16 Days to Go: Laura's NDAD Creation

Today's remake comes just about six hours away from me in Arizona!  Laura likes to remake things while watching movies which is totally how I like to roll too!  (I've been on a Friends rerun kick as of late...)

Hi Marisa!

First of all, I LOOOOVE your blog!  Here's the story behind my creation:  My Mom has been ruthlessly cleaning out closets in my childhood home, and she came across a box of old costumes from Halloween, plays, church events, etc... I went through the box with your inspirational website in mind, and found this piece of potential!  My mom whipped up this dress for 11 year-old me to wear for the annual Historic Home Show Tour my church had one year.  Right away I loved the fabric and the neckline, but knew I could never get away with wearing the whole dress!

Let the redo begin!!

I started by removing the sleeves...

..., and re-closing the yoke (is that what it's called??) of the neckline.

Using a shirt I liked the length of as a guide, I cut off that lovely fluffy skirt (I have plans for that, too!), stitched up the armholes, took in the sides a bit, and hemmed the bottom and I was good to go!

Sorry for the crooked self-timer photo, and I feel it's important to mention that I did the whole re-do while watching one of my all time favorite movies, Where the Heart Is, it seems relevant :)

I had so much fun making this shirt!  Can't wait to wear it out and about!  Thanks so much for the inspiration, motivation, and confidence to give this a try!  Laura B. (Phoenix, AZ)"

Hope you've been having fun in your floral top!  The fabric is so pretty and will totally translate into fall.  Add a cardi and you're golden, not that you'll need a cardi anytime soon in Phoenix!

17 Days to Go: Samantha's NDAD Creation

Samantha sent this lovely remake my way.  Check it out - the before shot is amazing!!

I visit your site daily and am constantly amazed, delighted, and inspired by your creations.  Half the time I cannot see the potential in a dress and at the end, I'm always amazed with the result.  For a really long time I've been wanting to remake a dress due to your inspiration and this summer we had three weddings to attend so rather than buying a new one (or three) dresses I decided to finally recreate one of my own!!  After spending a few hours visiting numerous thrift shops I finally found what I was looking for at the Salvation Army for $1.90.

I immediately saw the potential and loved the vertical strip.  The quilting at the bottom seemed to call my name as I make baby quilts for my friends.

Woo, total score for $1.90!!  I love the floral print, but the rest is, well...

I can't wait to see what you do!

Whomever had owned this dress previously must have found it a bit large because they tried to hand-stitch the top part to make it fit.  However, this made the neckline very ugly.  I had considered your v-neck solution, but after removing the hand-stitching, I realized that the neckline was quite lovely, so I kept it as it was.  I removed about 12 inches from the bottom and 6 inches from the sleeves then hemmed them.

 There were a few holes on the seams that were easily fixed, and I had to take in quite a bit from the sides and the back as the top part of the dress was about three sizes too large for me.

My husband had his doubts when I brought the dress home but he was so impressed with the end result that he bought and wore a (matching) bow-tie and repeatedly showed the before picture to all our friends.

Thank you for your daily inspiration!

How awesome that your husband was showing the before picture to all of your friends!  It's amazing that he's totally on board.  And the matching bow tie...icing on the cake!  Thanks so much for sharing Samantha, and I hope you continue this remaking trend for the rest of the weddings on your schedule!

18 Days to Go: Maggie's Donation

I received this dress a little while back and have finally taken the project on.  I didn't want to disappoint Maggie.  Listen to her love of the piece...

I bought this dress two years ago to wear to Shrek on Broadway.  The dress never looked great, but did I LOVE the fabric!  I've since lost 20 pounds and revisited my closet...only to find this dress.  I love, love, love your website and fashion sense - please use this awesome fabric anyway you see fit.  I'm sure you'll enjoy it! MEK

I love me some pinstripes, but the dress was a bit off on me...

I have just the idea to keep this piece going, all while pulling in one trend that joined us last season and that hasn't gone anywhere yet.  Peplum!

I started off by cutting the bottom of the dress off!!  I trimmed off about a foot of fabric...

...and then pinned the bottom of my new top to prepare to sew a new hem!

I matched the cornflower blue thread to the stripes and sewed the bottom of my new top!!

The top of the dress didn't give enough shape and usually stripes give dimension, but on this piece it was a little lacking.  Some were vertical and others were diagonal, but ultimately I felt that there was a lack of dimension.  To fix this problem and to give a little volume, I pinched and cinched!!

I pinched about three inches of fabric at the bust...

...and pinned it together using a safety pin!

Also, to really give off the fitted top/loose bottom, I took a skinny, brown belt from J Crew and wore it at my waist.  Paired with a vintage scarf, vintage clutch, and some Calvin Klein slingbacks from TJ Maxx, my outfit was complete!!

I think I need a new pair of jeans though...that heel just cut through the bottom of that denim leg.  Big. Hole. Whoopsie!

It has a cute, pin up-y feel now, with the peplum-esque bottom, but could also be paired with a stellar pencil skirt to totally change the vibe.

Maggie, the fabric is fun and fabulous!!  Thanks so much for cleaning out your closet :)  I totally reaped some excellent benefits from your organizing!!