DIY

Off the Shoulder Top | Three Ways

July 2, 2015 By Chie

With the left over black rib fabric (Bought in Nippori Tomato 2nd floor) from these sweatpants, I made an off the shoulder top. I’ve been experimenting with off the shoulder tops as you can see from here not only because it’s the trend (love this!) but also I have a project I’m working on for my bride who wants to pair it with her skirt (I made three piece wedding dress for her) for her reception. I quite like the look and it is a good alternative to camisole in the summer – keep your shoulder nice and cool. What makes this top even better is that it comes with built-in bra cup. I hate worrying about bra straps peeking out, but am not bold enough to go completely bra-less. I had a camisole with built-in bra, which just got too many wears and was stretched out, so I cut it out and sewed it to the side seams of this top. The colors don’t match (the bra cup is orange) but hey, no one can see it!

I won’t lie, the top feels awkward when I raise my hands, but I like this top nonetheless. Here are some ways I am going to wear the top this Summer. If you want to see more off the shoulder tops I’ve made this season, check out here and here.

Ginger skinny jeans in black denim (My first attempt to sew jeans!)

Thrifted ethnic print maxi skirt from 390 yen shop (bought this, this and this from 390 shop too)

Refashioned pencil skirt from forever 21 dress (the top was made into this cropped top).

スエットパンツの裾とウエスト部分に使ったリブが残っていたので、オフショルダートップスを作りました。
型紙は前、後ろ、袖の３つだけで、ネックラインにはゴムを入れて落ちないようにしました。
黒だし、今年の夏活躍しそう！

Find me elsewhere:

Tips on Quickly Refashioning Clothes

June 15, 2015 By Chie

Refashioning clothes is one of my favorite things to do in between projects. It’s fast and I like giving old clothes new second life. I’ve salvaged an old pleather leggings to make a baseball cap, turned an old cardigan into a cropped sweater, and gave a cocktail dress new life. (Check out more for DIY archive) Because my friends know that I like to sew, I get clothes donated often. Through out my refashioning journey, I’ve learned a few tips to speed up the process.

1. Don’t unpick seams, but cut along the seam line.

This is the biggest time savor. I used to unpick seams and it took hours. I hate the fuzz it makes after I unpick seams. Now instead of unpicking the seams, I cut along the seam line, or cut as close as possible to the seam line. This won’t work if you are making a very minor adjustment, like taking in the waist 1cm, but if you are changing up the design entirely or taking in more than 3cm, it works.

2. Spend time on salvaging notions

You can save unpicking time for salvaging zippers, hook and eye, bones, ribbons.

3. Think of a design to preserve the good original details

This can be pretty hemlines, necklines, sleeve cuffs or pocket details. For this white halter top, I kept the design as is, and just hem it short to make it into a top and took in 10cm all around to fit myself better.

Added a bra cup so I don’t have to wear a bra. Wearing it with DIY distressed jeans.

What is your best refashioning tips? Do you prefer making things from scratch or refashion old clothes?

洋裁が趣味なのを知っている友達から、おさがりを色々いただきます。

このサマードレスもいただきものだったのですが、サイズが合わなかったのでリメイク。
バスト、ウエスト回りを１０㎝小さくし、染みが着いていたスカート部分を切り取って、トップスにしました。Find me elsewhere:

DIY Faux Leather Baseball Cap

May 11, 2015 By Chie

There was a time when I was obsessed with a thought of wearing leather pants. I saw a picture on Pinterest (like this or this) with some fashion magazine editor rocking leather pants and decided it’s was the coolest thing. Because real leather pants are very expensive (over $1000!!) I searched Rakuten, my go to place for cheap replica of expensive designs. I bought my pair for about $15. It is made out of matte black stretch pleather. I liked them a lot and every time I wore them, it made me feel like a rock star. But unfortunately they quickly fell apart. Look at this picture of crotch. I was sad, but at least it lasted me many wears and I’ve worn it for more than one year.

Before View Faux Leather Baseball Cap from Leggings Vivat Veritas

I kept the pants in my fabric stash hoping I’ll get to refashion it into something new. I happened to come across with this Japanese hat making book, titled “Kodawatte Boushi Tsukurimasu (こだわって帽子作ります）” at a local library. I am completely new to hat making (only done knitted hats) but I had all the material I needed: fabric, plastic interface (left over from using for waist band for this wedding dress), iron-on interface and grosgrain ribbon.

It was a quick sew. Only two pieces of patterns needed! Brim and crown. Because the pleather was not sticky like oil cloth, I had no problem with sewing it with my regular needle and machine.

It was fun to make and it kept me cool from strong sun during the Golden Week outing.