Sunday, August 10, 2014

Sunday Sew-Day: Two for One

My friend came over the other day with a big box of clothes, some from her own under-grown wardrobe, some from other friends' closets. In it, I found this lovely batik fabric currently in the form of a 2XL skirt.

Batik Dress - Before

I swear, I was more excited about it than this picture lets on.

The elastic was pretty much shot, so step one was to chop off that waistband.

Batik Dress - In Progress

Once it was all spread out, there was a grand total of 12 feet of fabric around the top - more than enough for two dresses! So I cut it up both side seams.

Batik Dress - In Progress

I re-stitched one half into its own tube to make a sleeveless summer dress.

Batik Dress - In Progress

Since I knew I'd need more fabric in front for The Girls than I'd need in the back, I broke out the measuring tape. I measured up from the bottom of the back of my bra band to where I wanted the top of the back of the dress to sit. Then I did the same in front, from the underwire, around one of my breasts, up to where I wanted the front of the dress to be. The difference between the two measurements was 4 inches, so I cut the top of the back down by about 4 inches and slowly sloped upward toward the front. (Here it's folded in half lengthwise so you see the front height versus the back height.) If you aren't as... overly burdened as I am, you probably won't need to cut off quite as much.

Batik Dress - In Progress

Then I folded over the top edge to make a casing. I left a small opening in the back to insert some new elastic (I say new, but it was actually salvaged from another refashion project).

Batik Dress - In Progress

I used a safety pin to help feed the new elastic through its casing. Then I stitched the ends together.

Batik Dress - In Progress

Finally, I sewed up that hole I had left in the back of the casing.

Batik Dress - In Progress

Since, as I said, there was enough material for two dresses, and since the process was so simple, I went ahead and turned the second half of the skirt into a second dress, which I plan to donate.

Batik Dress - AfterBatik Dress - After

No point in me hoarding that fabric that would be so close to being wearable. Might as well put in five more minutes of effort and let someone else have a new dress as well.

Batik Dress - AfterBatik Dress - After



Batik Dress - Before & After

3 comments:

  1. You've reminded me of one more thing I like about thrifted or refashioned clothing - they're usually one of a kind. I remember buying a dress from a mainstream store for a fancy party, and walking in to find another girl wearing the same thing. Even though you have made two identical dresses, you're still not very likely to see yourself coming down the street!

    Beautiful material in this, and the white accessories set it off so well. Can I ask how you figured out the amount to cut from the back? Is there a way to measure or did you eyeball it or some other method? I am having this problem with a couple of dresses I am making by sewing together separate tops and bottoms. I assume everyone's adjustment would be different but I'm not sure how to figure it out with a tape measure.

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    Replies
    1. Excellent question! In fact, I think I'll edit the post to add this bit.

      I measured up from the bottom of my bra band to where I wanted the top of the dress to sit. Then I did the same in front, from the underwire, around one of my breasts, up to where I wanted the front of the dress to be. The difference between the two measurements was 4 inches, so that's how much I cut off the back.

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    2. I never would have thought of measuring from the bra band; I was picturing measuring to where the bottom of the dress would fall. This is much easier - thank you :)

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