Fully Fashioned is a competition organized by ARTE Creative, the think tank of the Franco-German TV channel. The aim is to present and reward the best clothing upcycling, the most original refashion. By browsing the gallery you can see creative transformations, but more or less wearable. Having a sense of challenge, I start thinking of an idea, original course, but also a new garment that I could wear every day.

The spell is cast on a wide coat, bell-shaped, which I still love the fabric and color, but less the shape, too maternity-like. I was inspired by another transformation I made almost a year ago with a man’s shirt. The idea was to return the coat upside down and wear it with the old neckline at the bottom. For the coat, I had to change a few details.

Here is the original clothing:

The first thing was to remove the raglan sleeves. Fairly simple, I only needed to unpick the armholes of both coat and  lining.

It was then necessary to close the armholes.

I unpicked the old collar and stitched it at the other bottom.

Now that I had closed my old armholes, I had to make new holes in the sideseams to pass my arms. These holes are a little lower than the former armholes.

Because of the lining, the challenge was to sew it all together without showing unsightly seams. I’m not keen on hand sewing, but in this case, I admit that it was the easiest way to close the old neckline and open new armholes.

I also recycled the wrist belts to make two closures in front.

The result is a cape that can be worn with hands inside, outside or in the pockets.

Here is the new garment worn in a sunny October day.

If you enjoyed this transformation, you can vote for me on the dedicated website and discover other refashions. This is another opportunity to explore several ways to upcycle clothes. You can also participate until October 29 if it is not already done. So get your scissors, cut, sew up #FashionRules.