This is how I turned a Jr. Girls size Large sundress into a Plus Size dress!
I'm a plus size women (size 16) and I LOVE to sew. Refashion blogs are my passion but most of them feature skinny Minnie's. I'm not mad at thin women - to each her own - but I'd appreciate tips on how to SIZE UP dresses and other clothes. Taking in large clothes (in my opinion) is easier than refitting or up sizing small clothes.
What is "Refashion":
Not too long ago I did an entire blog about refashioning clothes. It's here! Basically to refashion is to turn one article of clothing into something else.
Where to Shop:
My first refashion projects came from my own closet. I look clothes from the donation pile, the too small pile and the worn out pile. This way you can begin to practice refashion techniques without spending any money.
GoodWill, Salvation Army, resale shops and friend's donate piles are the next best places to shop.
What Fabrics Am I Looking For:
As a plus size women I shop and sew almost exclusively plus size clothing. For myself I look for good quality stretchy fabrics. Cotton blends and Spandex are my friends! These fabrics fall nicely and are forgiving when my sewing is not perfect. I also have a strong preference for patterns! That's just a "me" thing. The crazier the pattern the better I like it. I can always tone down a loud pattern with a black sweater. It's hard to turn up a boring color or style.
How Much Sewing Skill Do I Need to Refashion?:
Turns out not that much! Because stretch fabrics (that's what I use most) tend not to fray lots of projects can get by with little or no sewing.
Here's the dress I made this weekend.
One for thing. This dress in its original form was WAY too small for me. The boob part would not fit over my head. So I cut off the too small part and used the rest.
The cropped black sweater was one of my first refashion projects. You can read all about it here! (scroll to the bottom of the post to find the sweater).
What is "Refashion":
Not too long ago I did an entire blog about refashioning clothes. It's here! Basically to refashion is to turn one article of clothing into something else.
Where to Shop:
My first refashion projects came from my own closet. I look clothes from the donation pile, the too small pile and the worn out pile. This way you can begin to practice refashion techniques without spending any money.
GoodWill, Salvation Army, resale shops and friend's donate piles are the next best places to shop.
What Fabrics Am I Looking For:
As a plus size women I shop and sew almost exclusively plus size clothing. For myself I look for good quality stretchy fabrics. Cotton blends and Spandex are my friends! These fabrics fall nicely and are forgiving when my sewing is not perfect. I also have a strong preference for patterns! That's just a "me" thing. The crazier the pattern the better I like it. I can always tone down a loud pattern with a black sweater. It's hard to turn up a boring color or style.
How Much Sewing Skill Do I Need to Refashion?:
Turns out not that much! Because stretch fabrics (that's what I use most) tend not to fray lots of projects can get by with little or no sewing.
Here's the dress I made this weekend.
One for thing. This dress in its original form was WAY too small for me. The boob part would not fit over my head. So I cut off the too small part and used the rest.
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| Original Dress - Ankle length Sun Dress |
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| I cut off the too small parts |
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| Evened up the cut |
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| Zigzag stitched the stop edge |
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| That's it. All it needs is accessories! |
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| Nice black belt at the waist |
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| Cut cropped sweater - see below |
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| Me in my new dress (with a longer sweater) |
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| Sweater refashion |
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