Bolo bow ties

Hello!

I work with mens ties - I upcycle them in collars - maybe you have seen my previous posts. But usually I'm left with ties which are damaged or don't fit. So I had to figure out what to do with these...
I love bow ties, but I don't fancy that stripe holding it on neck. And I have discovered bolos - American cowboys thing, but very fashionable even these days. So I mixed these two I made bolo bow ties... (smile :)

They are made from skinnier part of neck tie, the back part. The edges are secured with leather (from vintage leather pants). Bolo slides cords and tips are from USA - well, you cannot get them in Europe!

It's an accessory for girls and boys, bit geeky // nerdy, but looks good on shirt as well as on strapless top - just like necklace.

I have more pictures on my Facebook page. Enjoy!

Folklore skirt

I was very lucky to get vintage traditional clothing over 40 years old - from West of Slovakia (where I come from). The embroidery is just...fantastic. Every item is different, carrying stories of someone great-grandma, or grand-ma. With material like this, refashion is not that hard. I had to fix lace, some stitiching, lace, and I added satin stripes for wrapping. The skirt became overskirt - I love overskirts with leggings! (because leggings are too tight, yet comfy, and skirt gives me more comfidence!) On top of it, high waist and ruffled sides and back equals fantastic feminine curve shape. Who wouldn't like that? I have new favorite in my closet - and I'm on hunt for more folklore clothing. I think these pieces are not necessary good only for museums.

I have more pics on my blog. Cheers to our great-grandmas!

Refashioned skirt

Hello!
I made this skirt out of men's skirts - cotton ones. It turned out to have high front waist, sort of in half round. I found it soooo comfy, especially for hiding belly after huge lunch!
Finished with vintage buttons, overlock stitch and drapping on sides. This is very feminine skirt - I like how it looks with tshirt in.
I love men's shirts refashions - endless options for our new garments, right? ;)

Bag from vintage leather

I remember my mum wearing high waisted pants in 80's and 90's - they were so cool! I love retro fashion. This refashion is actually about turning those pants into bag or clutch. You can do this with any pants, just make sure the material is thick and strong enough for bag. The leather pants have this extra bit - they are lined usually till knees (or more), so this you can use for lining of the actual bag (I did similar refashion a while ago from corduroy pants, and with that one I had to hand sewn the lining by hand). I like studs and chains, so I added some as well. You can play around and make messanger bag, clutch or regular handbag. The bag closes on magnetic stud and the chain is detachable on two clasps.

Greetings!

Cocktail dress into wedding dress - YES!

I don't even know how to start... I had a cocktail dress which I bought years ago and which got damaged. I bought it to wear for party with my (back then) boyfriend. 3 years later... And I wear the same dress - fixed and upcycled into wedding dress - for my wedding with the same man.

Three years ago - little cocktail dress:

Now on our happy day:

I have more pics on Facebook or more info about refashion on my blog or Tumblr. I will post about my wedding decor and my flower girls' dresses later!

Greetings from happy MRS!!!

PS I have to credit www.35mil.co.uk for photos!

So simple, so effective

Hello everyone!

Today I don't make any extra super demanding whatever refashion. I just want to show that refashions can be easy and still have good visual effect. I wear this bags with heels and with trainers as well. It doesn't matter what's your style - they always match. This picture has been shared on some blogs, so you might have seen it already, but still. This bag it's so easy to make, light to carry, easy to wash. This basic *** tshirt into bag*** refashion is explained HERE, (not by me though) and with some little adjustments as well.

I have my studio full of shirts and tshirts. I cannot keep up with refashioning! Too much waste and too little time to save planet!

Greetings,

Martina

Funky fall jackets

Hello everyone!

Hope you are having wonderful summer! I started to make some more jackets just to be ready for fall. I've already posted some 'refashions' for jackets before - now I took it to the next level. I played more with design - the jeans I was upcycling were mens Pall Mall, darker ones. I did acid wash to lighten up, but the color was still not good, so I tie dyed it in most possible brights. It turned out great. I wanted to finish with hand embroidery, but then I changed my mind and used studs. We are going to rock after all this fall, right?

I have some more pics of both jackets here.

Fold overs from leftovers

So this summer we see fold overs everywhere, and if you would like to have one, then some leather or denim leftovers will do. I made mine from piece of leather from badly damaged jacket, combining it with bleached denim (I think it's from some old old jeans). The stripe is the cut off from shortening denim trousers, zipper was just hanging around in my studio, and for lining you can use regular polyester lining, linen or whatever cross your way!

The stripe is good if you need to use your hands and don't want to leave bag behind. I love wristlets, so the stripes are a must for me. But the bag is easy to carry as well as regular fold over.

Combine whatever you like and find. I do that all time!

Have fun and hot hot summer!

