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Friday, November 8, 2013

Frugal Fridays - Repurposing / Upcycling Clothes

It's good to have vision when visiting the thrift store.

We have a very nice thrift store a few blocks away and we try to visit it as much as possible (which ends up being a few times a month). There are several little girls in our church with busy mamas who do not really have the time or resources to make things like underskirts, aprons, and so on, so Brianna happily does this for some of them. Instead of starting 'from scratch' with new fabric though, we search the thrift store for anything that looks like it could be turned in to what we want. Skirts, jumpers, big shirts, sheets, curtains, etc., can all become something 'new' and needed with a few cuts and stitches 'here and there' ... maybe some elastic and/or buttons ... and some imagination or vision. I guess it helps to not be afraid to experiment; even if all you learn is what does NOT work, at least you learned something and are one step closer to what DOES work.

I made a video to share what we've been up to ... if for some reason pictures work better for you, please let me know and I will post pictures and the video from here on out when I have time.


10 comments:

  1. Hi, I loved this idea, and the video. Brianna sews beautifully. Barbara

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  2. Beautiful Joanne,Joanne I don't know f you still have my e-mail, he you know the aprons that you put your arms through?Like the one you made from the woman's denim dress? Hey How much would you charge to make me an apron like that?
    Here is my e-mail if you lost it :)
    renjac1301@embarqmail.com

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  3. Thank you both :)

    Renee - I think I told you we were going to get aprons on our etsy shop, right?! We never got around to it and I'm so sorry. We did purchase a lot of fabric that would be good for aprons ... now we just need to sew them up :) :)

    Do you have my shop address? http://www.etsy.com/shop/ModestlyCovered

    Be on the look out for aprons -- what size were you needing? We can make that size first.

    We were also thinking about putting nicer 'upcycled' aprons and such on our etsy store and of course we wont have to charge as much since the fabric is very cheap and it's used. We'll do a few and see how well they do before we go doing a bunch!

    God bless you both!

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  4. Thanks, I Like mine bigger, so Id say maybe a Large? Just a simple pattern if possible,Maybe Black or deep brown, I have my kitchen in coffee themes LOL

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  5. I do this with MANY clothes for our family. Table cloths work really well too as they are made to resist stains and industrial washings. But ALL slips (summer and flannel winter) many dresses, boys shirts night gowns, are all made from recycled items. Sheets also make great quilt backings for those quilts you make with scraps and worn out garments.

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    1. And - The dress I have on right now started as a linen table cloth :) I like linen a lot but a used or really marked down tablecloth or curtain is usually the only way I can afford it!

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    2. I typed "Ami" but my cell phone corrected me and put "And". So nice. I really should double check...

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  6. Really nice work. Brianna is such an inspiration to sew and to take chances with creativity! Thanks for sharing...and I love the videos too.

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  7. Thank you all :)

    Renee - I'll get back to you ...

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