Sunday, May 04, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: Ruffled Blouse

This top was among my loot from last month's clothes swap. The too-short sleeves and poofy shoulder give it a more... mature appearance.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

Plus, it was missing three buttons, and the seams were coming undone in a few places.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

But I liked the teal and black stripes and the ruffles, and I've been trying to build up a more professional-looking wardrobe.So it came home with me!

Removing the sleeves will fix the first two issues.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

Then I re-sewed a few seams that had come undone.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

I cut two strips from one of the sleeves, about 1.5 inches wide and 22 inches long. I pinned each of them to the armholes, with right-sides facing, and sewed all around.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

I pressed the binding outward.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

Next I folded it over toward the inside of the blouse and sewed it in place.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

And finally, I plucked off the remaining buttons and stitched on six matching black buttons from my enormous stash.

Ruffled Blouse Redo

I was so excited about having a dressier blouse that it didn't occur to me - until I was trying to put together an outfit - that I don't have a single black skirt or slacks.

Ruffled Blouse RedoRuffled Blouse Redo

I had to settle for khaki, and these have their own textured stripes, which is just too much with the stripes on the shirt.

Ruffled Blouse RedoRuffled Blouse Redo

Looks like a classic black pencil skirt might be the next thing on my To Do list!

Ruffled Blouse - Before & After

6 comments:

  1. Three Cheers to you, Carissa! You can never go wrong with a professional wardrobe for the work place. You should be the model for the young professional and those in non professional occupations.

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    1. I may be all tank tops and jeans on the weekend, but Monday through Friday I try to put on a good show. :)

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  2. I'm almost 60 and the original look was too "mature" for me too! I love it as a sleeveless. It would work well under a jacket too. Pinstripes like that remind me of the 90s..
    regards,
    Theresa

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    1. Good! So it wasn't just me! I like the idea of a jacket too. I'll have to try that when it gets cooler again.

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  3. What a change - and definitely office appropriate without being stuffy.

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    1. Thank you! Sometimes professional yet stylish is a tough balancing act.

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