Mock two-piece dress upcycle

There have been a lot of mock two-piece dresses lately, and I happened to find the perfect vintage dress (only $4 at Value Village, score!) with the right elements to make into my own.

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DIY Korean minimalistic romper

Cheesedal Mercy Jumpsuit

I saw this romper on the online Korean store Somethin' Sweet and thought it was the coolest.  Most rompers I've tried on have been too flowy or just don't look right on me, and I thought this structured cut would suit me better.  And... I love exposed zippers.  As you can see, the back half of the top is oversized and separate from the front.

With relatively straight lines and limited details, I decided to give it a try.

This was my first time making bottoms, so I used a pattern.  Since I kind of free-handed the rest, it ended up having side cut-outs, which aren't too noticeable unless I stretch.  I suppose it adds more visual interest and modernism as well?  Overall, I think it turned out really well!

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DIY distressed skinny jeans

There's something about distressed jeans that adds just the right amount of edge and off-ness to an outfit.  I didn't want anything with crazy patches, just something lightly worn like what Olivia Palermo is wearing above.

I started with a pair of A&F jeans that I thrifted for $4 from Goodwill, which were my size and had a nice worn in feel to them.  (Since these were a flare leg, I first turned them inside out, pinned while on, and sewed the legs from around the knees down to a skinny taper.  Then, I trimmed the excess seam allowance and turned them right side out again.)

TIP:  It's important to buy light washed jeans.  Holes on dark washed jeans just don't look quite as believable.

To begin distressing:  Cut two parallel lines running across the leg as large as you want.  With a tweezer, pull the vertical threads out one at a time.  At the beginning, it helps to loosen the fabric edges with something rough before starting to pull.

The vertical threads in denim are a mixture of blue whereas the horizontal threads are all white.  I didn't want to expose the white threads completely since the distressing would fall apart more easily with wash and wear, so I varied the rows that I pulled, pulling less around the ends of the holes.  I used pinking shears (but you can use something else abrasive like sand paper) to fade out around the holes, make them blend in better and look more naturally torn.

Repeat as many times/wherever on the jeans you'd like.  I put two small holes at the hip and one large complete cut on the opposite knee.

Lastly, I cheated a bit and dabbed Fray-Check glue on the corners to prevent further pulling and fraying.

(Sandals - Report)

Taken from my new apartment at school!  It's going to be crazy so... updates will be much less frequent.

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DIY dress - McCall's pattern M6789

Made this awhile back but never posted it.

McCall's pattern M6789

I adapted it to an A-line, and did not add peplums or use contrast.  Just wanted a simple look.

 

I'm not quite sure why the back bunches a bit - maybe the back bodice is a little long for my torso?  I still think it turned out really well.  I learned how to insert a lining, understitch, and French tack.

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DIY circle skirt

Recently made a skirt for Trusha using this tutorial by WithWendy below.  I used a lightweight but sleek jersey fabric, and used sew-in interfacing at the waistband and zipper for extra durability.

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DIY Blazer Upcycle

One local thrift shop has 99 cent clothing Sundays, which is almost as good as free.  I figured it wouldn't hurt if I bought something to experiment on, so I got this oversized blazer.  It was made of nice material and quality construction, but of course the fit was horribly dated.  I'm not sure what brand Paul Stanley is.  I couldn't find anything online except for this old 80's rocker guy from KISS.  Maybe he got into fashion back in the day...?

I wanted something long enough to especially wear with leggings, and was inspired by a lot of "boyfriend blazer" looks such as these:

  

    

  

There was a lot of trial and error.  A LOT of seam ripping and learning as I went.  First while wearing the blazer, I chalked on the sides, shoulders, and arms where I wanted to take them in.  Measured how much I needed to "pinch" in each area, which was about 3 cm all around.  

I took a deep breath, seamripped the inner lining where necessary, and removed the shoulder pads.  I also turned the sleeves inside out and sewed a new seam (on the outer sleeve and the lining) 3cm from the old one, and took 1.5 cm from each seam at the sides (there were two per side).  

After a very frustrating time with trying to fit the shrunken sleeve into the old arm hole (it kept on puckering or poufing, which isn't what I was going for with a menswear blazer), I realized that I would have to shrink the hole at the shoulder seam too, and that it was easier just to simply take the whole sleeve out and realign it, instead of trying to minimize sewing.

(The whole sleeve removed, with lining still attached).

