Well here we are again people! This year’s instalment of The Refashioners is nearly upon us! We’re flipping things on their head this year. For the past few series we have focused on a specific garment and used that as the starting point. We think we’ve done enough now to loosen things up theme wise and REALLY allow the creativity to flow. So THIS year there are NO restrictions on the garments you can use. Yes you read that right! So if you are one of those people who has said to me we should do old prom dresses, t shirts, knitwear…..now’s your chance! What we want you to do this year is start with an image that inspires you. An outfit or garment that you covet. A style icon that you admire. A look that you want to recreate. Find your inspiration….Then we want you to go ahead and recreate it!! The only caveat is…..you can ONLY use existing, unloved garments to do so. These can be from charity shops, from your own wardrobe, or even your old me mades that you don’t wear anymore. The key here, is to demonstrate, that whatever your heart desires, there is a way to achieve that by reusing unwanted garments IF you get creative
Here are a few examples of what I mean.
Take a favourite musical icon for instance. Madonna has reinvented herself so many times over the years you could pick any number of images as your inspiration. This classic from her early days could be recreated by adapting a simple white tee and reshaping an oversized pair of suit trousers, using the excess fabric to create the “braces”. Paloma’s look again….simple white tee reshaped to fit. Various techniques could be used to recreate the image on her tee. (Think fabric pens, image transfer paper, etc). Her pencil skirt could be recreated using fabric harvested from curtains or an old prom dress then dyed. Love Florence Welch’s bohemian style? Find a velvet blazer and get creative with embellishments like embroidery and beading!
If you love a particular designer (and who could be more iconic than Vivienne Westwood!) you could take your inspiration image from their body of work. Corsets use alot of panelling and are comprised of numerous smaller pattern pieces. As we’ve learnt from previous series, these kind of patterns are the holy grail for refashioning where large expanses of flat fabric are scarce. You have to get clever with piecing and seaming. In the centre pic I can picture an old prom or bridesmaids dress. The shell fabric of the skirt removed and the netting underskirt dyed and the bodice reshaped. Tartan is another Westwood classic. Look for old kilts and matronly skirts and give them a twist with bustles and interesting draping details.
If vintage glam is your thing, you could pick any number of inspo images from Dita Von Teese! In the first 2 images I’m seeing the skirt portions of old wedding/bridesmaid/prom dresses with waistbands added. Then embroidery, applique , organza, lace details added to achieve the look. And how about that last image? Another prom dress refashion methinks? Reshaped into a fitted bodice with pencil skirt and the excess fabric used to create the waist sash and fabric flowers.
I’m a big fan of mannish tailoring on women. I love this kind of look. The time spans of these images show it’s just as stylish and relevant today as it was in the 30s , 40’s, 70’s and 80’s. Katherine Hepburn, Diane Keaton and Elly Jackson all killing it in their own way. Hepburn’s look could be recreated by thrifting and reshaping (possibly dyeing) an old blouse and a pair of oversized mens slacks. Diane Keaton’s look is a charity shop dream! White shirt, tie, waistcoat, suit trousers, even down to the hat, the bag, the sunnies and the tennis racket! All of these are lurking in charity shops and with a few minor adjustment this image could be recreated entirely from charity shop finds. As for Elly Jackson’s suit, I’d love to have a go at dyeing a pure linen suit in an acid bright or pastel shade like this!
Take your inspiration image from the many streetstyle images that abound on pinterest! Image 1 a man’s oversized white shirt, an oversised sweater and a pair of simple black slacks all adjusted for shape. Image 2a thrifted coat with the collar removed and the length of the sleeves and hem adjusted with the addition of a belt. A pair of jeans cropped and reshaped. For image 3, a jacket made from a a quilted throw. Men’s slacks reshaped and embellished with paint stamps!
These looks straight from the catwalk could be recreated. Convert a trench coat into a dress. Crop a suit jacket and dye it. Worn with a reshaped white tee and a skirt made from a man’s shirt. You could even dye a plain pair of white socks and a baseball cap to match. Even the gold accessories could be sourced in a charity shop. The denim dress could be recreated from old jeans in similar colours…
I hope that gives you an idea of where we’re coming from! Suggest starting with a few different images. Thrift shopping to order can be tricky and alot will rely on the thrifting gods being on your side, lol! Don’t forget, you can shop the charity shops, your own wardrobes, and even the wardrobes of (willing!) loved ones.
We want to see the inspiration image, the before image(s) of your source garment(s), and the after images of course! Extra kudos given for how closely your “after” images resemble your inspiration images!
This years series, as ever, will begin with the blogger element. For the whole of September, a fabulous line up of talented stitchers will be providing you with loads of inspiration, tutorials and tips to get you going! So mark these dates in your diary (and make sure you’re following me either here or on IG to stay updated):
- Blogger Element: Running from 3rd Sept to 28th Sept this year. A month of inspiration posts to get your creative juices flowing. Line up announced shortly
- Community Challenge: This will run right from 1st Sept to 31st October. There will be the usual phenomenal prize package for our winner(s) at the end. You can share your creations any time between those dates to be entered into the competitionTo enter you’ll need to SHARE your refashions (including your original inspiration image) with us in one of the following ways:
- On Instagram: Share a pic using the hashtags #therefashioners2018 #inspiredby (if you do not use these hashtags I will not be able to find your entry and it will not count)
- On Facebook: There is a community board here where you can post your makes (You will need to request an invite to join)
Only entries shared via the above 2 methods will be entered into the competition. Closing date for entries is 31st October 2018 Midnight GMT.
