A Sleeve Reprieve Dress

Welcome to my long hot summer!  Yes…I’m aware that technically it isn’t quite summer yet, but with temps in the humid mid 80s, I feel like I’m already there.  I was cleaning out my pajama drawer and came up with this jersey-knit shirt that I scored for $1, but never refashioned, as it quickly became my favorite winter pj top.

The winter of our discontent is over!  Time to move on!

The winter of our discontent is over! Time to move on!

This top just won’t do for a getaway to Georgia Wine Country!  First off, I needed to get rid of those sleeves.  Since this is a jersey knit, I simply cut them off right at the seams, as I knew they wouldn’t fray.

Snippity Snip!

Snippity Snip!

Then, I took it in a couple of inches.  Baggy is great for sleepwear, but I wanted something a bit more fitted!

Whirrr!

Whirrr!

Don’t get me wrong…shirts are swell.  But I was in the mood to wear a comfy dress for my trip.  I took the sleeves and cut them open, like so:

See?

See?

Then I stitched them together to make one long strip and pinned it to the bottom of the shirt.

Almost done here!

Almost done here!

As I pinned, I realized that (doh!) I didn’t have quite enough fabric to reach all the way around.  Not a big deal for me, as my keister was fully covered, and I don’t mind a little side slit.  I COULD have added on a different similarly-colored fabric to the sleeve strip, but…I was in a bit of a hurry.  :)

I stitched the discarded cut-off sides together to make a matching sash.  I mean, how could I resist the urge to make a totally no-waste refashion

This is it!

This is it!

But I styled my new dress with a thick belt for this trip instead.  Don’t worry!  I can always use that sash later!  :)

I feel like a forest fairy!

I feel like a forest fairy! I hope that’s a good thing.

Here’s a look at that side that the sleeves didn’t quite get to:

What do you think?

What do you think?

I think it looks kind of neat…but to each her own!  :)

My new dress was uber-comfy for a lovely wine-laden Georgia day!

Check out that view!

Check out that view!

Or just check out this one instead.

Or just check out this one instead.

Seriously...I've got views to spare.

Seriously…I’ve got views to spare.

Our favorite wineries were Three Sisters , Wolf Mountain, and Monteluce.  If you can’t get to Napa or Sonoma (heck…even if you can!), check this area out!  It’s definitely worth your while.  :)

We went to Wolf Creek Vineyards twice!  :)

We went to Wolf Creek Vineyards twice! :)

Is it heaven?  No!  It's just Monteluce!  :)

Is it heaven? No! It’s just Monteluce! :)

Grape Babies!

Grape Babies!

Great travel buddies!  :)

Great travel buddies! :)

All that wining really makes you hungry!  One of my readers responded to my facebook post about what I should check out while in Dahlonega with Shenanigans Irish Pub (Thanks, Kellie!), so that’s where we went!  :)

Time for a cider break!

Time for a cider break!

Ahhhh!  What a perfect day!

Wish you were here!

Wish you were here!

Cheers!

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Wannabe Wednesday: “Noten” Wrong With a No-Sew Maxi Skirt

A lot of you have been asking me to diversify my refashions by

A. Not just refashing dresses all the time and

B.  Doing a few longer/more modest refashes that would work for any body type (Personally, I think that if you like something you should just wear it as you probably look more awesome in it than you’re giving yourself credit for, but I digress).

Well, it’s your lucky day!

I needed something casual to wear for a cookout/movie night with some fabulously fun people.  I chose this!

Perfect, right?

Perfect, right?

See?  I’m fully-covered and ready to go!  :)

Just kidding, folks!  ;)

I was inspired by this skirt by Dries Van Noten:

She looks mad.  :/

She looks mad. :/

I unbuttoned my dress just enough to make it fit around my hips, then tied the sleeves around my waist, tucking the collar in as I did so.

Here’s my version!

She chose a yellow blouse.  I chose yellow shoes.  It's all one.  ;)

She chose a yellow blouse. I chose yellow shoes. It’s all one. ;)

Here’s the designer version again:

Pelvic Thrust!

Pelvic Thrust!

And here’s mine:

Hip Cocked!

Hip Cocked!

Try as I might, I couldn’t find a price for the original skirt, so I can’t calculate my savings on this one.  :(  BUT…I’m pretty sure it cost more than the $1 I spent on my version!

The weather was perfect, and I was happy for my full-coverage skirt as the mosquitoes are baaaaaa-aaaaack!  :/

Liz, the lovely hostess!  :)

Liz, the lovely hostess! :)

Pretty!

Pretty!

Hmmm...you've been seeing a lot of pics with this guy in them lately, haven't you?  I wonder...

Hmmm…you’ve been seeing a lot of pics with this guy in them lately, haven’t you? I wonder…

The food was delish!

NOM!

NOM!

The wine was even better!

Slurp!

Slurp!

Such a lovely night to dine al fresco!

Such a lovely night to dine al fresco!

This is one gentleman’s (not sure if he’d want me announcing his name AND the the fact that he’s going to be out of town on here) last supper here in Columbia for a few months, so we decided to commemorate the occasion appropriately!  :)

The Last Supper

The Last Supper

Cheers!

Original Cost:  No idea.  :/

Copycat Cost:  $1

Savings:  Not a clue, but probably a good bit!

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Crawfish Fest Top

Hey Guys!  Remember when I refashioned this 2 piecer here

Remember me?

Remember me?

…into this 1 piecer here?

I remember it just like it was a few weeks ago!

I remember it just like it was a few weeks ago!

Remember how I had a few leftovers?

What will happen to that bottom scrap!?!  I must know!!!!

What will happen to that bottom scrap and the jacket thingy!?! I must know!!!!

Today you get to see what happened to the rest of it!  :)

I played with the leftover fabric, and really didn’t see any way to make a decent dress in a reasonable amount of time, so I opted to make a top instead!

First, I took that leftover bottom scrap and hemmed the raw edge.

Pinned!

Pinned!

No longer in the raw!

No longer in the raw!

Then, I put it on my dress form and pinned it to where it would be nice and fitted under the arms and allll the way down!

It looks like a fin!

It looks like a fin!

Then, I stitched this down.

Whirrrrrr!!!!

Whirrrrrr!!!!

I’m not done!  I liked the collar from the jacket, and decided to use it to make my top into a cute halter!

I cut it off, then stitched a couple of lines of zigzag stitches to keep it from fraying.

First you zig, then you zag!

First you zig, then you zag!

I pinned it around the neck of my dress form to the front of my new top, like so:

So far, so good!

So far, so good!

Then I stitched those two ends down!

Just about finished!

Just about finished!

After a quick press, I was done!  Check out Part II of this refashion!

Fun & Flowy!

Fun & Flowy!

I styled my new top with a pair of cutoff paint-splattered khaki shorts and a pair of bronze gladiator sandals.

And here’s the back!

Gaze into my pallor!

Gaze into my pallor!

Q: If a refashion is made but is never seen in public, does it make a sound (Just go with it)?

A:  I think not!  I wore my new top to the annual Rosewood Crawfish Festival!  This is a super-fun event that my friends and I look forward to every year! :)

My new bff!

My new bff!

Mmmmmm!  Those crawdads are good eatin'!  :)

Mmmmmm! Those crawdads are good eatin’! :)

It's Brad & Liz!  :)

It’s Brad & Liz! :)

What in the????

What in the????

Love these guys!

Love these guys!

Mustard Bag Twinsies!

Mustard Bag Twinsies!

Cheers!

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