From Frumpy Mom to Hot Mama

I recently bought this dress at the thrift store. I couldn’t try it on before I bought it, as I had my young son with me. He is prone to opening the dressing room door, which doesn’t lock, when I am in my underwear! I knew it would be too big, but I loved the colors and the pattern on the fabric. I had no idea it would be so unflattering on me.

In its original state, this dress was not doing my figure any favors. I have been loving one-sleeve dresses lately, so I knew I wanted to go in that direction. I started by removing the weird side tie-thing and the entire left side of the top of the dress. I was left with this.

At this point, I had several problems that needed my attention. The dress was too large overall, and the hem and sleeve were too long. I removed the remaining right sleeve by ripping out the seam, and I made it much more fitted by re-sewing the inner seam. I took in a lot of the slack on the dress at the shoulder seam, bringing the left side up to under my armpit. This was important to make sure my chest was covered and had the added bonus of solving my length problem. I cut the left armhole a little larger and reset the now-skinnier sleeve. Again, I took up a bit of slack at the top of the sleeve to get the right sleeve length. I wanted a strap for the other side to enable me to wear a bra with this dress. I took that tie-thing, cut it into thirds, and braided it, then attached it over the left shoulder. Finally, I needed to make the dress fit more snugly. After a few attempts, I finally managed to take it in enough. As you can see, I took it in quite a bit in the sides and removed a lot of the flare from the skirt.

Here is the end result. Time for a date night with the hubby!

Lessons learned:

Smells: Sometimes, thrift store purchases require more than one washing to remove that thrift store smell. It is a good idea to do whatever is necessary to achieve a fresh-smelling garment before you begin refashioning. Otherwise, the odd musty smell will distract you every step of the way.

Re-sizing: If you know you need to take something in A LOT, take in a lot the first time (with a basting stitch, of course). Being timid and taking in a little bit at a time will ensure that you have to take it in at least three times before you get it right.

Seam-ripping: Removing the seams from something that has been sewn with a serger is a pain in the butt. I have yet to find a better way to do this. Fortunately, I only had to remove one sleeve for this project.

Styling: I need to start doing something with my hair for these photo shoots!