Saturday, September 24, 2016

Remake Boutique

For years I sewed all my own clothes--well, most of them anyhow.  I even did nightgowns and slips.  I started making my own patterns out of store bought  pieces that fit nicely, and pretty much stopped purchasing patterns.  However, almost the fabric stores that I used to frequent have disappeared--I guess as people don't sew anymore, they just go out of business.  Joann's is all I have left here on the south shore, and I'm not always happy with what I find there--very often the colors are not subtle enough for me, and I rarely come across fabric that I fall in love with.  Prices also keep rising, making the cost of a garment more than I can buy it for in the store.

Enter the discount stores, and the outlets with seasonal markdown racks.  These days I head right to the back of the store to the clearance racks, and give them the once over.  For a couple of dollars I can pick up something in a fabric I love, and if the size isn't right or something else needs to be changed, I can take that baby apart, and put it back together the way I want it to be.  I pretty much leave the hard parts alone (zippers, pockets, collars) which means I save the work of doing the hard stuff.  Today I redid a poorly sewn bottom hem of a blouse  and added a couple of buttonholes and buttons to a too low cut neckline.  I have bought size 3x skirts and cut them down to fit, and reset the cuffs on a couple of blouses that had extra long sleeves.  I can cut down pants, leaving the side seam and pulling them in from the middle.  Of course, the one day I had a pair of capris that I was all set to make smaller, when I discovered that they actually fit...Oh well.  Time to diet...

I confess that I have trouble parting with my old things--my closets are too full at this point.  Most of the things are what I made myself, out of fabrics that I love, but I guess it's time for them to go.  Some days I do better than others, depending on my mood.  I keep a bag going out on the front porch that gets picked up periodically by Big Brothers.  It works out pretty well as a trial "parting".  Usually if I put something in the bag, I figure I can get it back if I want it.  Most of the time I find "out of closet, out of mind", but I do occasionally retrieve something, like the two skirts that I will take off the too small waistbands and put in elastic.  They are good colors, and I get tired wearing grey and black all the time.

So--End of Season again!  Anybody want to bargain hunt with me?