DIY Upcycle Skirt & Sweater

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After some gentle nudging from friends in an online sewing group, I decided to join in the fun over at Project Run & Play for their Refashion Challenge.  The basis of the challenge is to create a look by upcycling other items. 

What is Project Run & Play you ask?  Well, it's similar to Project Runway, but instead of designing and sewing clothing for adults, Project Run & Play contestants design and sew for children.  I'm not a contestant, rather just sewing along with many others around the world.

So, without further ado... let's start at the beginning with my inspiration piece:

This is a bridesmaid dress that I wore in my good friend's wedding 2 years ago.  Since then, it has been hopelessly waiting to be worn again or revitalized into something new.

It really is a gorgeous dress and is my favorite color, so I knew I could turn it into something great for PiePie.

Here's a photo of me in the dress at the wedding.  

 

After a bit of thought, I decided to turn the dress into a skirt. Next I needed something to use for a top.  I search around the house for something that would work, but nothing caught my eye, so off to the thrift store I went.  

Here is what I found:

 

A very large women's sweater.  The fabric is a very thin, stretchy material in a gold, shimmery tone.  It isn't exactly what I was envisioning, but I decided it'll work.

After lots of cutting, pinning, sewing and maybe a bit of swearing... here is what I came up with:

 

 

Now for the details... let's start with the skirt.  The skirt is a 'fly by the seat of my pants' design that I used no pattern for.  

 I used the original waistband of the dress as the waistband for the new skirt.  Had to cut it down a lot of course.

I also kept the original hem in place.  Hemming is one of my least favorite things to do, so anytime I can avoid doing it I will!

I added a large bow to the back of the skirt for some added interest.  It is attached with a snap so that it is removable for washing.

Now, on to the top.  I modified one of my favorite patterns The Bimaa Sweater to make the top. 

 

The main modification was adding short puff sleeves instead of the long sleeves that the pattern calls for.  

Again, I used the original hem on the new sweater.

Lastly, I made a matching hair clip and added golden bows to her ballet slippers to go along with the new outfit. 

Overall, I'm really happy with how everything turned out.  I think PiePie looks adorable in it and she loved dancing around during the photo shoot, so I'll call that a win!