Restricting the bask to directly under the heat lamp.Filed under: Fixed it, Refashioned it, Sewed it, Thrifted it | Tags: refashion, thrifted, blouse, purple, silk, Hong Kong finish, dart
My purple obsession is bordering on…obsessive. I am heeding advice to stock up while everyone thinks purple’s all fresh and trendy, for the days when my love is finally left alone.
Grabbed up a size 22 shell at the thrifts for $2. It’s a beautiful purple color and it’s pure silky silk.
The neck has some great details, too. There used to be an invisible zipper up the side — no more. I thought this was going to be a simple fix – pull in the sides, pin, baste, sew. And you know I love refitting giant tops to fit me because of the resulting long length and the de facto cap sleeves.
Alas, some pesky darts got in the way. My refashions are sometimes lazy. I didn’t want to rehem anything or refinish any edges. So I ended up making darts on my own to pull up the slack so the front matched the back at the armhole and hem.
Took three tries to get it right. Here’s one of the mistakes
I kept trying very long darts that went along the bias and were hard to sew. Unclear why – had some impression from a vintage pattern it was the way to go.
In the end, wide, straight darts ended up working right.
Tried out a Hong Kong finish on the edges to keep it all smart looking, cutting the tape from the side scraps. So little waste!
And now I have a new silk blouse.
That’s so ready for a stretchy purple sequined belt.
Filed under: Finished it, Fixed it, Refashioned it, Sewed it, Thrifted it | Tags: blouse, button, hem, pants, Philadelphia, refashion, Stella, Svengoolie, thrifted, wardrobe refashion
I can’t stand the clutter in my apartment and closet anymore! It’s been dragging me down and occupying more mental energy than it is worth. Plus it’s that time of year in Chicago where I’m itching to put on more than my winter black turtleneck and dark cords.
Of course, I’m all supposed to be working on this other little project, but I’ve reached a point where I need another set of hands. And I’m too germy tonight to ask her, new mama of a teeny baby, to risk infection.
So this eve, I’m home with Svengoolie — tonight showing The Blob starring Steve McQueen and a sweet Burt Bacharach theme song all from 1958 — and the sewing machine, wrapping up all those little oddball repairs and fixes that have rendered so much clothing a total drag to wear.
This little sheer purple thrifted blouse had its ugly old button stuck on by the previous owner for ornamental purposes replaced with a cutie little flowered one.
It’s really see through and needs its own proper slip to wear underneath. I’ll table that for the next time SvenG shoes the Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Some gray flannel pants needed a good hem. I shortened them with a little cheat technique I’ll post soon.
I started taking in a black top with some gold and purple irises on the front. Started pinning in some darts in the back to give the thing some shape. Then I thought about maybe just posting the thing on etsy as is.
And some black knit thrifted pants that were too big got taken in by the rear seam. Not a glamorous enough repair to photograph.
Must say that Svengoolie makes for excellent company.
I didn’t grow up here with him on Saturday nights. In Philadelphia, we had a similar cheeseball horror show called Saturday Night Dead featuring a busty hostess called Stella. Only Svengoolie has better songs than I remember on SND. And he starts at like 9 p.m. instead of 1 a.m.
Here’s hoping somebody ponies up the cash for the glow-in-the-dark Svengoolie t-shirt in time for my birthday. Though I think I’ve blown my t-shirt karma around here in a stack of boxy shirts destined for refashions but still sitting in the pile.
Filed under: Finished it, Fixed it, How to do it, Love it, Made it, Refashioned it, Thrifted it | Tags: alter, black, blouse, shorten, sleeves, wardrobe refashion, wrap
I was playing with short sleeve a while back by making new short cuffs, and by resetting the whole sleeve to preserve the original cuffs.
Thrifted a long sleeved black cotton blouse this week because of the great wrap detail – a button plus tie with a cummerbund sort of detail – and decided, so I can wear it to work, to do the simplest shortening of all – a basic chop and hem – while watching the nightly news.
after… and beforeYou can see the long sleeve as a before, and the sleeve I shortened as an after.
Flip the blouse inside out to work with it. Mark where you want the short sleeve to end, cut straight across, and then hem using this failsafe method: Measure an inch from the raw edge, fold up wrong sides together and press. Then fold the raw edge into the fold, and press again. Tack with a few pins, then stitch with a basic straight stitch. I like to use excised sleeve #1 to mark and cut sleeve #2.
Doesn’t get much easier – unless you chop and wear, a la t-shirts.
Filed under: Fixed it, Love it, Refashioned it, Sewed it, Thrifted it | Tags: blouse, pink, present, Salvy, vintage
My Mister’s sister is crazy for pink. I suspect it’s to prove her tacit credos that redheads can wear whatever they like, and so can tough broads.
She also teaches at a Chicago Public School, and hates mixing her ‘normal’ wardrobe with her teacher clothes. So she has a sort of double wardrobe.
I don’t know where this vintage handmade blouse will end up, but I spotted it at a suburban Salvy and plunked down the $.75, thinking if she doesn’t like it, she’ll donate it back. Or she’ll hand it back and we’ll put it up for a few $ on etsy. It has a wide, trapeze shape, and the sleeves were sewn on in three pieces.
Plus, the pink circles are mesmerizing. I had to repair the sleeve and bottom hems.
I think it worked.
Filed under: Fixed it, How to do it, Love it, Made it, Refashioned it, Sewed it, Thrifted it | Tags: blouse, cuffs, How to do it, reset, ruffled, Salvy, short, shorten, sleeves
The shortening obsession continues. And resetting sleeves is an important skill when taking in giant t-shirts and blouses and all because more than an inch removed from the sides sets off the shoulder seam. This refashion started with a black ruffled blouse from my favorite Salvy that was four sizes too big for me. There was something about it I liked enough to plunk down the $.90; mostly, it’s the ruffled placket and the cuff detail. To keep the cuffs as is, I essentially moved the whole sleeve up.
Here’s how:
1. REMOVE SLEEVES.
Flip the shirt and, pick out the stitching, or if the top is really huge on you, cut off at the seams. Press.
2. FIT BODICE.
Pin the sides of the top so it fits you. Try it on and repin as necessary. Get the fit right now. Chalk between pins and sew along the chalk lines. Trim seam edges and finish as you like. I’ve serged the seams on the blouse.
3. MEASURE SLEEVES.
Flip the detached sleeves inside out and flatten, with the seam line on one side. Measure from your shoulder how many inches you want the short sleeves to be. I did about 8″ for this blouse so the ruffled cuff detail would remain.
***Here’s the trick–
4. GATHER SLEEVE TOPS.
Use a pin to mark the midpoint of the top of the sleeve. If you want puffy sleeves, use a long basting stitch to gather the edge. Try on the fitted bodice, considering where you want the shoulder to fall. If the original top was huge, you’ll have to trim the armhole opening so the shoulder seam lies on your shoulder.
5. SEW SLEEVES BACK ON.
Pin sleeves on, matching underseams, and the top seam with the pin in the sleeve. Gather the sleeve top, pinning as you go. Try the thing on. Move pins accordingly. Baste. Sew and finish edges as you like.
