#84: White Polka Dot Shirt

Hello.

I haven't been feeling well lately. I've been in this constant state of exhaustion which has only been momentarily alleviated. So I've been trying to do lots more self-care these days. And part of that has been sewing more. I've done 2 projects this week and here's the first one:

I found this piece at a Goodwill Outlet, the kind where you dig through large bins and textiles are $1.49 per pound (but it would be a good idea to bring a cough mask and gloves because the dust is REAL).



Before: Ill-fitting white polka dot shirt

When I picked it up, I actually thought it was something else, so it was easy trying to figure out what to do with it.

First I took my seam ripper and removed the seam at the neck and shoulders down the sleeves.

Opening the shoulders

Once they top was opened up, I turned it inside out and drew a line jutting up from the waist.

Prepping the sewing line

Then I sewed the sleeves closed across that line, cut off the sleeve excess, and fake-serged the edges.

Sewing closed

Fake-serging the edges

Then, I cut across what was the shoulders to make it even, then folded, pinned, and sewed a hem.

Sewing a hem

Flipped it down, and it went from this:




Before: Ill-fitting white polka dot shirt

To this:

After: White Polka Dot Skirt


I honestly thought this was a skirt when I first got it, but was surprised when I went to try it on. I think it's way better as a skirt. What do you think?

I forgot to take after-pictures of my next project, so once I take them, I'll post my next one.

Until next time, blessings.

#83: Patriotic T-Shirt

Hey there!

For my second post today, I'd like to feature a patriotic t-shirt I found for $2.

Before

Before

The moment I picked it up, I knew this would be my 4th of July shirt. But it had this really odd Uncle Sam/Santa Clause mash-up face on it.

HoHoHo! Merry Independence Day!

 

 

Somebody needs to get their holidays straight.



"I want YOU..."

So first, I cut the stitches and removed the stars.

Not on this star-spangled banner.

Then I piece by piece removed the Santa beard, and the rest of the face.

Removing the stitches

Looks a little more like Uncle Sam

I was glad to find out that the colors underneath the iron-on decals weren't discolored or faded.

Once I had it all removed, I washed it to shrink the holes from the previous stitches.

I thought about keeping it plain, but realized with the lack of red, it no longer was identifiably patriotic, so I decided to add some pizazz .....STARS!!



I sometimes keep things like buttons from old clothes to recycle them into my projects. I had a whole host of metal studs which I arranged in a star-shaped pattern.

Then I glued each one down carefully in place with fabric glue.

And that was it!

Paired with some red accessories, my patriotic shirt went from holiday-confused...

Before: Uncle Sam/Santa Shirt

...to totally Independence Day ready!

After: Stars and Stripes Forever!

 I hope you had a safe, fun Independence Day weekend!


Until next time, blessings.

#82: Jewelry Organizer

Hey, hey, hey!

So it's been almost 4 months since I last posted. That's evidence of how busy I am almost all the time. Over the past few weeks I have successfully allowed myself to not work on the weekend for the first time consistently in 2 years!! And I've been leaving my work computer in my office overnight instead of working until midnight every day! Hooray for me!! I haven't given up on my clothing transformations yet. And with making more free time in my schedule, I want to get back going with my projects. I've got 2 coming at you today, so check back later for my next post!


I've been trying to find a way to re-organize my jewelry. I have a lot of necklaces...




...and have been using a makeshift organizer that ends up with them looking like this:




A tangled mess

Hence, why I want a new way to organize my necklaces.

So I got creative. I found a 3-pack of differently-shaped cork/foam combo boards for $1 at my local 99 Cents Only Store, and chose the heart.




Foam side

I also found a pack of 50 screw-in hooks for $1.




Good deal!

I first made a hole at the top of each arch of the heart and put woden pegs through in order to keep the space open for me to hang it up.


I laid out the spacing of the hooks the way I wanted them, and began screwing them in.



I think the riddler would have this jewelry hanger :)



One side done!

I spaced out the other side more to account for my larger and longer necklaces.




Foam side

I removed the wooden pegs at the top of the heart and fed a zip tie through the hole so I could attach it to a hanger in my closet.




Snip the zips, then ready to go!

And here's how it looks after I hung up my plethora of necklaces:

It's so much easier to hang up and organize my necklaces now that the're on simple hooks in my closet. And the whole thing cost me less than $2!

Thanks for checking out this project. Check back soon for my next one!

Until next time, blessings.

#81: Blue and Black Sweater

Hi guys. I thought of clever ways to start out this post, but none of them worked. So here I am, posting for the first time in 2 months as I lay down with the stomach flu. Ugh.

Over the past 2 months, I've worked on a few projects, and completed a few. But I haven't posted on them either because I haven't finished, the changes seemed too insignificant, or I didn't take pictures.

