From Despair to Delight

After watching a couple of interviews with Vivienne Westwood, I was inspired to do something about a pink 1940s evening gown that had been taunting me for some time.
It was an eBay purchase and unfortunately the seller must have had one too many when listing as the measurements were waaaaay off and it was too small for me. Grrrr!

The grand Dame herself swore by making do with what one has.
I took a leaf out of her book and removed the bodice from the skirt of the dress I would NEVER fit into.

And I'm really happy with the result ... I haven't even bothered with elastic, just hemmed the top.
If I get sick of belting it, I have a length of two-inch elastic to make a waistband.
Plenty more pics on my blog:)

Bang on 80s!

I found the bottom half of a Studibaker Hawk dress in dire state of disrepair at a flea market and decided it needed some loving.
The huge flouncy skirt had been detached from the bodice and the skirt gathering had come undone.
I sewed a two-inch wide band of black elastic to the top of the skirt, stretching the elastic to accommodate the enormous amount of fabric.
Voila!
More fun stuff on my blog post.

Vintage Kimono Goes Patchwork

Kimonos are the ultimate throw-on cover up for nearly any occasion.
If you're into vintage kimonos however, be prepared with your needle and thread for a wee bit of hand stitching.
My first kimono was a black 1940s one with grey and purple silk lining that had shattered or ripped in many places.
I went through my stash box and found a gold silk shirt that I'd thrifted just for the fabric.
At last I could put it to use!
I cut large panels of the gold silk to cover up the damaged parts of the kimono lining, creating a large patchwork effect.
I folded over the edges of the new lining pieces, pressed them then pinned them onto the kimono which was lying flat.
Then I spent about an hour slip stitching the new lining pieces in place.
Today I wore it inside out because I liked the patchwork effect so much!

I Thought You Were Dead!

,

She was already showing signs of a life well lived when I discovered her in a thrift store, but I still wanted her badly and handed over my four bucks to take her home.

A couple of years later, it happened.  Too much love and she was falling to bits.  I had to make the decision to either pull the switch or amputate.

I decided she was worth the effort.

Voila!  Transformation complete, she was now a one-shouldered 1950s floral frock.

Now I believe in the resurrection of the frock!

How was this miracle performed?  

Method:

At purchase, there was some serious wire-coathanger wear on the right shoulder and small underarm tears, both of which worsened quickly with wear despite my loving mending.

So I unpicked the facing from the neckline. 

Unpicking is really important as you need all the seam allowance you can get.

Press the neckline and seam allowance open, then use tailor's chalk to mark your cutting line from the top of one shoulder to the opposite underarm.

Try it on in front of a mirror, wearing the strapless bra you plan to wear with it if you need one.

Adjust the chalk lines, remembering to give yourself enough seam allowance.

Cut.

Machine sew a new facing along your new neckline using bias binding and hand sew closed. 

Important:  This re-fashion only works on dresses with a fitted bodice that hugs your torso.

Worn out 1950s dresses are a good choice as they fit close to the body.

Good luck!  

More pics here!

Granny's Smalls to Top

I've had these 1930s onesie knickers for a while, and I've finally taken the plunge and made them into something way more practical.
A fitting statement with International Women's Day just one sleep away:).
BEFORE:

AFTER:
Snip off the button placket, unpick the crotch, roll the hem and sew.
Aaah ... that's better.

There's more ... HERE

Introduction: Pull Your Socks Up!

Well hello there!
Isn't it wonderful that a group of energetic lovelies have decided to start another refashioning blog?
I'm so proud to be part of this group as I very, very rarely buy anything new and love thrifting and going to flea markets to pick up all sorts of junk/treasures that I can wear straight away or make into something completely "new".

I'm Desiree of Pull Your Socks Up! and I live in sunny Brisbane, Australia, where we are sweltering through the last few weeks of a very late summer.
Despite the climate, over the years I have collected an extraordinary amount of winter clothing as I love coats, capes, boots, silk, wool, cashmere and leather.
Crazy I know, but show me a collector that's "sensible" about their obsession:).
I'm absolutely nuts about early-mid 20th century fashion and if it wasn't for the heinous polyester fabrics, I would collect more 1970s garments.
Instead, I use 1970s sewing patterns to make clothes in cool cotton fabrics from my enormous stash of thrifted fabrics.
I've been sewing for about 30 years and would now like to try more craft projects and make accessories and garment embellishments.
I'm looking forward to seeing your work and getting some inspiration here - I see many of you have already started the ball rolling:))).