The Formation of a New Wardrobe

I am forming a new wardrobe. I can't afford to actually go buy a new wardrobe, so I am sewing one. I have lots of fabric in my stash and it is time to USE IT UP. Those words are difficult to type. Like the true hoarder I am, I hate to part with my fabric. What if there is a better project out there? Is this really what the fabric was called to be? I bought it to make something else, will it mind changing purposes? These are the questions I ask my fabric before cautiously cutting into them. Then there are the left overs. I hate to throw away my scraps. What if I actually make good on that desire to make a scrappy quilt one day? I will NEED those scraps.

I keep getting distracted on my way to a new wardrobe. Most of those distractions come in the form of a 6 yr old who wants the scraps turned into skirts for herself and/or her dolls. As the pictures show--I caved.

It looks suspiciously like the skirt I made myself last week. In fact there were a few complaints that it wasn't identical to mine. There were a couple humorous design dilemmas along the way. The first was the hem. It was TOTALLY uneven.

I then moved back and realized that a little body with a cute little derriere and a round little tummy sets the waistline completely out of level.

I could either sew to match the little belly or just hem it evenly and be done.

I just sewed it up. We were out of yellow tulle so she didn't get a petticoat underneath.

Now we have matching outfits. I never really wanted to match my 6 yr old. But now I do. Because I love her. She made me do it. Isn't she the cutest thing you have ever seen?

Domesticity to the Rescue!

Now that I leave the house to go to work every day I have discovered that I can't wear the same pair of sweat pants for 3 days. The office I work in is pretty stinkin' casual in the fashion arena, but I like to dress for me--not according to what everyone else is wearing. I know, none of you noticed that over the years. Lately, I have decided that I like wearing skirts & dresses and I want more of them.

Luckily, I received a bunch of Athleta & Title 9 catalogs the other day and thoroughly enjoyed looking through them. The prices were not so enjoyable. I don't really have a clothing budget so I decided that I probably could make myself a couple nice skirts/dresses and not pine over lack of funds. In fact, I have an entire room full of fabric and I am sure some of it could be put to good use draping my body. One box in particular fascinates me. It is full of 90's floral fabrics from an anonymous source. I have kept them waiting for inspiration to strike. Clearly, this was the day!


I even have a box of patterns to go with all the fabric! The patterns have some modern styles mixed in with the clearly 90's fashion suggestions.

So, I found this cute little skirt pattern and decided to transform the old fabric into a skirt with a little pizzazz. Rickrack is a must in adding pizzazz. I also have a couple boxes of trim from my late grandma's sewing supplies. The green trim behind the rick rack is antique hem tape--just what the skirt needs! A little bit of polka dot is also key in adding pizzazz. But the Pinnacle of Pizzazz, as every 5 yr old knows, is TULLE!! This skirt would have an under skirt of tulle peeping out from under the floral overload.

Sadly, I didn't take pictures of all the trim before sewing it up. But here is Bertha w/ the finished skirt on her!

And here I am heading off to work in the morning!! Nothing like a new skirt for less than $5.