Retro Restyle: Men's Ties

It's been a couple of years now that the Little Rancher declared a moratorium on anything pink and girlie.  Not only her bedroom but also her closet received a thorough going-thru.  Blue and yellow were allowed to stay and anything that invoked thoughts of horses, cowgirls or Southwest Native Americans.  After some thought, I decided I could work within these new parameters, and out of that came this collaborative restyle project. 

Retro Restyle: Cashmere Sweaters

I love sweaters.  They are part and parcel with the whole sheep and yarn hobby.  Some day maybe I will do a proper write-up on my sweater addiction, but not today.  Today I have a story of two oddball sweaters that never were circulated in the daily wardrobe.  One started out life as a men's XL v-neck in grey, the other was a women's L crewneck in red.  They were cast-offs, one too big, too baggy, the other too tight around the neckline and stained on the lower cuff. Eventually they were taken to the sewing room and  left folded in a pile, waiting for redemption.  Individually they were not particularly exciting, but together they created something beautiful. 

Quick before the snow melts

It seems that Winter in Wisconsin is finally on the wane which, honestly, couldn't have been better timing for this sewing project: a fur-trimmed vest.  It's warm enough for cooler temperatures, but would be bulky and uncomfortable to layer under a coat.  Here's the story...

Retro Restyle: This tater sack's a humdinger!

Over a year ago I made up my mind to make something out of burlap.  There are so many fabulous potato sacks out there with catchy slogans and vintage graphics, and they all can't be made into tote bags.  At first I was thinking corset or vest, paired with gingham perhaps, but this particular sack wouldn't lend itself to cutting.

what I started with

what I ended up with

Retro Restyle: Felix and Val's

This past winter I scored a fabulous wool club jacket at an estate sale.  It was dirty and moth-eaten and my husband couldn't believe I actual put it on to take these photos, but the embroidery on the back was too cool!  Felix and Val!  Well, that's almost as slick sounding as Lenny and Squiggy! 

Hoffman Construction Co.

On the front of the jacket was a large patch advertising the Hoffman Construction Company.  After a little online research, I found that they were started before the turn of the century and based in Appleton, Wisconsin.  So why was Wausau listed on the patch as well?  Did Felix and Val own a local branch office of Hoffman's?  Like a lumberyard?  I immediately sent an email off to the company to find out.  

The Magic of the Swants

Have you heard about swants?!  The can't-help-but-stare, gotta-try-for-myself trend coming out of Europe?!  Born from his sheer love of sweaters, Stephen West, of Westknits, is the mastermind behind this recent trend. Originally hailing from Oklahoma, Stephen currently lives in Amsterdam, and I suspect the change in scenery really affected his creative arts.  He has written three knitting books, offers patterns on his website (some free, too!), and heads up a FunSquad that hosts online knit-alongs.  Talk about building your passion into an enterprise!  But enough about his business savy, let's talk swants.

 

Quite simply, swants combine two of my most favorite things: (1) a restyle project involving (2) sweaters.  I had to be part of this movement.  And I'm not kidding when I say movement.  Swants were showcased on Good Morning America shortly before Christmas (if that's any barometer on cool).  I have never been so trendy as I am in this moment.

Retro Restyle: Your Grandma's Blanket!

Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess overworked shepherdess.  Every day after brushing her long golden hair pitching hay to the animals, she would sit on the couch and dream of spending time in her sewing room.  One day she awoke...

...to find that all her sewing dreams had come true!
 

details on the wolf pillow are here

Retro Restyle: Foxy t-shirt

My daughter's second favorite animal is a fox (the first being a horse) so when I saw this t-shirt for a mere $3, I grabbed it up.  The snuggled-up arctic fox was adorable and glittered and on a background of aqua (her second favorite color).  Perfect!  The only problem was that the shirt was an extra-large.  But assuming I could talk her into a new tote bag or pillow, this was actually not a problem. 

Retro Restyle: Secret Garden Jacket

A few years ago I picked up this 1960s wool shift dress for a couple of bucks.  It was wool.  It was plaid.  I was powerless to resist.  But deep down I knew that it probably wouldn't get worn too much.  Comfy though it is, I like a defined waistline because I figure that at some point in my not too distant future, I won't have a waistline.  I'm enjoying it while I can.

I liked the clean lines, and my first thought was to simply add darts, shape the side seams and add a bit of trim.  Pockets maybe, or a belt?  But it turned into one of those dreaded mending projects that I continually avoided.

One night last week, I was frustrated with seeing it on the mending pile, just laying there, taunting me, so I took a scissors to it.

Retro Restyle: Navy Uniform

A while ago I purchased a Navy uniform at the local thrift store.  The wool pants were in pristine condition and fit my husband beautifully.  The uniform top was in poor condition, full of moth holes and almost too small for me across the bust.  It had not a single patch or trim, and immediately, I began to ponder how to salvage it.  I threw the top in the wash, and waited to see what would come out.  It washed up well, shrank just a tich, and I put it in the "restyle" pile.

Retro Restyle: Military Sweater

Now I've been known to take my husband's old flannel shirt and sew it into jammie pants for my son.  I've also repurposed my clothing down into something else for my daughter.  But this was the first time I've reworked a sweater. And I think I'm hooked.

I started with a 100% lambswool sweater in size large.  Bought it at the thrift store for $2.

Then I scrounged some coordinating cotton twill, buttons and patches from my supplies. 

I did a bit of cutting and embellishing and came up with this.

Gingham Blouse Make-Over

Okay, so I am that obnoxious shopper who flips through the racks saying, "I can make that.  I can make that.  I made that last summer.  They want what for that?!  So making that when I get home."  But sometimes I have to take off my sewing hat and really crunch the numbers.

[Cost of fabric + notions + pattern + labor = how bad do I really want it] 

Most of the time, some (if not all) of my supplies are thrifted, but labor equals time, and that's a big factor to consider when I have sheep staring in the window of the sewing room, waiting to be fed.  So this is one project where I decided to buy off the rack and make it over.

Refurbishing Grandma's quilt

This year for Christmas I refurbished a quilt for my sister-in-law.  It was made by her grandmother back in the 1960s and was on her bed throughout her entire childhood.  It showed.  One look at the dinner plate-sized holes spewing wool batting and the split seams, and you knew it was time to make the hard decision; dog bed or major overall?  Over the past few years, I've saved two quilts from going the dog bed route.  And one wool quilt I actually took back from the dog and refurbished.  Two other quilts I reduced into throw pillows and doll blankets.  I'm just a sucker when it comes to things like this.  Grandma spent too many hours sewing; the quilt spent too many hours keeping my sister-in-law warm; it deserved to live on in one way or another.