Monday Remake

Mar 4, 2013 | 51 Comments

This dress was scored in Charlotte, when I was home for Christmas with my family!  I loved the rhinestone brooch in the center of the dress, the material…

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Before

…and the fact that it was a J. Peterman dress!!  I didn’t even know J. Peterman was real!!

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

J. Peterman is real!!!

I thought it was fictional and solely from Seinfeld!  I loved George’s hat from the J. Peterman catalog…

New Dress A Day - DIY - George Costanza Hat - J Peterman

Sable Hat!! (…or Rat!!)

…and I loved John O’Hurley playing J. Peterman!!

New Dress A Day - DIY - George Costanza Hat - J Peterman

O’Hurls!!

What I did not love about this dress…

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Big spot. Big! Huge!

Time to turn this into something fabulous!!

Turning this into fab-dom means a little bit of help from Rit Dye!  I decided to go the emerald route, being it is the Pantone Color of the Year, and all!!

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

RIT Dye time!

I took the Dark Green dye, some Morton Salt and added these to the washing machine dye bath with the dress (along with a few other pieces that needed a face lift).  Post wash, my pieces were complete!!

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Post dye!

I let the dress air dry and this is how it turned out…

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

AFTER

Gorge color and NO MORE SPOT!!!  I mean, how fantastic is that?

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Thrifted Purse!

I paired the dress with my Goodwill’ed embroidered purse I got for $3 and had fun twirling it around my arm while the photo was being shot!

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Sidewalk fun!

I had a gallery opening to attend and thought this dress would be perfect paired with some black tights and my black brogues!!

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Heat Vision & Jack!

I also had on my four leaf clover bracelet and some other assorted silver rings to bring out the silver gems on the dress.

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

M’accessories

It’s so incredible to see a little color adjustment giving a garment a complete 180!!

New Dress A Day - RIT Dye - Upcycled Dress - Goodwill

Brand new look!!

And I leave you with my version of the Elaine dance from Seinfeld.  I tried to do her thumbs and kicks, however the thumbs didn’t turn out as great as I’d like.

New Dress A Day - DIY - Upcycle - Goodwill Dress

Elaine dance time!

Instead, I’ll leave you with a clip of Elaine doing Elaine!

Happy Monday, friends!

In Dollar Dress Remakes · Uncategorized
  • Sue

    Love the dye job. It looks terrific on you. You are stylin’.

  • kissem37

    That color is so pretty and made such a difference. lovely!

  • jennie

    man, are you young, my family has been buying from the j peterman company since the late 80′s. as a child aspiring to be a fashion illustrator, their catalog illustrations always facinated me much more than the elaborate, verbose copy that was pretty spot on depicted on seinfeld. i still have some wonderful batik pieces that are 20+ years old, although i suspect things are much more mass produced these days, the last wrap blouse i bought was still impeccable quality.

    • newdressaday

      Ooh, the batik pieces are probably stunning!

  • http://upcycledfashionista.com/ Maureen Rostad

    Perfect for St. Patty’s Day. I just had to sign up for the J. Peterman catalog now that you hilighted it!

    • newdressaday

      Yay!! I need to sign up for the catalog too now!

  • Boatgirl

    I had no idea J. Peterman was real! This transformation is gorgeous. I didn’t like the dress AT ALL in white but after the dye job, it’s so pretty.

  • Amy

    I had been laughing at the Peterman catalog before Elaine started working there. I remember my sister and I collapsing with laughter during those episodes. The Gatsby Swing Top!

    • newdressaday

      Gatsby Swing Top is the best!! “I wanna market this item as a new direction in women’s fashion. We’re gonna sell this as a top!”

  • Diane

    Oh- very pretty! Love the color – did you have to remove the rhinestone brooch when you dyed the dress? I would be worried that the moisture would loosen the rhinestones…

    • newdressaday

      I left it on actually – it was stitched down pretty well, so I figured I’d just let it go!

      • Diane

        It turned out wonderful!

  • Sarah_H.

    Great St.Patrick’s Day look! And I love the purse. I never find good purses at my Thrift Store…but I rarely look. Have scored some great shoes…new ones.

  • Sue Kol

    Love this one! I am curious, will the rit-dye color run next time the dress is washed?

    • Amanda Davis

      Nothing I’ve ever dyed with Rit has run in the next wash – I think that is what the salt is for, but it’s been awhile since I’ve done it so I can’t remember. Used to dye stuff ALL the time back in college…..

    • newdressaday

      Just make sure you wash with similar colors! After I dye something, I usually hand wash it the first few times just to make sure. I’ve never had a problem either :)

  • Amanda Davis

    Love love love this one! The color is so pretty! I’m not usually a green fan, but I’ve got a few things in my pile to dye right now & I think I might try it! Thanks for the inspiration!

  • Tassie Hare

    You have inspired me!! I have a couple of tops that have stains… they are white – I love them, and can’t part with them… but, neither can I wear them!! I am going to go home and dye them… thank you for the inspiration!!!

    (ALSO, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Seinfeld references!!! made me smile)(didn’t know J.Peterman was real either!!)

