// #thriftstylethursday // Summer Nights

Date night doesn't happen often around here, but lately breakfast and lunch dates have been! So, when Kristi of Delightfully, Kristi challenged us to come up with a look for a date night (whether with our significant others or with the girls) I wanted to cover a more casual day look that would also translate to night as well...if such an event should happen anytime soon!

So, I decided to dive into my refashion stash since I had just the dress in mind for today's challenge. No before shots as it wasn't a major transformation, I simply took in the sides a bit to make it more fitted as it was about a size too big for me. Its a handmade dress I found at my local thrift store and I absolutely love the little gold diamond print on the basic black background.

For daytime, I decided on my denim jacket (not thrifted: Pilcro from Anthropologie) as it is a cooler day for us today. I picked out thrifted earrings and bangles, and an old pair of Payless flat sandals. Threw my hair in a topknot and if I get a little too warm, I can just take off the jacket and tie it at the waist!

For night, I added a yard sale multi-strand necklace, and switched out my flats for a pair of awesome thrifted wedges. The pattern on the wedge is pretty rad, and the black patent dresses things up just enough. Again, as the evening cools, the jacket goes back on!

Isn't the pattern on the dress just the cutest!?! So glad I decided to pull it out and tackle this easy fix. It took me under 30 minutes and now I've got a super versatile dress to add into my wardrobe (which after some drastic cuts is still abundant ;) lol).

What have the other ladies come up with, you ask? Well, click on their photos to find out! What thrifted look would you come up with for a date night?

Peace,
Andrea

// #thriftstylethursday // to the max

So happy to be posting for Thrift Style Thursday, even if it is a bit later in the day. Today's theme is brought to us by Megan of Traverse. I had a few maxi options in the form of skirts or dresses, but thought this should be the one I tackle. I picked it up last summer at a yardsale for $1. Really nice quality jersey, bold stripe....with the bottom chopped off! The previous owner was several inches shorter than me ;). No big deal though, this is one of my quickest fixes yet! 

All I did was tie a knot in the bottom to raise up the length of the front. That's it. For now, that's good enough. Later on I may shorten the length a little, give it a hi-low hem, or something....oh, I know! Rounded hem that curves up at each side. Bam!

Threw on a thrifted belt, some old sandals, and I'm ready for a kindergarten picnic at the park :-D

Awkward length. Sorted. Now about those bold stripes....hahaha, may have to get used to this one!

Now go see what the other Thrift Style Thursday ladies have put together for this week...I'm sure they won't disappoint!

Addicted to Stripes

So, by now it should be no secret that I love stripes....LOVE THEM!!! Especially when black and white or navy and white (also gray and white). I recently came across two dresses at two of my local thrift stores and quickly bought each. The first was a definite refashion candidate for a couple of reasons: nasty armpit stains and a bleach spot on one of the sleeves. It's made of a heavier knit, and the skirt was absolutely perfect as-is, so I decided to just tackle the bodice.

I started by sewing up each side taking them in by about an inch apiece, then cut off the excess including the sleeves. Next it was time to cut off the collar opening up the neckline a bit.

Next I shortened the straps by first sewing across them while right-side-out, trimming the excess, and flipping it inside out to enclose the raw edges in the seam.

Now, taking up the straps effectively brought the neckline back up, so I trimmed it down, then again until I got the look I was going for. I left the neckline edges raw and simply let the knit curl under on itself, but finished off the armholes with a simple topstitch on the folded edge.

I love the way it turned out, and its actually reversible if I ever want to wear the buttons in the front! Oh, I also sewed the button placket shut as it was gaping a bit. Super easy remake, and so easy to wear as well! Here's the before and after of it in action:

This next dress is an Asos maternity dress that I grabbed without trying it on. If I were a bit curvier then I may have left it as it was, but it was just a bit too voluminous and belting it left it bunching weirdly. No good. So, I turned it inside out, sewed up each side using a lightning stitch (good for knits on a regular machine), and trimmed off the excess.

Next I tackled the waist by creating two pleated gathers at each side of the waist and reinforcing it on the inside with the scraps I'd trimmed off.

Another super easy remake, that will be versatile and fun to wear as the weather heats up more each day! Love this one too :)

I like it with or without a belt, and will be getting tons of wear out of this one. What do you think? Do you like one more than the other? I love the bold stripe of this dress, but adore the classic fit and flare of the previous dress over the overall fit of this one. Either way, I'm excited to be sewing again and can't wait to tackle the next project.

