What I'm Wearing: Jewel tones

Cardigan: Modcloth

Skirt: Vintage, refashioned by me

Sweatercoat: Anthropologie

Tank: Old Navy

Tights: Hue

Shoes: Modcloth

Necklace: from Tom's Gifts, in Binghamton

I dug this skirt up from the bottom of a big, cardboard SALE! box in my favorite vintage store. It was very long, and very tapered, and five dollars. Not surprisingly, I brought it home. The allure of a beautiful vintage velvet skirt (even a too-small vintage velvet skirt) was too strong to resist. Even I couldn't make it wear-able, I reasoned, the fabric would be fun to use in other projects. And, lest we forget, it was only five dollars.

This story had a very happy ending. I removed the zipper, cut off the waistband, opened the side seams, measured about eighteen inches up from the original hemline, said a brief little prayer, and cut. Re-inserted the zipper. Sewed the side seams back together. Made a facing from some turquoise satin I had on hand, clipped my threads and wiggled into my new favorite skirt.

I love refashions like this, because I really hate hemming. Anyone else? Hemming is such a fussy, time-consuming and completely unavoidable process that doesn't yield great rewards at the end. "Borrowing" the original hem of this skirt, even though I changed every other thing, made me feel sneaky and clever, not unlike a wily fox.

A skirt-wearing fox. So be it. Though velvet is definitely a fall-ish fabric, this skirt is going to get some summer wear.