WhatIWore: Here’s what I wore this morning to grab donuts with Felix and Adam! I really wanted to save this dress for St. Patrick’s Day, but IU is playing Thursday so I’m going to be decked out in cream and crimson then. Plus everyone is celebrating St. Paddy’s all week on the island, so why not?! This is my vintage refashioning/upcycling project!  I bought this dress at a vintage shop knowing I could update the silhouette to make it more modern. I love the colors and bias stripe details (plus a full skirt never hurt anyone, am I right?)

Here’s what it looked like before…

When: March 17, 2016

What:
Shades: Karen Walker ‘Super Duper’
Dress: Vintage, re-fashioned
Belt: Vintage
Sandals: American Eagle

Where: Stroller walk to The Donut Experience 

I started by removing the sleeves and neckline and reserving some of that fabric for the straps. They’re simple bias spaghetti straps made to coordinate with the front of the garment. Once I had the dress ready to play around with, I put her on the dress form and pinned a halter neckline in place, basted it and then tried it on to see if I liked the silhouette (first try was a success!). From there, I created facings and sewed my new raw edges. I also ended up taking in the side seams a little bit at under the arms and converting some pleats on the back bodice into darts. Finally I under stitched the lining, trimmed bulky seams and sewed my straps into place. The colors look different under the Floria sun and fog, but the color is closer to the indoor shots I took of the 'before’ dress. 

This is a cool project for me because it’s an awesome way to give an 80s style dress a new lease on life! I’m really pleased with the final results! I really like this kind of neckline, so I’ll probably draft my own pattern when we’re back into the groove at home and make another top/dress/romper using this silhouette! I also love this color, which looks so pretty in spring and summer time! More pretty green options below!