Remake: Blue Satin Bridesmaid Dress

You got the teaser of this fabulous blue party dress last week...

...and today it's time to see the upcycled results!

I started off by removing the pouffy sleeves.

Just to get an idea, this is the purplish discoloration underneath that was found under both sleeves. Cute, eh?

Once I got rid of both of the sleeves...

...the top portion of the dress looked just like this:

Because the trim is a bit much at the neck, I started to remove it with a seam ripper, right at the bust.

With the trim removed from the front of the dress, I was left with this train o'trim!!

To hide the leftover portion of the discoloration at the arms, I stitched down the layers of trim right under the armpits.

Now I'm still going to work with this frilly trim, but turning this dress into a halter and using these guys as the straps! I cut the center in half and moved on to tweaking the length next.

I want to make this fun and flirty, so a big portion of the length of the dress got cut off.

I pinned under the raw edges of the dress...

...and stitched down a new hem.

I ironed down the straps...

...then pinched and cinched the bust line, adding a safety pin to the center of the dress for a bit of ruching. My new party dress was complete!!

I love that this dress still has the party vibe essence! It still has a vintage-y feel, but it doesn't scream 80s anymore!

Those ruffles are hidden now!!

Except for a few hints of the ruffles in the back. I liked keeping the back of the dress' ruffles as they were, but it's always an easy tweak to stitch them down to match the area at the arms if I change my mind.

I think this makes a perfect wedding guest dress or one that's ready for a summer cocktail party.

Paired with a vintage shell purse and a pair of yellow BCBG shoes with bows, the accessories had just the bit of bold color flair to make the dress pop even more!!

After a long day of sewing, it's time to kick up my heels!!

Next time I have to remember not to lean all the way back when I'm sitting on a ledge right in front of succulents. Yep, there's now a band-aid on my back covering the little puncture wound. Oh the pains of fashion...

Teaser: Blue Bridesmaid Dress

Happy Friday, friends!! I just wanted to thank you for all the warm wishes and thoughts being sent my way - my dad is doing amazingly well, post-surgery, and my week of hanging out with the family during his recovery has come to an end. So long North Carolina and your beautiful white blossoms - I couldn't take my eyes off of the gorgeous flowers! We took a quick pic before I left because he said that I had to do something with his scrubs!! His nurse gave me an extra set to sew and I just can't wait to work them into something fantastic! That's on the summer project list, for sure.

It was fun to go a bit offline this week to hang out, help run errands, pick up meds, and cook (lots of homemade hummus and other heart healthy snacks) before getting back into the swing of things at home.

I will be getting this dress finished to post on Monday...

...so get ready for a new, revamped, satin blue bridesmaid dress!

In the interim, there are a few giveaways going on - a $100 Visa gift card with a copy of Save the Date by Mary Kay Andrews as well as a $100 Target gift card and a three month subscription to the DIY/crafty company For the Makers! Head on over to enter!!

Have a most incredible weekend!

Remake: Brown Bib Dress

Hi friends!! I'm working on this lovely piece as we speak. Hey now, bibby collar!!

I have been on a slight delay with posts as I'm up in San Francisco working with Creativebug on some awesome content! Nothing like being surrounded by old bridesmaid dresses, ready to be made over all day!

I've got a few awesome giveaways coming up (PS, there's still time to enter the Halls Spring Cleaning and UncommonGoods giveaway) and some remakes that are making me smile. Can't wait to share those!