Last weekend the Hollywood Craft Mafia girls volunteered at the first annual Swap-a-Rama-Rama at Trash to Treasure. It was way more fun that I ever expected. Not that I thought it would be dull, I didn't. I was worried about sewing on the spot. My "job" was to re-vamp, re-construct, upcycle, repair or change clothing on demand. The way it works is that people would arrive with a bag of clothes that they no longer want (or paid double the cover charge if they came without). The clothes were taken by the 'sorters', hung up and organized on the racks. People wandered around and shopped and could take whatever they want. It didn't matter how much they brought, they could take as much as they want. 
After shopping, they could bring something to us, the sewers, to re-vamp, reconstruct or whatever. They just told us what they want and we did it.
And, they could have something screen printed. Right there on the spot! How cool is that?
Well, I was extremely nervous because I'm one of those perfectionist types when it comes to what I create. I iron every seam, measure, pin and take my time. Upcycling on demand scared the hell out of me.
I got started right away re-constructing a dress for one of the volunteers. Even before the event started! It is good to jump in, no time for nerves. Well, this dress that I did was absolutely fabulous. It was a designer original, probably one of a kind but totally impractical because the sleeves were connected to the sides of the dress! We wanted to keep the "style" but she needed to be able to actually wear it. So, we took off the right sleeve.
Once I got going, I worked non-stop and loved every minute of it. I made a tote bag out of a t-shirt, a skirt from scratch (no pattern), made a skirt from a pair of jeans, repaired a linen skirt, and made a breast-feeding-friendly tank top from an oversized silk shirt. It has been years since I have had an entire day to sew and sew. I was actually disappointed when it was over.
After it ended, I quickly ran through the racks and scored some really sweet things for myself. I got a pair of brown suede boots, some awesome worn-in overalls, a cute dress, a pair of power ranger pjs for my daughter and this cool shirt.
I just loved the flames and the fabric was a slick polyester. The only problem is that it was an XXXL. My husband weighs 155lbs so it certainly wouldn't fit him. I took it home anyway because I just knew I had to make something from it. So, here is one of two aprons that I created from this shirt.
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