Refashioning Clothing 101 (she: Lynette)

Hi there again!  It’s me, Lynette from My Craft Discovery.  You’ve heard me talk about my love for babysitting, but today I’d like to introduce to you one of my more recent passions.  I caught the refashioning bug (aka repurposing…but refashioning sounds cuter!) a few months ago, and I’d love to help you catch it too!  What is Refashioning, you ask?  Refashioning (in my mind) is the act of transforming clothes that are kind of ugly, or non-wearable into clothing that you love wearing!

I started out with a closet full of boring T-shirts, and now have some that I can’t wait to wash so I can wear them TOMORROW!

 Once I finally got the guts to cut up a shirt to make another shirt cute, I was hooked!  A few shirts were sewn together or ruined in the process, but I finally got the hang of refashioning!  Instead of typing so many words that aren’t exciting to read, I’m going to take you on a picture tour of some of my projects and point out key things!  Here we go!

 

Buy 2 Cheap Shirts

 I found 3 of these red shirts from Down East Outfitters for $5.00 each on a great sale.  I cut one up, made flowers out of the pieces, and refashioned 2 shirts with the extra shirt!  Find a good sale at your local thrift store, Ross, TjMaxx, or just your favorite clothing store.

Buy Accessories or Trim
 

I found these jeans from Old Navy on sale for $6.00, ran to my local Hobby Lobby for embroidery thread, and spiced up the pockets using this tutorial.  The whole project cost me about $7.00 (pants included).  The pants are a little big, so I plan to use this tutorial soon to tighten the waist easily.

Another great thing you can do is simply find some knit material at a fabric store that matches or coordinates with your clothing.  You can usually get 1/4 yard for less than a dollar, and you can makeover a couple things with that little of fabric!

Use What you (or somebody else) Ruined!

Do you ever get grease spots (or bleach) on your shirts like I do?  My washer also ripped up one of my favorite red shirts (Bad Washer!!!), and I had another red shirt that had been stained.  I cut that ripped shirt up, made some quick ruffles, and sewed them right over the grease spots!  The shirt pictured above is one that got sewed together a few times.

Refashion Something You Never Wear

 We all do it.  We buy something we think we’ll wear a lot, but it sits in the back of our closet…sometimes for years!  This polo shirt was one of those.  Add some ruffles, some flowers, or a bow, and you’re set!  If you need to know how to make ruffles, here’s a quick tutorial.

Extra Tips!

• I prefer to work with a thicker t-shirt material such as these from Down East Outfitters.  I have found that thinner knits (like Old Navy T-shirts) are really hard to sew without ripping the fabric.  

• I love using Aleene’s Fabric Fusion Glue (which is machine washable and dry-able…I’ve tried it!) which works on thinner knits.  This glue is also great for someone who can’t sew or doesn’t have a machine!

• Need some inspiration?  I like to “window shop,” online for expensive shirts I can make myself.  Down East Outfitters, J. Crew, Forever 21, and Anthropologie will give you a good start.  Snap a picture of a shirt you like in a store, and come home and make it cheaper!

• If you’re sewing T-shirts (or knit), use a ball point needle.  Ball point needles are rounded on the tips so knits or stretchy material won’t snag.

• Don’t be afraid to use somebody else’s ideas!  There are TONS of blogs out there with tutorials, and they are there to help you get started!  When I first began refashioning, I would google what I was looking for and follow the tutorials exactly.  Once you get going, you start seeing new ideas in your head, but at first be okay with using other people’s ideas!

I hope some of my experiences can help you get started in refashioning your own clothing!

 ~Lynette