Floral Dress to Top Refashion

Happy Earth Day! There are a lot of crazy things happening on this planet we call home, and whatever your views are, I think we can all agree that we need to treat the Earth with respect. There are a lot of ways to make our home a healthy and happy place to live, and while there are some extreme measures, there are smaller practices as well.

In the world of sewing, there are a few practices you can use in everyday life to reduce your footprint. One of my favorite practices is recycling fabrics! Most of the time I use recycled fabrics in my handbags, and have actually saved a bunch of materials from landfills, which is something I’m pretty proud of. But in terms of my wardrobe, I loooove refashioning!

I went through my wardrobe a few weeks ago and discarded a lot of pieces that will go to my local Salvation Army. There were a few pieces that I still loved, just didn’t wear. I had a moment of pause when it came to this dress I bought in college. I wore this dress all the time. It was my go-to item to feel fun and flirty but put together all at once. I still love the print, I just wasn’t feeling the dress length or ruffle on the garment. Nothing a sewing machine and pair of scissors couldn’t fix!

I took inspiration from this beautiful Alexis Top I found through pinterest. Since this dress started as a wrap dress, a few folds, buttons and a quick hem turned this into a top!

I made a little video showing my process, and you can see how easy this refashion was!

Refashioning is such a great way to “go green” within your own wardrobe. I usually refashion pieces I already own, but love the adventure of going to the thrift store and imagining ways to re-use others discarded items.

A few other tips to go green in your sewing space:

• Remember to turn your machine off when not in use! I am so guilty of this, I’ll leave my machine on for hours, even if I’m not sewing. It just takes a second to flip the switch on & off, but can help save a bit of electricity. (This goes for your iron as well!)
• Use reusable bags when fabric shopping (or shopping in general). I’ve obtained many JoAnn’s bags over the years, and they get recycled but take it a step further and leave a reusable bag in your car to take with you while shopping.
• Tomato Sauce jars and other glass bottles can make great storage. I use old milk bottles, popcorn containers and other jars to hold my collection of buttons.
• Have a lot of scraps? Save them! I have a bag of scraps going that will become stuffing for future projects. I also like to save the larger pieces to use for smaller projects.

Do you have any “green” tips for sewing? Share them in the comments!

Have a great weekend!