Paganoonoo Upcycle Sewing Pattern - The Carol Jacket

Paganoonoo released an upcycling pattern

Based on a classic Japanese field coat, or Hanten, this versatile unlined unisex jacket has instructions for 2 formats:  1) upcycled from dress shirts or 2) from denim jeans.  It's also easy to use with vintage linens, and cutter quilts.

What is different about this design vs. typical Paganoonoo designs?  It is an actual pattern - printed PDF - you print tiled on your home printer – or – send to the print shop vs. deconstruction and reconstruction instructions.

Why?

With the Carol jacket you are cutting apart the starting garments to make color-blocked "fabric" that is then used to cut out each pattern piece. 

You decide how to distribute the shades & colors: light/med/dark.

Denim Versions:

Here I am modeling my version of the jacket made in jeans:

Pattern Tester Marcia Mitchell made a multicolored denim version with large appliques and decorative ribbon.

Pattern Tester Kathleen O'Brien chose to add her embellishment to the front band and carried the original leather label forward to adorn a pocket.
The sleeves on the denim version are wider than the dress shirt.  This is to comfortably accommodate a sweater underneath without feeling constricted. 

Dress Shirts:

Pattern tester Lucy Sisson chose dress shirts in a muted palette of lavender shades.  Note that the dress shirt sleeves are used to make the jacket sleeves and the sleeve cuffs make the jacket cuffs.

Pattern tester Laura Fairchild also made her jacket from dress shirts but chose a bold palette.  It reminds me of Amish quilts.

Vintage Linens
Made with mid-century tablecloths.

Quilted and Mixed Textile Version

Perfect for any season, suitable for advanced beginners and intermediate sewists.  The possibilities are endless. Make your own version today!  Purchase in Paganoonoo's Etsy shop.

For a more in-depth overview watch this

YouTube introduction.

Introducing Noor Bchara and the Upcycle Design School

Noor and I have been following each other online and recently connected. It turns out we have complimentary businesses in that I design upcycled clothing that can be used to make small batch production and Noor's school is for folks who would like to know how to start an upcycled fashion business.

I will be doing a free zoom meeting with Noor on Thursday June 17, at 10:00. I will cover general info about Paganoonoo, have a video trunk show and a demo on how to make the Ashlee. register here

I'll let Noor explain more about her business...

Hi, I’m Noor Bchara

I am the founder of Upcycle Design School where I offer on-demand video classes specializing in the scalability of upcycling and repurposing. I’m also an adjunct professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City where I teach about Upcycling and Repurposed design. My goal as a designer is to keep as many garments out of landfills as possible. 

PURPOSE OF BUSINESS 

Upcycle Design School’s mission is to provide inspiration, knowledge and community to our fellow

creatives around the world. It's about sharing resources, ideas, materials and

inspiration about upcycled fashion. 

OUTLINE OF COURSE AND RESOURCES

Upcycle Design Masterclass is about the opportunities and challenges of building an upcycled apparel or accessories brand. As the concept of upcycling gains popularity worldwide, I created this class to demonstrate how to successfully launch and scale an upcycled apparel or accessories brand, based on my own experience of founding NOORISM, a repurposed denim brand and teaching about Upcycling at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.

This course promises to give you the tools to successfully launch and scale your idea for an upcycled apparel or accessories brand.

I made a lot of mistakes when I first started NOORISM, so I created this class to help others avoid making those same mistakes I did. Upcycle Design Masterclass is designed to teach people how to take their upcycled idea and turn it into a real business that can scale and grow. 

It consists of 4 modules of on-demand video lessons along with access to bonus reading materials, worksheets and templates.

Module 1: TERMINOLOGY AND INDUSTRY LANDSCAPE

Module 2: SOURCING RESOURCES AND MATERIALS

Module 3: SCALING AND STREAMLINING PRODUCTION

Module 4: BRANDING AN UPCYCLED PRODUCT OR BUSINESS

Video Tour: https://youtu.be/mZ-d9yvvj_o

TESTIMONIALS

"Noor is truly the queen of upcycling! She has taught me so much about how to be resourceful and find the most efficient ways to create new garments from recycled materials. She has a ton of knowledge about the fashion industry and garment production and has dared to approach it in a more sustainable way with her brand NOORISM. She has also constantly encouraged me to think big and be a savvy business woman. She is an incredible innovator, and a great mentor to have!”

Aly Reinert, Founder/Designer, The Untrend Shop

@theuntrendshop

theuntrendshop.com

"Before this class I had no idea where I was going with my upcycling business, now I have a purpose and direction to take it in. Noor was very supportive of everyone's ideas while still being realistic and providing helpful critiques."

Eileen O'Brien, Designer, Renew Embroidery

@renewembroidery

"Noor's in-depth approach to upcycling, both through her brand and her courses, is thorough, original, thoughtful and comprehensive. She takes into account not only the raw materials she carefully selects but also the production methods and how to consciously scale sourcing and manufacturing, a challenge when it comes to upcycling. Her course is a must for anyone interested in building a business focused on upcycled design and can be applied to fields outside of the fashion industry even."

