2 Easy Clothing Upcycles: DIY Lace Trim Sweater & Ribbon Back Dress

Tools and materials:

• Old sweater
• Old basic knit dress or shirt
• Lace trim
• Satin ribbon
• No-sew glue
• Scissors
• Sewing needle and thread (optional)
• Clear nail polish

1. How to make a lace trim sweater

Turn your sweater inside out and use your no-sew glue to attach lace trim to the bottom.

Measure to determine how much lace you want showing at the bottom of the sweater and then cut and glue your lace on accordingly. Be generous with your glue, pat the lace down on it, and let it dry for 72 hours.

If you attach the lace in two pieces, one for the front and one for the back, try to make the join at the sides as tight as possible.

Upstyling an old sweater to a lace trim sweater is really that simple!

2. How to make a ribbon back dress

On the back of your plain knit dress, use fabric chalk to draw out the back scoop neckline that you want if your dress doesn’t already have one.

Cut out the scoop neck and use your fabric glue to finish the edge or sew a neckline hem if you prefer.

Cut 1½ meters (about 5 feet) of satin ribbon in half so you have 2 ribbons. 

Add glue to one end of each ribbon and glue the ribbon to the inside of the scoop neck on both sides of the dress, near the top. 

For a clean finish that won’t fray on the other ends of the ribbons, snip the ends of the ribbons on an angle and apply clear nail polish to the edge.

Tie the ribbon in a bow or a knot – whatever you prefer. You could also do exactly the same thing with an old knit pullover shirt. The satin ribbon on the back scoop neck just adds an extra little touch of charm.

DIY lace trim sweater & ribbon back dress

Try out one or both of these DIY clothing upstyles, and let me know in the comments which one you liked best!