This is so easy I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner.  Use a shirt to create a dress bodice  Take any knit shirt, crop it into a bodice, add a skirt, and BAM!  New dress with half the work.  Plus you can use tops that already have beadwork so you don't have to do any!

 

I don’t know why I haven’t thought of using a shirt to create a dress bodice before.  It’s so easy!  You can basically pick any knit top you have, crop it into a bodice, then attach a skirt, and BOOM!  You have a new dress.  I recommend doing this with black or white knit tops since the fabric will be easy to match.

Great DIY blog for clothes and refashions

I got this top at Tag’s Thrift and immediately thought of making it into a dress.  Here’s how the process went.

This is so easy I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner.  Use a shirt to create a dress bodice  Take any knit shirt, crop it into a bodice, add a skirt, and BAM!  New dress with half the work.  Plus you can use tops that already have beadwork so you don't have to do any!First,  use a shirt to create a dress bodice by cropping it with scissors.

Then, to create the skirt, I measured the width of the bodice so I could make sure to cut the waist wide enough.  I used another dress to help create the pattern.  If your knit is stretchier in one direction, make sure that’s the direction going across the waist.

Tutorial on how to create a dress from a t-shirt bodice.  Uses another dress to help create the pattern.

I only sewed one side seam of the new skirt before attaching it to the bodice.

Tutorial on how to add a skirt to an existing bodice to create a dress.

I did this so that I could create the second side seam to line up exactly with the other side seam of the bodice.

Tutorial on how to add a skirt to an existing bodice to create a new dress

Because I was working with knits, I used a ball point needle and a zig zag stitch.  This will almost always guarantee success when working with knit fabric.  Once the skirt was attached to the waistline, and the second side seam closed, I simply hemmed the dress and was done.

Voila:

Great DIY blog for clothes and refashions

Don’t want to make your own dress?  Check out these cute finds instead.

-Kara