Stand by for details of the lineup and the AMAZING prizes on offer this year!
With thanks to our fabulous official sponsors below!
Super excited having read this year’s challenge. Looking forward to some creative thinking, shopping and sewing! Good luck everyone!
Hi
Wondering can themrefashioned item one creates be an accessory – such as a handbag?
Thanks!
Sure!
Exciting! Thank you for making us creative with unloved garments again this year Portia!
Hmm, all of your examples are of women….
Having tried to broaden the scope of the series engage with male sewers (the blogger line up in the past 2 series has included inspiration from phenomenal male stitchers and inspiration boards and blog posts have also included menswear examples) it just hasn’t hit home with any men out there. I think just one menswear entry since 2011. Nor any comment or interest in the series. The series is open to anyone that wants to take part. There just doesn’t seem to me to be an audience amongst men for this despite attempts to engage. Have tried to get a male audience on board to no avail.
I’m so excited about this, thanks for organizing the challenge. Is it possible for international sewists to take part and win prices?
Yes absolutely! open worldwide 🙂
Hey Portia! I’m joining along for the first time this year and am quite excited about it. Does the refashion only count if it’s made from only a garment or can it be from other makes or thrifted things. I was planning on making a coat from thrifted quilts and wasn’t sure if that counted. Thanks!
Yes that’s fine!
Just wondering, but can the thing you’re refashioning be something like a quilt or does it have to be a garment? Thanks a million for organising this beautiful challenge!
Yes, old and unloved textiles of any kind really.
Is it possible to use old bed sheets/curtains from a thrift shop? Being a plus sized sewist makes finding garments I can modify a bit tricky but I found some great sheets!
Yes absolutely. Really opening up the challenge this year.
This s such an exciting and inspirational challenge. So looking forward to it.. can’t wait to see everyone’s creations..
good luck everyone, enjoy creating! 😀
Thank you, Portia for the opportunity.
Dear Portia
Fantastic challenge! Is it OK to use fabric remnants found at a charity shop – they’ve been culled from a garment or does we need to use whole garments?
Thank you
That’s fine. Although it is nice to see the “before” garment, in essence the challenge is encouraging the use of old garments whether they be fully assembled or deconstructed.
Portia, using thrifted yardage seems so close to regular sewing and so much less like refashioning! There was another contest recently where they were supposed to use a garment plus thrifted yardage–it seems there was SO MUCH less refashioning going on in that one. 🙁
Hi Natalia, I agree there is more challenge involved in refashioning a garment than re using thrifted yardage (although straight up yardage isn’t really included in this I assume you’re referring to curtains, quilts, linens etc?). And among other things, that will be taken into account during the judging process. But ultimately the wider aim is, and has always been, to encourage the idea of reusing what we have first, rather than consuming more. The idea of this series was to open up the brief massively and leave it open to an individuals interpretation. Curtains, quilts, tablecloths, existing garments. I’m not going to discourage anyone from reusing unwanted textiles by saying only garments count; because those other things go to waste and landfill too. Nor do I really want to get caught up in a semantics discussion about the definition of refashioning. Everyone has their own take on what that means. This year, we’re making room for that. This is staged as a fun, creative challenge. Please don’t be sad faced! Enjoy it and interpret it how you see fit. Don’t worry about what others are doing or if their interpretation differs to yours. It’s all gravy 🙂 Hugs!
Sorry I didn’t see your reply until just now as there didn’t seem to be an option to sign up for replies.
In my comment, I was referring to the original commenter’s question about using thrifted fabric remnants…in my experience and reading, “remnants” usually refers to the last bits of yardage from a roll of new fabric, when sold at the fabric store. In a thrift store, it would be yardage left over from a sewing project, OR bigger pieces that were purchased yardage and never made into a project, then donated. Usually sold in the sewing area. These are in all the thrift stores, and a great way to get cheap fabric, but still yardage in my opinion. If this is not what you are saying “yes” to, it might be important to specify somewhere if you haven’t already as I think many readers and upcyclers would assume this is what you meant.
I didn’t mean curtains, tablecloths, etc, but fabric remnants. Of course, using old linens is refashioning in my book too!
The other competition I referred to had in the rules to combine a garment with store-bought fabric or add coordinating pieces made of yardage *as part of the competition*. So many of the entries looked like any sewing project as so much of them was ordinary yardage.
Thanks again for your reply. 🙂
Hiya lovely! Ah ok. My bad! In which case the comment I think you are referring to stated that the fabric remnants they bought,had actually been culled from a garment originally. So not fabric remnants in the truest sense…..if that makes sense?
I used to get your blog via email. Something happened and I haven’t been receiving it for the last few months. I finally looked you up and found this post. How can I get back on your email list?
Hi Margaret! Gosh that’s strange. The blog has moved servers a year or so ago so that may be a factor? Have you tried resubscribing using the link in the sidebar? (View on a pc or laptop)
I used to get your blog via email. Something happened and I haven’t been receiving it for the last few months. I finally looked you up and found this post. How can I get back on your email list?
I used to get your blog via email. Something happened and I haven’t been receiving it for the last few months. I finally looked you up and found this post. How can I get back on your email list?
Really excited for this! Is it one entry per person, or can we enter more than once? 😊 Thanks!
Many times as you like!