Happy Refashioning!
Peace,
Andrea

LB(T-shirt)D

Finally! Here's that post on this really simple dress refashion I did this past week for Me Made May 2015. I started out with this long black thrifted dress. It's 100% cotton and a thicker knit fabric with a crocheted lace detail at the neck. I started by putting it on inside out and marking where I wanted to take it in. Initially I figured I'd want to have it nice and fitted, seeing as it was an otherwise very basic kind of piece. If I had it to do over again, I'd have simply skipped to shortening the length. I sewed along each side where I'd marked, trimmed off the excess, and put it back on right side out.

Obviously, there are some issues at the hips, but a quick run through the machine smoothed all of that out ;). Next I chopped some length. The choice at this point was to take in the bottom to fit more like a pencil skirt making the entire dress very fitted, or to go shorter leaving the skirt's shape as it was.

I ended up deciding to simply go shorter...again, at this point I kind of wish I'd have gone with the totally fitted nature and fit the skirt more like a pencil. It's like one of those books where you pick the ending by choosing one of two options at different points throughout the story...I kept choosing wrong!

So, though I'm not totally satisfied and feel this dress is too clingy at my tummy, and not very flattering (which limits how often I'll feel confident enough to wear it) I thought I'd show how I'd style this kind of simple dress. First up, let's hit up my thrifted belt collection! I love the embroidered rose belt for its colors and design. It definitely brings some life to this basic piece. The silver mesh belt dresses it up a bit more and with the addition of heels and accessories, could be a cute date night outfit. The third is most basic with a unique leather belt.

Now, the other way I'd most likely style this is with a button up shirt tied over top. Super easy, but changes up the look completely! I grabbed a thrifted Zara silk blouse with palm tree print, but didn't love how it looks in the pic. The thrifted J. Crew chambray in the center is definitely more my style and I can totally see me wearing this soon. My final option would be to simply let the dress be and style with simple jewelry and sandals.

Either way, I'll have to decide how I feel about this one. Maybe I'll simply reinsert panels down each side of the leftover fabric to make it more of a swing dress shape...time will tell! Anyhow, this is one of the easiest refashions and translates to simple knit skirts, t-shirts, etc. Put it on inside out, mark how far to take it in (I use chalk, soap, or pins), then sew up the lines and trim the excess!

That's that! Here's the before and after:

Peace,
Andrea

April Thrift Scores: Part I

Yeah, I know, we're like four days in and I'm posting about the month's thrift scores already. I just can't help it! I loved these finds so much, I just had to share...so, we'll call this post Part 1. ;)  My first thrift purchase of the month was actually a pair of running shorts that I nabbed for $3. But, I haven't gotten a pic yet, and wouldn't you know, they fall into the same color way as these next few items!!! Sometimes I just shop by color scheme (unconsciously...subconsciously? who knows?) and it works for me. Let's take a gander at what I found.

To start, I almost didn't grab this magenta top. And now, I'm soooo glad I did! It's a comfy rayon Gap slouchy T that is my favorite shade of pink. Love it! It was $4. The floral leggings are actually not thrifted, but were on clearance (+ an additional % off) at Anthropologie, and I just wanted them! They cost under $18 and are for working out...or lounging around the apartment ;). This silk skirt is an incredible shade of red-orange and only cost $3, AND is just my size. It will definitely work a bit better as I take on some rays (in safe dosages, of course) but I paired it with the t-shirt because it is the color combo of those running shorts I mentioned earlier! They're patterned and don't come across as loud, but super cute!

Ok. Now, this dress. What can I say? It's silk, to start...lining and all. It feels sooooo good! It's purple! One of my fave colors for special occasions. It's my size! It fits like a dream, and though not pictured here, has a deep V back which is uber flattering. It's Christian Siriano! How fun to find a new designer who has had such success after his debut on Project Runway a few years back! It was $25 and more than I normally spend on one item, but oh so worth it! Can't wait to wear this :)

What's funny about these next two, is that one fits in with the overall color scheme, and one doesn't. Guess which one I'm not loving...the one that doesn't! I don't know what it is, but even though the striped top is flattering, sitting next to all of that color isn't helping. The floral top is an XL and needs to be refashioned, but I'm thinking a cute summer tank top might be perfect. Both were $3 apiece.

That's the haul so far, though I'm not sure I'll be back thrifting for at least 2-3 more weeks. Trying to spread my trips out a bit more and buy less each time. I've got loads to donate and a refashion pile to still to work through, so I'm hoping to keep to my limits.

How about you? Thrifted anything you love recently? What have been your best scores? I'd love to hear your stories :)

Happy Thrifting!
Andrea