a refashion from my nonna

taking a cue from granny chic week at C+C i pulled out my nonna's handmade dress that i had started and then put on "hold" for 2 1/2 years, back when i was starting to figure out how to sew. refashioning isn't something i'm very experienced with, and using my grandmother's dress is important to me, so i guess that's why i sat on it so long. i got scared.

i forgot to take this "before" picture before i dismantled the sleeves, but they were longer and wider. the theme of this dress was "conservative."

much to my amazement 2 1/2 years later, i did a pretty good job tailoring and waist-shaping, and when i discovered a zipper on one side, it took me a long time to realize i did that way back when. i didn't know i knew how to do that back then! not bad!

this week i finally shortened and narrowed the sleeves and hemmed the dress. the cool thing about the hem....

... is that i discovered this nifty little technique i guess my grandmother used for hems... and i got very excited because i have a box full of this type of hem tape (?) that i found when i was going through her sewing things last year, soooo....

... i thought it would be nice to pay a hidden little tribute to her dress and her sewing legacy and such, and i tried the same in purple! (although my whipstich doesn't hold a candle to hers).

thanks to Lizzie from C+C for the nudge!