Upcycled Clothing Creations

Yupo said:
I used the bodice of a 1960s wedding gown and also scavenged some other useful stuff from it for future projects. I painted all that lace with bronze acrylic to match the sari borders. I wound up putting a pattern of stars on the skirt to cover some little holes and tears in the organza that I created by trying to spot clean it. Needless to say, I carried the memory of all those regency romances as I worked. The workmanship of some of the attire at this function was just astounding.
That guy isn't my husband, he's my ballroom dance teacher, who happened to be there. Ballroom dancing gives endless opportunities for playing dress ups, besides being good exercise.
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You are amazing. Well, your dance instructor is certainly handsome and made a great two some with you! Lovely attires! My compliments to your great achievements!
You state you "painted" your lace with a bronze color. Did you try staining it first with dye? I tried painting some fabrics in the past and it did not work for me. Perhaps it was the quality of the fabrics I chose. Not every fabric will accept dye or paint.
Your idea of covering your mistakes with a bit of lace was extremely well thought of! I do that a lot with shirts or sweaters that have either a stain that cannot be removed or a hole that cannot be "fixed" with just needle and thread! It gives a whole new look to clothing when you cover or add and you give your item an extended shelf life by reusing it again! The less in the land fills, the better!
Well done!
 
Yupo said:
These were some of the inspiration pictures I used, one of which is from a much later era. I intended to add sheer puff sleeves, but ran short of time. View attachment 85370View attachment 85371View attachment 85373View attachment 85375
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Watching Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, or other Jane Austen's movies or mini-series help to see how the clothing was made. Patterns are also available if you can afford them. Like many people who are trying to watch spending, I prefer to look in Charity shops or used clothing stores for some ideas. Beautiful examples you relied on. I found this lovely design for Empress Josephine of France. Your beautiful gown reminds me of hers. You have a good eye for trimmings. Again, congratulation on your amazing creation.

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Lone herbal witch said:
Watching Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, or other Jane Austen's movies or mini-series help to see how the clothing was made. Patterns are also available if you can afford them. Like many people who are trying to watch spending, I prefer to look in Charity shops or used clothing stores for some ideas. Beautiful examples you relied on. I found this lovely design for Empress Josephine of France. Your beautiful gown reminds me of hers. You have a good eye for trimmings. Again, congratulation on your amazing creation.

View attachment 85378View attachment 85379
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OOOOH!!! Even better! I think I have just the right sari for that, but in a pale mauve silk with heavy purple and black Kantha stitch embellishment. Maybe for next year. Stay tuned...
Here's an image of a kantha sari and some embroidery, but all of them vary considerably, as there is really no limit in color, stitch size/complexity, subject matter, style...
kantha-stitch-saree-IE80.jpgth-2863211870.jpg
 
Lone herbal witch said:
Watching Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, or other Jane Austen's movies or mini-series help to see how the clothing was made. Patterns are also available if you can afford them. Like many people who are trying to watch spending, I prefer to look in Charity shops or used clothing stores for some ideas. Beautiful examples you relied on. I found this lovely design for Empress Josephine of France. Your beautiful gown reminds me of hers. You have a good eye for trimmings. Again, congratulation on your amazing creation.

View attachment 85378View attachment 85379
Click to expand...
I get probably 99% of my attire at thrifts. I own very few things purchased at retail stores, and most of those were at final markdown. Those are the classics, and I expect to keep them 30-40 years. The thrifts finds are for eccentricity. I'll be driving and get a feeling to go there. I obey, and almost immediately find the item that was calling to come home to my closet. It might be a set of dinnerware my friend collects, a pair of Chanel slingbacks, or the perfect LBD for my daughter, but without fail, there it is. One day it was a pair of perfect fit Dan Post boots in excellent condition for $2, 5 minutes before closing.
Last thrift purchase was silk plaid curtain panels. I intended to use these to make a dress for the Lincoln Memorial ball in Gettysburg this weekend, but wound up being too busy to take on that project and excursion. Maybe next year. I did work on the pattern and planning the underpinnings, however. I have everything I need on hand, and some local friends (from the ballroom dance community) interested in going along. Yay!!

Another sewing/thrift thing I'm working on is making more modest swimsuit sets. I'm about to turn 65, and just don't want to show so much skin for a number of reasons. I'm using knit dresses + shapewear to make more modest beach/pool attire designs (for myself).
 
Lone herbal witch said:
You are amazing. Well, your dance instructor is certainly handsome and made a great two some with you! Lovely attires! My compliments to your great achievements!
You state you "painted" your lace with a bronze color. Did you try staining it first with dye? I tried painting some fabrics in the past and it did not work for me. Perhaps it was the quality of the fabrics I chose. Not every fabric will accept dye or paint.
Your idea of covering your mistakes with a bit of lace was extremely well thought of! I do that a lot with shirts or sweaters that have either a stain that cannot be removed or a hole that cannot be "fixed" with just needle and thread! It gives a whole new look to clothing when you cover or add and you give your item an extended shelf life by reusing it again! The less in the land fills, the better!
Well done!
Click to expand...
I didn't try staining it as I knew I wanted a metallic finish to match the sari embroideries. I used Golden Fluid Acrylic paint in Bronze, that I happened to have on hand. It looked better than the Gold, Copper, Silver or Pearl.
I seriously considered just touching it up with a wash of Gouache, but thank goodness I didn't, as I got caught in a bad downpour! Talk about a fashion disaster! Speaking of water disasters, I watered down the paint a bit to be sure I would have enough for the project (just barely!), only to realize it was a multi-pigment product that split into fractions. Actually, the effect was most interesting. The metallic stayed on the surface and the green seeped into the fabric. Kind of an oxidized copper green. There were unfortunate spatters of green, and very difficult to remove, causing damage to the fabric. This is why I put a number of those stars on the skirt. Lots of lessons learned. Fun project. The Golden fluid paint is excellent, all around.
As I'm finding that my tubes of acrylic are drying up, they will likely be replaced by this fluid00638-8151-M.jpg type.
 
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