Baby Blanket Dress

This dress was super fun to make. Why? Because I used one of BB's old baby blankets. It is a cozy and soft old fleece. I received so many receiving blankets and baby blankets when she was born. (Is that why they are called receiving blankets?) Most of them are used for her babydolls now.

But why waste all that good fabric on the dolls? What could be more comforting than running around in your old blankie?

For more details on BB's new dress, hop on over to my blog.

Skirt From a Sweater... Second Time's the Charm

This is my second attempt at a sweater skirt. My first one was a flop, but I did learn a couple of valuable lessons along the way. And knowing is half the battle, right?

Lesson number one: When sewing a sweater, it is MUCH easier to work with a fine gauge knit than a chunky sweater. The first sweater I tried to work with was made of a thick cotton yarn that easily fell apart when I cut it.

Lesson number two: Sweaters tend to stretch when you sew them. I was able to prevent the stretching by increasing my stitch length.  I also used a "straight stretch" stitch for this project, which is one of the stitch settings on my machine.






This is where it all began.  I found this large men's sweater and intercepted it just before it was sent to the goodwill. Score! I also used the sleeves of a stretchy knit shirt to make the waistband.

For more details on this transformation, hop on over to my blog. Thanks for reading :)

Extending the Life and Length of a "Favorite"

BB has two kinds of clothes: her "favorites" and the "crazies." These are her words not mine. Her favorites are very limited. So when I pick her up from school and a "favorite" dress is shorter than one of Cindy Brady's dresses, well, then I know I will have a problem.

Rather than leaving BB with one less "favorite" to wear, I decided to turn this favorite dress into a favorite skirt.










This was a very quick and painless refashion. Learn more about what I did by visiting my blog :)

Pink Pencil Skirt: A Fast Refashion

You can really never have too many skirts. Well.. at least I know that I can't have too many skirts.

This skirt was once a thrift store dress that was... let's just say...not quite my style. It probably enjoyed a life of clubbing at one point.

I picked it up at a thrift store because it was made from a thick stretchy knit. Even the check out girl gave me a sideways look when I brought it to the counter.

Sadly, the before pictures are nowhere to be found. So you'll just have to trust me on this one.

Anywhoo... refashioning this to a pencil skirt was quick and painless.  Pop over to my blog to find out what I did...

(not) Always a Bridesmaid (dress) - a Royal Refashion

BB wanted a princess party. Which means princess attire is needed. Which means I get to make a fancy dress!! I realize most of my friends would not have been as excited about that, but I am hoping that some of you crafters out there know what I am talking about.
First thing first.. a trip to a local thrift shop!  Aren't you excited already!! Well... I was :)

After a little bit of searching, we found this... I am fairly certain this was a bridesmaid dress. It had great bones. And I just knew it would be a fun refashion.


The results are in and..... the judge approves!!



To learn more about the Royal Refashion come visit me here :)

Swimsuit Refashion

Today I have a whole new respect for the swimsuit industry.  I'll admit that there have been more than a few times that I have bad-mouthed them; perhaps even used expletives. 

It just seemed like they could never get it right.  I mean, if the intimate apparel industry can get it right, why can't the swimwear folks get it?  We women are not all the same size and shape.  And, for goodness sake, can't a mom have a cute swimsuit that is actually flattering? 

I give you exhibit A:

This swimsuit looked adorable on the internet model.  And, it looked adorable when I opened it up. When I put it on... well... it was OK.  However, I felt the need to wear a well-fitting bikini top underneath it.

I wore it to the pool.  I was excited.  I got in the water.  I looked like I had a giant wet blanket draped over me.  I was unhappy.

I still really, really wanted to love this swimsuit.  So, I took it in on the sides.  It looked pretty good after that.  Unfortunately, it was NOT comfortable.

The culprit?  These cute little white straps beside the (shall we say) chest area.  They start on the sides and are supposed to tie behind the neck.  The problem?  It really hurts to have a wide slab of spandex supporting your chest when starts below your armpit, goes around your shoulder and ties in the back.

That's when I knew I would have to do something drastic.  I certainly did not want to waste this super cute bathing suit, but I was not willing to be in pain.  And finally it hit me... A BIKINI!!

Yes, I was nervous.  I have no serger or fancy sewing equipment.  And, let's face it, the last place you want to have a major wardrobe malfunction in at the neighborhood pool.  But at this point, what did I have to lose?

