A friend generously gave me a gift of some clothes that are 3 sizes too big for me. They’re cute. I’d like to take them in, but I’m not sure how.
The first piece is a linen cami. The armholes are too big and there’s too much room at the sides. Seems to fit okay at the neckline.
The second piece is a linen skirt with a waistband, invisible zipper, lining and about a gazillion little pleats. It’s about 4 inches too big in the waist. It’s a loose flowy style so the extra space in the hips isn’t too much of an issue, I don’t think.
If anyone has any tips for taking these in, I’d really appreciate it.
Thanks,
Hansi
Replies
Can you take the cami apart and recut it? Or, if the sides are taken in does it raise the armscyes?The problem with the skirt is to be able to take in four inches on the waistline without distorting the pleats if you want the hip measurement as is. I'll take a pass on this one. Are the pleats permanent? If they are not there are loads of possibilities here.
Hi,
Thanks for responding to my question. I'm not sure what you mean by permanent, but they're sewn in. I don't really like them and I've thought about ripping the whole skirt apart (there's a ton of material) and making something I like out of it.
Just interested in what you see as the possibilities.
Thanks,
J
I have, on more than one occasion, taken a heavily pleated skirt (wool tartan) and removed all the stitching, resulting in a lot of fabric which was too narrow for a skirt so I turned it on it's side and made a straight skirt out of it with two pleats at the front.Am not sure if the fabric you have would lend itself to this treatment, but it certainly is one possibility.
Thank you!
Another option would be to stitch the pleats all the way down, and maybe, slash and stitch them another way to form some embellished fabric you use to make a jacket or tote, or insert it as an accent in something color coordinated.
Interesting idea! Thanks!
For the linen cami, can you recut from the bottom up? If the armholes are too big, it's easier to alter them by cutting off the top than trying to bring them in and keep the shoulders intact. An even simpler way, if it's feasible for the garment, is to put horizontal tucks across the upper bodice. This will also reduce the size of the armscyes. Take in the side seams as needed. Good luck.
Thanks for replying to my post. I'll think about what you said and maybe try one of your ideas.
J
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