It’s finally here!!! Season 31 is going to be so much fun! Our six talented designers have been working hard on their creations for the past few months and we are thrilled to finally be able to share them with YOU!
Theme
As always, each week has a different theme to inspire the designers to create something extraordinary! They are tasked with making one singular outfit for a child based on the given theme.
Refashion It!
Revamp an old item into something new! The sky’s the limit, or maybe the thrift store…
Week 1’s theme is near and dear to our hearts. We love creating upcycled and refashioned pieces for our kids. There is a level of satisfaction in turning something old and unwanted into a new, loved piece.
Week 1 Sponsor
NEW this season, we are awarding special bonus prizes for the winners of the first three weeks! It’s just a little something extra to reward them for their hard work.
Our first weekly bonus prize sponsor is:
Fat Quarter Shop carries fabrics, notions, patterns and much more, with a passion to give you the best products and service. We hope you will poke around their online shop and get to know them!
Celebrity Guest Judge
1/3 of the designer’s scores comes from a weekly celebrity guest judge. This week we are thrilled to welcome Jaleh Naasz in that role. Let’s meet her!
Jaleh Naasz is a fashion educator, designer, and program coordinator at Cañada College in Redwood City, where she teaches and leads with a focus on sustainability and student engagement. She earned a B.S. in Business Management from San Diego State University and an M.F.A. in Fashion Design from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Jaleh previously taught at Sacramento State, where she introduced a course on fashion and sustainability. She is also the founder of Isabel Azam, a youth fashion brand and camp program that has been highlighted in local press and community exhibitions. Her work reflects a commitment to accessible, inclusive, and environmentally conscious approaches to fashion, supporting students and young designers as they explore their own creative voices.
Panel of Judges
Another 1/3 of the score comes from a panel of judges who are all past Project Run and Play contestants: Alexe St-Germain, Katie Grimm, and Lakeisha Webb. This panel remains the same throughout the season and we are really thankful to them for helping us out!
All of the judges are asked to score the contestants based on these criteria:
Overall Look
Craftsmanship
Creativity
Wear-ability
All of the designs are incredible and our judges definitely have their work cut out for them! It’s a tough job!
Week 1 Designs
Now, it’s time for the main event! Check out all of these amazing designs, read the details, and cast your vote with just a simple click at the end of the post!
Jennifer – ReDRESSed
Although my overall sewing focus is with organic and natural fibers, I haven’t done much upcycling. It’s hard for me to take something whole and take it apart. But what about those heaps of clothes, moving from well-intended resale stores to landfills? So–with National Thrift Day having just passed in August, my daughter and I went straight to the last-chance clearance section at a remote northern Michigan store, loaded with beautiful fibers that just never found their homes. We saved two dresses and a purse from the landfill! A bonus point for Mother Nature! While in the store, my mind reeled with designs…utilizing the different textures to compliment each other in a stylish back-to-school style. And these dresses became…flared pants, and a custom top, with a coordinating bow-embellished crossbody bag.
The chambray dress already had flowy layers built in, so I wanted to incorporate that into the design—but with an A-line tank that I knew my daughter would wear. My daughter’s style takes precedence when I sew, so I looked through her closet for inspiration from dresses and tops that she loves, and I designed this top as the ideas merged like a poem. For the top’s straps, I wanted to include the fabric that I’d use for her flare pants, so I made a casing in the center with the patterned knit fabric and inserted elastic to achieve a bit of an artsy, ruffled touch.
I chose a dreamy sweater knit material for the pants. I didn’t realize how much I’d love the challenge of utilizing fabrics that might not seem like the perfect fiber content but create the best surprise. I used a pair of store-bought leggings that fit my daughter as reference for overall leg shape, and I drafted a flare-style pant that would fit well with the lower-stretch content of the fabric. The pants I designed just barely fit into the bodice of the women’s dress, leaving virtually no scraps and pants my daughter is crazy about.
And for the final touch—the purse! We just couldn’t leave that beautiful bag at the thrift; but it needed some love and direction. So I went on a mission to “dress it up a bit” and make it the connecting piece to the outfit. After washing off the purse, I browsed dozens of bow tutorials online and sewed a fashion bow with modest tails that would look like it was made for the handbag. A classic bow acts as more than just an accessory in this case; it projects intentionality, becoming a puzzle piece to the outfit.
I only allowed myself one thrift store, and one shopping interaction for this mission. And out of that challenge came a refashioned outfit that won’t be seeing a landfill anytime soon!
