Upcycling with Sew A Little Seam

Hey everyone! 🙂 Welcome to our upcycling event! I’m super happy and excited to be blogging as a guest for Trissa!

Pour voir cet article en français, cliquez ici.

My name is Maxine and I’ve been sewing for 3 years now. I started sewing as I wanted to have my own stylish cloth diapers without spending lot of money. I also looove to make matching clothes for me and my kids, so upcyling old clothes of a family member was just the continuity of this. Fun facts about me : I’m doing some job behind the scene to help Kelly, the designer from Sew a Little Seam, in her pattern tests. I’m a big fan of the color orange. And I can lick my own elbow.

Schedule

Day 1: Intro + Inspo
Day 2: Polo tutorial
Day 3: Juniper dress with and without collar
Day 4: Avery Apron with Scraps
Day 5: Catch up Day

First of all, let me explain what upcycling is: it’s the act of taking an old item you don’t use anymore and modifying it so it becomes something better/cuter/more useful. I’ve always enjoyed upcycling my loved one’s clothes into tiny replicas for my son. I think upcycling is so rewarding! It allows us to use a great sense of creativity (and sometimes some tetris skills to fit every pattern pieces haha). It’s also great for the environment as it reduces garbage and saves natural resources. Another great point is obviously… the low cost. There are so many sources to find items to upcycle. My mother in law sent me some old suits that her husband wasn’t wearing anymore. I’ll keep them for the day I need to make a Nathan/Grady set for my son. My friends also know I like to sew, so sometimes they send me old t-shirts too. Another great source are thrift stores. I’ve found some interesting pants that were upcycled into shorts. But clothes aren’t the only things that can be upcycled! Think about curtains and old bedsheets. There is free or cheap fabric sources everywhere if you pay attention. 🙂

But what brought me this idea of an upcycling event is that my grandmother passed away recently. I had the chance to go to her house and grab some of her skirts and blouses. I also picked two flannel pajamas that will become future Movie Night PJ for baby girl next winter. So back at my home with my treasures (oh, I forgot to mention I also had the chance to bring back her 2 sewing machines!!), I started browsing sewing groups to find inspiration to upcycle her clothes. That’s when it occurred to me that Sew A Little Seam has all the perfect patterns to realize my projects! I did it in the past already, here’s some pictures of some makes I’ve done previously using SALS patterns:

I don’t have pictures of these, but I’ve often cut sleeves that were too short to make t-shirts for my son instead. The same applies for pants! Holes at the knees? No problem! Just cut off and hem (or add some lace ribbon) to get nice shorts.

Also remember when “trashing” that good old trouser to keep the pocket bags as they will be great to make tiny ones without using good fabric. Do the same with all the unused buttons from a button up shirt (don’t forget the ones on the sleeve cuffs hehe).

So I hope you’ll find inspiration and that you’ll join us in our upcycling journey. Don’t forget there will also be some prizes to win among everyone that participate by giving old items an afterlife. Details are on the Facebook post in the Sew A Little Seam Facebook Group.

– Maxine