Refashion - Faux Fur Vest

10:39 AM

From a shawl to a vest in less than 30 minutes

A few nights ago my mom's group hosted a Lady in Red Holiday Party. All of the ladies looked LOVELY!

Lady in Red Dinner

I LOVE these kinds of events. The only issue for me is that I buy or make a dress and accessories and I don't have another place to wear them.

When I can, I reuse. But if I end up with a piece that I'm unlikely to wear again, I refashion it into something more useful.

That was EXACTLY the case with my red faux fur shawl.

Faux Fur Shawl

I LOVED this shawl and it was a big hit at the party. BUT I know me - I would never use it again and it needed a refashion. When I made the shawl it was just a 1 yard square of faux fur with a white lining that I sewed in.

Shawl with lining

Some of the other ladies had fur wraps and vests and so I was inspired.

Inspiration

I first had to identify a pattern that I liked. I have a black knit shrug that I used as a pattern. The shrug is longer than I needed it to be, but I knew that I could edit the vest later.

Pattern

I wanted a sleeveless vest so I folded in the arms

Fold in the arms

Next I cut around the vest leaving a generous seam allowance.

All cut out.

This first cut is the back of the vest.

Fold in half

I folded the vest in half to make sure that both sides were even and matched. I cut trimmed off any wonky pieces.

To make the front of the vest, I used the back panel as a pattern.

Fold the fur shawl in half. Cutting on the fold, cut the front panel.

Cutting the front panel

Cut a neckline for the front of the vest

Cut the neckline for the front of the vest

Cut the front panel into 2 pieces

Front panel

Sew the shoulders

Sew the shoulder seams, Then sew down the sides.

My vest was too big, so I tailored it to fit my body.

To finish the project, turn and top stitch the collar, front and bottom seam. I did a zigzag stitch to finish the armholes.