In the light of my crazy commitment to the Love What You Wear Project … it seems wise to start planning some re-jigging in the wardrobe department!
Not buying any new clothes for a year is a great way to save money, but it certainly doesn’t mean I won’t have anything ‘new’ to wear … I have started my ‘re-use/re-purpose/up-cycle project’ by having a dig around in the forgotten corners of my wardrobe, and already I have found a little pile of potential participants …
… firstly, this jumper …
… I love the colour (which is slightly pinker than it appears here), I love the softness and I love the warmth ~ this is a warm jumper. However, it is over 10 years old now, and although it has lasted well, I hate the shape! That funnel neck has to go, and I would like it to be shorter, more boxy feeling. So my challenge is to re-shape and shorten … I have no idea how I do this without the whole thing unraveling … if anyone is an expert in re-purposing knitted wool jumpers, please send me some tips!
Secondly is this lovely dress …
… I bought it online ~ it is from one of my favourite ethical/fair trade fashion companies, it was a fabulous bargain at about 75% discount, and I have never worn it! I love the fabric, the quality and the detailing on the sleeve … but it just isn’t the right shape for me, and it is shorter than I am really comfortable with. I have a dilemma with this one … do I unpick the lining, and re-stitch the darts and seams to give it more shape … it would fit beautifully – but still feel too short. Or, do I forsake those beautiful sleeves, and cut off the top to re-make the lower section into a fitted knee length pencil skirt. Hmmm! Or is there a third way … could I somehow fashion a section of contrasting/toning fabric into the middle (under the bust/waist area) to create a fitted knee length dress … any ideas welcome!
Thirdly, I found this …
… (excuse the poor picture quality – very low light this week) a corduroy skirt which my Mum made for me when I was about 13. It had an elasticated waistband which I unpicked ages ago. The fabric is good and vibrant and warm. And goes beautifully with this …
… my favourite retro 1970′s fabric (a reclaimed tablecloth … minus it’s braided fringe). Oooh, now this feels like something that is within my comfort zone, I have made skirts before …
… so I started by unpicking the patch pockets …
… and the side seams. To re-shape it I used a current skirt which fits well as a template …
… and trimmed off the excess fabric …
… and as you can see by the lack of focus, at this point the low light made it impossible to take a decent photo!
My vision is for a skirt a similar length, but straighter than the one above, and so I stitched up the side seams, fitted it on me, pinned in a couple of darts either side of the back zip … stitched and fitted again …
… I then used the same current skirt as a template to cut the floral fabric for a waistband, which I pinned into place before stitching …
… and this is as far as I have got … working without a pattern, in my usual trial and error style, the waistband did take two attempts, but it is now stitched into place and I am happy with it.
Next stage – to use the floral fabric to add a contrasting trim to the hem of the skirt, and to add some applique decoration – the old stitch lines from the patch pockets will need to be disguised somehow … and finally I will add a lining by stitching it to the inner side of the waistband (but I am yet to source a suitable lining fabric).
So far, so good ~ it feels like a great start to my very own ‘love what you wear’ year!
And that certainly calls for a big Yeee~ha!
