I tend to gravitate towards the dress rack in the thrift store because there are always some great pieces to be found. The small town I go to school in is perfect for finding vintage dresses that need some therapy to look good, but have tons of potential.

I find that it is hard to write specific tutorials for redoing old clothes because every piece is different and you never know what you’re going to find, but that being said, I have lots of tips that you can mix and match based on the specific piece you find. This is my general game plan for fixing up a dress without doing major reconstruction. The best part? You can do all of these things with the tools in your DIY Toolbox!

Table of Contents

1. Look for Dresses with Great Fabric or Patterns

To start, you want to make sure that the piece you want to work with is of good quality and has aesthetic potential. Try to zero in on specific aspects of the dresses that you like and want to play up, such as the print, the shape, the color, or the neckline. Keep those aspects in mind during your whole design and reconstruction process.

The four dresses above are all finished versions of dresses I found at the thrift store and remade, and let me tell you, they are some of the most comfortable, best quality dresses that I own. I should also mention that this tutorial is geared towards pieces that already basically fit you, which are by far the easiest to work with.

2. Cut Out the Shoulder Pads and Other Unfortunate Accessories

This is always my step number one, and sometimes it’s all a dress needs to have a new lease on life. Use a seam ripper to cut the connections to the dress and volia! No more ’80s vibe. Also remove any awkward ties, straps, buttons or bows. Sometimes less is more!