Sweater to Cardigan

I can put it off no longer... this will be my first womens refashion on Rustic Refashion, meaning as much as I don't like having my photo taken, the time has come to show my face (clothes just don't look the same on a dress form unfortunately).  I have conveniently started with this winter time 'round the house' favourite, which sadly, had even past its use by date as a 'round the house' item.

Haha, I can resist showing my face for a little longer.

Along with a few other items to be refashioned in the future, the sweater took a bath in some orange dye.

When it came out, I cut it straight down the middle (at the front) to make a cardigan.  When I tried it on it  didn't sit very nicely, so I decided to cut the hem in a curved shape (shown here) to create a 'drapey' cardigan.

I tried it on again, and still didn't like it - it didn't hang like I had hoped, and there also wasn't enough fabric to wrap around me when the weather gets a little chilly.  To fix this I decided to sew the bit of fabric I had cut off the bottom onto one side, so that one side would be more 'drapey' than the other side.

I tidied up all the cut edges by using a zig-zag stitch.... and my drab grey sweater is now an orange'ish' drapey cardigan.

Bear with me as I learn to pose for photos being taken on an iPad by a 9 year old...

I think she did quite a good job really

This is really pushing me out of my comfort zone, photos from behind.

Woman's top and shirt to Girls Dress

In a sewing session with my girls, Miss 9 had some seriously complicated plans for a dress with lots of potential.  But I had no vision on how to make it work for her.  We searched further...

...and ended up choosing this skirt, which wasn't really going to suit her as a dress with strappy straps.  So, we decided instead to team it with this top, which matched beautifully, was of a lovely quality, but had a bleach stain near the bottom.

The plan was simple. Take a couple of inches off each side of the top before sewing it to the skirt to create ...

Scarf to Vest

I was given this 'tube' scarf a year or so ago, but after many attempts I just couldn't get this style to match anything I owned. I was all set to hand it on, when I was inspired to turn it into a vest after seeing a crafty mama I know knitting a lovely woollen sleeveless cardigan for her little girl.

                                                               

I've never attempted cutting and sewing a knitted item before and was a little concerned about it unraveling. 

 I cut the scarf so it was no longer a 'tube' and also cut in some arm holes.  It was a little tricky, but I managed to zig-zag the raw edges in an attempt to stop them from unravelling, and then folded them over and zig-zagged them again to tidy up the ratty bits.  The small holes I had cut for arms became quite big after being sewn, and the straight edges a little wobbly - but this was disguised by making it into an asymmetrical piece.

Next it was tried on so we could work out how it should sit when being worn.  Then it was sewn up so it would pull on over the head, and big button was popped on one shoulder to make it a faux cardigan.

This is what we ended up with.

Up-cycled clothing, on up-cycled landscaping. 

Before....                                                                                     And after

Now lets go play...

My First Post

So I recently realised that I love a bit of refashioning after sporadically pottering away at this hobby for the past 2 years.  I also love browsing at what other people are refashioning too, soooo... I thought I'd give this blogging bizzo a whirl and share some of my creations as well.  I chose the name Rustic Refashion because I'm not a particularly technical 'seamstress', and my creations are a bit hit and miss. 

My two girls and my wardrobes are increasing in their quantity of refashioned clothing, some of which are fairly practical and boring, others are a bit more adventurous.  My first piece is the former - practical and somewhat boring. 

I started with this hand-me-down from Nanna.  I needed to make it narrower, and make the sleeves shorter, as this little girl of mine runs hot, and barely ever wears anything other than shorts and teeshirts.

So I pinned and sewed about an inch in from both sides, trimmed off the extra fabric and ran a zigzag stitch along the cut edge. 

I then chopped off the sleeves

And folded the raw edge and sewed it so the sleeve would have a visible  folded cuff on the outside.

This is what we ended up with.