Sunday, April 20, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: 90s Floral Dress

Here's another piece from the clothes swap last autumn - a stunning early 90s number in navy floral with a quaint little lace collar.

90s Floral Dress - Before90s Floral Dress - Before

Reminds me of a little girl I once knew...

Throwback

I don't recall the occasion for the portraits, but if memory serves, I believe the dress was originally purchased for Easter. All the more reason my newly-acquired dress was the perfect choice for a holiday cookout this afternoon.

I began by chopping off the sleeves.

90s Floral Dress

Then I cut a sweetheart-ish neckline across the front and straight across the back.

90s Floral Dress

I took in the existing darts a bit just above the bust. Don't want to be flashing anyone when I lean over.

90s Floral Dress

I finished the top edge with a new hem.

90s Floral Dress

I pressed the pleats out of the sleeves and cut one 8"x18" rectangle from each.

90s Floral Dress

Each rectangle was sewn into a tube, then turned right-side-out.

90s Floral Dress

I folded the ends inward and closed them up.

90s Floral Dress

I scrunched each end of my new straps a little before attaching them to the top edge of the front and back of the dress.

90s Floral Dress

I trimmed about five inches off the bottom...

90s Floral Dress

...and rehemmed the edge.

90s Floral Dress

Finally, I used the 5-inch strip from the bottom to make a sash. Just like the straps, I simply sewed the strip into a very long tube, turned it right-side-out, and closed up the ends.

And then it was off to consume mass quantities of deviled eggs!

90s Floral Dress - After90s Floral Dress - After

Sadly, there were no chocolate bunnies.

90s Floral Dress - After90s Floral Dress - After

Nor any plastic eggs full of candy.

90s Floral Dress - After90s Floral Dress - After

But I managed to have a good time anyway.

90s Floral Dress - Before & After

8 comments:

  1. Oh Carissa - this must be the cutest creation since the denim creation of last fall!!!

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    1. Thanks, Linda! I got lots of compliments when I wore it yesterday. :)

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  2. Weren't the flowery fabrics wonderful back then? The collars maybe not so much, in hindsight, although I loved them at the time. That's fashion for ya :)

    I really like the new neckline and straps - a nice update for that beautiful fabric.

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    1. Oh yeah, those collars! What were we thinking!?!

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  3. That looks so GOOD! Such an awesome transformation. Love this one!

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  4. Hi Carissa!
    Now this dress is very summery! Perfect refashion!
    Kisses from Portugal!

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