It's been a while since I've done written about the refashionistas, those creative, frugal fashion crafters who take older, unworn clothes and thrift-store finds, cut, paint, sew, style, and design great new functional items from them.  A gold-mine of ideas for used jeans can be found at WiseBread's post: Twenty-five Things to Do With Old Jeans by Myscha Theriault. Let's examine some of her ideas:

I missed the Craft and DIY Bird of a Feather session at BlogHer '08, or I'd be highlighting the many people who came to share their passion during that session. Instead, let's look at what's been happening in the rest of the blogosphere: Dyeabolical spent the week sewing pencil cases (can the start of school be far behind?). ARTJuNK girl believes we should Do What You Love~

Since BlogHer is this week I have planned out my outfits scrupulously...does anyone else do that? Anyway, today I pulled a new skirt out of the dry cleaning pastic to wear...as scrupulously planned. It's Calvin Klein, I got it on sale at Macy's, and I've worn it exactly once: At BlogHer Business last March. Put it on to discover the hem is completely unraveling across the front! What to do?? Changing outfits just didn't seem an option. No, I had planned to wear this, and wear it I was going to do. So I went downstairs and grabbed some Scotch tape and taped that hem.

I was going to write about sewing today. That was my plan. I've spent the weekend sewing on a purse I've been designing - ripping and redo-ing as each little problem with my no-pattern-all-in-my-head piece became apparent. It seemed logical to simply search for fellow bloggers doing the same thing. Right? Right? And it's not that folks aren't sewing and blogging about it.

The Apronista brings some of the cutest aprons evah to the web, and also thoughtfully includes recipes for cookies and cakes, just in case you want to do something useful while you stand there looking cute. Learn more about From the 'hood.

After spending part of last week updating my wardrobe for summer (what will I wear to Blogher next month?), I ended up with a pile of clothing to be refitted, refashioned and repurposed.  I still need "items" to make this a stylin' summer, but my free-time is almost as limited as my budget.  No Fear.  I found a handful of great How-Tos to make all our summer looks special.  None of these appear that they will take much in the way of time or money.

Do you remember your first crafted Mother's Day gift? Either made or received? I was about 6 when I painted and collaged the frame from a free stand-up insurance company calendar, then ripped the calendar out and replaced it with a "happy mother's day" note.  We shall ignore that the paint was the inexpensive water color found in tin boxes, the colored paper from her new magazines, and that nothing totally obliterated the insurance company advertising.  I think it was still wet when I gave it to her.

I have 2 pair of jeans that fit me. That's all.  Two pair I bought on sale at Ross because my old jeans could not be worn in public anymore without a threat of embarrassing me. When I bought these jeans, I did not spend a lot of time, thought, or cash making the decision beyond the "they fit in the waist and hips" check. 

I'm a little hard-pressed to describe BurdaStyle. It's not the sewing equivalent of Ravelry where you can show the world your sewing stash, your machines, and patterns and track your many UnFinished Objects (officially known in the crafting world as UFOs). It's more than simply a pattern company's website, where they control all the information and the reader has no connection to other users. BurdaStyle is something in between. And maybe something better.

Wardrobe Refashion has begun a new round with new pledgers. Talk about New Year's Resolutions!  Refashionistas take the pledge for 2 to 6 months, with the option of renewing their pledge when the time expires. What does this really mean, though?  This means that these pledgers will be taking the clothes they already own.. perhaps a dress that isn't in style anymore. . .and re-working it to make something that is wearable today.  That dress?  They may:

While many crafters are happy making great things and sharing them on their blogs, some creative souls feel the need to share their thoughts and projects with the world in a more physical and material way.  They create unique publications and sell them: crafty zines.  With winters weather encouraging many of us to spend longer hours indoors, perhaps one or two of these would do to inspire you.