Wearing What I Sew 6/20

So I didn't technically make this whole skirt; I just altered it quite a bit. When I found it at a thrift store it  was floor length and very blah. I chopped off almost two feet and used the excess fabric to make a peplum on the front of the skirt. Super simple, and even though this was several years ago, I still wear it pretty frequently! 

Oh, and how dreamy is this flowy cardigan? I wish I could claim making it, because it's so dang perfect. I actually found it on clearance at Target for FIVE DOLLARS. I have worn it at least 3 times a week ever since. I would venture to say this has been my best clothing purchase of the year. 

I'm not gonna lie, I didn't have the best day in this outfit (not that it was the clothing's fault or anything). Work was a total fiasco; I'm a little sick right now, and my voice is really hoarse and scratchy. I had to be a cashier and it just got worse and worse as the night wore on. Then I had to stay several hours late, which is generally never very fun. Luckily, my boyfriend came to the mall during my break and got me tea with lots of honey, which helped quite a bit. So I guess I had one bright spot :)

Glittered Ballet Flats!

This is a DIY I've been wanting to try for a while. I got the idea from this blog post a few months ago, and it slipped my mind for a long time. But when I moved out of my dorm room I found this pair of basic ballet flats (Target brand!) that I hadn't worn in forever, and suddenly I had a purpose for them!

It was super simple to do; I used tacky glue which I painted on with a foam brush, and then I just dumped glitter on over the glue-y areas. In hindsight, I could have picked a stronger glue; that's what I'd do differently next time. Even though I laid newspaper down, glitter still, inevitably, got everywhere. It's the price you pay to make sparkly things. I let them dry overnight. 

Of course, I just had to wear the shoes today, so they got shown off for the first time to the customers of American Eagle. I actually got several compliments over the course of my shift!

 The one downside to this project is its durability. The shoes looked absolutely gorgeous for most of the day, but glitter has already come off in several chunks (mostly on the heel and toe). To be fair, I did wear them for a fairly long work shift; I should probably save them for special occasions. It's easy enough to fix the patches that de-glittered during my day; it's more a matter of wether I want to have to re-touch the shoes every time I wear them.

I think it could be worth it, though. Next, I'd really like to glitter a plain pair of canvas sneakers; the only reason I didn't do that first was because I'm trying not to spend so much money at the moment. 

I wanted to sew 5 garments this month, since summer classes start in June. And.... that goal was totally not met. I envisioned camping out in my house all of May and being a complete sewing hobo, when in reality I've been working far more than I planned, and spending a lot of time with friends. But I'm not complaining: despite not making as many things as I wanted to, I've still done quite a bit.  I've finished 1 top and I'm almost done with another, I'm one color away from finishing the world's ugliest crocheted blanket, and now I have an altered pair of shorts.

They're vintage Levi's, and they're the definition of mom pants. I've had them for a long time; I probably got them at a Salvation Army, since that's my go-to thrift store, but I really don't remember. I'm not sure what prompted me to buy them, but I'm glad I re-discovered them a few days ago. Anyway, since these bad boys could only be improved, I thought I'd use up some of my huge (and ever-expanding) lace collection and add a back pocket detail. I got the idea from this Chictopia page. The only thing I did differently from their explanation was to turn the edges of the lace under for a cleaner finish, since lace tends to ravel. Honestly, though, this was such a simple alteration that it doesn't really need a how-to to figure out.

Regardless of how awkward my butt looks in them, these shorts will definitely be getting a lot more use now. I'm a sucker for anything girly. Also, if the lace looks familiar, it's because I used it on this project too: