Skirt of Awesomeness

So besides breaking my back making a few of these :

 

I discovered this little blog and it's a dream! It's called Cotton & Curls, and she takes old thrifted clothes and makes them AMAZING!!! Anyway, she inspired me to DIY some old crap clothes of mine into something wearable again. We start with the mini dress.

Have you seen these guys? 

Super cute cotton mini dresses. I swear everyone and their Mom looks good in them, except for me. My problem? I'm a freaking Amazon and I'm so tall that the skirt part comes up right beneath my chesticles, making it waaay too short. Therefore, my freaky long chicken legs are exposed and my butt's about to fly out. NOT CUTE. I don't need to add that it makes me super uncomfortable. Anyway, it's been sitting in my closet for a while now, and I just can't bear to part with it. Unfortunately, the only way to wear it was with leggings, and let's be real, I live in Arizona. Not gonna happen. I needed to throw it away but I came up with a different plan, Muahahahaha!

I decided to turn it into a skirt... it's super easy, and here's how!

Step #1- cut the top off just below the armpits

Step #2 - Decide how thick of a band you want at the top, turn inside-out and pin. Mine is about 3 inches. If the band is loose around your waist I recommend buying some elastic tape to sew inside. Mine was pretty form fitting so I didn't need to.

Step #3- sew about a 1/2 inch from the top. I recommend using a zig-zag pattern if you're working with stretchy material... it just seems to hold better.

Sorry no picture of this step... it's a little difficult to maneuver a camera whilst sewing. =) Also, I sewed with black thread, so it's basically impossible to see anyway.

And, boo-yah! You've got a fancy schmancy Skirt of Awesomeness that is long, form fitting, and just looks dang good.

 

Photo Edit using: Instagram and Photoshop CS3

 Do you love my modeling? I didn't want to strap on heels, so I decided to stand on my tippy-toes which made me fall backward. Snapped this little gem just in time!

Hope everyone is having an awesome week so far! School starts here pretty soon in AZ... I can just feel the anxiety of children, and the relief of parents! OH, and that cute ASU banner... yeah, you could have one of those sitting in your house. Enter the giveaway and it just might be yours. Seriously, go enter... so worth it.

P.S. I'm looking to get a new sewing machine... the one I'm using is stolen from my Mother and I'm pretty sure it might be older than me. Any suggestions for a good one, on the cheaper side? I'm trying to keep the budget around $200... Let me know you Craftlicious ladies!