Posh Swaps Blog

What do you do with your beautiful wedding dress once your big day is over? You are very unlikely to wear it again, so why box it up and leave it in the attic to get moth eaten? Here are our favourite ideas for a second hand or worn wedding dress.

1. Dye it, shorten and make it into a prom dress, evening dress or cocktail dress

2. Make it into a christening dress

3. Make it into some gorgeous undies, a camisole or a baby doll nightie.

4. Make it to pretty cusion covers.

5. Use it to decorate a photograph album

6. Sell it on posh-swaps.com

7. Swap it for something completely different on Posh-swaps.com

8. Make it into Christmas tree decorations.

9. Make it into bautiful dolls clothes which you can give as presents to any little girls in your family or sell.

10. Do a good deed and donate it to charity.

For more great ideas on recycling wedding dresses, see this e how video by Julie Barbee of Frocky Jack Morgan.

picture from Flickr

I am pleased to announce that today is the launch of Posh-swaps.com, a place to swap, buy and sell second hand, vintage and reworked, recycled clothes for free including mens, womens and childrens, designer and high street clothes. Swapping, buying and selling second hand clothes has to be the ultimate alternative to guilt free shopping, it is eco friendly and frugal!

Please join us for  a celebratory glass of vintage champagne (virtual of course).

With the manufacture of clothes having a huge impact on the environment, clothes swapping is a great way to refresh your wardrobe in a sustainable way. I hope that posh-swaps.com will also become a vibrant market place for new creations made from second hand and recycled clothes. So if you have creative flair why not try making and selling some of your creations on posh-swaps.com.

I have had a bit of a clear out and listed a few of my own items to get the ball rolling.

• A cream chiffon dress
• A black floral embroidered playsuit
• A navy striped blazer
• A cream linen maternity dress
• A black floral skirt
• Black high heel boots

Happy Swapping!

picture from www.craftstylish.com

How to update an 80’s Prom dress - Threadbanger

This post gives detailed instructions on how to restyle an old prom dress so that it looks really up to date. It also allows a bit of your own creativity for a completely unique prom dress. A great idea if you hahen be ve an old dress packed up in the attic, I also wondered whether this could be applied to an old or second hand wedding dress that could dyed to make a very special prom dress.

a Shrug and Skirt Set out of an Old Sweater - Threadbanger

This is a great way to restyle a sweater. The skirt looks quite short but would look good worn with leggings. The shrug would look great with a vest top or a dress.

Board Shorts out of an old suit - Threadbanger

I love this idea, it could also be adapted to use a floral material, or whatever material you like for some different tailored shorts for the office.

A recycled necktie scarf - Craft Stylish

A great way t recycle old silk ties into a gorgeous scarf. You can pick the patterns / colours for the look that you would like to achieve.

Refashion a boring cardigan - Craft Stylish

This shows how to get a plain and boring cardigan and make it into something really different and unique. I love the colours of the cardigan.

Refashioned Blouse - this mama makes stuff

a great way to turn a shapeless blouse into a more fitted style and adjust the sleeves. This post shows how you can change or customise something if you don’t like it.

Refashioned denim skirt - Burda Style

Add new life to a denim skirt. The frills and paint give it a really up to date and cutting edge feel.

Vintage Lace Tank Top - Into the fray

Yet another great idea for making something very ordinary look special. I love the lace used on this one but you could use whatever trim you like.

Embroidered Hoody - Burda Style

A great way to recycle an old hoody. Again this technique could be used for all sorts of things including t shirts and polo shirts. You can really get creative.

Recycle old jeans into sandals - Wikihow

This video made by the thegreengirls.com shows you exactly what to do to make your old jeans into sandals. A great idea for  an old pair of jeans that has worn out and is no longer wearable.

If you get easily bored of your clothes, join the club. After wearing a particular uniform for a whole season, I am often sick of the sight of it. Even though it is still in perfectly good condition (usually) and not out of fashion. I suppose this is why many people resort to fast fashion for a quick retail fix and a wardrobe refresh.

But I am becoming more and more determined to stick my principles of avoiding fast fashion and  opting for better quality clothes that will not go out of fashion. The problem with spending more money on an item of clothing is that it usually makes me less likely to take risks and instead I always end up with the safe options.

The Solution is clothes swapping. I get the best of both world, a new look with quality clothes, which I find looks much better than cheap clothes anyway. But because I have not spent so  much money, I am more inclined to try out new looks and have a bit of fun with what I am wearing. If the look doesn’t work or I don’t feel great in it, I can always swap it for something else.

I am loving all of the creative and innovative ways that designers are finding to create somthing new from something old. I have just discovered LauraLaura an exciting and affordable new label. It is created by London based designer Laura Hearn. Combining classic styling with vintage twists, LauraLaura’s range of knitwear and accessories is fashion with a conscience - all created from unwanted items.

Born out of a love of trawling car boot sales and markets, LauraLaura is a reaction to disposable fashion - pieces that can be treasured beyond a single season and that breathe new life into otherwise redundant objects.new from old, re-working the unwanted to create captivating clothing and accessories.They source the best second-hand knitwear (always 100% wool) to hand embroider with our thoughts and create unique accessories from the forgotten; fabric remnants wrap old bangles and odd buttons become adorable earrings.

