Overdue Post - More Tank Top Makeovers

I'm sorry it's been so long!  I know; excuses are like...   well let's just say I have one of each.  Work has been CRAZY busy the last couple of weeks.  I've barely been able to think about blogging let alone sit down to blog.  The good new is that things should be slowing down significantly until August so I should have plenty of time for recreating and whatnot.

On to the good stuff!

Last weekend my sister-in-law had a birthday, which meant I had a project.  I knew immediately what I wanted to do for her.  A couple of months ago she saw the post where I hooked up a tank top with a little bit of lace and made it totally fabulous.  She then asked if I could do awesome things to some tank tops for her.  Well, birthday time is the perfect time to make such requests a reality.

I began with two tank tops I acquired recently using excellent sales and deals.  The first was from Old Navy.  I paid $1.74.

The second was from Charlotte Russe.  I paid $1.89 and got a free pair of earrings with a coupon.

For the orange tank I decided to create a flower out of gray fabric.  The funny thing about this fabric is that it came from a pair of pajama pants that my sister-in-law gave me at my bridal shower.  It's been over 6 years so the pants were ready for retirement.

I hand stitched two flowers to the tank; one on top of the other.  Then I added a few beads.

The finished product:

My dress form looks pretty hot wearing it, so I'm sure the tank will look even better when worn by my beautiful sister-in-law.

For the purple tank I had something entirely different in mind.  Last summer I got this dress at a garage sale for $0.25!  I've tried so hard to figure out what to do with it.  You see, it's too small for me so my options are fairly limited.  What you don't see in this picture is that it's not zipped in the back.

I finally decided to use pieces of the dress for various projects.  For my tank makeover I used the strip of lace from the bodice.  I cut the lace from the dress and pinned it to the front of the tank.

Then, using white thread, I sewed the piece along the sides.  It was really quick and simple and ended up SO cute.                                                

Once again, my dress form is lookin' fine.

Thanks for sticking around everybody!  I look forward to the coming months and keeping things exciting.

Warm weather wear

Spring has arrived!  Its starting to warm up around here.  Well, except for last weekend when it snowed (Crazy California).  But other than that, we're experiencing some elevation in temperature, which means it's time to update the warm weather wear!

Over the last week I worked on three simple pieces.  I began with my husband's old polo.

I started by soaking it in bleach but that didn't do much but fade the fabric a little.  I'm not sure what the problem was but I have more plans for bleaching in the future so I'll have to figure it out.  After the bleaching I cut this sucker up!

I cut off most of the sleeves, cut the collar and buttons out completely, and cut some length off the bottom.  I actually didn't do any sewing at all.  After all the cutting I just put the shirt on backward and I was done.

I'm definitely a fan.  I don't know about exposing so much of my back, though.  I might be self conscious when I'm out and about.  I'll probably wear a tank top underneath the shirt when I leave the house.

Next, I worked on a shirt that I got at an estate sale.  It was basically brand new.  I really like the colors and the detail on the front.

I'm not sure why I didn't take pictures of the process.  I removed the sleeves and part of the collar, and I took the sides in.

Collar down

Collar up

This one is a little more work-appropriate than the last shirt.  I have to cover all bases in my wardrobe.

Finally, I altered a sweater tank.  I imagine that's what its called, anyhow.  I got this top from a thrift store for $2.00.  I like the crochet detail around the collar, but the shape was a total bummer.

I decided to try something new with this top.  I put the top on my dress form and pinned it from the back to take in some width and to add some shape.

After pinning, I took it to the sewing machine and came out with this:

I like the shape that was added to this top and how the neck is now much smaller.  I look forward to using this technique again.

That's all for now, but there's much more to come! 

Ranting

So, first of all...is this style really coming back around?

It reminds me of something I wore in 6th grade.  Now that I think about it, that was quite a few years ago.  Maybe this is what my mom felt like when I was wearing all those polyester shirts in 7th and 8th grade.

 But secondly, Forever21 is now indicating the model's height and size with each picture.  As in, "Model's height is 5'8" and wears a small."  As if to really say, "Just so you know, this outfit won't fit you at ALL like it fits this model."  Thanks Forever 21.  You have now said out loud what I've always thought in my head.

Finally, it's times like these that cause me to question whether or not I have any business shopping at Forever 21, considering that I'm approaching 30 :)

Recreate Jewelry

Last night I realized I was in need/want of new jewelry.  I have a ton of jewelry that I've made just sitting around waiting to be sold.  But those pieces belong to someone else.  I wanted make something that would belong to me.

I decided to pull out a bunch of old pieces of jewelry that I don't wear anymore (and that my friend gave me because she doesn't wear them anymore) and see what I could come up with.

Considering my options, the possibilities seemed endless.  Most of these pieces have way too much going on.  I really wanted something simple.  So I started taking things apart.  These earring were the first to be disassembled.

Using just the heart, the earring hook, the jump loops, and the orange bead I put together these adorable things!

Way better, right?!  That was just too easy though.  I still had all these necklaces just waiting to be torn apart.  Once I made the earrings, I started to get a picture in my mind of what sort of necklace would go well with them.  So I began removing the beads from this necklace.

Then I attached all the beads to one jump loop.

After that I tied a ribbon to the gold chain that used to be my grandmother's.

And finally I attached the beaded jump loop to the gold chain.

Today I have new earrings and a new necklace to wear and I spent zero dollars!

Also, I'm pretty much blonde now. What???