How to Make a Mini Dress & a Crop Top Out of an Old Maxi Dress

Tools and materials:

• Long dress
• Ruler 
• Pencil
• Rotary cutter
• Pins
• Sewing machine
• Needle and thread

You can either go and thrift a long dress, as I did, or pull one out from your wardrobe, and let’s begin!

DIY mini dress

1. Shorten the dress

Mark the fabric with your desired length, for me, this was 71cm (30 inches). Draw a straight line and then cut along the line with your rotary cutter.

2. Mark and cut the slit

Mark 10cm (4 inches) up from the bottom for the slit and then cut along the line.

3. Cut the sides

Cut the sides of the dress to make it more form-fitting.

Tip: Try on the dress and pin the sides to see how much to take in.

4. Sew the side seams

Next, pin the sides of the dress and proceed to sew them together with a zig-zag stitch.

5. Make the straps

For the straps, cut out two pieces that are 3cm (1.2 inches) in width. Fold the pieces lengthways and sew them down. Then, turn the fabric.

6. Attach the straps to the dress

Mark on the dress 7cm (2.8 inches) in from either side; this is where the straps will go. Then pin the straps to the dress and hand-sew the straps on both the front and back side.

How to make a mini dress

This is the finished mini dress with a slit. It is so sexy and feminine, much better than that shapeless long dress that we started off with. This is great to wear when you’re having a night in or out with your significant other.

DIY crop top

1. Cut the straps

Start by cutting two straps that are 3cm (1.2 inches) in width.

2. Cut the top

Next, measure your desired crop top size. For me, this was 37cm (14.5 inches) at the top and 32cm (12.6 inches) at the bottom. Mark these two points and then join them together with a ruler.

Make sure your top is folded in half, so you have two layers, and proceed to cut it out.

3. Sew the top

Pin the sides and then sew them with a zig-zag stitch.

4. Hem the top

Fold and pin the top and the bottom of the top to create a hem, and then sew the fabric down using a straight stitch.

5. Sew the straps

Next, fold the two straps lengthways and pin them down.

6. Attach the straps to the top

The last step is to mark 7cm (2.8 inches) in from either side, which is where the straps will go. Then pin the straps and hand sew them on both the front and the back sides.

How to make a crop top

Here is the finished top! I love how I was able to use the material from the long maxi dress and repurpose it into not one but two new pieces.

This was a great transformation, and I’ve come away with a mini dress and a crop top that I can’t wait to wear.