JAZZ UP A SUMMER STAPLE!

BEFORE

AFTER

 

 

These edgy little cut offs, were made from a pair of black jeans, bought from a second hand store.  I’m sure many of you have a pair of jeans in the closet that feel out dated, because of the cut of the leg, or the length has never been quite right.  This is a great project for turning those neglected pants into a summer staple! 

 

I began by laying these black jeans flat on a table.  The shorts were then laid over top, to use as a guide.

 

 

 

The first time I tried to bleach these, it didn’t work.  I followed instructions, that I had found online, that said to mix 50% water and 50% bleach, then leave on, no longer than five minutes.  It barely left a mark.  My guess is, that black jeans are just a little more difficult to bleach. 

I’m going to give directions, according to what worked for me.  It’s an intense technique, compared to what I had read online, and the bleach eating through my jeans was a concern.  I’ve washed and dried them, and still no holes.  This technique, definitely worked for me.

 

Before I started the actual bleaching process, I filled my wash machine with water and stopped the machine until I was ready to rinse my shorts.

It’s important to rinse them immediately when the right look has been achieved.

 

I, then gathered my supplies:

 

*  Bleach

*  Bowl for bleach

*  Old rag for applying bleach

*  Rubber gloves

*  Old towel for transporting the shorts to the washer

 

I did all my work outside.

I  poured about two cups of pure bleach into a large bowl.

I used a wadded up, water soaked rag, made from an old t-shirt, as the tool for applying the bleach.

The rag was then dipped, and soaked with bleach.

I dabbed it, onto the shorts where the pattern was desired.

Do this quickly.

 

I let the beach sit for about 15 minutes, then put them in the washer immediately.

They were washed by themselves the first time, after that, launder as usual.

 

What a fun look!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BEFORE

AFTER

I’ve always had a hard time passing up beautiful scarves at second hand stores, and I have accumulated quite a collection.  They are an amazing accessory and I wear them, many times, in place of a necklace, in order to punch up an outfit.  Well, here is another idea to put those scarves, with amazing patterns and textures, to use.  It took only six scarves (I show seven in the before picture, but didn’t use one) to make this unique, flowing, boho maxi!  I will be giving a rundown, on how this look was accomplished, but it really is about “playing” with the scarves, until the right look is achieved.  

It was now time to go through my stash of scarves, to see, if I had enough of one theme and color pallet to create a dress.  I did, and my look became animal print, with brown being the dominant color, then black.  I pulled out my dress maker’s mannequin and began piling, pinning and trying scarves on the mannequin.  I looked at it with a squinted eye to see if I could envision these scarves together, as a dress. I could and, so I began. 

Quick story:  As I was piling scarves on my mannequin, my mom popped over.  As her and I were visiting, I looked over at the frenzied mound of scarves, dripping off the form, and then looked back to see that my mom,  was looking at this crazy mess, also.  I laughed and said, “you probably think I’m nuts”!  Then we both started laughing at what seemed like a hopeless, disaster!

Well, I can breath a sigh of relief now, to see, that there is a method to my madness, and something beautiful really did come from all of this.

I began with an animal print that would become the top.  I draped it around the neck, and hit at about the hips.

I cut 9 1/2″ off of the bottom of each end and added a square of a different scarf.

I’m stitching this dress, wrong sides together, I want to see the seams.

Pieces were then added to become the back and waist band.

I then began draping and playing with the rest of the scarves, to get the looked I wanted, then stitched them all together.

This would be a fabulous resort wear dress!

Tip:  An amazing stack of bracelets were used to accessorize this dress.  Bracelets are another little treasure to keep your eye out for, when shopping second hand stores.  Just one of these bracelets alone, is fairly unremarkable, but stack them together and they make a statement and get noticed!

A NO-SEW PROJECT!

Express your individuality by creating street chic fashions of your own, starting with this long sleeve t-shirt project.

