Restyled Country Road Dress (2011 make)

You know the funny thing about time? Time changes people.It's been several years since I started sewing and I think I have changed a lot since the time I started creating with my Elna Sew Fun for the first time. My style has evolved and my skills have advanced (even if it's just for a little bit).Back in 2011, I shared my "vintage-inspired Country Road dress". As I proudly wrote in my original blog post, it's the 4th thing I had ever sewn. Ah those early years!Fast forward to 2018, many of the clothes I made during my first years of sewing have ended up being stored away in the dark corners of my wardrobe, neglected and forgotten. As I move towards trying to be more thoughtful and deliberate in the things that I make, I have also begun to think about all the things I have made and forgotten. Obviously, I stopped wearing these items for a reason. For example, this dress that I made back in 2011 using New Look 6824 is no longer my current size, and no longer the length that I like going for these days. Also, I didn't mention it in the original blog post, but I have always been unhappy with the way the neckline sits on my bust. The corners are kinda creased because I unknowingly clipped too much of the seam allowance away.I had a little more than 0.25m of this green+purple gingham fabric stashed away for the longest time, and one day it dawned on me that I had to do something about this little piece of fabric and this forgotten piece of work. Moreover, I needed to sew a muslin for the bodice of my modified version of the Butterick 5209 (B5209) sewing pattern for my wedding dress. If I could: a) get a "new" casual day dress of out of this, b) revive my old dress, and c) use my fabric stash - WHY NOT.So, here's how I made my old dress into a new dress:

1. Removed back centre zipper and unstitched bodice from skirt
2. Lined bra pads with fabric from old bodice
3. Make the sleeveless version of the B5209 with the remaining 0.25m of the original gingham fabric with the following modifications
   • sized down to my measurements
   • left the halter design open for addition of straps for a halter tie-back design
4. Drafted the halter straps with a coordinating purple fabric and stitched them on
5. Added the new B5209 bodice on the old New Look 6824 skirt (also resized the waist) with a side zipper and bra pads inserted - I had to make sure the bra pads were lined because the gingham cotton is kinda sheer
6. Chopped off a portion of the bottom of the skirt and added a short width of the coordinating purple fabric to lengthen the skirt

And that's it! I thought I had more photos of the process taken but somehow I didn't have them saved on my phone. I think everyone enjoyed the process photos in the last blog post so I will make sure I have the process photos taken for easier visualisation in the future!I really think adding straps for a halter back-tie design is a great hack for the 1950's style Retro Butterick 5209 pattern. You can also try adding a tapered pencil skirt or a quarter skirt like I did for this dress for several different looks!Let me know what you think about this simple refashioned project. Also, how does everyone else cope with the handmade items that you have "grown out of" (either size-wise or style-wise)?