Sep 15, 2014

No-Sew Housecoat Refashion!

We had the fun of heading to the Oregon coast for Labor Day.  The weather was beautiful!  We played board games, walked on the beach, watched some football, and, or course, went to thrift stores....well, at least us girls went to the thrift stores!

I found some fun things that will be used for my upcoming bedroom redo.  And, I also found this sweet aqua, bandana print housecoat!  I loved the fabric at first glance and knew I wanted to do something with it.  I tried it on and realized that this might be my quickest refashion yet.  I figured all it needed was a belt, rolled sleeves, and some accessories.


I could have went through the effort of cutting it at the waist, taking in the bodice, reattaching the skirt, etc.  But, my wide elastic belt did all of that work for me!


I love the picot trim on the pockets.


That same trim also adorns the collar.


I accessorized with a black and white beaded necklace, beaded bracelet, and black heels.



So simple!

You can check out my other housecoat refashions (where the belt didn't do all the work!) here and here!

I like to link to these great parties!



Sep 4, 2014

My Sewing Studio: The Accessories


So this is the final post of the "My Sewing Studio" series, giving you a little bit of info on the accessories in the room.

I love vintage patterns, but had a hard time finding the real thing in my local thrift stores.  Instead, I went to the internet and downloaded some of my favorites.  I then cut some colored mats from card stock and framed them in some frames I picked up for 50¢ each. 


I found this nifty replica of a vintage phone at a yard sale for $2.00.


My small closet (still lamenting a bit over not getting the bigger room with the walk-in closet...see original post as to why I don't have that room) anyway, my small closet allows me to hang some of my future refashions, and also stores containers of lace, ribbons, and trims.


I picked up this ugly thing for $2.00 at a thrift store...


It didn't stay ugly for long.  I switched out the "snake/dragon/serpent" painting for a cork board.  I cut out the word "INSPIRE" using my cricut.



The push pins were made by layering vintage buttons on top of each other and gluing them to a thumbtack.


I picked up this little wooden cabinet for $4.00 at a garage sale.  It was dark brown and one side had broken glass.  I replaced the glass and painted it to match the blue hutch.  It hangs across the room from the hutch which helps to bring that color of blue around the room.  


I spent $10.00 on some baby food jars and painted the lids green.  I already had in my stash spice containers which I painted to match also.  Then I had fun sorting all of my buttons by color.  I really lucked out having three different sizes of jars that fit perfectly on three different heights of shelves!



I found this mirror at a thrift shop, half price for $12.00.  I really liked the shape and felt that once painted, it would make a great addition to the sewing studio when trying on and fitting my refashions.


It was painted the same blue as the hutch, once again bringing the color across the room.  You can see the reflection of the blue hutch in the mirror.


I had a friend cut the vinyl lettering for me.  "IMAGINE" seemed like the perfect word to put above the mirror!


The clock started out as a simple $3.00 clock from Walmart.  I liked the bright color, but it wasn't substantial enough on the wall.  So, I picked up this metal tray for a couple of bucks.


I centered the clock on the tray and drew around the edge of the clock with a pencil, creating a circle.  I then measured on the back of the clock the distance from the outer edge to the clock's hanger.  I measured the same distance from my penciled edge and placed a mark on the tray.  I then drilled a hole big enough for a nail head to fit through.  I had to sand off the rough edges left by the drill bit.


Next, I sprayed the tray with cream colored spray paint.  When dry, I masked off the center and sprayed the edges with a nice teal.  Here's a hint, when masking off a circular design, use electrician's tape, it has a lot of stretch to it!


To hang it, I just placed the hole of the tray on a nail, then I placed the hanger of the clock on the same nail.  It centers perfectly on the tray and its easy to remove the clock when I need to change the battery!


And there you have it, all the accessories!

Total spent on accessories:

Picture frames.....$2.00
Pictures and mats.....printed and cut at home
Storage containers for trims....hand-me-down from a friend
Vintage style desk phone.....$2.00
Bulletin board....$2.00 (buttons and cork already on hand)
Small wooden cabinet....$4.00
Replacement glass.....$3.00
Baby food jars....$10.00 (with extra to spare)
Spice jars.....already on hand
Wall mirror.....$12.00
Vinyl lettering.....$8.00
Wall clock.....$3.00
Metal tray....$2.00

Total cost.....$48.00

Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this series.  If you missed any of them, check out the original post for links to all the projects!

I like to link to these great parties!