BEFORE

TRANSFORMING A THRIFT STORE SKIRT INTO A FLIRTY, PLAYFUL DRESS.  IT IS SO ECO-COUTURE!

BEFORE

AFTER

 

 

I felt I scored when I found this skirt at the salvation army.  I’m lucky to live in a big enough city, where large charitable thrift stores are plentiful. 

Thrift stores are perfect for finding garments to upcycle.  A lot of the items are destined for the landfills, which makes repurposing these garments very eco-friendly.  Shopping second hand stores, to find materials for fashion, is FAR less expensive than visiting the fabric stores and buying yards of fabrics, notions, and patterns.  These pre-owned clothing pieces also make the construction of a new garment, very easy.  Zippers, waist bands, hems, button holes, etc. are already done for you (which, makes it faster, too)!  I made this dress for $3.50 plus the thread…THAT’S IT!

 

I had a vision in my head of a flirty, earthy dress I wanted to make.  When I found this skirt I knew right away what I would be doing with it.  The skirt was perfect.  It had a lot of volume (fabric!), a ruffle at the bottom and a usable lining.

 

I began this project by removing the skirt from the lining, cutting at the waist band.

 

 

 

The lining, became the under structure for the rest of the dress.  It was cut assymetrical, to length, and set aside. 

 

 

 

A NEW TWIST ON AN OLD CLASSIC!

BEFORE

AFTER

 

Trench coats have made a huge come back.  Runway designers and retailers are offering new twists on the old favorite.  They are being seen hand painted and artist signed (another blog idea…hmmmm), they are also being adorned with feminine frills and ruffles, metallic, leather, plaid, bold solids and tie dye!

This brings us to today’s project.  I am going to demonstrate how a boring trench, transformed into a dramatic fashion statement.  Tie dye is a fun DIY project with many varying techniques, products, and uses.

I bought this coat from ebay, quite awhile ago.  I loved the style, shape and fit.  The problem was, I felt like I was wearing a lab coat when I tried it on.  It sat in my closet until now. 

 

Tip before starting a tie dye project:  Natural fabrics, such as silk, cotton, and linen take the dye beautifully.  Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester and acrylic do not.  This, I have learned through trial and error.

 

I began by laying out a tarp, outside.  I will use this to lay my garment flat to dry when I’m finished.  I then cut open a large garbage bag to use as the actual work surface, again this was outside.

The dying formula was then prepared.  I bought a bottle of black, Rit dye.  In a bucket, I mixed 1/2 gallon HOT water, 1/2 bottle of Rit dye, 1/4 cup of salt.  This proved to be way more than I need, you can adjust, accordingly.

A clean squeeze bottle is needed to apply the dye to the garment.  Anything around the house should do, ie. ketchup bottle, shampoo bottle, or dish soap container.

I just dipped my bottle in the bucket, using rubber gloves, to fill it.  A funnel could also be used.

I prepared my trench coat by completely soaking it in the sink and wringing it out, thoroughly.

The coat was then twisted in a pinwheel fashion, starting in the middle.

 

I continued doing this until it was in a complete circle.

 

 

About four rubber bands were then wound around the coat, to hold it in place.

 

 

I began drizzling the tie dye formula onto the front side.  I’d say, I covered about 80 percent of the surface with dye.

 

 

 

 It was then turned over and the process was repeated.

 

 

The rubber bands were then removed and the garment was laid flat to dry.

 

When it was dry, I washed it in the machine by it’s self.  I did this as a test to see if there would be any fading or bleeding.  This coat passed the test…it was perfect!

 

With the formula I used,  the coat turned out more of a dark gray with a slight purple tint (in certain lighting).  Also, as it began drying, orange spots started showing up at the edge of the dye pattern.  I didn’t know why this was happening, but it was a bonus…loved it!

 

The options with tie dying are endless and limited only by imagination!   Try tie dying a light pair of blue jeans with black dye, for a edgy, street chic look, and there is always the old stand by, a tie dye t-shirt!