Every piece is truly unique, and with the right care can be treasured for years to come

” Fashion Fades, Style is Eternal’ This well known quote by Yves St Laurent, one of the most celebrated and influential designers of the last 20 years, is so true. You don’t need to be fashionable to be stylish and being fashionable certainly doesn’t mean that you are stylish. Real style is timeless and that is precisely why pieces by key designers like Yves St Laurent are often worth as much and more many years after they were first designed and constructed.

This quote is a great way to explain why you can get such a stylish look by swapping and buying second hand clothes. But it is not just designer clothes like those by Yves St Laurent that are timelessly stylish, there are also clothes made more recently by high street shops that can be considered timeless and classic.  The best vintage and second hand clothing is carefully picked out by a process of stylish natural selection. Usually, it is the most stylish and quality pieces of clothing that stand the test of time. The pieces that were only desirable in the first place because they were the latest fashion are more than likely to fall by the wayside.

picture from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yves_Saint_Laurent_(designer)

13 May 2009 20:00

Venue: Harrison’s Bar, 15 - 19 Bedford Hill, Balham

We had a fabulous first SWish at Harrison’s in March…some gorgeous gear and everyone went home with a huge smile on their faces!

This SWish is all about getting ready for the summer…holidays, weddings, balls and sun-kissed days out. Have a rummaged through your summer wardrobe and select 5 itmes that you don’t think you are going to wear this summer: clothes, hats, shoes, maybe some sunglasses? Bring them along and swap them for some fresh items which will make you look gorgeous and glam this summer.

As ever, show some SWishing respect and make sure your items are good quality and super-clean.

Harrison’s Bar is a fab venue with the bar downstairs just built for swishing with its wall-to-wall mirrors and private changing room.

To give things an extra WOW factor, Becky, personal stylist and co-founder of Balham Bou, Balham’s leading home of fashion (as featured on Mary, Queen of Shops) will be on hand to help you select the items which look gorgeous on you and tips on how to accessorise your new finds. There will also be some fabulous surprises on the night, all courtesy of Balham Bou.

Please drop your items off at 8pm and then relax with a drink from Harrison’s cocktail menu whilst we organise the items so they are easy to swish through.

We’ll invite you to browse and try on the items at 8.30 pm for 20 minutes when we’ll start the first swishing round…any lusted after items will be put into a raffle to make things fair and square.

Entry is £5 on the night, cash no cards please.

Please contact Jo to reserve your place or ask any questions. We reached capacity last time so do book early!

Everyone’s welcome, we’re looking forward to another brilliant swishing event in Balham!
Email: comeswishing@yahoo.co.uk

14 May 2009 19:00

Venue: Unit 3 Church Lane Estate, Church Lane, Plumers Plain, Horsham, Sussex

All item to be dropped off between 10-12 on Weds 13th May. Swish doors open at 6pm on Thursday 14th, with Swish starting at 7pm.
Cost is £10 a ticket, which includes drinks and nibbles

Email: katrina@truecoloursinteriors.co.uk

Alternative Fashion Week is produced and presented by Alternative Arts and this year will be held on 20-24th April at Spitalfields London. Alternative Fashion week as the name suggests is different to other fashion weeks. It is open to everyone and free to designers to enter. It has an amazing atmosphere with 15 shows each day held in the vibrant fashion market.

Alternative Fashion Week has strong environmental concerns and actively encourages designers to use recycled and ethical materials. The number of ethical and eco designers increases each year. This years eco friendly and recycled collections include:

Laura Booty Cherished possessions, discarded nick-knacks, unwanted rubbish create glamorous dresses

Colchester School of Art & Design Recycling & reworking garments for men over 60

Cooltan Arts ‘Make Do and Mend’ collection of customised recycled clothing

Holly Dutton Bobbie’s Boutique Nostalgic collection using organic cottons, hemp and bamboo

Lu Firth Precious Mary Tailor made pieces using recycled materials

picture Laura Booty from www.fuk.co.uk

This week it really feels like spring has sprung. So time to cheer yourselves up with some very stylish second hand outfits.

Our first outfit from Karla of Karla’s Bonanza shows how to do second hand classic style. At second hand prices you can afford to be uncompromising about quality and Karla has managed to find some great quality pieces.

Thrifted: 100% Wool Jacket, made in Italy (it’s actually a knit, comfy and beautifully constructed): $10
Brown leather clutch (also beautifully constructed, with a clip inside for your keys, and other wonderful design details) $5

This lovely jumpsuit worn by Mai Le, is living proof that fashions come and go. What is out of fashion one year will be back in again another. This photo is from Mai’s photo stream on Flickr, she also has a great blog http://fashioni.st/.

sunglasses: bought on st. laurent
jumpsuit: $3.99 community thriftstore in montreal
black leather belt: $1 value village in montreal
leather peep toes: brand = bay club, $1 at community thriftstore in montreal