
Day 45: From ’80s Dress to Sleeveless Minidress
Hooray for old lady dresses! π
I just love an old lady dress refashion, don’t you? π
I loved the print and the pockets, but this dress needed lots of help! First off, I removed those shoulder pads (yay! More toys for shelter kitties!) and that weirdo fake shirt panel.
Then, I chopped off the sleeves and some of the length.
I actually ended up completely removing the sleeves….so just imagine they aren’t there at all. π
Next, I hemmed the skirt.
I took the upper part of the shoulders of the dress, and folded them under. Then, I sewed them down.
I pressed everything, and was done! Now that old lady dress is ready for a fun Saturday! π
After making my sweet frock, I got to work on bottling a batch of Ginger Beer!
I got the recipe here. I can’t wait to see how my Ginger Beer turns out! Hopefully they won’t end up exploding all over my kitchen. π
That night, I met up with friends at The Nickelodeon, where we watched the incredibly funny Brit flick, The Trip.
After watching this film, I’m yearning to go on a foodie road trip of my own. I think I’ll have to make that happen soon! Hopefully my finances can handle the dances. π
Cheers!



21 Comments
Patrick P.
What do you do with all of the scraps that you cut-off from your projects? You could make
one huge quilt!
Ladystingray
Oh…that’s ginger beer. I thought for a second you were storing your urine in bottles for some reason. Awkward…
dapperdolly
You totally modernised that, it now looks like a new piece made in retro style but with modern chic.
Refashion Reuse Recycle
Or if you’d like to post the tute on Irish Attic I like to share the love with guest bloggers.
Refashion Reuse Recycle
Thanks for steering me in the right direction. If you ever post a tute on making your catnip mice please send me an email and I’d love to post a link to it from my blog.
ReFashionista
Thank you! I plan on doing a tutorial on how to make the mice really soon. π I’m trying to time it with a weekend where I’m free to visit the shelter cats. π Feel free to share it all you like. They’re really easy to make. π
Refashion Reuse Recycle
You mentioned shoulder pads and shelter kittens. Do you donate your shoulder pads to shelters? That’s a fabulous idea and I wanted to know so I can do the same. I have bags of shoulder pads removed from refashioned garments!
ReFashionista
Actually, I’m saving them up to sew them into mice stuffed with catnip. π I made a prototype for my kitty, and she loves it! They’re really easy to make.
littlebethyfoureyes
This is gorgeous, and the end result looks EXPENSIVE! Good job.
ReFashionista
Thanks! One of the reasons I got into refashioning was that I’d see dresses in expensive boutiques and think about how I could make something similar out of something from the thrift store. π
Nethwen
When making ginger beer, do not substitute baking yeast for brewer’s yeast. If you do, you will have explosions. Let us know how your ginger beer turns out?
ReFashionista
Yay! I’m glad going the cheap and easy route might mean my ginger beer doesn’t end up all over my walls! π Just two more weeks of waiting!
Sam
Wow, that looks great! I’d never guess that cute outfit came from such a disaster of a shoulder-padded dress!
I also thought I’d give you a heads up that this week is Fabric Giveaway Week on the Fluffyland Craft & Sewing Blog! I’m going to be giving away a bit of fabric each day this week, so be sure to come by & enter! Here’s a link to today’s giveaway:
http://fluffyland.com/blog/index.php/2011/cart-full-of-fabric-giveaway-week/
ReFashionista
Thanks, Sam!
And ooooooh baby! I love me some fabric! I’ll have to enter! π
charityshopchic
Lookin’ good! I love the final dress, very chic!
ReFashionista
Thanks! I’m actually thinking about re-refashioning the bottom part into shorts to make it a romper…can’t decide though.
Lexie
I was just going to suggest that it would look great as a romper!!!
chicaandaluza
Love the dress, but am currently now more excited to know how your ginger beer works out….the hard bit is waiting for a while π HavenΒ΄t seen this movie, love the actors so am going to have to look out for it. Good luck with the ginger beer!
ReFashionista
It is so ridiculously hard being patient! I hope it turns out well! And thanks to you for inspiring me to make it! π
Georgette
Jillian – love this one!
ReFashionista
Thanks! This one definitely looks like a Georgette dress. And hey…we’re the same size! Just sayin’…:)