Whatever the reason, I'm back with a new project today that cost me $2 at a thrift store.

Before: Big Ol' Blue and Black Sweater

Before: From behind

Remind you of a certain dress that broke the internet?

IT'S BLUE!!

 

 

Nah. Me neither ;) (For a detailed explanaition of why we see this dress differently, see here.)

This was a very large sewater, and it even had shoulder pads (why someone would want to have shoulder pads in a sweater is beyond me).

Big

 The size actually lent well to my plans, as after a few tweaks, this would become a sweater dress!

With only 2 major alterations, I first removed the shoulder pads.

So long shoulder pads!

Next, I took it in by pinning into the sleeves and sides, meeting a few inches above the armpit at the seam.



Pinning process

Then I sewed it closed, cut the excess, and fake-serged the edges (it took me 2 tries to get the fit just right).


And that was really it.


Here again was the original look:

Before: Big Ol' Blue and Black Sweater

And here's the after:

After: Blue and Black Sweater Dress

It was perfect to wear out last weekend when it was crazy raining in SoCal. But now with the super high temps, not so much.

I know I often use belts to accessorize, so here's without the belt:

Without the belt



After: From behind

Speaking of the dress that took over the internet, I recently saw a PSA from the Salvation Army that is using the fame of the dress debate to get out a really important message:

Raise Awareness

I'm glad the Salvation Army has taken the opportunity to raise awareness about abuse toward women (not to discount abuse toward men). It's a staggering problem not only around the world, but also in our very own neighborboods. I hope this furthers conversations that lead to progress!

I'm not sure when I'll be back, but I've got lots of projects in my closet still waiting to be transformed!

Until next time, blessings.

#80: Surgical Mask Covers

Happy new year!!

Today's post actually goes back, way back to....Christmas 2014 ;) I wanted to give a personal touch to one of my gifts for my mother-in-law. At her job, anyone who does not get a flu shot is required to wear a surgical mask. Since she's allergic to some of the ingredients of a flu shot, she is stuck wearing these:

Plain. Boring. Dull.

She asked if I could make some fashionable ones for her, so I thought I'd give it a try.

I looked online for examples of fashionable surgical masks, but I soon realized there are very few on the market right now. So I began trying to figure out a pattern myself.

I realize that I couldn't make complete germ-blocking masks, but I could make beautiful covers to go over actual masks. I picked up a pack of 10 plain surgical masks at the 99 Cents Only Store, scoured through my scrap fabric, and used the sizing of the actual masks to cut out 2 rectangles of fabric.

2 rectangles...

...larger than the mask.

It was important to make it wide enough top-to-bottom because when a surgical mask is worn, it stretches from the bridge of your nose to underneath your chin.

I tore off the loops which wrap around the ears and decided to use them. I laid the 2 rectangles of fabric facing each other, pinned the edges, and pinned the loop ends inside.

Hidden loops on the inside

Then I sewed the edges closed, making sure to sew over the ends of the loops, and left about a one inch opening. Through that opening, I turned the mask outside-in.

Turning it outside-in.

Once I had it turned correctly, I sewed the 1 inch opening closed.

Next, to give it a better fit in the nose area, I folded, pinned, and sewed 3 creases in both sides of the mask.

Pinning creases

After they were sewn, I ironed them to define the creases.

Ironing creases

And I was done!!

Using scrap fabric, and loops from actual surgical masks, the total cost out of pocket to make 10 masks was only $1. And since they are only the covers, they are machine washable! (Unless some intense biohazardous stuff got on them. Then just dispose of it.)


Here are the different, fashionable surgical mask covers:

Pre-iron:

Surgical Mask Covers

And post-iron:

Surgical Mask Covers, after ironing

Close-up

My mother-in-law loved them!

Mother-in-law modeling a surgical mask cover

Some things I learned were that it's important to have more width than less, because the surgical masks stretch a lot, and you want them to cover the masks entirely. I also tried to use the wire that bends over the bridge of your nose, but realized I would need a much more heavy-duty wire to keep fabric bent in place. Also, the ones I sewed inside out came out much better than the ones I folded and sewed on the outside. Finally, plain ol' starchy cotton was much easier and quicker to sew and iron than anything with stretch in the fabric.


My aunt's boyfriend, who also works where surgical masks are needed, suggested I make these and sell them on Etsy. The family recommended I could make some with people's favorite sports team logos on them. Perhaps there could also be people looking for ones with children's designs. I imagine there could be interest, but I wouldn't know where to start. Any of you have any experience selling on Etsy? Or know someone who would like these? Leave me a comment with your ideas!


I hope your new year got off to a good start. May your 2015 be filled with blessings from the Lord, and may you experience the year with awe and wonder, and with the support of good friends!

Until next time, blessings :)