 cent sale transformation using Butterick 5044.

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wardrobe refashion: re-sized capri pants

wardrobe refashion: resized capri pants

The summer of skirts has been a success. I’ve been wearing my red, white, linen and denim skirts regularly all season. But ever since I found that perfect pattern for lounge pants, I’ve been thinking about capris. How easy would it be to refashion a pair of existing pants?

I found a couple pairs at the last 99 cent sale (hey, I told you I had good luck that day!) and decided give it a try. Here’s how I did it:

  • Wash and dried them on hot to preshrink.
  • Removed the elastic waistband with a seam ripper.
  • Cut the inner leg seams open. My pattern is only one piece, so I left the outer leg seams intact.
  • Pressed the pants pieces with an iron and laid my pattern on top. I had to fudge a little, but they were pretty close.
  • There was a lot of waist fabric that had to be removed and the new waist ran right over the pockets. I sewed them shut and cut them out.
  • Traced the pattern and sewed the pants back together.
  • Cut off the ugly fringe cuff and added a fabric trim.

The whole process was fast and easy. Most of my shirts come down past the waistband, so they actually look pretty good. I’m sorry I forgot to take a before picture. I had a few free hours for this project and just dove in!

refashion: This pants thing is really increasing my options for clothes. After a few more tries, I might tackle a fitted waist!

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how to refashion an ’80s sweater
in five easy steps

UPDATE: Thanks to the Craft Magazine blog for their link to my tutorial!

March is Mending Month over at Craftzine. I’ve been doing a lot of mending lately. I keep a bag next to my desk for whenever I have a little time for sewing a button or fixing a hem. Mending is good for the soul, at least mine anyway.

Last week I posted a scarf I made out of sweater scraps from resizing my brother-in-law’s ’80s style sweaters. It was super easy. I probably wouldn’t try this with an heirloom sweater, but it’s great for all those oversized sweaters you may have collecting dust in the back of your closet.

Step 1
Try on the sweater inside out and pin along the sides and under the arms for a more fitted shape. (I used safety pins for this step.)

Step 2
Lay the sweater flat and adjust the pins make sure your seams are straight and equal in size. (I changed to straight pins at this point.)

sweater tutorial

Step 3
Machine stitch the new side seams with a straight stitch. Then repeat with zigzag stitch to catch the frayed ends. (A serger would be perfect for this.)

sweater tutorial

Step 4
Your seams might be a little wobbly after stitching. Press with a warm steam iron. Use a press cloth if your sweater isn’t 100% wool. Trim excess.

sweater tutorial

Step 5
Turn sweater right side out and press open the seams. That’s it!

sweater tutorial

refashion: Extend the life of your clothes by resizing baggy pieces with a more modern fit.