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There are a couple fabrics that instantly draw me in when I’m shopping for fabric at the thrift store - eyelet and chambray. You saw my chambray refashion earlier this week, so here’s one example of how I’ve harvested eyelet fabric and remade it into a different silhouette.

I was instantly drawn to this navy eyelet dress, but it was a couple sizes too big for me. Sure, I could have tried to alter it down to fit, but I’ve been in more of a chop chop mood lately plus I had a pattern (Simplicity 1425) that I wanted to try out. After a wash, I went to town cutting along the seam lines to see what kind of yardage I would be left with. I’ve had some questions about how I disassemble garments and it varies from piece to piece. Something like eyelet can be a beast with all of the thread used to create the actual eyelet, so in this case I just cut along the seam edges.

From there I laid out my pattern and realized I’d need to make some changes to have enough fabric. I omitted the pleats in the peplum by folding them up on the paper pattern and cutting that smaller shape out. I also decided not to do a collar stand and have a flat Peter Pan style collar instead.

I lined both the lower portion of the bodice front and the whole back so I could wear a bra underneath. The fabric I used was left over from Bea’s 18th century dress.

On bottom I’m wearing my wide leg Dawn jeans again. I’ve only worn them a couple of times (I usually save true white for later spring and summer or vacation) and I absolutely love this style. I’m even thinking I need to go check my stash to see what fabrics I have to make a second pair! If you want to see the first way I wore them, check out this post.

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I’m so excited to show you my master bedroom makeover using second hand, self made and pieces bought on sale. It took me a week to pull everything together, including three coats of new wall paint, repainted trim and the ceiling. Phew. It was a lot of work, but fun work. Come on over and have a look!

Bedding

I knew I needed to do this bedroom update on a budget, and that meant keeping our king sized quilt from our old home (still available at Target). To give the look of a headboard, I re-used the cushion backs from our old couch that I recovered last year (the sofa itself was trashed by the cats). I gave them a good steam clean using my handy Little Green Machine and tucked them in next to the wall. I treated myself to a new set of sheets (bought on sale) and fabric for the decorative pillows, which I made myself. The quatrefoil off white fabric was pricey, but I scored it at 50% off and was able to make two shams for around $30 (I used a plain fabric for the back). For the decorative throw pillow I bought ¾ of a yard which was plenty for a 20x20″ pillow. For the trim I used what I had on hand leftover from other projects (like the curtains… see more on those below).

I tried making the bed without a bed skirt, but decided to return a few things so I could buy this one (same as Felix’s room but in a king size). I tucked in the sheets to give the bed a crisp final look and it made such a huge difference over the way I had made it before (here’s a comparison photo). Lastly, I laid a funky woven blanket with tassels over the end of the bed, which I picked up at Marshall’s for $17 a while back.

Decor

On my table, I have a new lamp and alarm clock (trying to keep the phone out of the bedroom) along with some vintage homekeeping books I got at a garage sale. The little vase is from Goodwill and filled with faux billy balls.

On Adam’s table is a matching lamp, another thrifted vase and a garage sale green catchall for his watch/change/cards at the end of the day.

On the high dresser is the Jasmine, two family photos and more of those encyclopedias. The mirror was found upstairs in another bedroom, so I borrowed it for our room!

For the low dresser, I used a lamp from our old living room, the snake plant and another photo. On the other end is a vintage fan (it works!) I got at a garage sale over some nice books. The circular mirror also used to be in our living room.

I used old rugs (blue here and cream here) on each side of the room to save a little money on buying a large rug or re-carpeting the room (which we may do someday!) This room will eventually become Bea’s when we renovate the upstairs, so we’ll hold off on that for now.

Window Treatments

While we’re on the topic of projects, I’m really proud of the way these curtains turned out. I bought the cheapest 84″ panels I could find at Target (they were $9 each) and used four. I sewed two together and then did navy pompom trim around the edge (it took about 14 yards, which I ordered online from Mood). I was able to get away with only three sheer panels, and picked a pretty swiss dot, also from Target. The rod was repurposed from our living room and spray painted using my favorite Rustolieum Oil Rubbed Bronze. The ring clips were cheapies from Wal-Mart (which I kind of hate shopping at, but Target was out of this color/size and I didn’t want to wait!!)

Plants

I’ve really been drawn to houseplants since moving here! I created a macrame hanger out of clothesline for the Pothos in the corner and also have a snake plant on one dresser and a Jasmine on the other. Although north facing, we get a lot of light through our big windows!

Furniture

Both dressers and side tables are second hand. Mine (with the clock) was a hallway table in our old house and is an antique. Adam’s side table was a score from Goodwill a month or so ago. The tall dresser is MCM that we had in our old bedroom and the lower dresser was something I picked up off of craigslist during move out week at IU. Bea doesn’t use her crib much (we co-sleep) but sometimes it’s a great place for a nap or a safe place to put her while I do this or that. Both it and the sheet are from Felix’s old nursery. The blanket used to be in our living room and is from Target.

Paint

This room was originally a darker shade of brown so it took three coats of Wedding Veil by Benjamin Moore, filled in Valspar flat paint to cover it. It’s a very light gray that reads white in the room (and one shade lighter than my bathroom and hallway). The trim is Gray Shower, also by Benjamin Moore and filled at Lowes in Valspar satin. I love the way the new doors look repainted! I’ve never done a darker trim, but the end look is great!

So that’s my master bedroom! It took me a full week of working after bedtime and a bunch of nap times to complete it, but it feels like a fancy hotel to me! I love it!