I follow several boutiques and online retailers on Instagram, and this summer, a certain style has been in heavy rotation-side slits. You see them on skirts, dresses, and now, t-shirts! Haven't seen the top I'm referring to? Here's one from retailer, sonyabee.
Now this top is $50 on their site. And I think it's cute. Simple, but cute. I like how you have the option of wearing in knotted in the front, or down, like this:
As cute as the top is, I realized that before I spend $50 on something like it, let's try and figure out a way to replicate it, because it really looks like a maxi dress with the slits cut in it. So me being the creative genius (ok, far from it, lol) that I am, I decided to..
So. I decided to go through my closet, and found a few maxi dresses that I have not worn yet. I purchased two maxi dresses from H&M last year for $5 a piece at one of their sales. I didn't really like the fit because they were very loose on me, so I figured they could be worn around the house. Perfect to experiment on. Here is the dress:
Do It Yourself ! I typed that with a game show host announcer's voice..in this case, it should be a do it myself, but you get the picture. So. I decided to go through my closet, and found a few maxi dresses that I have not worn yet. I purchased two maxi dresses from H&M last year for $5 a piece at one of their sales. I didn't really like the fit because they were very loose on me, so I figured they could be worn around the house. Perfect to experiment on. Here is the dress:
This dress already had knee length slits on each side, so it was easy to continue to snip up towards my gathered waist, along the hem. With a pair of scissors, I snipped along both hem lines of the dress and cut to the waist. Now of course you are going to encounter threads as you cut along the hem, so you can either pull those out along the way, or if you are a perfectionist, sew a new hem line along both sides of the slits. And that's pretty much it! Here are the results:
I paired it with a pair of shorts and my Zara lace up heels. You can also pair your top with pants, or use it as a swimsuit cover up. I did see a picture online of a young girl using it as a dress. Would NOT recommend that, unless you want everyone...in your business.
Now I wouldn't recommend you trying this d-I-y out on an expensive dress. I am also planning to do this again with a tube dress that I couldn't wear because it was too sheer. I found a few inexpensive dresses that you could experiment with online. As usual, click on the picture to be directed to the product's site.
Now I wouldn't recommend you trying this d-I-y out on an expensive dress. I am also planning to do this again with a tube dress that I couldn't wear because it was too sheer. I found a few inexpensive dresses that you could experiment with online. As usual, click on the picture to be directed to the product's site.
If you have a dress without hems on the side, I would suggest putting on the dress, and marking (with a bobby pin, hair clip, safety pin, or something that won't leave a mark on the dress) where you want the slits to start, and end. Take a tape measure or ruler, so that will help you cut in a straight line. I hope that can provide you with enough of a visual to help out. I can do a video, if I get requests for one. :-)