Dress to T-shirt Refashion

A while ago I got this little dress from the charity shop from the pound rail, I thought it would be ideal for the warmer weather but after trying it on it was not so great.  Only a pound after all so no loss really but the fabric is really fine t-shirt material,  you know the kind that you wouldn't really want a skirt out of for fear of underwear showing through.  Also it has really big arm holes that come down at the sides and go in at the back so it shows bra straps, not great!  However fabric is fabric and I thought it would be an opportunity to practice revamping an item into something different so I decided to make a t-shirt from it.

There was nothing much that could be done with the top of the dress other than make two small sleeves as it had a deep v front and back, therefore not a lot of fabric there.  So I decided to cut the t-shirt shape from the bottom of the skirt. It was a bit of a squeeze as the shape only just fit and the hem had a curve.  Looking at that image now I am going to re-run that bottom band as some white stripe is showing uneven.   This is me in my haste to get it up and on for todays post, it will be corrected.

I have tried it on and it is a good fit but just sits at the waist, so skirts with a proper waistband required to pair it with or trousers that sit at the waist.  There will be no low slung garments worn with this top!  I have used bias binding at the neck also, the original v neck on the dress was very floppy due to this fabric, it holds much better this way.

Here is the item before cutting...

 You can probably tell from the image that the fabric is quite flimsy but it is ideal for trying things out on.   Below is an image of the pieces I cut, I had to do a bottom band just to give it a bit more length.

This was quick to make up and I think this is a good way to try things out, if you have something you no longer wear then why not make it into something else, even if it is just for the practise.

Scrap Busting Make-up Bag

It completely slipped my mind yesterday  but I was featured on the Minerva website with my Burda jacket, you can see the full post here Burda young jacket Minerva crafts  you will have to scroll down to find my jacket as the website is updated regularly.  I got a quick slot this time only three days after sending in my post so that is probably why I forgot!

Follow the link above if you want to know the exact fabric and read the full post.

Today when I got in from work I made a quick make-up bag, this will go in my gift box that I have decided to start.  Jo over at Three stories high always does this and I think it is such a good idea, I have been meaning to start but never do, well now I have.  It usually gets to about three weeks before Christmas and I think,  why didn't I start making things early in the year and then I would have all these handmade gifts.  There are lots of ideas out there, so I just have to keep the momentum going now. Here is todays make..

It is quite roomy and made from a piece of leftover fabric form a skirt I made last year, a random bit of lining and the pink stripe is a shirt.  I think this would go nicely with some new products to fill it as a gift? Make-up, skin care or hair accessories? 

It has a dusky grey lining so it can be thrown in the washer when it gets dirty.

Here you can see the bottom so it is spacious.   I also added a little wrist strap, for no particular reason other than I like it.

Today I also missed deliver of a package and I think it may have been my dust sheets, I ordered them to make some curtains to hide all the stuff on the shelves at work, hopefully it will make one area look a little more tidy so I am interested to see what kind of quality they are.  It was the cheapest option and I thought with a bit of bunting to cheer it up it should be ok.   We will see.

Organised Sewing

This is a somewhat misleading title actually as it implies I'm organised which I don't think I am but I do try.  The latest effort on this front is trying to get my odds and ends of sewing equipment into a fashion where I can see what I've got instead of hunting around knowing things exist but where?

I don't have a huge fabric stash as I know some of you do, any fabric pieces that are hanging about is usually because they are leftover bits or duvets spotted at the charity shop.  I have a couple of large pieces due to that.  Still I don't like to waste any of it so every bit gets saved as you never know if it will come in handy, up to now this has consisted of hastily folding and shoving in a box or drawer.  that way is not very efficient as you have to lift everything up to see what you have at the bottom.

  A while ago I read the Marie Kondo book, it has not made me housekeeper of the year but my tights and tops are certainly easier to find.  With that in mind I decided to stick with my storage box for the fabric but I have turned everything on its side.  As some of the pieces of fabric are really not that big they will not stand up the way tops do when using  this method so I cut up stiff card from a box, lots of pieces of it the same width as the box and just pinned the fabric to it.

It is a bit like files in a cabinet now and like I said they are not that big but they are easy to see.  I have a few more pieces in a drawer but not a lot and a bag that is full of really scrappy little bits.  A while ago I was taking unwanted bits from my mother in law or a friend but I was finding I didn't really like the fabric quite often so it was more stuff just hanging around the place.  I love to recycle items but you have to like what you are working with don't you.

I don't have a dedicated room just for sewing, it is a desk at one end of a room off my kitchen.  It is a nice bright space so I don't mind this but it does mean I can't spread out too much.  The extent of leaving a work in progress is, it will be on the desk. Or sometime on the mannequin beside the desk.

After having a little look around ideas on pinterest for storage in a small crafting area I have seen some gorgeous little spaces but they are tidy. Does anyone ever do any work in these spaces or is it just me that is incredibly messy, currently at the  moment  there are a friend's trousers on my sewing table to take in, some pegs and a few other bits ( Ha so much for the sorting!)

I am getting there, small steps as they say.  What are your sewing spaces like? Are you an  organised creative or happily sewing amongst the loose threads like me?