Do It Gorgeously: How to Make Less Toxic, Less Expensive, and More Beautiful Products (26 page)

As Good as New

I get enormous pleasure from transforming something old into something new. Transforming an antique sheet into a sexy chemise makes me feel rather clever, as do all of the following projects. Every time you keep something out of the landfill and choose
not
to use up more of this planet’s dwindling resources, you’ll get a kick out of it. Transforming old clothes and fabrics into something new will encourage you to get creative by fashioning bold and unique new styles for yourself. It’s your opportunity to become a style maker instead of a fashion victim!

SEVEN NEW LOOKS

The first thing you want to do before you add anything to your wardrobe, homemade or otherwise, is to see what you already have and get rid of all the clutter. If you get a full-on eyeful of every garment you own, you might be surprised at the many new looks that you can put together. I know women who have hired stylists and the like to go through their closets, but you don’t need a professional. If you really can’t trust your own judgment, ask a good friend to join you.

I want you to commit to creating seven totally new looks out of what you already have.

1. Lay out all your clothes on the bed or on a large table. If you have a lot of clothes, you may need to do it in two batches. You could start
   with summer clothes and then go on to winter clothes. Alternatively, you could start with skirts, tops, and sweaters, and then move on to pants, tops, and sweaters.
   
2. Have seven chairs or a couch nearby, because you are going to lay out each new look on the back of a chair.
   
3. Begin by pulling out your skirts (always the hardest to match) and lay one over the back of each chair. If you don’t have seven skirts, you may want to add a pair of pants. The important thing is to pick out your favorite skirts and pants—ones that are comfortable and that you love to wear.
   
4. Start pulling tops (shirts, T-shirts, sweaters) that you think might go with each bottom. Get outside the box—beyond what you are used to. You want to try to get really creative and perhaps match a color that you never thought would really work. Once you have seven provisional pairings of tops and bottoms ready, it’s time to start trying them on.
   
5. Try on each outfit in front of a long mirror and see what you think. Have all your shoes and jewelry at hand. This is where a friend can come in handy—to hand you pieces of jewelry that you would never have thought to put together with that particular look. Now is the time to experiment. If one top doesn’t work, try on another until you find the perfect combo. Do the same with your shoes. Shoes and boots are very important. How many times have you put on a skirt, only to find that every pair of shoes you own looks awful with it?
   
6. Having created seven new looks, if you have a friend with you, get him/her to take a digital photo of each look. Place each outfit back in your closet in such a way that it’s easy to put together again (you might want to put the skirt and cardigan on the same hanger, for example).
   
7. Now look at what’s left. Hold up each garment and if you haven’t worn it for two years, it’s time to go. Either call up a friend who’s a similar size and say you’ve got a few things she might like, or take them to your local church, shelter, or thrift store. Before you make
   your final decision to get rid of something, have a good look at it to see if there’s any way that a little alteration might make you want to keep it. Also, flip through the sewing projects in this book to see if anything could be put to good use. I was about to throw away a tatty old floral shirt when I realized that I could transform it into an adorable nightgown for my daughter.
   

THRIFT STORE MAGIC

When you next go out to a thrift store, garage sale, or flea market, you need to put on some seriously creative spectacles. Here’s what to look for.

• Shirts, dresses, and tunics that could be transformed if you were to slash off the sleeves.
  
• Cashmere of any kind. It doesn’t matter what condition it’s in, you’ll be able to put it to good use with a pair of scissors, a needle, and thread.
  
• Interesting buttons. You may see a hideous dress or jacket that has very unusual or pretty buttons. If you can get the garment for a couple of bucks, it’ll be worth it for a handful of stunning buttons.
  
• Pillowcases to transform into pillowcase dresses.
  
• Table linens that you can cut up for a skirt.
  
• Napkins for quilt squares.
  
• Pretty shirts or blouses with slightly tattered collars, arm holes, or cuffs. You can easily fix this by applying bias binding with cute stitches.
  
• Any fabric that catches your eye. Even if the design or size isn’t right, you can easily change that.
  

Gorgeously Gathered Skirt

This is a great beginner project. It now takes me about 20 minutes on a sewing machine to make this little skirt. You can hand sew it, but it’ll take quite a bit longer. This design is particularly suited for a cool and breezy summer skirt. Go to your fabric store and let your imagination run free. Once you know what you need, you can go wild.

HOW TO

1.
Lay out your piece of fabric on a clean tabletop. Most cotton fabric measures 44 to 56 inches wide, which is perfect for this skirt, regardless of your size. If the fabric you have measures more, you may need to cut off some of the width. I suggest wrapping the fabric around you, gathering it in at the waist, and seeing if it feels right. I like quite a full gather, but you may want something with less fabric in it.

2.
Measure yourself from your waist to where you want the skirt to hit. I like mine to hit the top of my kneecap, but you may want it a little longer. You need to add 4½ inches to that measurement. My measurement is 26 inches, so I need 30½ inches total for the length of my fabric.

3.
Cut your rectangle of material to the correct length.

4.
Fold the rectangle in half lengthwise, right sides together, and sew a ½-inch seam. You can either cut the raw edges with pinking shears or sew the seam with a zigzag stitch to prevent fraying.

5.
Now you have a large tube. Time to make the waistband. Create a casing by folding over ¼ inch of fabric (doesn’t matter if it’s the top or the bottom). Press with a steam iron. Now fold over another 1 inch and press again. Pin.

6.
Starting at the seam, use a regular straight stitch to sew down the casing for the waistband, making sure you leave a good inch before you get back to the seam again (you’ll need an opening for the elastic).

7.
Fasten a safety pin to one end of the elastic and thread it through, making sure you pin the other end onto the fabric.

8.
Overlap the ends of the elastic so they are flat, and stitch securely. Sew up the opening in the waistband.