Kayla – Sunset Hearth
I was so stoked to hear that the first theme is Refashion It! I immediately got into my car and drove around town to all the thrift shops looking for the perfect things to incorporate and recreate into this week’s outfit. I first glanced around at the clothing choices that were available and then thought about looking for table cloths. I found this perfect vintage table cloth for only two dollars and knew it had to come home with me! I also found some crocheted doilies, a small bundle of pink satin fabric and some vintage jewelry. When I got home I threw it in the wash and immediately started planning the dress.
When I first saw this table cloth I immediately thought about doing a cottage core style outfit. Luckily there was minimal staining on the table cloth that I was able to cut around, leaving plenty of fabric to work with. I used Wild Seeds Pattern’s Cerise as my base for this dress because I adore the neckline. I added lace trim to the neckline and self drafted the sleeves. I added a tulip-like ruffle to the hem of the sleeve, gathered it with elastic, added matching lace to the hem, and finished it off with cute little bows. I found the cutest flower buttons on amazon that just felt like they needed to be on this dress. I self drafted a gathered skirt and added a ruffle made out of the striped boarded edges of the table cloth, keeping the original rolled hem.
My Daughter loves to wear cloaks and capes all the time so naturally I had to make one for this outfit. I found this pink fabric at the thriftstore and it matched some of the petals on the flowers of the table cloth perfectly. I used Sunflower Seams Mahonia as my base. I attached a ruffle to add to the cottage core vibe and used the two small doilies to make a collar for the caplet. I did french seams and enclosed the hem and neckline. To finish it off I made some small gathered details to the center front.
The bag is self drafted. Made with yellow quilting cotton, scraps from the table cloth for the lining and a rectangle doily for detail to the outside of the bag. To finish off the overall look I decided to use Simple Life pattern’s Sloane socks and added a ruffle to the top edge. The Hem of the dress is tea length so It looked more like tights when paired with the dress which she liked. I had so much fun with this week’s outfit!
Amanda – Sheet to Chic
When I heard that the theme for the first week was “refashion,” I was so excited! I work with a lot of vintage fabrics, so turning something old into something new is my favorite kind of sewing magic. For this week, I used a vintage cream flat sheet with an eyelet edge, an olive corduroy skirt from my own closet that wasn’t getting enough love, and a lovely vintage floral fitted sheet.
I began with the cream eyelet sheet, turning it into a blouse. I used Little Lizard King’s Oxford top as a starting place, swapped out the sleeves, and added pintucks. I wanted to maintain the scalloped edge on the eyelet portion of the sheet to use as the hem of the sleeves, and I love a puff sleeve (ask anyone who knows me!), so I used the ruffle sleeves of LLK Addison. I am a vintage girl at heart, so I knew I wanted to add some pintucks and lace to the center. The lace is vintage and is still on its original bolt (which is huge and probably has hundreds of yards). Next, I turned my old midi skirt into a fitted mini skirt for my daughter. I used Little Lizard King’s Joliette for a base and modified it to have a scalloped hem for a girly look and to echo the scalloped edge on the sleeves of the top. I maintained the original pockets from my skirt, because what girl doesn’t love pockets? I was also able to reuse the buttons.
Next is my favorite part of the entire outfit – the quilted jacket. I have been dying to attempt a quilted jacket for many years now and have always been scared off by the sheer time commitment, and it turns out I wasn’t wrong to fear that part! Many, many hours were poured into this jacket, but it was entirely worth it. The jacket was created from a vintage floral sheet and bound with yellow scraps from my scrap bin that happily happened to match the flowers in the pattern almost perfectly. I began with the Peek-a-Boo Yosemite jacket for this piece. I quilted the fabric myself and also hacked the pattern to be a skirted jacket because I am a sucker for anything girly! To complete the look, I used the scraps from the floral sheet to make an oversized bow.
This project was a true labor of love and a wonderful, creative challenge. Refashioning lets me blend my love of nostalgia with modern touches. How rewarding to turn vintage sheets & an old skirt into something playful, wearable, and completely one-of-a-kind. Take a second look at what’s already in your stash or closet, because there’s so much beauty just waiting to be reimagined!
Kimberly – Denim Metamorphosis
Who would’ve thought I could get so excited about some old pairs of pants? While cleaning out my closet recently, I found two pairs of jeans that no longer fit me and I wondered if I could refashion them into a denim jacket for my little girl. I started with the Simone pattern from Violet Field Threads to get the basic jacket shape. I split both the bodice and the back, replaced darts with seams and added yokes. I self-drafted front pockets as well as sleeve cuffs and a waistband. I took great care to overcast each seam and then topstitched them down so that the jacket could remain unlined. Lastly, I personalized the jacket with hand embroidered butterfly details to echo the metamorphosis that the jeans had undergone. I used the Papillon hand embroidery pattern from Little Lizard King for both caterpillars on the front, and I altered one of its floral butterfly designs so that the large butterfly on the back would more closely resemble one of the butterflies on the skirt fabric.
