Buy It and Change It!

I've been challenging myself lately to cut down on what I spend on my clothes, and with my new (still very basic, though) sewing skills, I've been able to get more creative.

My latest love is buying cheap clothes and altering them just a bit to be more stylish or a better fit for me.

For example:

I bought this dress on sale at Target a few weeks ago from the girls department in a girls size X-large.

**Here's a hint, if you are a woman who typically buys sizes 2 or 4, you can sometimes fit into the little girls' extra large size clothes and save some money because the girl stuff is usually priced cheaper than grown-up stuff(I've done this at Old Navy, Gap, and Target).**

When I bought the dress I knew it would be shorter than I'd want to wear alone, but I thought maybe with leggings it would be cute, but when I tried it on I didn't love the way the top looked, so I cut it off just under the arm holes, straight across, leaving a band of knit to become the skirt waistband. Then I folded under the fabric to create a casing for elastic, sewed it, cut elastic to fit my waist, threaded it through using a safety pin to guide it through, sewed up the small hole left in the casing, and it was done! Seriously easy (even with beginner sewing abilities)!
A super easy, super cheap (around $8.00 including the elastic) skirt that I have loved wearing the past few weeks! Those are pockets on either side that I think just adds to the interesting/cute factor of the skirt. I've gotten compliments, it is really comfy (who can argue with a soft, knit elastic waist!), and it's the perfect length for me -- just below the knee.