Sweet-Ties (Sweetees)

I find that I am constantly intrigued by recycled fabrics. I can only chalk this curiosity up to the education my mom gave me growing up about good fabric and CRAP. Since she had been a self employed seamstress for many years--e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g we purchased for me to wear came with a guarenteed education on its quality. Every dress had to have a hem that "could" be let down or it had to have the potential to be changed into something else--hey money was tight and well the woman did not believe in wasting ANYTHING. Case in point, this is a photo of me in my eigth grade graduation dress. We did NOT purchase it at Laura Ashly or Macys's like most other girls I knew were doing. No--mom and I went hunting in San Francisco to all of the unlikely suspect stores--looking for the right dress. Now, I know what she was actually looking for that sunny saturday and it was not really a dress--it was a dress in the right fabric that she could do something with. We ended up finding this at a small bridal boutique on Union Street on their discount rack. It really was beautiful and it was actually a wedding dress and I was really only twelve, but it was the right style and right fabric minus the REALLY long train it once had...Here is a pic of it.

Then a few years later, I attended a dance and needed a dress. Well, it was the 90's and my mom was in real estate and there was just no extra money for a new dress. So LUCKY for me my mom(who saves EVERYTHING) pulled out the 8th grade graduation wedding gown and together we dyed it, shortened it and added a belt from one of her dresses to it(I don't know where the bows came from...or WHAT I WAS THINKING FOR THAT MATTER) Anyway, for the cost of a box of rit dye and some new panti hose--off I went with(my date Randy) to the dance in my upcycled dress. Here is a pic of Randy and I. Can you believe they are the same dress

Anyway, as I continue to sew away at my little aprons, I occasionally take time out to sew other things either for Miss Annie or do some Creative Upcyceling. So over the Christmas break I turned some ties into headbands and then I went hunting for some vintage broaches to adorn them with(that was deffinately the funnest part!) Here are the broaches I found in the gold country at an antique emporium


The toughest part of this project was deciding which broach to match with which Tie band. Each tie deffinately had its own personality--polka dots need a simple, rhinestone pin, brocade calls for some gems etc. Anyway, after making a few(one I wore christmas eve and one New Years eve) I have decided I would like to make more, but I need to iron out the tacking stitch issue. Here are some pics of the tie bands. One of my dearest and oldest friends Linda and I played beauty parlor--it was a blast and she modeled some of the Sweeties. Here are some pix of the narrow part of a mans necktie made into a headband, this one is a gold and wine stripe with a vintage gem pin




The next one was also the narrow part of the tie. This one was gold brocade. I assumed that is would pair nicely with a gold pin, but there was not contrast so Linda and I decided that the green emerald pin was a great fit.




The last headband that I made was out of the wide part of a striped tie from 1959. --I did not think I would really work, but it did. The trick is cutting the tie in half--I was trying to get three bands out of one. I think this one ended up being the most fun to make and pair a pin with. It has a small pleat or pinched bit of fabric on the side to give it a little flair. I found a pretty browns and gold leaf pin at a new antique shop in Angels--I love how it fit this ties personality.



Now, I have to put my tie project away for a while and get back to my aprons, but I am going to continue to play with the pattern and search for broaches. I think I will always have a passion for uncycling because I love the unusual fabrics I come across and I really like the challenge of figuring out what I can make. Thanks to Linda for hanging out with me(and my crazy kids too) I love ya like a sister and you looked so beautiful in every photo! I don't know whether to love ya or hate ya!