a rainy day refashion

hello grandma!

With all the craze being about "refashioning" and "upcycling" I thought I'd try my hand at it.

zipper stitching

 Let me introduce you to the grandmother style housecoat.  My mother's friend called her the other day and told her she was cleaning out her closet and we got first pick before she donated them.  One thing my mom grabbed, and I have no idea why, is this flannel housecoat.  It zips up the front, but not from the bottom.  The zipper started about a foot up from the hem.  It wasn't very well attached either.  It had been hand stitched back in for a few inches so it was obvious it had come loose at some point. There was also a gap at the bottom of the zipper that made the end up it poke out.

sleeve piping

embroidery detailing

 The top had some flowery embroidery and piping that just made it scream "old lady housecoat" and no doubt about it.   There was also piping sewn into the sleeves for some reason.  The piping was frayed and coming apart all up and down both sleeves.

I can't seem to figure out how to rotate this picture when the original is upright!

he's such a good sport!

There is an awful lot of material in one of these!  I ripped off the sleeves, harvested the zipper, and cut off the edges to make it a rectangle.  Then I found the center and cut a hole for my head.  Hem up the raw edges and voila!  A new poncho perfect for cool fall weather.  I wore it out to run errands and it was perfect for the weather...until it started raining.  I mentioned to my little prince that I wished I had a hood like he did on his sweatshirt and he simply said "make one." 

Out of the mouths of babes, eh?  So I took those harvested sleeves, removed the piping and the cuffs, opened the seams, sewed the 2 sleeves together and sewed them to the neck hole.  It kinda reminds me of a Jane Austen style costume the way it lays.  I love it, how about you?