Friday 7 August 2015

Refashioning ~ Keeping Elements of the Original


In case you missed it, here's the post I wrote for the House of Estrela Refashion Month.


My refashions tend to fall into two categories:
  1. Utilising a garment by deconstructing it, trying to maximise the amount of fabric I can obtain, then treating the fabric as I would any other fabric.
  2. Keeping elements of the original garment and incorporating them into the refashion.
Refashioning by utilising elements of the original garment - saves time. The features can actually make the refashioned item stand out ~ Threading My Way


Today I thought I'd show you how I retain many of the components of the original garment and in many cases, turn them into features that actually make the refashioned item stand out.

Pocket Bag Tutorial

Cargo pants and jeans often have large pockets that can be incorporated into a bag. Not only do they look good, but the pockets are functional as well. Add one to the front of the bag, or for extra storage, put one on the back as well. 

Corduroy Pocket Bag

Look around for pocketed pants in different fabrics and colours. The lovely texture of corduroy makes it perfect for a pocket bag.

Peg Bag

A peg bag (clothes pin bag) is not really a refashion, but rather re-purposing a pre-loved garment. I just had to show you, though, as it's probably the fastest re-design I've ever done - literally takes minutes to turn a shirt into a peg bag

Denim Fabric Basket Tutorial

Take one leg of a pair of jeans and turn it into a fabric basket. No need to unpick or cut the seams off. The seams may be off centre, but that just adds to the charm.

Jeans Pocket Cushion Tutorial

Make a jeans pocket the focal point on a cushion. The more stitching on the pocket the better.

Shirt Apron

Turn a man's shirt into an apron. This will be the quickest apron you've ever made. Everything you need is on the shirt.

Board Shorts Refashion

A man's pair of board shorts can easily be made into a pair of board shorts for a boy. No need to reposition the pocket. Make a small alteration to your favourite boys' shorts pattern and leave the side seams intact.

Refashioning a Refashion

Shirring on a woman's dress becomes the elastic waist of a girl's skirt. Add extra shirring to make it the required size.

Wedding Dress Refashion

And if you're feeling really game, turn your wedding dress into a smart day dress, complete with matching purse.

Refashioning saves money and is great for the environment, but it's also a wonderful creative outlet, that produces one of a kind projects, garments and works of art.

Have you ventured into the world of refashioning?

... Pam

 
I'd love you to share this post.

8 comments:

  1. These are some great ideas!
    I can't do the wedding dress thing, though- I am not nearly that tiny anymore and my girls are already fighting over mine! I know they won't REALLY want to wear it when the time comes and have suggested cutting pieces of it to use in their own weddings somehow, but that idea horrifies them. lol

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lots of clever ideas here :) I tend to salvage fabric from old clothes but often I don't get around to reusing it. I love some of your repurposing ideas, especially the jeans makes :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I could definitely do with a new peg bag but had never thought of using a shirt! Thanks for the inspiration :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. My favourite is still the wedding dress refashion!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love to keep old clothes for re-purposing especially denim and anything with a nice print. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My pre-loved clothes stash is growing at an alarming rate!

      Delete
  6. Hi there
    Just stopped by to let you know that I featured this on my Round Tuit post this week!
    A Round Tuit 272
    Thanks again for linking up! Hope you have a great week!
    Jill @ Creating my way to Success

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by! I love reading your comments and try to reply to all of them via email. If you don't receive an email reply from me, check back here.