When an organizer for SHE Columbia (a HUGE Women’s Expo) called me a couple of weeks ago to ask if I had any ideas of how ReFashionista could be involved, I was stoked! I immediately offered to do a ReFashion Show, featuring all-new refashions for several different women with different body types! I was told that they couldn’t do anything to help organize it, but sure…go right on ahead!
And that’s how I got stuck with putting a fashion show together in one week (eep!).
I asked 10 of my favorite lady friends if they’d like to do this. My sell was “Hey…do this show, and you’ll get a custom refashion that you get to keep!” I was completely shocked that they all agreed…and with enthusiasm! 🙂 I set up fittings and got to work on my refashions.
I was nervous. I have precious little experience refashioning anything for anyone but myself. What if everything I made looked weird? :/
Then there was the matter of how to show the “before” shots during the show. I decided to rig a monitor on each side of the stage that would display the “before” shot as each model walked out in her “after”.
A week was spent dyeing, snipping, undoing, re-doing, and stitching! Somehow I managed to get it all done.
On the day of the big show, I was terrified. I hadn’t had time to set up any additional fittings with most of the models, so I had NO IDEA if everything was going to fit. And what if no one even showed up?
As Meghan and I passed around a bottle of Grand Marnier (nerve-loosening juice) backstage, Larry came in and told us that there were only a few people in the audience– probably boyfriends and family, so there was no need to be nervous. My heart plummeted. Really? I had worked so hard! I promoted the show all week, even went on the news to talk about it! 🙁
I rushed to the curtained area backstage and peered into the audience…the completely packed audience (very funny, Larry!)! There weren’t enough seats for everyone, so lots of people were standing in the back too! I was completely overwhelmed!
It was time to start the show! I gave a quick explanation of who I was, and my mission to change the way the world thinks about fashion.
Without further ado, here are the pics from the first EVER ReFashion Show! 😀
I COULD NOT have done this show without these wonderful women:
Thanks SO MUCH to anyone and everyone who helped make the first ever ReFashion Show a huge hit! 🙂
…until next time, Cheers! 🙂
Well Done!! I like them all! Amazing what you did in 7 days for 10 different figures.
Next time you do something like this, call me and I’ll offer my Mary Kay services to glam these girls up even more! This is so cool! I love your site!
My sister just sent me the link to your blog and I’ve been going through it all morning! Tell me about this wedding dress refash – I bought one from the 70’s for 100 bucks (getting hitched in Aug) and would love to dye it a tad bit darker (it’s real white, I want more of an off-white/beige). How did the beading dye so nicely?? Am I crazy to try to dye my wedding dress?
Thank you so much! 🙂 No…you’re not crazy at all! The lace part was made of cotton, so it absorbed more dye than the rest of the dress that was polyester. It all has to do with what the fabric is made of. Natural fibers will take dye better than Synthetic, which don’t take much dye at all. Hope this helps! Send me pics!!!
I *LOVE* the wedding dress refashion! I have my old dress that I want to have made into a cocktail dress! Everyone thinks I’m crazy but now I will just send them this link! It’s gorgeous!
I am SUPER impressed! Not only did you pull all of this amazing-ness in a WEEK, but every refash is fabulous! You truly out did yourself, Miss Jillian!! Catherine & Amy’s refash’s we my top fave’s but I honestly see inspiration in every single one of your pieces. I couldn’t have imagined what some of these “monster garbs” would turn into such seriously wearable pieces. Clapping for you and for your girls over here. Wonderful, exciting, and, above all, INSPIRATIONAL!! I have the constant itch to want to ask people to donate their unwanted garments so I can attack them with my arteeeeestic hands :O)
WOW this is simply AMAZING!!! I can’t believ you did all of those in one week!! This is by far my fave of all your posts, it truly showcases your talents and spunk. 😉 you’re my fave blogger, keep up the inspiring work!!
Congratulations Jillian!!! You did an amazing job. I’m SO impressed–you must be worn out!!!
Hi Jillian!
UAU! Awesome! Great Show! Kaitlin’s is my favorite too!!! Kisses from Portugal!
I really enjoyed this! All the refashions were fantastic but I thought Erin’s wedding dress really appealed to me! So pretty. This show looks like it was a lot of work but so fun. Thank you for everything you do!!
Congratulations Jillian! Sounds like it was a great success. Wish I could have been there!
