Do you remember wearing Amy Byer? I sure do. Back in the late 80′s, early 90′s I loved those dresses. I found this white Amy Byer dress at the thrift store for a whopping $1.50 and I knew it had potential. But not as an 80′s fad, but as a sweet “grandma’s sewing nook” inspired dress. What I did not expect was how much the jacquard pattern popped once it was dyed. Fun surprise!
Basic Steps:
-Unpick crazy ruffle sleeves and finish armholes with a “bias tape facing” made from extra fabric.
-Dye dress yellow
-Dip dye dress (top down) into brown dye.
-Cut and attach collar made from thrifted, crocheted doily (the oval shape worked great).
-Hand sew vintange covered buttons.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
I put this in the highest of highs, PRETTY FANTASTIC Carrie Refashioning category.
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I completely agree!
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Twitter: babytoolkit
February 15, 2012 at 9:18 am
I LOVE how the white on white print transformed with the dyes.
You can bet I’ll be looking for these on future thrift store adventures.
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We are soul sisters when it comes to upcycling great finds! Great job!
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You rock Carrie. Your kids get the greatest things plus a gift from you that it’s good to repurpose and renew. Will you be my mommy? What’s one more?
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What a wonderful transformation! Thanks for sharing!
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Wonderful refashion! The dye job really took it to another level of creative genius. LOVE IT!
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One of your best! Love how the dye job really made this dress.
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Incredible dye job. And she looks so pretty in these pictures
Also, love her shoes!
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Wow — I would never have guessed there was a pretty pattern on the fabric before you dyed it.
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That is adorable!
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i love this!!!!!
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LOVE it – makes me wish my daughter was a dress girl.
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This dress is absolutely adorable. I want to try this for myself! Great inspiration to create something of my own. Thanks for sharing
Thursdays
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I love what you’ve done to this dress!!! Great upcycle!!!
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Yes, I wouldn’t have thought the pattern would have popped out as much either – I am very surprised at the difference. The outfit if just beautiful! Great job
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I would NEVER have picked this off the rack. IMO, the ‘before’ picture looks hideous on the form and I don’t totally love the after when it’s just hanging up. But, oh man is it cute when it’s actually on the girl! It sometimes surprises me how much of a difference in appearance it can make to put a clothing item on a real person.
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