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Re-purposing: Women’s Dress to Skirt

I am on a re-purposing kick again.
Hopefully you are finding some inspiration in your closets too.
I bought this dress at Ross a while ago and thought I liked it…..but once I got it home, the top part bugged me, and just never fit right.
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So instead of returning the steal-of-a-deal (you know how those good deals are at Ross…) I decided the value was worth turning it into a skirt.
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Do you have a dress of your own that just isn’t doing it for you? 
But do you love the fabric and hate to see it go?
Cut that thing up…..
You can either make a casing at the top and slide some elastic through, like shown here.
Or you can smock/shirr it like shown in the Lily Skirt pattern found here
or the Maddy Dress pattern found here.

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With the patterns, there are step-by-step directions with plenty of troubleshooting tips to help you master this fun technique. 
Before cutting, determine the length of skirt you’d like.  Then add enough fabric at the top to make your casing if you’re going to go the elastic waistband route………or enough to make the smocking at the top.  Then just use the original hem of the dress as the hem for your skirt.   
Quick and easy.
 Once you’re done……you’ll be sure to enjoy your new flirty skirt.

Ashley Johnston

Administrator at Make It & Love It
Ashley Johnston is a professional DIY costume maker, sewist, crafter, and owner of Make It & Love It. She is a mom of 5 and a wife to a very patient (with the craft clutter) husband. In case you’re wondering, she always chooses crafting/sewing/designing over mopping/dusting/wiping base boards……but bathrooms/laundry/full bellies are always attended to. Whew!

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Hi, I'm Ashley

Hi, I’m Ashley—the DIY-enthusiast behind this crazy blog!

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