Martina from Bartinki

PS I have some more pics on my blog as well. :)

Spring jackets

I'm recently into mens trousers upcycling, so I thought I will share this one with you. I'm lucky to have source of almost never worn mens trousers (and sometimes even with price tags on!!! That's turning my hair gray:). Some time ago I posted pics of similar jacket - my techniques are improved now, and I'm still working on what else could be done with this material. The length of the jacket is a limitation, so it acts more as a capelet. Sleeves can be 3/4 or full length, finished with cuffs or elastic. Every jacket is specific, since material and sizing of trousers. Sometimes I have to play by ear, since fabric layers can be too thick to be sewn through, but whatever can be seen as a barrier, can be as well turned into challenge and adventually into some cool unique detail.

More pics of those jackets are in my shop. Have fun weekend!

One top - three outcomes

I was given this top from the friend of mine, who (I think) wanted to challenge me. The top was in excellent condition, so I didn't really wanted to cut it into pieces, but at the end I did and here is the outcome:
(I don't have BEFORE picture, but the top had long sleeves and was tighen around hips)

So fist part was turned into dress - I added red satin, faux leather rim and elastic to waist.

I turned second part upside down and added black satin, elastic to waist and lace to rims.

So I was left with sleeves parts. Here they are:

So I used 100% of the top and there was no leftover. Not bad I think!

Have a nice day and wish you great refashions!

PS You can find more of my refashions on my Bartinki Facebook page.

Mens shirts into women skirts

We have freezing winter here, but i didn't resist to make some summer skirts... I was given full bag of mens summer shirts (or with summer patterns, all in excellent quality, shame to waste!), so why wait?
To addition, I used vintage lace and some upcycled satin ribbon for belt stripe. I love the shape of front drapped part, and I think this is becoming my the most favorite technique.

There are more pictures on my blog and the skirts are also on my Etsy shop.

Greetings from the Netherlands!

Corduroy pants and skirt into bags

I posted refashion of jeans into jacket couple of days ago, and today I want to share another pants refashion. This one is easier - pants into bag. I managed to get lovely webbing, matching with corduroy, and also matching checked flanel for lining. I sew-in lining by hand, so it's invisible on outer side. For finish I used faux leather and studs - they keep bag closed and also give it chic look.

Other refashion is made from corduroy skirt (almost brand new!). The skirt had outer pockets, so I kept them for some extra space for keys etc. It had lining, so it saved some work. I also changed buttons for bolder purple ones. First I wanted to add some features to front side, but the bag looks very good anyway and I didn't want to ruin it.

The main point in these refashions was to keep it tidy and to pay attention to details. The materials were in excellent condition, so it would be waste just to keep it in closet!
There are more pics in my shop or on my FB page.

Why not a new jacket?

I want to share refashion of firm, sometimes hard to refashion items, such as mens jeans or corduroy pants or skirt. I would like to see what other people are making of it, so let me know! There is still plenty of denim waiting to be useful!

Basically it's again just turning clothing upside down, cutting it apart and sewing on together. Legs to sleeves, pants to jacket. And I also added faux leather and vintage buttons (just because i love them).

If you like this idea, there are more pics of this jacket on my blog or in my shop. Other refashions follow!

Coat update

This coat was in an excellent condition, just needed a little update, that little something. So I choose more rustic look, added wooden buttons and made some stitching. And I'm pretty happy with the outcome!
You can see more before-during-after pictures on my blog or on my Facebook page. Enjoy!

Blouse to vintage inspired dress

This refashion was made in warmer days, but the idea can be used for long sleeve shirts too just to keep yourself warm. The top is unwanted blouse in excellent condition, shame to go to waste. But by adding satin bottom part in camouflage pattern, the shoulder 'army' pads in the same fabric and vintage buttons, this blouse has transfered to lovely vintage inspired dress. Feels like from Pearl Harbour movie! Enjoy!

More pictures of my refashions and other work on Bartinki facebook page or on my blog.

Cardigan into skirt and leg warmers

This is these days a very popular refashion of cardigan into something else, this time into skirt and leg warmers. It was short, S size cardigan, hence the mini lenght of the skirt. Basically 85-90% of cardigan was reused, which is not that bad...
Tea dyed to cover stains, and turned upside down, the refashion transfered my old cardi into new autumn outfit. Very handy for my 1 year-no-clothes-shopping challenge!

It beels a little like 'bee' outfit, but why not?

More refashions on my blog or on my Facebook page. Have a nice day!

Macrame from leftovers

Having plenty of fabric leftovers (like every refashionista), I decided to reduce them and made this belt/necklace, which can be worn by multiple ways.

You can finish them with vintage buttons, buckles, or handmade flowers. Anything what's on hand!

Play a little and wear it as you wish to!

More pictures on my blog or on my Facebook page. Happy days!

Summer outfit

I know the summer is over, but I would like to share one refashion I made at the very beginning on June. The skirt is made from four mens denim shirt sleeves (one of my previous refashions was made similary), but the denim was different for each skirt. I bleached it, so the skirt got all shades of baby blue. I added dyed vintage crochets and lace and distressed the bottom of the skirt.

The shirt was washed so many times it became grey-ish, so I went for dyeing with strawberry red. Plus I added the same crochets to make it matching with skirt.



Very fresh outfit, in shades candy pink with baby blue. If you would like to see more pics of it, there are some on my blog. Happy times!