As I continued to clean out closets, I came across a skirt I had originally made for my oldest daughter 7 years ago. The skirt was sitting in a box patiently waiting for my youngest daughter to grow up (there is an 11-year age gap between my two girls). My little girl prefers dresses right now, so I decided to refashion the skirt into a dress for her. I used the Wisteria dress pattern from Peony Patterns as a base for the bodice, changing the neckline to a soft sweetheart to accent another butterfly that I hand embroidered onto the bodice. The original skirt (made from Simplicity 8106) had a pink hem band and unfortunately wasn’t long enough. To fix this, I unpicked the hem band, hemmed the skirt with single fold bias tape, and added an underskirt that has a pink ruffle at the bottom. I used the same pink fabric to make piping for the waist and a matching hairbow (which pattern is Harmony bow from Sunshine Pattern Co.) Lastly, I used the Oaklyn sleeve from VFT for a bigger flutter sleeve, which my little girl loves because she feels like the dress has wings too.
As I was making the dress and jacket, my teenage daughter became very interested in what I was doing and—you guessed it—she asked if I wanted a pair of her too-small denim Bermuda shorts. I of course said yes and decided to refashion them into a small purse. I started with the Petunia Purse pattern from Violet Field Threads, but I altered it to have no raw edges. I also altered the top flap to cover the whole purse front and self-drafted a butterfly bow to sew onto the top. The body of the butterfly (or middle of the bow) is one of the belt loops from the shorts. Additionally, I used the waistband of the shorts to make a handle for the purse.
Week one has been so fun! I know my own skills grew and took flight and I’m grateful to have this amazing opportunity to sew along with such talented sewists!
Shyra – Bloomed Anew
This look was born from a blend of personal inspiration—my love of flowers—and my daughter’s embrace of femininity. It’s a celebration of transformation, creativity, and sustainability. Both looks come from old pairs of jeans. After initially turning down due to length issues, my daughter’s pants were shortened by 3 inches, tailored the sides to eliminate the back gap, and added a playful pink lace panel and hand embroidered pocket flowers—a nod to her style and personality.
The top is a fashion corset, crafted as part of my ongoing journey to master corsetry through classes with Madalynne. Inspired by Maddie’s Simplicity Corset Pattern, this piece is fully boned and made from denim sourced at my local Goodwill. Finished with velvet ties that match the boning channels, the corset adds a sweet, cohesive detail that balances strength with femininity.
To complete the ensemble, the shoes were given a new life through a custom upcycle, tying the look together with the same spirit of reinvention and creativity that inspired the outfit. This design is not just clothing—it’s a story of repurposing, learning, and love stitched into every seam.
Brittnie – Threads of a New Tale
Welcome to Week 1 of Project Run & Play, Refashion! I couldn’t be more excited to share my creation. Upcycling is one of my favorite ways to sew, and many of my makes come from breathing new life into thrifted finds. This week’s challenge lined up perfectly with my daughter Lilly’s 9th birthday, which became the heart of my inspiration.
Lilly asked for a special birthday dress, and since she’s celebrating with a trip to the Renaissance Faire, I knew we needed something regal that reflected her color palette. Off to the thrift stores we went, and the magic started when we found the piece that would become her bodice, a beautifully detailed table runner. From there, everything else fell into place.
To complement the bodice, I created the top layer and straps using fabric from an old wrap dress, keeping the original hemline of the skirt for added interest. The middle layer of the skirt came from a gold curtain, accented with the frills from the table runner. The bottom layer is made from a simple sheet that gave it structure and flow.
For the design, I leaned on some of my favorite Little Lizard King patterns as the base. The bodice started as the Malibu pattern, which I heavily hacked by removing the straps and adding loops in the back for a crisscross tie-up closure. The skirt began as the three tiered design, but I altered the shapes and lengths of the tiers and added ruffles for more drama and movement.
The end result is a birthday dress fit for a queen, made from unlikely treasures, reimagined into something magical. Most importantly, Lilly loves it, which makes every stitch worth it.
Voting
Now comes the hard part… we are asking you to somehow choose a favorite look and click the little circle next to it in the poll below! You have until 8pm EST on Thursday 9/4/25 to cast your vote!