Just quickie refashion today: some Eddie Bauer flannel pajama pants. Are you already bored with pants? I’ve only got a few left, don’t worry. I did do something fun with these, though.

I fell in love with the super soft flannel and didn’t realize until I got home that they were a size petite. I figured because they were lightweight that I could do capri-style jammies and they’d be good until the temps got really cold.

To keep them as long as possible, I serged the bottoms and turned the hem under just 1/2 inch. I used a little lacy seam binding to hide the serged edge. I totally cheated and sewed the lace on while hemming them.

thrifted: Another 99 cent sale transformation using Butterick 5044.

The summer of skirts has been a success. I’ve been wearing my red, white, linen and denim skirts regularly all season. But ever since I found that perfect pattern for lounge pants, I’ve been thinking about capris. How easy would it be to refashion a pair of existing pants?

I found a couple pairs at the last 99 cent sale (hey, I told you I had good luck that day!) and decided give it a try. Here’s how I did it:

• Wash and dried them on hot to preshrink.
• Removed the elastic waistband with a seam ripper.
• Cut the inner leg seams open. My pattern is only one piece, so I left the outer leg seams intact.
• Pressed the pants pieces with an iron and laid my pattern on top. I had to fudge a little, but they were pretty close.
• There was a lot of waist fabric that had to be removed and the new waist ran right over the pockets. I sewed them shut and cut them out.
• Traced the pattern and sewed the pants back together.
• Cut off the ugly fringe cuff and added a fabric trim.

The whole process was fast and easy. Most of my shirts come down past the waistband, so they actually look pretty good. I’m sorry I forgot to take a before picture. I had a few free hours for this project and just dove in!

refashion: This pants thing is really increasing my options for clothes. After a few more tries, I might tackle a fitted waist!

I love when I can make something totally out of recycled and thrifted materials. I whipped up this wine bag one afternoon—the serger makes some projects so darn fast! Free fabric from way back. (Don’t you love the little bird houses?) Thrifted yarn from the big spool of wool. Gift tag made from upcycled thank you note. Personally, I think it’s much cuter than anything you could buy at Hallmark, but that’s just me.

I’ll admit I was feeling a little over-confident when I tried this refashion. Here are a few things I need to pay attention to going forward.

• Check the fabric! The original shirt is a 1×1 rib, the refashioned shirt is plain knit and has a lot less ease.
• Make a paper pattern! No matter how hard you try, knit fabric is not easy to trace.
• Err on the side of too big! Just a tiny bit extra seam allowance would have saved this project.

Honestly, it turned out pretty darn good. I was most worried about the sleeves and shoulders and they are just fine. It’s the rest of the body that’s a little tight. Too bad I didn’t baste and try it on before serging the edges. Doh!

stash: Sadly, I really did like this t-shirt. It’s from one of the worst Formula One races I ever attended. (The front reads “What Race?”) Ha! Guess it’s destined to be a tote bag now.

I’m finally getting around to some household stuff I’ve had in my to-do pile for awhile. Last year I made some rags out of an old bath towel, but I never finished the edges. They’d get frayed and messy in the wash and every few months I’d trim off the scraggly bits. Yesterday I finally switched my serger over to 2-thread overlock and cleaned up those edges. I also went ahead and cut up and finished another towel. This stash of rags should last awhile!

I also tried to make some tea towels out of a thrifted linen dress. The blend has too much nylon though, and they aren’t very absorbent. My husband suggested that they’d make great napkins. I’m so excited that he’s open to the idea of cloth napkins, because they are on my to-do list, as well. This project gave me a lot of practice with rolled hems. Oh, how I love my serger!

I hope to have some more household stuff to post soon, including curtains for my office!

reuse: Towel came from my linen closet, dress from 99 cent sale.

This is what I’m thinking: take apart the seams and make smaller bags out of the front and back each. I would serge the edges to keep them from unraveling. I really like the colorway of the yarn, which is Cascade 220. I think I might unravel the sleeves and use the wool for some granny square scarves.

What do you think? What would you do with it?

I used the a-line pattern that I drafted for myself from Sew What! Skirts. I took about 5/8 inch off of each side after trying it on and will be adjusting my pattern for the next one. Aside from that, this was super easy. I cut it out a few weeks ago and sewed it up today in about an hour.

Usually I shy away from white of any kind on my lower half, but I fell in love with the detail at the bottom. Isn’t it lovely? (Yep, I kept the original bottom hem, which made this project go really fast.)

The skirt is a little sheer, but I’m thinking slip instead of lining. Any suggestions for fabric type? I worry that a traditional polyester slip might be too hot in the summer.

thrifted: I think this might be my last skirt from the Goodwill 99 sale. I can’t remember! Time to dive back into the stash.

You know you’re getting old when the phrase, “They don’t make them like they used to…” creeps into your conversations. But seriously, can someone explain to me how my Gap t-shirts from college are still going strong almost 20 years later, but t-shirts from the past few years are falling apart?

I have this grand idea of updating all of those boxy, over-sized tees into a more modern and flattering fit. First, I need some practice. I’ve made a few patterns from existing t-shirts that I like and I’m also trying out the t-shirt pattern in Wendy Mullin’s Sew U Stretch.

My first try was a thrifted XL Nebraska shirt. It turned out pretty good for a beginner shirt. The sleeves are kind of tricky, though. I definitely need a little bit more practice before cutting into my ol’ Gap favorites.

thrifted: I always try to practice on thrifted material and clothing first. I’d rather mess up on a 99 cent t-shirt than on the good stuff!

This was a lot cuter in my head and my sketches than it turned out. I had hoped the skirt would be a bit more ruffled, but there really wasn’t a lot of fabric in the bottoms. I wound up piecing together the sleeves, too. (Sorry for the unstaged “before” photo, but I was really excited to dive into this project!)

Thankfully, I tested this on the Mickey pajamas first. Although she loves Mickey, she loves her Minnie pajamas even more. I will probably use one of my old t-shirts for that refashion. I also might keep the sleeves at 3/4 length. Oh, speaking of the sleeves, check out this awesome rolled hem. Swoon!

refashion: Even though the sleeves and legs of my daughter’s clothes are getting too small, the body still fits nicely. I’m getting lots of opportunities to be creative!

I was putting away laundry in my daughter’s dresser and found her preschool t-shirt. I can’t remember the last time it was warm enough to wear short sleeves. I don’t think it’s even been worn once. I decided to add some long sleeves so she can wear it before she outgrows it.

(I know what you are thinking. Why not just layer it over a long sleeve shirt and save yourself the trouble? Well, not only does my daughter dislike wearing sweaters, she doesn’t like to layer shirts, either.)

I used a size 4-5 T sleeve to make the pattern and figured I’ll just roll them up for now. Maybe next fall, I can use them on a different shirt. Look at that beautifully serged seam. Don’t you just love it?

recycle: I used the body of one of my old t-shirts to make the sleeves. I was going to post a tutorial, but this seems easy enough. What do you think?