$1.00 DRESS RE-STYLE: 93X Dress!

Posted by Ethne~

This dress’s fabric is a little out of my comfort zone, for sure – I don’t wear crazy prints often, and leggings are generally not flattering to my figure.  When I saw it, I wasn’t as taken with the pattern as much as the fabric – it is silk – and it is my size.  So I thought – ‘well, what’s the point of re-styling dresses that are only in my comfort zone?’

Before: what am I doing with this one?

Shaun balked when he saw this one.  We thought the pattern looks just like the 93X radio station’s logo.  He’s right.  Hence the dress’s name.  He was also not so fond of the ruffles all over the place.  I wasn’t either, but ruffles have their place in fashion right now, so there was potential.

The dress is my size, but it’s a petite, and that I am not; I’m a regular gal.  No way this dress could be worn without leggings, and I didn’t see much use in cutting it into a shirt.  Fortunately, I had some $6.00 black leggings from Super Target (THRIFT-Y!).

No size adjustments were necessary and that’s fine since I’m not too skilled at that yet.  J

I ripped out the collar ruffles first:

Just sew the seams back together where they were before opening
to get the ruffles out.  And good riddance!

The sleeve ruffles came next.

The bodice ruffles would have been impossible to rip out, so I left them there.  And I think they look nice too.  So they got to stay in.

The dress is a little shapeless, and my waist needed defining to draw the attention up and away from my hips.  My first try at this was a 1” black ribbon from a different shirt.  I wore leggings and gladiator sandals because it was warm enough at the time.  Not quite perfect though.

A little make-up wouldn't hurt either.

My next try was when Lori came to town recently.  I found this thick woven black belt at Good Will for $0.99 (score!).  This was a little more of the waist flattering speed I needed.  I paired with black riding boots.

Round 2: new belt

I actually quite like the dress now.  Totally perfect for company (good friends) coming over, or a Saturday/Sunday – the silk is super comfy.  It’s still a little out of my fashion comfort zone, but I’ll work at it.

After

And a closer view....

Does highlight my waist a bit more.

I’d really like to hear your comments on the before and after of this dress – but keep any criticism constructive please!