    • newdressaday

      You should totally dye them! I had a dye party with a girlfriend and we threw in a few light shirts with this bath – they came out SO well! They you don’t have to part with them…

  • LinB

    J. Peterman’s was real, and it was fabulous. The company credits the Seinfeld parodies with driving it out of business.

    • newdressaday

      I read that John O’Hurley helped bring them back after they filed for bankruptcy though! Love that!

      • LinB

        Yay! Oh, I’m so glad they’re back. We wore our J. Peterman’s Afghani woolen hat for years, until 911 made that a less-than-wise fashion choice in the US. Sigh. It was warm and comfy and looked great on any number of heads.

  • Allison

    I love how the dress turned out! I also love your chevron tights! GORGEOUS!!!

  • disqus_ay6V6dyFJd

    I get the J. Peterman catalog just for the fun stories and great sketches. I have yet to even purchase from them yet :)

    PS: As Seinfeld aficionado I must say George’s hat wasn’t from the catalog, just a shop they were at… Elaine used the Petermsn account to buy it ;)

    • newdressaday

      Aaah…thanks for the clarification!! I totally remember that now!!

  • Judy B

    This is one of my favorites! Love the color, love it with the tights and purse–you look great!

  • Angsim

    Did you take the dress in some? The fit looks a bit different after the dye. Gorgeous!

  • Tonya Cross

    I agree, you HAVE to get the catalog! It vacillates between interesting & just plain cooky! I ordered a night shirt from them many moons ago, It was a super, over-sized cotton boyfriend shirt. LOVED IT! This dress actually reminds me very much of it. The remake turned out really cute! Keep up the good work!

    • newdressaday

      Just signed up for the catalog!! Can’t wait to receive in a few days…

  • Shan in Austin

    Love the color of that dress, as I was married on St. Patrick’s Day almost 23yrs ago. I have to say that I’ve never seen the Elaine dance. Bwhahahaaa!!! After a super long work day, it gave me an uplifting giggle that I really needed. Thanks for making my day :)

  • Kathy

    I love everything about the remake. I love the dress. I love the color. (You can wear this on St. Patrick’s Day.) I didn’t know J Peterman was real. The Elaine Dance has to be my favorite episode of Seinfeld. Thanks for the memory. I am still laughing.

  • Charity

    I love this one… amazing what a change a little dye job can make!

  • Christine Pankow

    LOVE Seinfeld, LOVE J. Peterman, and LOVE what you did with the dress! Adorable on you! Thanks for the fun times!

  • http://www.facebook.com/kate.martin.90226 Kate Martin

    Such a great color!

  • Lisa

    Great job, I love it. And just doing a dye can cover a big stain like that and it not show as a discoloration? Amazing. :)

  • curlyq45

    Have to say-other than the detail on the front in the before picture I didn’t really care for the dress. But after seeing it in green, I love it! Sooo pretty!

  • Lauraly

    Love the re-do and love the Seinfeld reference…Elaine dancing was one of my favs!

  • Norbyah Nolasco

    amazing color. just amazing. i love how it makes the rhinestone brooch pop!

  • http://www.facebook.com/kingdm Dorotha King

    They added the J. Peterman character after he became a cult favorite in the “real” world. John Peterman sold his company and when he bought it back, John O’Hurley became an investor. I love the J. Peterman catalogues.

  • UptoSacto

    another job-well-done Marisa girl! so Saint Patricky & what a score with the purse. I am so proud of you!

  • Cora Webber

    The green looks so great with your fun red hair. I liked the dress in white, but it is awesome in the green!

  • Leanne

    Phenomenal!

  • Sonya Nimri

    Great post Marisa! The dress looks great on you and you were right about the smoke with the green.

    xoxox

  • Laura Whitman

    Eeeeeeeep! I love love LOVE this remake. I’ve been completely obsessed with green lately, so that is just so completely perfect! :)

    xoxo,
    Laura

  • http://www.facebook.com/eliriveire Eli Riveire

    John Peterman was from Lexington, KY (where I live!), and I used to walk past a building that is still labled “J.Peterman” everyday on my way to work. Also fun – John Peterman’s daughter Robyn is married to Steve Zahn.

  • nicnizzysmom

    I am pretty darn sure that exact dress is available on the J. Peterman website right now, in the clearance section under Women’s Things, on the last page. It was originally $249!!! And is on “clearance” for over $100! And, looks better in green anyway! Wow, great score. LOVE your website – I have been following you since about day 110 of the original 365!

  • Jayme

    Lovely!

  • nicnizzysmom

    This dress is still for sale on the J. Peterman website! It is on clearance for $109, originally $249!!! It looks beautiful afterward and what a steal! I love what you do – I have been following your blog since about day 110 of the original 365.

  • Lovestosew

    What a difference a colour can make. WOW!

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=744149581 Jelena Brozovic

    I absolutely love the result! :)

  • http://twitter.com/IrishAttic Irish Attic

    I love how a bit of RIT dye totally transforms a piece of clothing! I’ve been having some trouble with my RIT dyed pieces though. After a couple of washings the color starts to fade in random patches. I’m careful with how I wash them — cold water with a 1/4 cup of white vinegar, Woolite for colors, no dryer. Do you have any secrets for keeping the color fast?