Summer Dress Refashion

This refashion was inspired by all the dresses in the shops at the moment which feature a stretch bodice and a printed cotton skirt.  It looked like such an easy style to copy, and also to wear.  My refashion turned out a little different to the inspiration, but the techniques could easily be used to refashion a singlet and skirt into a dress.  I discovered this skirt in my cupboard, which was nice fabric, but an odd length, and I could never find the right colour top to wear with it.

 When I played around with it, I found that if I pulled it right up, the elastic waistband sat really nicely as a neckline.  It is a tiered skirt, so I simply unpicked the bottom of the first tier.  In the diagram below, section A will become the bust of the dress, I cut section B to become the straps, and section C becomes the skirt.

The only trick when sewing a stretchy fabric band (or singlet) onto something with less stretch (ie. the skirt), is that it needs help to hold it firm.  So, on the bottom of the bust part, and on the top of the skirt part, zigzag stitch some elastic.  Stretch the elastic as you stitch, and it will also help you gather it in nice and evenly.

This is what it looks like from the inside.

Attach some straps and you're done.

A very simple summer dress refashion.

I found this photo that my son took of me as I was working.  I'm sitting in my bedroom at my sewing table, in my happy little industrious space.