We just had to pull Audrey out of retirement for a guest post this month! She has done so many great upcycles over the years and we thought it would be great to give her a chance to show them off! If you haven’t joined our upcycle challenge yet, this is sure to inspire you!
Upcycling is an old friend to me! Today I’m going to share some of my FAVORITE upcycles for kids using patterns from the Project Run & Play shop. And if you stick around to the end of the post I’ll share my very first upcycle projects for Project Run & Play! (cue embarrassment… they’re definitely some of my early work!!!)
For this post, of course I HAD to use the occasion to sew a fresh, new upcycle! The inspiring theme for this month, and an upcoming bridal shower, plus an old skirt I no longer wore was all it took.
The original maxi skirt I sewed for myself using Art Gallery Fabric voile fabric was quite a stunning pattern. I used the Sewaholic Gabriola skirt pattern which has a pieced yoke, making a lot of seam lines for an upcycle project. No problem, I grabbed the Celestial Dress pattern which already has a pieced bodice. To accentuate the new seam lines, I sandwiched lace between the seams on the front and back bodice.
The Celestial Dress has a tiered skirt, but I didn’t have quite enough fabric to create all the tiers from the existing skirt for the maxi length dress she wanted. So I modified the pattern to have a simple, full and maxi length skirt of just one piece. To add the tiered look, I topstitched on a layer of lace about 10 inches up from the hem. And of course I used the existing hem from the maxi skirt…it’s one of the great parts about upcycling!)
Finally, I used the waistband from the original maxi skirt to create a band to go around the hat. With lace gloves, it completed the bridal shower outfit to perfection…her outfit almost got more attention than the bride to be! 😉
Original voile skirt post: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2015/05/27/art-gallery-fabric-voile-gabriola-skirt-more/
Celestial Dress pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/product/celestial-dress/
Alright, now on to some of my absolute favorite upcycles for Project Run & Play. During Project Art Studio, I used a pile of jeans to sew up a Fashionista Jacket! The advantage here is that the jacket has a worn-and-lived-in look the first time she wore it.
Project Art Studio Denim fashionista jacket from jeans: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2022/11/15/project-art-studio/
Fashionista Jacket pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/product/fashionista-jean-jacket
Do you remember during Project Lounge Library when I sewed up all white clothes for my kids? And then let them have a paint fight with finger paints? (See the lookbook for the super cute before and afters!!) All their white clothes were made from upcycled items. I started with a tablecloth, white t-shirts, an XL hoodie, and a white maxi skirt and sewed up all 11 garment patterns from the collection!
Project Lounge Library white fabrics from tablecloth, t-shirts, sweater, hoodie, skirt: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2021/01/21/ode-to-eric-carle/
Project Lounge Library patterns: https://projectrunandplay.com/?s=project+lounge+library&post_type=product
Project Lounge Library lookbook: https://projectrunandplay.com/3d-flip-book/project-lounge-library-2/
For the Project Jet Set pattern collection, the kids and I wanted to “travel” to Cancun. For weeks I hunted for an embroidered garment to sew into an Overlook Raglan, creating just the right vibe for the whole photo shoot. Finally I found an XXL swiss dot women’s blouse with some bright embroidery and used it to sew an Overlook Raglan, with just enough left for a Camper Hat.
Project Jet Set Overlook Raglan from shirt: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2022/05/30/project-jet-set-in-cancun/
Overlook Raglan pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/product/overlook-raglan/
Camper Hat pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/product/camper-hat/
During Project Smooth Sorbet, one of the designers developed the David Rain Jacket pattern, and I immediately knew an upcycle was called for. While laminated fabrics are a little harder to source and very time intensive to create, shower curtains are available at every home goods store! I found a large floral patterned one, and used it to sew rain jackets for each of my girls!
Project Smooth Sorbet David Rain Jacket from shower curtains: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2021/06/04/david-rain-coat-pattern-review/
David’s Rain Jacket pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/?s=david+rain+jacket&post_type=product
Speaking of shower curtains, here is an Abby’s Ballerina Skirt I sewed from a shower curtain too.
Abby’s Skirt from shower curtain: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2020/02/25/jacky-v-t-shirt-abbys-ballerina-skirt/
Abby’s Ballerina Skirt pattern: https://projectrunandplay.com/product/ballerina-skirt/
Okay, are you ready for some oldie but goodie upcycles? These are from the archives for sure! I first discovered Project Run & Play during a Season, and this is the very first thing I linked up. It was a sweater-to-skirt upcycle I’d already sewn and blogged. If I remember correctly, it was the first time anyone ever commented on a blog post who wasn’t family! I’d found a community of fellow sewists and was in rapture!!!
1st (link up) PR&P Refashion: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2014/01/14/sweater-to-skirt-refashion-swallowed-to-sweet/
For my first actual makes for Project Run & Play, I upcycled a skirt, tablecloth, and brocade curtain for a costume for Gretl (the youngest child in Sound of Music) for the Let’s Go to the Movies theme!
1st PR&P refashion: https://skirtfixation.wordpress.com/2014/01/21/german-gretl-costume-sound-music/
Thanks for letting me share some of my favorite upcycles for Project Run & Play. Here’s to many more to come!!!
Thank you, Audrey! You have sewed so many amazing pieces over the years for Project Run and Play and we are honored to be able to continue to showcase your creativity!
Don’t forget to join in the UPCYCLE CHALLENGE this month! It’s really easy to participate!