DIY: Ruffle Cardigan

While flipping through the October issue of Elle, I came across a Banana Republic ad featuring an adorable , Anne Hathaway looking girl wearing the cutest ruffled cardigan. And unlike some of the more extravagantly draped gowns and blouses in there that make my heart go pitter-patter, this one looked simple to replicate.

And it was!!

Love all the texture and of course the tone-on-tone gray, a wardrobe staple.

All you need is one plain cardigan sweater ( this one was thrifted for $1) and several strips of fabric, 20 inches or longer. 

Different textured materials such as cotton, lace, satin, tulle, linen and ribbon in a monochromatic palette add lots of interest. Leave unhemmed to achieve a shabby look.

Arrange the strips on the sweater how ever you find pleasing. I used: black zipper, gray/white stripe cotton weave, gray lace, printed cotton voile (Alexander Henry Como leftovers from this dress), gray/white pinstripe, black tulle, and gray satin. Take a pic if you need help remembering the placement - I know I do!

Ruffle your strips either with a gathering foot or baste and gather by hand. Pull out the ruffles to the length your sweater requires.

Pin the first strip in place. This photo shows starting furthest from the opening, but on the other side I started from the opening and liked the results much better.

Sew the ruffle strips on, starting from the bottom of the sweater.

If you start from the sweater opening, be careful not to sew the previous ruffle down by accident.

With all the ruffles sewn on, it should look something like this. Repeat on the other side of sweater.

Here you can see why I started from the opening the second time around. The ruffles on the left side are 4 inches higher than the right side. I started to pick the stitches out but wow! they are really in there tight! Rather than abandon the project in frustration, I chose to emphasize the unevenness by adding some black ribbon rosettes. Hopefully no one will make my same mistake!

Thanks Banana for the inspiration; you can keep the $98 price tag.

Cherry Bomb Mini

After renting The Runaways awhile back, I just had to dig out this micro mini skirt that I made 7 or 8 years ago. Most people either hate or love the 80's and I confess to be a big fan of the fashion of this era. Acid washed denim and shoulder pads? Yes, please!! I recall digging through the thrift racks to find the perfect pair of high waisted, back pocketless jeans only to get them home and discover they were made to fit a short prepubescent boy. The jeans into layered skirt trend was going on back then so I turned them into this super short creation. In my carefree teenage days, I wore it with brightly colored tights and band t-shirts and now I love the way it looks layered over dresses - almost like an oversized belt.

Do you have a piece of clothing from your adolescence that you've given new life in your current wardrobe? Do share.

Ruffled rose tank

Saw this cute tutorial over at Adventures in Dressmaking this past weekend and couldn't resist whipping one up right away. I had the perfect ill-fitting, boat neck 3/4 quarter sleeved top that was already destined for the donation pile and am so glad I could rescue it as I love all things sea-faring related. It was so simple and a project you can complete in just under two hours. Here is the original from Kate Spade:

The original almost looks like a seashell rather than a rose, but perhaps the material was a little thicker. The thin, super stetchy fabric I used had my rose so wilted so I had to topstitch it down in a asterisk shaped pattern. Nonetheless, a great way to dress up a plain, striped top. Thanks for sharing, Suzannah!

it's that time again!

The beginning of the month is nearly here and that means Kathleen from Grosgrain is hosting another Frock by Friday sew along!! The dress that I will have hopefully completed by Friday (Sunday is more likely) is called the Alexander and is comprised of this A-line skirt and this Alexander top at Burda. I like this top, but I can't say I really love it so I decided to go out on my own and downloaded this JJ blouse which is actually free at Burda. Will have to alter the back a bit because the top originally has princess seams and can't accomodate a center. Most importantly, both patterns have button holes which I really need to learn how to do. And the dress has a zipper, another important technique to learn.

The skirt fabric is the blue cotton polka dot, which I use on just about every other project I sew and the top will be made from a shirt my husband has never really worn. It's a lightweight tan jersey. They look nice together.

If you'd like to make your own, just click on the button below to visit Grosgrain:

Refashion: Mom Top to Little Lemon Bubble Dress

I love garage sales cause you can pick up things for even less than at a thrift store. Like this top for only 50 cents. Only since you can't really try anything on, sometimes you end up with something cute that doesn't quite fit. Rather than redonate this top and since I'm such a sucker for crochet detailing, I decided to instead turn it into another sweet little bubble dress.

Snipped off the arms, trimmed a few inches off the sides, reattached the arms and added a lower hem band.

(Oops forgot to take the "before" pic)

I definitely have enough yellow tops anyway. Like six. A gal can never have too many pretty dresses. :)

and some more...

When I looked through yesterday's post, it seemed that I had done a lot more than was listed and then it occurred to me that our camera had been deleted somehow. Bummer. But last night I re-photographed the rest of the projects I completed last month. Don't mind the blurry photos. Here they are...

"Sweet treats of summer" from a layout in CK

"My Mother's Day"

"Fishing with grandpa"

"Time After Time", no that is not his serious face, from a SC sketch.

"Easter Morning" also from a SC sketch

Little Letter Needle Book, courtesy of this tutorial from em ay kay ee. Mine are not nearly as cute as hers though.

Little girl's nightgown made from an old, too short shirt of mine. This requires minimal alterations thanks to some strategic placement of elastic in the neck band.

More dahlia flower headbands using this tutorial. I even made a couple for myself, to help disguise my boyish haircut.

And here is one more headband made from a sequined embellishment that was removed from another too short shirt (I have a long waist I guess). I wish the photo turned out better because the beading on it is truly exquisite. Will definitely be wearing this to see Eclipse on Friday!

And that is really everything I made in June. See you soon!