#9 House Dress for the RanchHouse -- Shorts to Skirt

RanchHouse July/August Sewing Goal: 

• Mend, alter, refashion 10 House Dresses. This is #9.

My House Dresses are:

• Wearable muslins. On this one, I learned the pants to skirt technique.
• Not even going to Wal-Mart.
• Loungers, nightgowns, pool cover-up, garden dresses.
• Good use for re-fashion stash items that are too worn for much else..

After: 2nd Try Short HouseDress

Goal: Use the most worn items in the re-fashion stash.

  

Before:
*Shorts: Over-sized. Good to practice pants to skirt technique.
*T-Shirt: Well worn yellow t-shirt.  

After: 

1st Try- Ranch dogs would not even be seen with me to walk to the mail-box at the RanchHouse gate. 

2nd Try- Dogs might tag along to the mail-box and even a little ways down  the dirt road.

Not even going to Wal-Mart, but cool and comfortable.

Steps: 
1st Try: Get this done quickly.
*T-shirt: Cut off at waist. Gather t- to fit skirt waist.
*Shorts: Remove zipper and inner waist band. Leave on outer waist band and ribbon trim. Leave back pocket linings in. Open inner legs, stitch, trim to create skirt.
Poor results. Back pockets, waistband and trim will not lay flat. T-shirt at waist is too frumpy even for House Dress.
2nd Try: Slow down.
*T-shirt: Take up the side seams to eliminate gathers and fit shorts/skirt waist.
*Shorts: Remove waist band and original ribbon trim. Remove back pocket linings. Top stitch back pockets to make false pockets. This eliminates bulk.  
Results are much smoother.

What I Learned: Rush sewing and cutting out steps made for a poor result. Taking time to remove and re-size paid off in a wearable House Dress.

Before: Well worn t-shirt.
Oversized shorts.

1st Try: Waist band, original ribbon trim do not lay flat.
T-shirt is gathered.
Frumpy even for a House Dress.