One of the reasons I want you to hop on the refashion bandwagon is to make your wardrobe last longer. This goes completely against what Fast Fashion retailers are trying to sell you: that you need the newest nowest thing that just came out last week every week. If we take what we have and make it last longer, we’re no longer feeding an industry that is fueled by sweatshop labor and unethical practices. If we can make our clothing last longer, we can force Fast Fashion to slow down when there is no longer a demand for what they’re selling.
It’s also cheaper. Muuuuuch cheaper. 🙂
Today’s piece comes from the back of my closet.
You’re looking at what used to be my favorite maxi dress. I’ve had this baby for years and have worn it dozens of times. Sadly, the white parts were starting to get dingy, so I haven’t worn it in about a year. If I haven’t worn something for a year, I usually just go ahead and donate it, so someone else can enjoy it.
But…I really like this dress. I have had some awesome times in this dress. 🙂 This dress has seen some kick-ass parties. I didn’t want to let it go. So…I reached into my dye stash and pulled out this:
Yep…that’s right. Orange and black. I was hoping for something sherbet-y and not halloween-y. 🙂
I was really surprised by the end result.
As you can see, the top part of the dress took the dye just fine, whereas the bottom…not so much. The white parts are the faintest of possible orange…not what I had in mind. I should have read the label. The bottom of the dress wasn’t cotton jersey, like I had assumed. It was 98% polyester. Yipes! Polyester doesn’t like dye. 🙁
I still like my dress, even though the coloring is most unusual. 🙂
I wore my unusual dress to see a few friends of mine in a play.
They were all wonderful! If you want to catch this show, they’ll be at The Loose Cockaboose tonight at 12am. 🙂 If you’re in the Columbia, SC area, this is definitely worth seeing!
Cheers!
I may have to quote you there 🙂 I’m 18, I LOVE ReFashioning thrifted clothes and I want to urge my friends to try, just because of its sheer awesomeness! So ever since I found your blog, I’ve been been getting a little staker-ish. Love your ReFashes! XD
I’m so glad I found your blog! Tomorrow, I’m trading a friend a coffee cake for his old sewing machine so I can start refashioning and rescuing my old clothes. Being 6′ tall and not a bean pole (seriously, what is with size 0 being the only size left in tall clothes by the time I get to the rack to look for them) and with a high waist, I’m really hard to fit and end up paying through the nose from specialty stores or to pay someone else to alter them. I’ll start with something very like what you’ve done in this post – a dress I love, but that is in need of a dye job to cover up a faint but weird stain, and to fix the hem that’s coming unraveled.
Also, the Crayola Fabric Markers work on cotton and polyester, but they will give you a washed out look on polyester. .
Grab the Krylon spray paint in peach and give it a light spray. Wait 72 hours then wash twice to make it soft again. It is great and works on polyester.
I have never heard of this, but it makes sense. I’ll have to try it. 🙂
I love the way the dress came out. I think the different shades the dye came out totally works! And, a cool tip from my mom on making whites really white without the use of bleack – soak in hot water and vinegar for 20ish minutes before washing. I’ve taken to putting my whites in a bucket with vinegar and hot water to soak and then I just dump the entire bucket in the washing machine when the previous load is done.
Thanks for the tip! I’ll have to give that a go! I don’t like using bleach, so the less-toxic vinegar route might be just what I need. 🙂
It a still super cute. Just looking at your picture, I totally assumed it was jersey cotton as well. I have odd old clothes that I keep meaning to alter so I can keep them in my wardrobe. I may have to try your dyeing solution.
I like it – I can understand why you didn´t want to donate it!
Well, I think it looks even better now! More unusual and VERY interesting. I like it a lot…
I am still wondering about using the washing machine to dye something, as I have some sheets I want to dye. Won’t it stay in there and get dye on subsequent loads? I really like how the dress turned out!
Thanks Ali! I used to be really afraid to use the washing machine too! After you dye and rinse the dress/shirt/whathaveyou, just read the directions on cleaning the machine. Basically you just run the machine empty with detergent and bleach, and voila! It’s safe! 🙂
Using a washing machine to dye? Doesn’t that soak the item by using too much water? Or do you use a quick cycle?
It’s actually much easier to dye stuff in the washing machine. Like most things, just make sure you’re really following the instructions provided on the inside of the dye box! 🙂