Thrifty Outfit Thursday: Army Green Handmade Dress








 
I thrifted this green jersey material for .99 cents and wanted to try my hand at making a simple dress out of. I think it came out pretty good.
 
 
Stretch material is the most forgiving and if you are looking to start sewing I recommend you start there. It will really boost your confidence.

 

Dress: .99 cent thrifted fabric

Banana Republic Cardigan- $6.00

Cowl: $3.00

Boots: Amanda Smith $12.00

Belt $2.00








 

Learning to Knit



If you weren’t quite sure yet, this blog post will confirm, that I officially have more in common with your 90-year-old grandmother than any of you. I have taken up knitting. The only thing that keeps me looking hip is that when I reference me serging over the weekend, I’m fairly certain people think it’s some new thing involving loud music or reckless behavior, not me sitting over a nifty sewing machine that hems edges oh so neatly.

   Learning to knit has reminded me how impatient I am. I’m also reminded of this in the homemade bread I didn’t allow to rise all the way with a chewy, not so yummy center, or the side mirror on my car I smashed off while I hurriedly backing out of my garage this morning…the list really could go on and on… but my point is that as I was learning to knit I learned something…follow the pattern directions gosh darn it! You can’t skip to the end and it won’t look good at all. I messed around a bit only to fail because I wasn’t following it to the tee. It was then that my friend Dana, who knits, stepped in and pushed me in the right direction. I am now hooked and will be making cowls for everyone’s gifts for the next few years so I hope you have cold necks.

   Tips if you want to learn to knit:

1.Youtube…there are tons of videos to teach you the basics, and knitting is pretty basic so once you know this you can knit.


 


2.There are a lot of online sites with free patterns. Dana showed me Ravelry. It’s full of all types a free patterns.


 

3.Ask your grandmother for her supplies because this shit gets expensive…

How to Make a Sewing Pattern from Old Clothes


I bought this dress from H&M and loved it. However, I wore it a few times and then I found a few holes in the front after washing it. I loved it so much that I found the dress on sale and bought it again. When I got it home, before I even wore it, I found another hole in the front. Needless to say, this dress and I were just not meant to be. But I held on to it incase I wanted to use it for scrap. I found some adorable striped jersey at the thrift store for .50 cents and it was perfect to re-create this dress. This is how i used the old dress as a pattern:

Step 1.

Cut the dress at all seams. But pay attention to how it is put together as you’ll need to remember this.
Step 2:
 
Place the newly cut pattern pieces on your desired fabric and cut out.
For the pieces that need two identical parts , like sleeves, I doubled over the fabric and cut those out together.

 

Step 3:

Now that all the pieces are cut from your fabric, sew all the pieces back together. In this instance, I sewed together the bodice, then the skirt separately and then joined them at the waist seam.

 

Step 4.
 
 Finish your hems and in this case I had to add a channel in the middle for a waist band. I also had to finish the neckline, skirt and arm hole hems. All of these things can be pulled from the original design.

 

I gave this dress to my sister for her birthday and she kindly took pictures of herself in it. She is just so beautiful and she styled it wonderfully.

 

New Life For Old Threads: Dowdy Downton DIY









 
This dress is pretty awesome! I felt like a Ladies Maid from Downton Abbey in it, headed out for a special night at the best restaurant in town. I can just imagine that night… full of prejudice and sideways glances…What fun!

 
But honestly, I was drawn to the rich textures of this dress, the black velvet contrasted against the cream lace. It can be hard but you have to look past the dated details sometimes to see the potential there.


https://www.etsy.com/listing/178892065/karen-stevens-updated-black-velvet-lace?ref=listing-shop-header-0



https://www.etsy.com/listing/178892065/karen-stevens-updated-black-velvet-lace?ref=listing-shop-header-0
Dress is for sale at P.S. Vintage