I Like That Shirt. Can I Have It?

The Instigator likes his shirts.  And he's not afraid to wear color.  I like that about him. It's not that he's obsessed with buying them, it's just that sometimes they don't fit after a period of time because inevitably they progressively shrink after so many rides in the washer and dryer. 

Lucky me!  If the shirt happens to be a color or pattern that I like, I'll politely ask if I can have it before he puts it in the charity pile.  (He will argue that I already had dibs on it even before he took it out of the package, but that's not true...most of the time.)

This refashion is the first one I ever did.  I don't have a before photo, but suffice to say it was your basic men's long-sleeved shirt.  I had picked up New Look 6563 at a fabric store in Boston from their dollar section quite some time before.  So when I was "gifted" the shirt, I knew the exact pattern for it.

 I pretty much took apart the entire shirt seam by seam and started from scratch. Instead of purchasing ruffle trim for the neckline and peplum edge, I made it from leftover strips of fabric and used a narrow serged hem.

I don't know if I'd choose this pattern for the next shirt remake, but one thing's for sure; The Instigator will not be asking for any of his shirts back once I get me hands on them.

I See a Pattern Here...

Several years back I bought this IKEA Aneboda 3-drawer storage chest to organize my patterns.  

It wasn’t until just recently that I decided that the plain frosted plastic drawer fronts weren’t doing it for me anymore.  Having assembled the piece myself, I knew that the fronts were not removable, so replacing them was not a viable option.  An internet search for inspiration came up with gluing wallpaper or fabric over the plastic fronts.  After examining the drawers a little closer I discovered that there was a little play in the slot area were the plastic is inserted.  Hmm… if I could find some heavy decorative card stock, it might just be the ticket to dressing up an otherwise utilitarian piece of furniture. 

Then I remembered I saved this:

An Haute Couture wall calendar by Lang.  Too pretty to throw away after 2013 had ended, I stashed it amongst the stash in the studio.  I measured the drawer front opening and added 1/8” on each side.  The paper stock of the calendar was heavy enough to not wrinkle but thin enough to be flexible so I could insert it without difficulty.

Here’s the end result:

I am so pleased with it that it motivated me to start organizing the patterns in it. Every time I see it, I’m inspired to flip through the patterns and start planning the next project.

IKEA also has a wardrobe from the same collection that I want to purchase.  

 There’s plenty of leftover calendar – guess what I’ll be doing to dress it up?
 

New Year, New Look 6731

I knew when I started this blog that there would be long stretches between posts.  Yeah, a year seems about right for me.  I guess I'm one of those people who gets so absorbed in the now moment, that remembering to record them for posterity never occurs to me at the time.  But I'm trying to change that.

I finally bought a new camera that has a remote shutter release, so I can take photos of my projects without having to bother the Instigator. I just need to be more consistent in my photo taking.  It's a work in progress as am I. So without further (yearlong) adieu, I bring you my latest make - New Look 6731.

I used the View A tunic pattern and I lengthened it several inches to dress length. The fabric is a stretch rayon blend jersey knit from Fabric.com (2011) from one of their many clearance sales when I was building a stash.

 

My favorite pose of this series.  Not bad for a 50 something!

 

I really like the 60's vibe of this dress. I lined the dress in self fabric from the neckline to the waist and used a knit tricot in a beige shade for the bottom half of the dress. This gave it a little more weight and slip so that I could wear it with tights without it clinging.

Next up on the project list is Vogue 7427 circa 1969. Found in a thrift shop for 50 cents, it has all the pieces in tact.  Its previous owner cut the short version, but was thoughtful enough to save the length from the maxi version. I'm working on a fit muslin for the short version and plan on making it in a dark green and white 1/2" window pane fabric. (Of course I don't have a photo of the fabric...baby steps, baby steps...).  But here is a pic of the pattern. The dress is a step-in with snap closures and underlined. I really like the fact that the belt pattern is contoured as opposed to straight lines. I'm really looking forward to making this pattern and hope that another year doesn't pass before I post again!