Because the pockets were originally located right at the edges where I took the blazer in, I had to remove the pockets, cut the hole further inward and slide the pockets over.  The blue "right side" that I'm touching was sewn to the bottom flap interfacing side.  The top portion attached to the lining "wrong" side of the pocket would be flipped to the outside of the blazer, and then be sewn to the top flap of the blazer.  That doesn't quite make sense, but you need to plan to keep the pocket open at any rate and you can reason it out that way.

Finally I trimmed and pieced back the lining using a slip stitch (tutorial here).

And viola!  It's a little lopsided (and not very neat on the inside) but when you wear it you can't tell too much.  I'd say a good first attempt!

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Anthro-inspired apron DIY

Original: the "Scarlet Fondant" apron from Anthropologie (no longer available)

My DIY/handmade result (as a gift to Jenni):

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Beginning of my DIY adventures

If you can't find it or can't afford it, then why not make it yourself?  Moreover, if you CAN make it yourself, why not give it a shot?  After all, designers are essentially the masters of DIY.  Since getting my sewing machine about two months ago, sewing has become my latest obsession.

I might not be able to get down a perfect technique by myself, but eventually I want to be able to create pieces from runway and catalogue looks that I've always coveted.  My Project Runway marathons have certainly been inspiring.  But for now, I'll stick with the basics.

This DIY from Secretlifeofabionerd taught me how to make my circle scarf above.

I've found that a lot of DIYs out there can look, well... DIY, a.k.a. crafty.  Which isn't that great for a grown person.  But these three are super genius.  Favorite Clothing (from scratch, or almost scratch) DIY blogs:

Cotton and Curls, Charity Shop Chic, and Adventures in Dressmaking.

Favorite Youtube How-To sewing channels:

• Fashion Sewing Blog TV is very straight forward and her explanations make sense out of complicated techniques.
• Professor Pincushion even has some start-to-finish pattern videos.

I've found that kid's clothes are a great way to start because they're less cumbersome pieces, simpler fabrics and shapes, and you don't have to be too picky about fit.  Some easy tutorials I started out with:

• Easy children's apron at Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom (below)
• Girl's mini mod dress at Pretty Prudent with an added Peter Pan collar from Make It & Love It (below)
• Woman's sweetheart apron at whollyKao

I made these for my two baby cousins (one who's 5, and the other who's a few months old.)

Patterns* that taught me basic techniques:

• Baby overall/pantalon/skirt (above): Burda Easy #9772.  Basic facing technique to stabilize necklines, button holes, and simple ruffles.
• Princess seam light jacket: Simplicity #1699.  Basic sleeve construction, simple darts.  Also comes with a peplum top, dress, and pants pattern.
• Pencil skirt: Butterick #B5566.  Three different interesting variations (side and top paneled, ruched.)  Teaches invisible zipper insertion.

*Make sure you wait for pattern sales.  No one should pay $15 for a pattern when fabric already costs that much!  Then you might as well just buy the piece at the store.

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How to de-pill a sweater

Pills are those little balls of yarn that inevitably develop on sweaters because of friction and washing.  They tend to make sweaters look unkempt and old, but here's an easy trick to get rid of them.

1.  Start with an old (but clean) razor.  You'll want the blades to be somewhat dulled to prevent slicing into the actual garment.

2.  Lightly brush onto the sweater in one direction.  DO NOT grate it back and forth or press down too hard, or else you might cut into the knit.  

3.  Use small, brisk motions and you will start to see fuzz accumulate.  Work in small patches as you go down the sweater.  It's the same concept as using a lint roller.


Hopefully you can see the results between before and after:

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New Dress a Day (and more)

 Marisa from New Dress a Day is a woman who has spent years re-designing thrift store finds into wearable pieces.  At about one piece a day, her budget is only $365 a year (aka $1 a day).  I love her quirky "before" photos of her outrageous finds, and the surprising ways she re-invents them.  Once I improve my sewing skills, I might try this out...

These thrift haul videos are making me eager to go thrifting again...  But I need a patient buddy! :(

I like how these girls take more of a current-day approach to vintage and style the pieces for now, instead of going all-out old-school.

ThriftDrifter is my favorite - plus she often includes refashion/upcycle ideas.

This intro from Riannstar gives a good explanation for why you should choose wisely between thrift stores.  Also good explanations for why she chose all her pieces, how she will style them and such.  Her hair and makeup is so pretty!

LaMadelynn's style is super cute and slightly minimalistic.

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