65 Days to Go: Laura’s Donation

Aug 16, 2012 | 34 Comments

Laura in IL sent me this gorgeous piece today!  And…I’m not even being facetious when I say gorgeous!!

I was in the local thrift shop and they were having a $1 per piece of clothing sale.  I was specifically looking for cable knit sweaters to make into pillows (see pillow pic at the bottom of the page!!) – I saw some online somewhere for $80 and I knew I could make them cheaper – and came across this piece and had to get it.  It’s not my size (too small) but I just know you can make something exceptional out of it.  I believe it’s part of a sari – the color is great and the beading is fab!

I was obsessed with this piece when I saw it.  The color was my fave – mint green!!

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Day 65 – Before

…and the beading was delicious!!

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Well hello there!

The problem…the maje slits on each side, especially if nothing is being worn underneath!!

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Woo, slit!

Time to make this fabulous!  (…and by fabulous, I mean make this a dress!!)

I started off by trimming the piece.  I wanted to make it shorter to hit me right above my knees!  Post-cutting, I was left with these scraps!

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Sash time?

I started working on the hem by pinning one side…

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One side, pinned!!

…and then the other!

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Hem, pinned!

I can’t have this puppy open all the way up to my upper thighs, so I began to pin the seams together on both sides until it hit where I trimmed earlier.

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From R to PG-13 :)

With the pins in place, I started to stitch it all together!!  I can almost smell the dress being done!!  Woo!!

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Almost doneeeee!!!

I paired my sewn together dress with some nude vintage Jennifer Moore heels and an arm party of bracelets to head out for the night!

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Day 65 – After

I got together with my girl AK for a fun eve benefitting The Breast Cancer Research Foundation hosted by Loft and Giuliana Rancic.  We took lots of photo booth pics which was smart/good/necessary because…

1 – I didn’t charge my camera enough and it died, and…

2 -  I left my phone at home on the stove top.  Yeah, you read that right…at least I didn’t absentmindedly put it in the fridge.  (The remote was found there one morning, so just sayin!)

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Mwah!!

I have to say that the lighting was simply amazing!  It really just made the top of the dress shine like little fireworks!

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Mustache Party!!

Nothing like getting goofy with props from the prop table!

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Hall & Oates much?

I skipped on the feather boa, but went to town on the neon light sticks!

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Neon Frames!

PS, I accidentally walked out of the party with those prop sunglasses still on my head.

We shot a slew of pics and divvied up the 4×6 print outs that we received.  Time to fill a frame :)

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Collage!

The best kind of night – catch up with pals as well as having alternative camera options (and accessories) for blog purposes :)

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Happy night!

“I would like to thank you as well for doing this blog – it really is an inspiration to see how you take things and switch them up and make them AWESOME!”

Oh and those pillows Laura spoke about earlier…she made all three AND her chair was just $10.

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Laura’s Pillows!!

Laura’s words (all in caps) and mine – “I LOVE RESALE”

You go girl!!  That Polo pillow (say that three times fast!) is absolutely adorable!!

  • Karen

    Lovely! I may have to use this idea myself. I’m always finding pieces like this at the Goodwill closest to my house. Sometimes they’re even in my size!

  • Anne Rimler

    those scraps would be perfect for a scarf to match the dress. embellish the edges with sparkly something or other.

  • Kristy

    GASP! You picked my sister’s dress!!! I am so proud! Laura is the reason I haunt thrift stores on the daily, she used to have to babysit me growing up and she would take me with her to thrift, resale, vintage, army/navy stores… it was SO much fun. Hey, Sissy! I LOVE RESALE, TOO! Thanks for raising me right!!!

    • newdressaday

      I want to hang out with you girls :)

  • Samantha

    I believe the dress was actually the top part of an indian outfit called a salwaar kameez. It’s typically worn with a pair of pants (hence the long slits). I love the way you turned it into a dress!

    • Shar

      That’s definitely a kameez … the salwaar [pants] and dupatta [scarf] seem to be missing.
      I have plans of turning my old salwaar kameezes into dresses and tights.

      • newdressaday

        Ooh, do it Shar – send pictures too! If the pants/scarf had any of the beadwork like the kameez, I’m sure they would have been divine!

  • Kati

    Love the dress! And great job on the pillows!

  • Constant Reader

    One of your best.

  • Libby

    By far my favorite post this season! So cute and the pillows are fab as well! =)

  • LinB

    I think the “dress” was actually the kamiz in a kamizsalwar set of tunic over trousers, basic garments originating from the Indian subcontinent. Our word “camisole” comes from that garment.

    • newdressaday

      Oh, totally! It would have been amazing to see the trousers too!

  • http://twitter.com/jodywallace Jody Wallace

    Ooooh, I love finding … kameez garments in the thrifts. Always such pretty fabrics and accents. You never find the scarves, unfortunately, just the tops.

  • Lauraly

    Very cute. I bet the saalwar kameez ensemble was beautiful as well, they are very elegant.
    Laura the pillows sound awesome!

  • Ethne

    Ditto Libby. My fave dress this season. And I love photo booths.

    • newdressaday

      The best!!

  • Tami

    Love the pillows! The dress is cute too. Looks like you had a blast!

  • Vids

    Like others said, it is the top part of a “salwar kameez”. (so this part is called kameez). the bottom part can sometimes be stitched loose and flowy, sometimes tight and figure hugging.. depending on the fashion of that day ;)
    indian dresses usually come with a lot of decoration, so if u hunt for them and keep converting them like this, u can end up with a lot of pretty dresses for your party nights.. they will all glitter! :)
    good job on the dress! a silver scarf or silver belt would also be a nice addition….just thinking :)

    • newdressaday

      Ooh, I’m on the lookout now Vids!! In colder weather adding a fab scarf would be awesome!

  • Gale

    Love the redo and I adore the pillows from sweaters idea – Gonna do it!

  • zazzu

    Looking at the “before”, I had my doubts that it would hang properly as a short dress. Wrong! It looks amazing…great job!

    Oh, and thank you for not making duck-lips in your photo collection, there.

  • Jayme

    Okay this is my new favorite post! I want this dress!!! =-) Great job

    • newdressaday

      Yay, thanks Jayme!

  • kissem37

    that beading is amazing- what a nice transformation!

    • newdressaday

      Isn’t it insane! That beading was simply amazing!

      • Di

        Most Indian salwaar kameez, or saris, or even what are called tunics in English and we call kurtas, have this type of beading. The designs can be very intricate, depending on how “fancy” the dress is meant to be.
        I would have loved to see you throw on a bunch of silver bangles to get a more Indian feel to it. Just saying.

  • Christine

    Super cute and adorable!!!!

  • Allison Woods

    So you just hemmed it basically, right? I was a little confused by the scraps. finished dress is very cute–bummer it needs a slip underneath but at least you have one, more than I can say!

    • newdressaday

      Shortened and hemmed…

  • Lovestosew

    So cute! It makes me think of the Brady Bunch,but in a good way:) I love it and I hope you kept the scraps. I bet they could turn into something really great, another bag, perhaps?

  • Emily_Joyce

    And btw, Laura, those pillows are AMAZING!

  • Sarah_H.

    I love the dress! The shortness and easy feeling is so you. Keep it going girl! Love the pillows too. Great work Laura!

  • Sue

    Absolutely love this. You look terrific.

  • Tasmanian Minimalist

    Wonderful posting- so inspirational !