One last refashion blog post to round out the month, this one is simple and fast. This DIY dress refashion to a skirt takes a frumpy, old fashioned formal dress and turns it into a modern, swingy skirt. I can’t imagine anyone wearing the ‘before’ but the ‘after’ is a great basic piece to mix and match in my wardrobe!
If you don’t have any dresses to work from, check out my here!
The before was so. much. fabric. I loved the color and I loved how it felt – the tag confirmed my guess that it was 100% rayon. I didn’t want to mess with taking in the waist and working around pleats, so I looked for something that would fit my waist as-is (which this did!).
Initially I thought I might turn the top into some type of cropped blouse to wear with the skirt, but the princess seaming and embroidery rendered most of the fabric unusable. I did cut out the sleeves to maybe use on a future project.
Ta-da! In the past I have done much more dramatic refashions with dyes, embroidery, etc. but I really loved how this looked plain and simple. I’ve just started wearing skirts again now that my kids are past the crawling stage and this will fit into my closet nicely.
I actually hand sewed the hem; I initially had planned on recreating the blind stitch that they used but forgot about the folding method required until after I’d already pressed them standard hem into place. I don’t know what stitch I used, I just sewed it like a quilt binding, and I LOVE how it looks.
I did the same thing to the top! This method did leave the top of the zipper peeking out, which I’m sure would bother some purists, so avert your eyes if you are professionally taught. I feel good in this skirt, I saved it from the bin, and I love it!
Pin this DIY dress refashion to a skirt tutorial
Want to try this refashion tutorial out for yourself? Here is how!
DIY vintage dress refashion
Supplies
- Sewing machine (I recommend this * for beginners!) or hand sewing needle
- Coordinating thread
- Scissors
- Iron
- Pins or clips
- or scissors
Steps
Step 1 – Separate the bodice from the skirt. The dress I was using already had a seam here, and the skirt top was serged, otherwise I would’ve needed to finish this edge before proceeding.
Step 2- I used my ruler & rotary cutter to trim off the bottom after I tried it on and marked where I wanted it to fall (and then added some length back, mentally, to account for them hem).
Step 3- I used my ruler and a chalk pencil to mark off the hem, and then pressed it up once and once more so there weren’t any exposed edges.
Step 4- I used my iron to press the top edge over once and then hand sewed it down, and hand sewed my hem. of how I hand sewed it, with my stitches spaced further out. You can barely see it from the front!
Let me know what you think about this skirt refashion!
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