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Hello! I'm Suzannah, a serious DIYer and mom of two little ones. Follow along with my DIY fixer upper house renovations, sewing and crafty projects, real food recipes, and de-stressing goals.
I believe you can love your home just the way it is, AND have the power to design and make big changes to make it better.
I'm also the author of DIY Wardrobe Makeovers!

Pretty lace and tee-into-tank makeover

So, obvs, lace is totally in these days and is all over the place.  But it's so hard to find lace at the fabric store that isn't super scratchy, and it's nice to have something more delicate for just a top.

I had this shirt from Charlotte Russe last winter (I think I paid $5 for it... weird sleeves. I wore it once) that was on the way to Goodwill, but I saved it because of the lovely lace!


Nice, eh?  But even when I wore it it was kind of awkward to know what to wear under it.  Black tank top?  I guess, but what if it gets crooked... not the easiest to wear.  But I knew I could turn it into its own tank top!  You know the kind I'm talking about, right?  Like this one from Banana Republic.


So I pulled out an old tee (I did't have any tanks I didn't want) from Forever 21 that was getting kind of old-looking, and combined the two.

I cut the lace top into a tank shape and overlayed it on the tee.  I used a mannequin from my mom's studio, which was really helpful.  I don't have a mannequin but for something like this it's almost a requirement!

I pinned and then zig-zagged the lace tank shape onto the tee.


Then I trimmed away the tee in the same shape, and used some FOE (fold-over elastic) to finish the edges.  It's really good stuff for when you need a smooth, slightly shiny finish that doesn't look too clunky or homemade--and it's way easier than doing a narrow bias band or something! **see comments for where to buy!


I think it turned out really well!  I'm looking forward to wearing it, not sure quite how yet... I'm thinking with a skirt!  What do you think?

22 comments

  1. Cute! I remember seeing that shirt last year but I also didn't like the sleeves. Maybe I should've gotten it to do this!

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  2. IT LOOKS AMAZING!!! I just found your blog and am hooked.

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  3. Anonymous1/16/2012

    Pretty! The contrasting tee underneath really shows the nice lace. Is foldover elastic available in most fabric stores?

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  4. So gorgeous and modern flapper-y. I have a couple of lace things languishing in my closet that I might actually wear if I went this route with them...

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  5. Love this! I have a similar black sheer top with weird sleeves like that. I may have to do the same thing!

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  6. Anonymous1/16/2012

    I've been eyeing that exact lace fabric from an etsy seller. They have it in white too.

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  7. Wow, beautiful!!! Do you purchase your fold-over elastic online or locally? If online, do you mind sharing where? I'd like to try it on a project I have in mind...

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  8. Great refashioning! I wish there were better sources for foldover elastic in my area.

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  9. Thanks, ladies!

    Great question on the FOE... it was hard to find, but I ended up finding some at Mill End in Beaverton, although I'm sure the huge one in Milwaukie has it too. I've also seen it at Bolt on Alberta, although not in many colors. I'm sure you can get it online somewhere, too!

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  10. ah, that looks great! So so so much better than the original.

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  11. Gorgeous! It would be lovely with a skirt, I'd wear it with jeans too.

    FOE is great to work with once you get the hang of it. I used it to make cloth nappies with, it's readily available online from cloth nappy materials websites.

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  12. Great save on this top - you will wear it heaps now...

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  13. Looks fabulous, and way to go on reusing what you have!

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  14. A tip: if you have a Hobby Lobby, and your HL has a cloth diaper section, there's fold over elastic there. Mine just got their CD section in the fall. Obviously the colors run toward pastel baby shades, but it's a place to look! (Oh, and great refashioning!)

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  15. I'd wear it with skinny jeans, heels, and a slim jacket! leather, or perhaps a jean jacket with black pants.

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  16. Your ideas are genius! I have sooo many shirts with weird sleeves. Duplicating this will help them work under a structured jacket :) running to closet!

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  17. Great tips and outfit ideas, ladies!! I was also thinking structured jacket would be cute!

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  18. Such a great idea! I have a lot of sheer and lace tops that I don't wear but now I know what to do with them.

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  19. This is really cute! I found this on Pinterest and just had to see how it was done. Thank you for the tutorial! I like Laura's idea about the skinny jeans and leather jacket..

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  20. Love this! This is really beautiful!

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  21. Christa2/20/2013

    That is adorable! I have found some really great lace shirts at the Goodwill that I want to transform into something and this is a great idea! You are a genious and I love your ideas!

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