Refashions #2: Large and Lovely Purse from Ladies’ Pencil Skirt

I am excited to show you my second up-cycling project for Lili & Mum’s! This piece is a part of our Spring 2012 Collection.

From This: To This:

My mom found this pretty skirt at a thrift shop. It is lavender with gold, pink, and blue-grey floral designs. I first thought of making a little dress out of it, but I decided to go with my mom’s idea of a purse and am so happy with how it turned out.

First, I removed the zipper and hooks and stitched it up. Then, I measured my desired length (13 inches) and marked it with pins. I removed about 6 inches or so from the bottom of the skirt, which was the amount containing the back slit. Next, I pinned the raw edges of the skirt and lining under so that the seam would be neat and sewed and reinforced the bottom seam. After I had finished the body of the purse, I started on the straps. I made the straps from the piece I removed from the bottom of the skirt. Instead of pre-determining the length of the straps, I used the whole length of the piece of fabric so that I could decide the length later. I divided it in half and made sure each strap was square. After sewing the two rectangles into two tubes, I ironed the straps flat with the seam at the back. This is when I determined the length of the straps and cut them to length. In order to keep the straps flat and neat, I tucked the ends into the tubes and sewed around the edges of the straps. Afterwards, I sewed the straps to the purse. I made sure to leave the two front belt loops unsewn so that they could be used for hanging a key chain. Lastly, I added an internal pocket using the scrap lining from the skirt.

I love how this purse turned out! It was a pretty simple project, but with such an impact!