Vintage Square Neck Dress Upcycle

Tools and materials:

• Chalk
• Ruler
• Measuring tape
• Pins
• Seam ripper
• Scissors
• Sewing machine

Pin new side seams 

In the first step of this upcycle, I laid the dress flat and made sure it was lying as smooth as possible. I then used chalk to draw the shape for my new dress. Once I had drawn, I pinned along those lines through both layers of fabric. 

I also lined up the seams in the middle of the dress and pinned them together because I wanted everything to be in place. 

Make the square neckline

Next, I went ahead and drew the shape for my new square neckline so that I could get an idea of what it would look like. I didn’t mind the back neckline of the dress so I decided to leave that intact. I then went ahead and sewed the new side seams for the dress. 

Once that was done, I used an old dress as a template for my new neckline. I placed it on my dress and marked each side. 

I then connected those two markings with a straight line. I didn’t have a ruler on me so I made a pen work for me instead. 

I would cut from where the original neckline ended, so I marked a line down from that point on each side. 

I went ahead and measured with a tape measure to make things as equal and symmetrical as possible. 

I used scissors to cut the new neckline. I made sure that I only cut the front layer of the dress fabric.

I pinned some of the fabric I had cut off on the inside of the front of the dress so that my new neckline wouldn’t be too revealing. 

I also went ahead and seam ripped some of the shoulder seams. I would tuck the seams in and sew them again later just so that the dress would feel more firm and supportive. I folded all the raw edges of my new neckline and sewed.

Correct the side seams 

I had to go back and fix the side seams that I had sewed earlier. To correct my mistake, I folded the raw edges towards the inside, making the sides thick enough so that none of the threads would snap when I tried on the dress. 

I totally love my refashioned, square neck dress! This is the perfect look for a night out on the town! Let me know what you think about this dress upcycle in the comments!