You can learn all about my swimsuit overhaul here. I like to think that I saved this swimsuit.  Tonight I am in love with it.  Fingers crossed for no wardrobe malfunctions tomorrow...

Old Shirt + Old Bedding + Packaging = RuffleBack Dress

Hi again!  It's Mandy from Mandy Made.  I wanted to show off my latest, and favoritest upcycle.


I originally thought this dress would be dubbed "The Mullet Dress."

Thankfully my husband had a better idea.  We officially call this dress the "RuffleBack Dress" (a nod to JT).

Besides, this dress is all party in the front AND the back :)

It started with this shirt that I inherited at the neighborhood yardsale.  Once I saw it I immediately thought it would make a great dress for BB.  

I played around with some ways to incorporate the ruffles. The idea to cross them in the back came because I figured that would be the best way to use the most of the ruffles.

From the moment I saw this shirt at the yardsale I knew that it needed a large ribbon; either pink and red.  I just had this vision in my head of the way the contrasting ribbon would compliment the ruffles.

Then I found it as we were redecorating BB's room.  One of the blankets from her bed came packaged with this gorgeous ribbon. It was too beautiful to toss out.

Last, I used some of the ruffles from her old bedskirt.  The fabric was already gathered; which meant I wouldn't have to make the ruffles myself.  One less thing for me to do :)

I have a complete tutorial on my blog.  Thanks for reading :)

Upcycled Skirt from Thrifted Shirt

Hey there.  MysticMandy here from Mandy Made.  Today I wanted to share one of my daughter's favorite skirts.  This is a project I actually did a month ago.  But it's fun and summery so I thought I would share it here.

I found this shirt at a thrift store a few months ago thinking it would make a cute dress.  My very headstrong daughter had other ideas in mind.  She is so into skirts right now.  At first I was disappointed and tried to convince her that a dress is waaaay-cooler because I didn't think a skirt would give me much of a challenge or creative possibilities. All I would have to do it cut it off under the bibby-thingy and add some elastic at the waist... BOOOOWING! 

But then I got the idea to completely deconstruct the shirt so that I would lose all of the shirt's structure and would basically be working with small bits of fabric.  So... after deconstructing the shirt I had something that looked like this.  Tiered skirts are very popular now and I figured that all of these little pieces would lend themselves to that kind of design.

Being the cheap (*ahem* thrifty) crafting-mom that I am, I used this piece of lace that has been sitting in my craft bin for... oh.... perhaps a decade or more.  I think it originated from my mom's stash that was also quite old.  So, let's just say it's aged.  


I filled it out with some tulle on the inside and I even used some reeeaally old elastic (maybe even older than the lace) for the waistband. 


For a complete tutorial, feel free to check out my post here.  I love visitors :)

A Pantsformation - or... How I Made a Skirt from a Pair of Pants

There is a lot to love about upcycling.  First there is the obvious recycling benefit, which is also nice when you are working with a budget. Second is the creative aspect; it really is more exciting for me to figure out how to re-arrange my existing clothes than it is to buy a pattern and cut along the lines.  The third, and perhaps most compelling reason, is that it usually takes a lot less work.

There, I said it.  I love love love to sew.  But it is really really cool when I don't have to sew in a zipper or finish every little last edge.

After my last upcycle, my closet was down one skirt.  So... I rummaged through an old clothes bin to see what I could find that might want to be my newest skirt.  And then I saw it, a pair of stretch cotton-blend trousers that are way too big for me.

To learn more about my pantsformation check out my blog. 

A New Shirt From an Old Skirt

Hello.  I am so excited about my first post on Refashion Co-op!  My name is Mandy, but my superhero name is MysticMandy. I recently started a blog I call Mandy Made.

Do you ever look in your closet and think "I have NOTHING to wear!!"  Well, that happens to me.  All. The. Time.  And since I'm broke, I try to change the old things into new things.  This shirt, for example, went from being a skirt that I NEVER wear, to a fun summer top... In FIVE minutes!

Here is the skirt I started with.  It's a stretchy knit.  It looks innocent enough, but the waistband (which is SUPPOSED to fold over) always manages to unfold itself throughout the day, adding an additional few inches to my waist.  Who wants that?  Not me.

To learn how I made this easy-peasy shirt, head on over to Mandy Made.  I am always happy to meet new refashionistas, learn about fun projects, read comments and attract new followers.  Thanks for reading my first post :)