Changing Your Clothes

Shopping, Sewing, Upcycling, Repairing: Make the most of your clothes!

Category Archives: General

Whatever doesn’t fit easily into one of the other categories!


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Fresh from Fashion Week: Multimedia Looks!

I just got this link from Shopbop. It’s a slideshow of some amazing multimedia effects, creative combinations of textures, colors, and silhouettes. Yes, these are high-fashion looks, so I send this along primarily as inspiration— just think about incorporating a single idea from these total looks.

For example, in the first photo (the model with the golden statue, below; clicking on the photo will take you directly to this page of the slideshow), maybe you love the idea of the sky-high burnished-gold boots, but simply don’t get how you can work them (let alone the entire outfit) into your pick-up-the-kids-stop-for-groceries-make-dinner days. Try applying the concept instead: glimmering bronze-finish statement earrings, or perhaps a great belt with a big, gleaming golden buckle.

Gold Boots, via Shopbop Via Shopbop: One of the multimedia looks in this inspiring slideshow. Continue reading →


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Santa Fe Wardrobe: P.S.

As a follow-up to my Santa Fe wardrobe follow-up, I thought you might be interested in a few stats about my Santa Fe travel wardrobe:

1. Out of the 9 main items I packed (not counting swimsuit, sleepwear, etc.), I made 6 of them myself:

a. The deep olive green silk twill Origami skirt;

b. The pale sage green wide-legged linen trousers with deep taupe herringbone racing stripes;

c. The print silk crepe de chine one-shouldered tunic;

d. The cap-sleeved sage-and-lavender-print knit top;

e. The print jersey V-neck dress;

f. The hand-knitted one-sleeved entrelac wrap (also my original design)

(The ones I did not make are the jeans, teal knit top, and asymmetrical print top.)

2. The only things I bought specifically for this wardrobe were the following (everything else I already had, including sewing patterns):

a. Fabrics for the linen trousers and cap-sleeved knit top;

b. The jeans

(I also bought the pewter jersey to line the bronze dress, which ultimately did not make it into my suitcase for this trip. All other fabrics came from my stash.) Continue reading →


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Santa Fe Wardrobe: A Post-Trip Review

Now that I’m back from Santa Fe, I realize that I need to follow up on my previous posts about creating my travel wardrobe for this trip. (See the following if you want to catch up: Santa Fe Travel Wardrobe: Color Palette, and The Fabrics & Projects. I also posted ideas for shopping for this wardrobe: Shopping! and Shopping 2: $49.95 or Less! Meanwhile, I’ll get all these photos ready to show you.)

Honestly, I’m a bit surprised that my actual travel wardrobe turned out almost exactly as I planned it; I’ll give more details about the changes as we go. First, here are photos of the pieces I packed: tops, bottoms, dress.

The Tops The tops; it’s unusual for me to wear prints at all, so you can see I’m trying to push myself! (I made the one-shouldered silk tunic and the sage and lavender cap-sleeve knit top.) Continue reading →


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Closet Makeover Ideas, courtesy of Real Simple

Look what came into my e-mail box this morning: Loads of closet-transforming ideas from Real Simple! From using the proper hangers to space-saving tricks for tiny closets, here are 31 fantastic strategies for your best closet ever!

What are your favorite tips for keeping your closet under control?

Add a Shoe Platform

Closet tip: Add a shoe platform! (Click on this picture to go directly to this tip at Real Simple.)


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Is it just me, or is it my clothes?

I’ve been reflecting on the notion of clothes making us look fat. And it’s my conclusion that, when we see “flaws” in the mirror, it’s a lot more likely to be an issue of poorly-fitting clothes than anything else. Think about it: it’s only when garments are too small, for example in the waist, that our bodies appear to be distorted. But that’s because of the garments, not our bodies!

I’m a big fan of the TLC show What Not To Wear, for a number of reasons. First, it’s not just a makeover in the sense that Stacy and Clinton simply swoop in and re-outfit the makeover-ee (is that a word?); lessons that frequently amount to more than just sartorial therapy are taught so that the contributor (as they’re referred to on the show) goes home with much more than a new wardrobe— they depart with more confidence, better shopping skills, and a positive view of themselves. Continue reading →


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Changing Your Closet: What System Works?

Closet confession #1 (yes, there will be more): I reorganize my clothes regularly, partly to remove the things that no longer work for me, but mostly in an attempt to find the perfect system. Care to make a guess as to my success rate?

The way I’ve generally organized my closet in the past has been by type, i.e. skirts together, dresses together, etc. Here’s how my wardrobe (at least the parts that hang) looked using this plan:

My Closet, Organized by Item Type

My clothes (the hanging ones), grouped according to item type.

Continue reading →


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The Accidental Shopper

Today, on my way from one errand to another, I decided to take a different route. (This is common for me.) Well into this exploratory drive, I realized I was going to go more or less right past one of my favorite fabric stores in Portland: Mill End Store, which announces itself as having the largest display of fabrics in America. (I’ve been there. I believe them. How did I get so lucky as to end up in this city??) So, natch, I decided to pop in.

Now, since I hadn’t planned a fabric-shopping foray, not to mention that I had just been in this shop a little over a week ago (and I had purchased plenty of impulse items then, thank you very much), I had no shopping list, no plan, no agenda. Dangerous stuff for a fabric lover. The only decision I made before entering was that I would act as if I was there for the very first time, and simply browse. (This is something I usually avoid like the proverbial plague, since it frequently leads to the aforementioned impulse purchases.) Continue reading →


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Calling all clothes lovers!

You and your clothes… it’s a love/hate relationship. You love the way a dress looks, but not the way it fits. Or the color of a sweater is fantastic, but the neckline just looks wrong. Maybe you’ve found an amazing skirt at your favorite thrift store, but it has a noticeable stain in an awkward spot. What’s a clothes-loving girl to do?

Changing Your Clothes is all about discovering the creative possibilities that already exist, right in your own closet! Everything I post here is my own projects, the solutions I find to my real-life clothes quandaries. (And I have a lot of those.) Follow my fashion-filled adventures as I alter, repair, knit, sew, recycle, reimagine, and reinvent my own wardrobe!

It’s about time to change your clothes— and love them all over again!