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I used every spare minute before Sewing Summit to refashion pieces I’ve been meaning to get to for ages. Gosh, I think I’ve had this number for at least 8 months. If I remember correctly, I got this at Savers in Phoenix for something like $6.

I didn’t like the shape, red details or the fit. I did like the circle skirt & checked pattern, but that was about it. When I looked at it I knew I wanted to refashion it, but I originally thought that I needed to just update the sleeves, fit & neckline to something a little more modern. Last week it hit like a ton of bricks: it needs to be a midi skirt instead. Once I decided on that my work refashioning this little number took about 30 minutes. Lickety split, eh?

I just cut out the skirt just below the waistline and attached elastic to the waist, using leftover elastic from my leather belt project*. Just to break it down, here’s what I did:

• measured my waist with the elastic
• cut out elastic & sewed ends together
• divided elastic & skirt waist into fourths & pinned together
• pinned elastic wrong side out to outside of the skirt which was right side out
• evenly pinned gaps of skirt every 2-3 inches along elastic
• stretched elastic to match up with skirt waist as I sewed my longest straight stitch
• ironed & wore

I think it’s a big improvement on the original & I love that I now own a midi-length skirt! I’m just over the moon that they’re super hot this fall. The above outfit is what I wore during my Refashioning class at Sewing Summit. The class went really well, too! We had a great time making fun of the gross things you can find at thrift stores. See outfit details here.

*Elastic provided by rufflefabric.com