Wow, everything looks gorgeuous! You are really talented! Congratulations!
Great refashion show! If you get around to Chicago please let me know, I need to meet you – such a goddess! 🙂
Fun. Good for you!,
I love Catherine’s, such a cute dress! They are all brilliant though.
Lauren
livinginaboxx
Jillian, colour me IMPRESSED!!!! There was not one single refashion that i did not like; ALL were an improvement on the original…even Erin’s wedding dress, which was so lovely to begin with! The way the lace took more of the colour than the dress made it outstanding!!!! Now she has a beautiful dressy dress to wear on her anniversaries! YAY!! Your models all looked great in their refashions; you have a terrific eye for what style looks good on who. {Amy’s was a particular fave because purple ROCKS.}
I don’t know why you had a moment of doubt that your friends would ALL say “YES”…what female knows you who would turn down a chance to have one of your refashions?!?
I thought of you when i was at Goodwill the other day; i found an item that i believe even YOU would be quite hard-pressed to do anything with…I may yet go back & buy it, just to mail it to you & wait to see what you could do… It was a sweater, but i think man-made material {I forgot to check, but it looked & felt like it!!}. It was open in front, no buttons or anything. The trim colour, which ran all the way around the outer edge, was the ONLY attractive thing about it {a nice, vivid magenta}; the remainder was less than attractive! I doubt it would take any dye…& losing the trim would remove its one redeeming quality…I am curious as to whether or not you could work any magic on it!! 😉
How on earth did you do all this in ONE week?!!!! Amazing! Those are some lucky ladies!!!!
How awesome! Congrats on your first BIG show! I think many more opportunities like this are coming your way. You abso-friggin-lutely ROCK!
Well done! Congratulations! Quite inspiring.
Great Job!
Amy was my favorite 🙂
Really enjoyed seeing your work on other people. Took me back to your handy hint that you never refashion for other people. I agree with that principle but this was an impressive departure! Well done! Brave and worth it!
Jillian, what a tremendous accomplishment! Thank you so much for sharing your passion and talent with the blogosphere and your community! Reading your blog has inspired me to think of other ways to refashion in my life as I haven’t sewn in years. I can’t wait to explore the creative ideas I’m collecting and I bought a new sewing machine! Going to shop in my closet first and declutter as well as refashion.
Wonderful! This is an amazing idea for a fashion show. I love seeing the before and afters on women of all shapes and ages!
Awesome!! I have been waiting impatiently for this post, but I can see that it was a ton of work to put it together. What you did is sheer amazing, and even more so because you did it all in a week! You are my refashioning superhero! And I super love what what you did with Erin’s wedding dress!
That was great and everyone looked so good. It’s mind boggling that you were able to pull this off in one week. GREAT JOB, I am super impressed! Sure wish I was closer, I would have loved to see it in person. Looking forward to the next amazeballs post!!
Fabulous! I’ve had to look three times trying to see all that you did.
I had to give this post a shout-out on my blog, ma’am (http://www.laurensconcepts.com/2013/02/15/refashionista/). You are the reason why I lost the fear to buy a sewing machine recently and how I had the balls to take a cotton t-shirt and turn it into a re-sizable headband. Kudos. <3
Wow, you did an amazing job! What a fun event, for you and your friends. Congrats on your success!
That is so cool! Its like each refashion you did matched your friend’s presumed personalities! Just awesome!!
Fantastic! Had I lived closer, I would have been there. Great work!
Great job! I loved this so much!
That’s amazing Jillian!!! I really like how the dye job changed Catherine’s frock. It looks so pretty. My favourite is definitely Jennifer’s though. It is so unique and so pretty! Like a cute little romper for a day on the beach!
That is amazing – you worked so hard and love that all the ladies and young ladies are all shapes and sizes and all so beautiful! Well done to you all 🙂
Fantastic!!! You ROCKED it!
wow!that was great, who knew so many small changes could make such beautiful clothes 🙂 you did it! congratulations on a successful show. I hope you get to do it again and again and again!
I love the results. I love what you do, turn stuff no one loves to stuff that looks awesome. And even more awesome when you can do it for the others (because not everyone has as pretty face and perfect body as you). Oh, I’d love if one could also leave a wishlist for stuff for you to refashion… I want to try to do some refashions myself (but so far have done just t-shirts to something else). I’ve got some Hawaiian shirts I love, of course men’s shirts, but I’m wondering how to make those pretty? Some are just 1-2 sizes too large for me, so it’s not that easy to make them as dresses either… How could I turn a man’s shirt to something insanely awesome to wear?
