DIY Doggie Dress Shirt Collar

DIY Dog Collar Upcycled Dress Shirt - No Sew | The Cheerful Times

Last month my sister Rochelle adopted a new dog to live with her in her new Brooklyn studio apartment. His name is Henry and he’s a terrier mix!

Hi, Henry! Isn't he cute?
Hi, Henry! Isn’t he cute?

I had already given Rochelle an apartment-warming gift, and I obviously had to give Henry a dog-warming gift. I knew I wanted to craft him something, but there was one problem: my sister is basically the most crafty person in the world. Anything I made him, she would be able to make for him ten times better and faster.

For this reason I knew I had to keep it simple and effective.

In my internet travels I stumbled across this adorable and incredibly easy craft: “Easiest Upcycled Dog Collar Ever!” from the Sew Doggy Style blog. It was the perfect gift! My sister loves throwing parties and Henry would be such a dapper doggie host in a little collared dress shirt accessory. Plus, Rochelle is the shop owner/seamstress behind Etsy’s Brooklyn Bowtied, so he would look like such a cute little fancy man wearing a collar/bow tie combo.

DIY upcycled collared dress shirt dog collar craft | The Cheerful Times

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Collared dress shirt(s)
  • Measuring tape
  • Scissors
  • That’s literally it

I decided I wanted to make three different collars for Henry, so I rallied my beloved crafty companion Athena and went to the thrift store. Rochelle told me that Henry’s neck size is 13 inches. Because Athena’s dog is also teeny, we took a trip to the little boys’ section. Some little boy dress shirts are labeled S/M/L instead of by neck measurements, so I brought my measuring tape to double check sizes just in case.

Here are the shirts we picked out!

Athena is a wonderful model.
Athena is a wonderful model.
So exciting!
So exciting!

You have to make sure of two things when picking out shirts for this project: Continue reading “DIY Doggie Dress Shirt Collar”

Craftsicles: Monstrous Madras Shirt Refashion

While I’m horrified that it’s been since September (being a senior in college is hard work!), I’m so pleased that I finally found the time to do a new refashion! You all really liked my big, blue, and buttoned dress refashion from Labor Day weekend, so I hope you’ll like my monstrous madras shirt refashion equally as much. If I do say so myself, it’s a good one!

buttoned-shirt-refashion-crop-top
#TotesAdorbz. Fun fact: After ample research, I discovered that this print is not technically plaid nor gingham, but instead it’s called “madras.” You and I both learned something today!

I found this size “B8” beauty at Value Village for $4, which pains me because it was one of the cheapest articles of clothing I could find. My last refashion I got for mere cents in South Carolina while on vacation! Curse you, financially-inflated tri-state area. Anyway, as you can see, this little number needed some major work done.

buttoned-shirt-refashion-crop-top
Help.

My initial thought was that I would do another buttoned dress refashion. However, once I got home, I realized that the length was not what I thought it was. If I transformed it into a dress and wore it out and about, one wrong move and things would get a little… cheeky (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). Also, the loud madras pattern would most likely overwhelm the dress.

Suddenly, I thought of something even better and more fashion-forward: a CROP TOP! Continue reading “Craftsicles: Monstrous Madras Shirt Refashion”

Craftsicles: Big, Blue, and Buttoned Dress Refashion

Hello, everyone! I’m really excited to showcase my first major clothes refashioning here on The Cheerful Times blog. I’ve been working on it all Labor Day weekend, mostly because I have very limited sewing knowledge, supplies, and no sewing machine. At least hand-sewing everything gave me something to occupy my time with! Anyway, let’s get started–not just with the refashion, but with my extremely convoluted sewing journey.

The past few months I’ve really wanted to get in touch with my crafty side again.  I absolutely love thrift shopping, and following The Refashionista‘s blog inspired me to refine my sewing skills and turn things from crap to cute (sorry for stealing your line, Jenny Grumbles).

I picked up this little number from The Hospice Community Thrift Shop, a secondhand store that benefits hospice care, while I was on vacation this summer in Hilton Head, SC. I paid a whole 50 cents for it!

button-dress-refashion-before
Don’t you wish your girlfriend was hot like me?
button-dress-refashion-before
I needed to end this dress’s misery… pronto. Help!

Continue reading “Craftsicles: Big, Blue, and Buttoned Dress Refashion”