Here’s an easy refashion: Today we’re turning a belted cardigan into a zippered jacket. I’ve never loved how you constantly have to tie and retie a belted cardigan when you wear it. When it’s cold outside, you need a sweater that stays closed on your body, am I right?   I’m going to show you…

My deep dive into refashioning started when my sons were little. Packing them up in the car to drive across town to a fabric store that might not have had what I needed was really difficult. What I discovered instead was my local thrift store aka my weird fabric store. It’s 5 minutes away and…

I am always up for a good sweater refashion, and today I’m showing you how to tackle DIY fingerless gloves. Several years ago I started making these in droves. They are a life saver in winter! They’re perfect for those mornings your hands are cold but you still want to be able to do things….

It’s a sweater deconstruction kind of day, and on the docket is how to make a hat from a sweater. Quick, go check your closet. I just bet there’s a forgotten sweater hanging out lurking in there. Maybe it’s the shrunken victim of the washer and dryer, or maybe it’s just been in storage for…

Today I’m showing you how to make a slip from an old camisole. I love wearing dresses, but often you come across fabric that doesn’t sit well on its own. Maybe it’s semi-translucent, maybe it’s clingy. When you have fabrics like this, a lining is a great option. But what if you don’t want to…

I really am always on the hunt for sewing supplies at thrift stores. I affectionately call my local thrift store my weird fabric store, and it’s for good reason. There’s so many good supplies you can find for your sewing hobby that you can find at a charity shop, garage sale, antique store or estate…

Today I’ve got an easy refashion for you in this upcycled denim skirt. Probably most of us have at least one pair of jeans that have maybe lived their lives in their pantsy state, but they still have some good wear left in them. Jeans are prime refashioning materials, and one of the simplest ways…

On today’s bill is a maxi dress refashion. I’m always up for a good refashion, and maxi dresses have a lot going for them. Mostly a whole lotta fabric, both in width and length. This makes an old maxi dress that’s hanging out in your closet a GREAT candidate for refashioning. On the refashion scale,…

Cooler mornings are starting to set in here in Colorado, which means I’m starting to think more about refashioned sweaters. I’ve got several ideas rattling around in my brain, and today I’m starting with this refashioned sweater shrug tutorial. All you need for this easy sweater refashion is an old sweater, a couple yards of…

Today I’m walking you through an easy skirt refashion. So often I find fun skirts at the thrift store that I love but wouldn’t wear. Maybe the colors are a little too loud or making it fit me would be more complicated than it’s worth. Ah, but the PRINTS! Sometimes you can’t walk away from…

What makes a great thrift store refashion? I started out this post as a DIY tutorial for this chevron sweater. Soon it was more complicated than useful. But as I’ve been staring at the blank screen for far too long, I started thinking long about refashioning. What makes a great thrift store refashion? Probably an…

It’s always a little intimidating to start thinking of how I’m going to go after my own challenge, and this year’s Day and Night Dress Challenge has been no different. For this year’s twist, I found a neglected ponte dress and went on a color adventure. Wearing a sleeveless dress year round A sleeveless dress…

I can’t say that I ever participated in the Ugly Christmas sweater phenomenon growing up.  Yes, I did DIY a Santa hat with lots of lights for orchestra performances in junior high, but an ugly Christmas sweater?  Nope.  So the past several years, I’ve seen more and more of these absurdly over-the-top creations ranging from…

It seems that distressed fabrics are having their thing.  I’m always slow to jump on things fashion trends, but once in a while, it’s kind of fun to just experiment and see if you might possibly like something.  Refashions are one of my favorite ways to experiment with fashion.  Your investment in the project is…

As the year draws to a close, I’ve been thinking about my general work habits a lot.  It seems my projects are either things that can be done at breakneck speed or slow, methodical affairs that take planning, precision, and ample time.  I wonder what projects in the middle of the road would look like! …

Summer still lingers here so I’m catching up on writing up the last of my summer projects before I move on into my fall makes.  Earlier in the summer, I picked up a few t-shirts at the thrift store for refashions.  One of them, you already saw me re-make in my Split Flutter Sleeve hack…

I’ve been waiting for Patternreview’s Upcycle Contest.  It’s no secret that I love to work with upcycled materials, so I jumped on the idea of this challenge post haste.  My original idea was a bomber jacket with hood for my oldest son, but it seems like a better project for fall.  I went to the…

This diy lion hoodie and Very Shannon Sally dress are two of the projects I’ve made for my kids of late.  The dress was for Easter, though I’m just getting around to writing it up now, and the lion hoodie is the result of a challenge a sewing friend gave me. DIY Lion Hoodie One…

When Portia Lawrie of Makery announced that this years #Refashioners2016 challenge was denim, I couldn’t not participate in the community challenge.  Between my catalog of my own jeans I’ve made and the wide variety of details collected on my Altered Denim board, it should be clear that when in comes to denim, I’m very serious…

This lace mixed media tank is one of the projects I’ve made in the past couple months post baby that I haven’t got around to writing about.  It’s part refashion, part working with available materials, and a whole lotta pattern hacking in between.  The inspiration for this one was this Anthropologie tank: I love how…