Waste Not Want Not Wednesday: Pink Floral Dress to Pink Floral Skirt

A few days ago my daughter, a size 0, cleaned out her closet and brought me this very pretty size 4 dress from H&M. It was destined for my charity box, knowing it would make some young girl happy to have something so pretty...until I noticed that it had a stain on the front. Also, she had melted the ribbon trim when she'd accidentally touched it with the iron. So now I knew it wasn't suitable for giving...sigh. What to do with it? The fabric was too pretty to let go. My daughter suggested grocery bags, but I hoped to see it have a second life as clothing.

Finally, I decided to remove the ribbon and separate the bodice from the skirt. I thought the skirt wide enough that I could make a summer top from it for myself, a size 16.

Once it was detached I slipped it over my head only to decide it was too snug around the top and made me look squished. But I did discover just how much give the fabric had and decided that with very little effort I could have a bright, new skirt.

All I had to do was iron down along the old fold line and sew a quick stitch all around the top. I can't believe how much stretch it has to it! I saved the usable parts of the ribbon - heaven knows I'm always looking for nice ribbon - in my ribbon stash box. I need to check with my daughter to see if she'd like the bodice as a summer top, otherwise I'm going to scavenge it to make a nice fabric bow to cover the stain. It falls very high on the skirt and I plan to wear a long shirt with this anyway so I will be able to get away with it regardless of whether she wants the bodice or not. If she doesn't, I'll also end up with a very long pink zipper. I'm thinking it might make a fun purse. We'll see.