Tara St James, Designer/Consultant, Study NY & Re:Source

@studyny

study-ny.com

LINKS

https://www.upcycledesignschool.com/free-guide

Upcycledesignschool.com

IG: @upcycledesignschool

info@upcycledesignschool.com 

Paganoonoo Upcycled Jeans and Belt Bag Class Online $35

 I love to upcycle jeans. 

They are well constructed, age beautifully and are plentiful.  Leather belts are also easy to find at thrift stores. A few years ago I decided to pair the two into crossbody bags.  

I wear them just about every time I go out, especially for shopping and travel.  People are fascinated and we end up discussing upcycling fashion and the possibilities. 

I realized the bags would make great gifts or projects for home sewists.  The bags can be plain & rugged, or embellished, are unisex, useful for all types of people, and are sturdy, lasting a long time.

The possibility to create something uniquely yours is endless.  These bags are the perfect palette for experimentation.

The great news...

I created an online bag making class that covers:

- how to sew starting with denim jeans

- selecting the best type of jeans and belts 

- how to plan and construct the bag 

- how to attach the belt

- the best time to add any embellishment 

- embellishment inspirations

- how to care for the bag

Best news yet - it is only $35 for 45 minutes of instruction! You can watch and work at your own pace.  Get started making your own bags now.

Happy Upcycling! 

Michelle Paganini

Simple Gifts From Vintage Linens

 Sweet simple gifts are easily made from vintage linens (not being used otherwise!). Those unused dresser scarves made great bags for shoe storage when traveling, ...

or laundry bags, or small bags for misc. goods.

I can tell you from experience that opening up your luggage on the other end of a trip and finding something like this is a welcome sight. 

Of course these could also be used as gift bags, or given as a set of gift bags.  I've found numerous uses for mine.  Hostess gift?  Yes please.

The ties have been made with cashmere yarn, t-shirt yarn, and ribbon. 

Most of these bags are made with minimal sewing with just a few straight lines of stitches. If you have been wondering what to do with (non precious) family linens perhaps these will inspire.

I hope you are well, healthy, happy or getting the support you need to deal with life's inevitable ups and downs.  

Michelle

P. S. to see more gift ideas and other upcycling tips you can enroll in my free upcycle sewing tips class:

https://paganoonoo-upcycle-sewing.teachable.com/courses

Upcycled Duster Made From Men’s Dress Shirts

 #duster, #cottagecore, #grandmacore, #cowgirlstyle, #prairiestyle

Recently I used my Paganoonoo Michelle upcycle sewing tutorial to make a duster entirely out of men's dress shirts. No pattern needed, just cut up the shirts and reassemble according to the instructions  

I’d originally made it as a dress. With a few changes and paired with my overalls it became a duster.    

It had turned out too long in the front, so I ruched the front section even with the back hem.  I liked the effect, but now my knees showed and I prefer a longer garment..

I added some vintage lace that was donated by friend, yards and yards of it. About 2" long, it added just what I needed.  I had cut the sleeves down earlier and they were awkward - not short but not ¾ length.  I added lace to the sleeves as well to solve the problem and tie in the hemline.

The best part of this design is the very long pockets made from inverted sleeves.

* BTW the lace had become discolored and yellowed with age. A trick I learned is to soak it in Oxiclean overnight, starting with hot or boiling water.  Worked super well. Use Oxiclean sparingly as it can make the fabric brittle.  

I think this would look really great made in all chambray shirts so it look like a denim duster.

Get started making your own version today – purchase the PDF tutorial from the Paganoonoo Etsy store.

Suitable for intermediate sewists.

Happy Upcycling!

Michelle

Nylon Nightgown Repaired With Cashmere - Michelle Paganini

I just repaired a thrifted nightgown with a patch made from a moth-hole-riddled cashmere scarf.  It started  as a small hole which I ignored. It grew. And grew.  Soon it was more than 12" long, and then a second hole appeared. Although the nightgown was a favorite, I set it aside, thinking it was done.Then I looked at similar nightgowns on eBay.  First of all the color and style were difficult to find and seemed to be quite expensive (for my preferences). Hmmm.

 

I thought of repairing the gown, but with what?  Silk? Hmmm, slippery.

Then my friend Antoinette at Happy Dragon Thrift Shop rescued a moth-hole riddled scarf from going into the rag bin and saved it for me.  She knows that any cashmere, no matter how damaged, I will use. 

I washed the scarf in hot water and dried it in a hot dryer.  I cut out a section and laid it on my ironing board.  I layered the nightgown on top.  Bonus - very little slipping.  Some light pinning and I started to hand stitch. 

 

The long edges of the nightgown's hole curled under, so stitched down quite nicely. There was one hole in the scarf section that I decided to reinforce and leave, just for fun.

I think the cashmere will hold up well and work perfectly.  The remainder of the scarf will become a bed wrap.

Happy Repair and Upcycling!

Michelle Paganini

P.S. - Michelle creates upcycle sewing designs and writes tutorials for home sewists (like a pattern but with no pieces to print a cut.  Super flattering, room for hips and bellies and simple to sew.  www.etsy.com/shop/paganoonoo. The Ellie and Patti are good choices to start.