Little black dress

I have been thrift store shopping a lot lately. I have always enjoyed thrifting, and I find that I enjoy it even more now that I have learned a lot more about altering clothing. When I go to the thrift store, I love to just walk down each aisle and feel the clothing. That is usually how I determine if something is worth looking at more closely. Most thrift stores are packed full of cheap knit shirts that are usually stretched out and faded. They have a lot of that stretchy polyester stuff too. I pretty much never even glance at those. But what's great about thrift stores is they also have a lot of older clothing, and often older women clothing, which means it was probably bought at a nice department store and is something of better quality. Sure it may be six sizes too big, but that is where sewing comes in handy these days. Rather than pay the fortune for the same nice quality by buying it brand new, I can just buy it gently used and make a few alterations.

Here is my most recent project:

As you can see, there is nothing too great about this dress. At least at first glance. It is way too big, too long, and overall looks pretty terrible on me. But, it was perfect for what I wanted. I found that my closet was lacking a plain black dress, and decided that was something I could probably find at the thrift store and alter. I wanted a basic shift dress, so I bought an oversized dress so that it would give me some extra room and not be too tight once I made the needed adjustments (although you cant tell by the pictures, this dress would have been fitted if worn on the right body). I also always have the problem of finding dresses that I love, but that aren't long enough for me, so it is helpful to find a dress with lots of extra length so I can tailor it to fit my long legs. The fabric and construction of this dress are also in excellent condition. It isn't lined, but is a thick fabric that drapes well when worn and doesn't require any extra layers. Plus, no lining makes it infinitely easier to alter.

Here is the finished product:

Ta-dah! A basic black shift dress that cost me $8 at the thrift store and a few hours of sewing. Not too bad if I do say so myself. Can't wait to find my next project.