Ah-MAZE-balls! I love Meghan and Catherine, and the wedding dress just took the color in such a cool and unexpected way. Love love love everything you do all the time! 🙂
So happy all went beautifully! Loved seeing all the photos… I so dream of doing a charity refashion show for the American Heart Society someday! I haven’t even begun refashioning but have gathered the tools, so maybe soon!
Best fashion show ever!! I especially LOVED Kaitlin’s!
You are awesomely talented and such a hard worker – congratulations on your wonderful show! And thank you so much for sharing pictures of the whole thing. It’s the next best thing to being there.
ZOMG best ever! Your first fashion show and such a success-I’m so proud of you! I wish I was there to cheer you on (I’d totally show up early and get the front seats). Meagan’s dress and the wedding dress refashions are my favourites (although I like the dress that’s your fav. as well-the colours really suit the model!) and big ups for all the different body types showcased. Truly awesome.
You’ve inspired me too! I bought a bottle of Rit dye, and brought the sewing machine I got for Christmas up to my craft room. Still haven’t taken it out, but I’m getting a little closer. It intimidates me. 😉
Wow, this is amazing! You are suuuper talented!
Im so inspired to learn how to sew now!
Amazing! You are so talented. I think the first dress is my favourite, but they are all so awesome it is hard to choose.
whoa lady. amazing! the teal and lace is definitely my favorite and while i can’t manage to wear them, i love bell sleeves on other people!
Impressive!!! The refashions were great AND all in one week. Amazing! Good job.
I love the transformations! Well done! 🙂
I love this blog! I look forward to reading to see what you will refashion next! Looks like it was great show! Would have loved to have been there, but Alabama is a good distance away and plus I had to work all weekend. I loved the wedding dress refashion. Thanks for motivating me to have the courage to buy a over sized lab jacket for work and making it fit me.
These are awesome. I just started reading your blog about two months ago, and I now check clothes OUT of my size when I go thrift shopping. I haven’t found anything yet, but at least you’ve got me looking.
Awesome Job!!! I love the way you recreated these pieces for all the different models/friends. It is amazing.
Brilliant, can’t believe you managed all that in a few days!
Well done, Jillian! I was hoping that you would do a post about your fashion show. I’m amazed at how well it turned out with only 1 WEEK OF PREPARATION. I liked nearly all of the refashions, and I really liked how you used models of all ages, shapes and sizes. Excellent work!
AH-mazing! Super job on all of these ReFashions! You did great!
Great Job!
This is completely awesome! Congratulations on a job very well done!
Wonderful job!!! I bet it was fun.
That was awesome and amazing and terrific and wonderful and….. I think you get what I’m trying to say. WOW!
fantastic job on the makeovers!
Great job, Jill! and in a week!♡♥♡♥♡
Still can’t figure out how you turned a pillow case into a little kid. Now, that’s amazing!
I love this post! Looks like so much fun! The wedding dress was my fav.
You are so inspirational! I have started sewing again and even wore a skirt that I “re-fashioned.” Thank you for all the awesome work you do to inspire people. Loved your show!
OMG, Jillian! That is just amazing. Look at all that you created in such a short time. And to think, here I was thinking you had forgotten to share your refashions with us. Little did I know I would have such a marvelous surprise in my inbox. I wish I could have been there for your big show. Maybe next time…when you’re doing it on a runway in NYC 😉
Completely Blown away! Please please please take your show on the road and come to Cleveland! Great Job!
You ROCK so hard!!!!!!! Congratulations!
This is awesome!! Great job!! I just started following your blog, and I cant believe the amazing transformations you do! You are an inspiration!! Keep up the good work!!
Great job in so many ways- such a lot of work. Congratulations Jilly – you’re a star!
What a challenge to do all of these refashions for other people in just a week, you rock!
What a great job! The clothes and models looked terrific and a litle dyeing does a lot of good!
Looks like soo much fun! I hate I couldn’t come down. My sisters were there!
I think Meghan’s is my favourite because it’s so simple yet spectacular! Although I also like Catherine’s and Erin’s… and those little girls are adorable… Great work!! Congrats on an amazing event.
You really rocked it out. Great job and great friends!