'MakeOver Monday' - The No Waste Jeans Jkt REinvent

'MakeOver Monday' 
... sharing how I cut up & REmake items from my wardrobe 
in the hope you'll pick up scissors & start cutting up yours!

One of my favourite parts of the original Dressing Gown before it became a Frock

were the sleeves 

so I decided to combine them with a tired pair of perfectly faded denim jeans I had lying around 

because who doesn't need another Jacket...

the sleeves were fine as-is
however the jeans obviously needed alot of attention 
before they'd look like anything other than jeans.

***
To begin 
the centre front & inside leg were opened and the fly removed

the back was likewise opened up

initially I did plan on keeping the distinctive top stitched seam 

with sweeping [crotch] curve

however toward the end of the REinvent it became apparent this wasn't going to be the best option 

so the back seam was completely removed and REseamed in a straight line  

 the front pockets were stitched shut
and the inside excess removed and REstitched

the side seams were removed

and wedges cut from the bottoms of the jeans

[with their bonus rivet vent details]

to be stitched into the sides to gain the extra width I knew I'd need

after doing the initial ground work

when the jeans started looking less like jeans and more like fabric

it was time for the shoulders & armholes to become things

their placement was determined by first deciding how long I wanted the jacket to be when finished

then measuring up from the bottom band to that depth 
which became my underarm point where the armhole was cut out from
and then the shoulder

I'm not going to pretend that these steps are easy 

because they're not

getting the correct position and measurement comes from knowledge gained by practice

and you only get those by not being afraid to get it wrong 

I always allow more than I need when cutting into garments 
because unlike a haircut it wont grow back

- better to have more than you need so you can keep trimming 'til it's just right

and the other thing you probably shouldn't do
 is start spruking on FB about how
excited you are with the progress 
like I did when I shared this image

because this then happened

the length was 10cm too long

meaning if I continued I'd never wear her

and what's the point in that...

so once unpicked and REcut 

it was time to start having some fun

filling in gaps 

with a few of the remnants from both jeans & dressing gown

[NEVER throw anything away!]

and putting all the pieces together

including a couple of blow-in 'tattoos'

  cut from a vintage barkcloth cushion cover

the left-over original dressing gown belt & part of the front edge

became a binding

which finished off the entire front & back neck edge perfectly

and meant she was done
 looking exactly as I had imagined her

at this stage I'd like to thank my FB friends
for helping to decide which of these 'tattoos' looked best

[a 'How To' video]

for the back

and as much as I love the Jacket

I'm not a fan of her worn with the Frock

so my next MakeOver will be to create something a little less busy 

that I can wear under her.

***

Next Week:

by combining an interestingly neck-trimmed smockey style rescued T-shirt 

with an abandoned crispy linen Fisherman Frock proto-type

I hope to make something I can comfortabley wear the Jacket with...

and if not 
next week will be a surprise for both of us!