how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

Lifestyle Bazaar Talk
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Fashionistas - here is a question for you? what do you do with clothes that are no longer in style?

Other than donating what are other options to reuse or utilize these clothing…

suggestions please. Sometimes you take so much effort to get an dress made but once it gets outdated what do you do with it?

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I’d like to know too. :hinna: Maybe I’ll post pix here and let others throw suggestions? We cna do that here?

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I have remake a lot of my dresses which were not in style.
It was a success because of fashion this days.
be prepare to spend a little.
for example I have an old shirt which was very short.
bought extra fabric to make side panels and added a broad lace to increase length

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I have paired my old short shirts with plazzo pants. Looked great! people actually had the audacity to ask if I had got the dress made new or it was an old one. I told them it was new!!

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

Could you please post a pic of the dress...I am going thru my closet and realized how much money i spent on each outfit especially the ones I had custom made. It breaks my heart to just put them in a donation box. Don't' know what will become of them and its so costly to send anything to pakistan (to donate to the poor). Need inspiration to reuse or repurpose my outfits. Pics would really help.

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

what a great thread! I just went through my old suits and I cant belive how short som of my shirts are. I really don't want to donate them as they are beautiful but what else can you do with them? Plz post up some pics of your "remade" outfits.

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I have a suit and the shirt length is not extremely short, the shirt length is up to the knees. Its a straight shirt, no A-line or anything with straight pants. If I can get those sleeveless coats/gown made to wear on top of the shirt would that look ok ?

Also about the lehnga. Can I get a long plain shirt to wear on top of heavy bridal lehnga. Would that look ok or not?

Are these ideas going to work. I do not have time at all to get an entire dress made so was thinking of utilizing wedding clothes.

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I was looking thru my newsfeed on Facebook and realized that many of the straight shirts - kaliyan can be added...longer kaliyan on each side would give it a A-line style. If they are paired with wide legged pants or palazzo pants that could work. Proto, catwalk, Panache Aiman any feedback from you gals? I know you don't remake outfits and can't keep with the demands of bridal dresses but another designer should consider this.

Another thought is try pairing some different shirts with different bottoms for an all together different look. For example for many of my outfits I bought leggings and would match them up with leggings for different look. I just bought palazzo pants. Also consider getting some straight pants made to for a different look. I usually wind up pairing black pants with a lot of outfits.

Another idea would be to get a a long coat made in gold to go over many outfits. This is a lot easier for people in Pakistan.

Actually there was a reality show called Runway Designer - where aspiring designers would remake a couture outfit out of older or vintage finds.

Somebody please post pics of an outfit you put together from stuff you had in the closet or from hand me down. Would love to turn this into a challenge.

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

I took a couple of my old shorts that had a lot of pretty embroidery on them and turned them into the baby doll style shirt by adding extra fabric. I have also taken the shirts with heavy embellishment (kaam) and cut it out and added it to new fabric with a new cut. It helps that I can sew but you can also take old shirts and try cutting them in half to make it a coat. Get new undershirt with trousers and you have a new coat style outfit. Its always easier to just remove the sleeves since most people were wearing capped style back then and its hard to do anything with those sleeves but if you can get nice matching fabric you can adjust new sleeves as well. I also took some shirts and nice shalwars that I had and cut them into strips to make for a lace that I attached to plain chiffon coats that I made or had made from Pak since I like the chiffon I find there..hope that helps..

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Re: how to reuse dresses that are no longer in style

Why not start a facebook page devoted to selling, buying or trading high fashion or designer dresses that you dont want to wear bc they no longer fit (this happens to lot of us ladies), made the wrong size, the style is not flattering on your body, or Tauba Tauba You don’t want to REPEAT ANYMORE.

I started one:

I would appreciate it if somebody else could put in more effort and thought and start something for the ladies outside of Pakistan. You can start another group and ill just delete mine or become the administator. We spend some much money on these outfits and it would be shame to let them rot in our closets.

Who many of us made that OTT outfit for a close family members shadi and its just too fancy to ever wear again? I have been thinking about all the extravagant wedding dresses that are made for an event for few hours . YES the pics and memories are priceless but what happens to that wedding dress? Years ago relatives told me they would wear their wedding dresses over and over BUT its considered so distasteful and ppl think it is disrespecting the bride. Why not sell it and recoup some of your costs…just a thought.