So here's my first Fashion Remake! What did it start out as? A polka dotted hoodie that I purchased at a $2 clothing sale. The fit wasn't the greatest but I knew I could do something fun with it. The head hole was too small, and with my freakishly long arms (and I mean freakishly) the sleeves were too short. So I thought i'd make a shirt that exemplified comfort and quirkiness that could be dressed up or dressed down. After all, whether it was dressed up or down, it would still have that hoodie pocket, and girls love their pockets! Skirts with pockets, dresses with pockets, truly, anything with pockets! Nonetheless, it was a hoodie and I wanted to dress it up a little, make it fun and appropriate for a night out at the casual improv theater. I even added a fun little surprise in the back! So here was my plan...
How did I do it? First I had to work up to being brave enough to start cutting. I have a strange fear, kind of the whole measure twice cut once...I'm more of a measure 10 times then cut slowly and hope for the best kind of person! So I cut the sleeves off to my desired length, I took my seam ripper and took the elastic cuffs off the bottom of the sleeves and just sewed them on up higher. I used a serger for this so the stretch would still exist, so I could pull them over my huge biceps (okay, maybe not so much). Nonetheless, this can also be achieved using a zig zag stitch on a regular sewing machine as well. I cut off the hood and cut the neckline I wanted. I simply folded the edges over and sewed with a straight stitch. I also ended up getting rid of a little bit of the width in the belly of the sweatshirt by cutting a line straight up the middle of the back and sewing it tighter. (You can see the seam in the back view) That was pretty much it!
Last I wanted to add something a little funky. I had some gold spray paint, and many many ideas...i believe I narrowed it down to a squirrel, a jellyfish, a cooked chicken, and an octopus. Ultimately, as you can see I went with the octopus. I did second guess myself about that one, but after receiving 3 compliments on the octopus the first day I wore it...i think I made the right choice! How did I get it on there? Simple, spray paint. Now, I tried a few previous projects with spray paint and learned a few project destroying things. When spray painting with a stencil, the stencil must be truly affixed (I used contact paper), and always cover the outlying areas with something (I used newsprint), and make sure to cover ALL gaps between contact paper and newspaper! The spray paint mists through the air and gets everywhere and on everything!!! Step by step... 1) draw a stencil of the picture you want on contact paper (I chose a picture off of google and traced an outline), 2) Cut it out with an exacto knife, 3) apply the contact paper onto the shirt where you'd like it, of course it's a negative space thing (apply the sticker of the portion you don't want sprayed), 4) cover up all remaining areas of shirt, 5) Spray.
There are a few things I would definitely try differently next time. First, I did do research into the brand of gold spray paint I wanted to use and found the most metallic looking was rustoleum metallics gold. However it still didn't come out near as shiny as it did on everything surrounding it. The newsprint covering the rest of it and the contact paper all came out as though it had been dipped in pure gold, yet the octopus on the shirt came out very dull. I imagine it was because of the porous surface. Next time I would probably sponge on a white base silkscreen ink underneath the gold spray paint. Also, I think I would try using freezer paper for the stencil, and iron it on before spraying (smart people on pinterest!) The contact paper shriveled a little with the spray paint. That was it!
Pair it with some black skinnies and a pair of Royal Blue suede flats and a messy top of the head bun! So easy and comfy, and yet I still feel funky, fun, and a little bit more dressed up. The best part, I get to wear a fun flirty shirt with the comfort of a hoodie!!! That makes me smile!
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