Thank you all! I'm glad it was well liked. Ill have to try to find a red belt to wear with it now...
:-)

A very simple recon, but exciting. :-)
This was originally a pant suit I saw at Goodwill and thought would make an awesome dress.
I kind of winged it as I went along, and though I didn't initially intend to make it so, it turned into a pencil skirt. The craftsmanship and quality are far from excellent, but in the end, I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you all like it too!

Here's the original:



And the after:




Comments are much appreciated!

Thank you so much for the compliments!

I can't decide if I want to do anything else to it, to make it less plain. Maybe run off of Thank you so much for the compliments!

I can't decide if I want to do anything else to it, to make it less plain. Maybe run off of

So this is kind of a cheat recon, but I had this dress that I got from Ross, that I LOVED. It had a soft wrap-type top, and a pleated, high waisted skirt. So I thought, why not try to make another like it?

I originally planned on making the skirt using a sheet that I found at Goodwill, but I was worried that the floral-ish design on the sheet would look strange with the pleats. So I looked around and saw a yard of this blue fabric I bought. Perfect, right?

Please keep in mind that this is my first time really trying something like this, my first experiences with a sewing machine, and my first time EVER doing a zipper. (It was supposed to be an invisible zipper....but it's not really invisible. Oops...)

Oh, and the top was made from a stretchy white t shirt that I actually really liked, but unfortunately, it became victim to my need for fabric. HAHA

Here's the final product, from the front:


I'm sorry about the slight cleavage. I actually didn't intend for it to be that low cut, mainly because I hate my bra showing. But I still love this dress. :-)
Also, you can kind of see the zipper in the bottom corner. I accidently bought a 24 inch zipper, instead of a 12 inch zipper, but when I was trying to finish the dress, and realized this, Hobby Lobby was closed, and Walmart's depressingly lax sewing section was useless. So I went ahead and used the long one. Oh, and I bought a zipper foot for my sewing machine, but ended up sewing it by hand because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to use the foot well enough with the invisible zipper. Haha...

Sorry for all the talking...

Here's the back:


It's kind of difficult to make out, but the bumpy-ness in the back is actually the tie that I added...They are like 3 feet on each side (intentionally)! And for whatever reason, it makes me like them even more.

And here's the necessary boob shot to show off my pleats. :-D


And you can see another one of my lovely mistakes there. On the right boob(my left), that strange line is actually the bottom seam of the shirt. I guess it wasn't enough fabric after all...

Just for the heck of it, here is the original white shirt...



So that's it!
I'm really proud, despite the many mistakes I made....(wonky zipper, misplaced seams, seams that didn't line up, exposed thread...etc etc. )

Please give me any tips, comments, and criticism. I'd love to hear what you amazingly talented craftsters think!!




PS: I had just realized that I made another post a few days ago, of a shirt I resized and added sleeves to....I said in both posts that it was my first time attempting anything like it. And so that I dont come across as untruthful, I should probably clarify. Haha. I actually made this dress before I made the shirt. I just took longer to post because I didn't have pictures and I wasnt completely sure which board to post it on. But it really was my first project. And the shirt, though my second project, was my first true recon. Since like I said before, this one was kind of a half-recon. ;-)........ I'm almost giddy proud right now. Because even if it is only for like five minutes, I have two posts at the top of the list! After being a looong time lurker, I'm finally posting! yay!

Elderflower:
Here's a link to the tutorial: craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=100217.0
I followed the beginning part exactly, though my sleeves turned out different, and instead of just adding binding to the cuff, I used the entire remnants of the blue top's sleeve. :-)


Ladybugz:
Yes, I used the whole sleeve I cut off to replace the old cuff.  The white sleeves were originally kind of short, though they were huge...so when I resized them, I cut off the cuff, and just sewed the sleeve to the blue one on ...It was pretty simple, but I am in love with the way it turned out!

Thank you for your comments!

Man...I had this all typed out and ready to go, but it all got deleted!!

Anyways,
This is my first real, completed recon, and though it is nothing compared to what the rest of you can do, I am super excited about it. :-)

I was orginally going to use Mezzi's tutorial for her Deliciously Girly Hoodie, but by the time I got my shirt resized and added the sleeves, I was too excited to risk cutting it up any more! So...for now, it is simply a shirt. Maybe one day it will be more.

It started as a men's tshirt I got on mark down...(YAY for off season sales!...many of my next recons will be fanwear because of the sales...sorry!) Haha.

Here is the final product:




And here is the before:



So...I know it isn't anything groundbreaking, but I think my new shirt is boss!

Too bad it is 100 degrees outside and it will be a few months before I can wear it...haha....

Thanks for looking!
Comments and critique much appreciated!!
-Jess

This is fantastic!! And the description is amazing! :-D

So, I know this thread was from over a year ago, but I've been going through old threads for inspiration...and this one made me crack up! I LOVE the random interpretations of the shirt!! Haha!

Hot bunnies will break your heart...avoid bunnies in heat....avoid bunnies who just ate Indian food....who have heartburn....CLASSI C.

:-)

BTW, cute tube top!!

oh my gosh. i was beginning to think i was the only hockey fan on here! aha
i love the dress. it's very cute

I'm so glad to hear from another hockey fan. :-). What is your favorite team? And if you want to see some amazing recons on hockey fanwear, you have GOT to check out TMLGirl, I think is her username. She's a Toronto Fan, but I LOVE some of the things she's made. And I plan on using it for inspiration for more homemade Preds gear. :-)

Thank you for the compliment, too. I'm going to wear my dress to the Skate of the Union next week. Yay!!

Thank you. :-). I know its not much, and it didn't require any true reconstruction...Ha ha...But its the only project in my head that I actually had time to do. Thanks again for the compliment...Hopefu lly Ill have more stuff to post soon!