Scribd Logo

Language

Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

Enjoy millions of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, and more, with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

Rip It!: How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Clothes of Your Dreams
Rip It!: How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Clothes of Your Dreams
Rip It!: How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Clothes of Your Dreams
Ebook169 pages1 hour

Rip It!: How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Clothes of Your Dreams

By Elissa Meyrich

3.5/5

()

Read preview

About this ebook

Why spend tons of money on humdrum designer duds when it's possible to revamp a piece you already own to create a guaranteed original that looks, fits, and feels just the way it should?

Rip It! shows how simple and fun it can be to transform a tired wardrobe into hip, one-of-a-kind new looks without spending a dime. Elissa Meyrich, owner and teacher at the popular New York sewing boutique Sew Fast Sew Easy, has been passing her sewing secrets and style tips on to students for years. Now she shows beginners and experienced sewers everywhere how to customize pieces found at cheap chain stores, thrift shops, or the far reaches of a closet and create fabulous new designs. Rip It! includes everything you need -- basic sewing and alteration information; quick sewing methods; where to find supplies; advice on which fabrics to use; important cutting rules; plus illustrated layouts, drawings, and instructions that show you how to:

  • Jazz up old t-shirts with stretch lace and zippers


  • Turn faded, falling-apart jeans into a hot new denim skirt


  • Change a pullover into a cute cardigan


  • Make a thrift-store dress into a hipster skirt


  • Create an instant poncho


Cool, crafty, and brimming with creative ideas, Rip It! is a hands-on handbook that will show you how to give your clothes sass, sparkle, and your own signature style.
LanguageEnglish
PublisherTouchstone
Release dateFeb 7, 2006
ISBN9780743282406
Rip It!: How to Deconstruct and Reconstruct the Clothes of Your Dreams
Read preview
Author

Elissa Meyrich

Elissa Meyrich is a fashion designer and consultant whose collections have been featured in several major magazines and department stores. A former instructor at Parsons School of Design, she now teaches her techniques at her design studio, Sew Fast Sew Easy, in New York City¹s fashion district, and she is the author of the book of the same name. She lives in New York City.

Related to Rip It!

Related ebooks

Related podcast episodes

Related articles

  • Article

    Inspiring Books

    Jan 1, 1970

    Linnea Larsson (£12.99, Search Press) Transform your pre-loved clothes to ones that can be worn again and again by your mini-me! Great for the environment and , of course, your bank balance, the 30 different sewing projects in Linnea Larsson's new bo

    1 min read

  • Article

    Shaping My Style

    Jan 1, 1970

    Shaping My Style
    1 min read

  • Article

    Pattern Review

    Jan 1, 1970

    Name: Mark Francis Instagram handle: @sewmarkfrancis Website: sewmarkfrancis.com Pattern: I AM Patterns Men’s Artemis Coat Fabric: Lady McElroy pure wool coating Fabric stockist: minerva.com I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect light-weight coat o

    4 min read

  • Article

    Vania Soucy

    Jan 1, 1970

    Vania Soucy
    1 min read

  • Article

    Pinboard

    Jan 1, 1970

    Pinboard
    5 min read

  • Article

    The Sussex Seamstress

    Jan 1, 1970

    The Sussex Seamstress
    3 min read

  • Article

    Pinboard

    Jan 1, 1970

    Pinboard
    2 min read

  • Article

    Let's Celebrate!

    Jan 1, 1970

    We're so proud to be able to bring you this bumper issue - our biggest yet! The team have worked so hard to bring you all these wonderful patterns to sew (the Amena Set is already an office favourite!). As we dig out our brightest fabrics for our new

    1 min read

  • Article

    Welcome

    Jan 1, 1970

    Welcome
    1 min read

  • Article

    Hooked On Books

    Jan 1, 1970

    By Linnea Larsson | Published by Search Press How lovely would it be to transform your pre-loved clothes into stylish garments for your baby/toddler? Not only is it good for the environment, it’s great for your bank balance and fun to make too! There

    1 min read

  • Article

    My Sewing World

    Jan 1, 1970

    My Sewing World
    3 min read

  • Article

    Inspiring Books

    Jan 1, 1970

    Whether you have a whole piece of cloth or ‘overlocker spaghetti’ scrap left, Wendy Ward will find an imaginative use for it to save anything going to waste. In her new book, you’ll find 20 completely customisable projects to recycle, reuse and remak

    1 min read

  • Article

    It’s A Family Affair!

    Jan 1, 1970

    It’s A Family Affair!
    8 min read

  • Article

    SCOOP PINAFORE Sew Different

    Jan 1, 1970

    SCOOP PINAFORE Sew Different
    2 min read

  • Article

    Perfect Fit

    Jan 1, 1970

    Perfect Fit
    1 min read

  • Article

    Pattern Review

    Jan 1, 1970

    Name & pronouns: Geri Berman (she/her) Instagram handle: @geri_in_stitches Website: geriinstitches.com Pattern used: Bubble Frock by Lydia Naomi Size range: UK 4–24 (US 0–20) Fabric used: Silk dupion fabric in Fuchsia Fabric provided by: minerva

    4 min read

  • Article

    A Social Sew

    Jan 1, 1970

    I’ve always loved to dress in colour and sewing my own clothes has led me to become even more adventurous and embrace a fun and exciting style for myself. I’m very inspired to sew by choosing beautiful fabrics; so many of my me-made garments are fun

    1 min read

  • Article

    CLASSES & SKILLS BOOST

    Jan 1, 1970

    Simply Sewing favourite Debbie Wainhouse (@hila.studio) now runs sewing workshops at The Maker Shed in Bristol (themakershedbristol.co.uk). Debbie runs garment sewing classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings as well as a bag-making weekend workshop w

    1 min read

  • Article

    Tiny But Mighty

    Jan 1, 1970

    Tiny But Mighty
    5 min read

  • Article

    Handmade Tribute

    Jan 1, 1970

    Handmade Tribute
    1 min read

  • Article

    Meet The Contestants

    Jan 1, 1970

    Angela has 50 years of sewing experience, but hopes that Sewing Bee will take her out of her comfort zone. She was taught to sew by her mother who was a dressmaker. She still loves using vintage patterns she finds in charity shops and is drawn to 70’

    3 min read

  • Article

    My Peter Rabbit Story

    Jan 1, 1970

    In the mid-1930s, my large family lived in Mason City, Iowa, near the town dump. I was one of nine siblings, and my older siblings had been finding “treasures” at the dump, so I was anxious to go too! When I was around 5 years old, my mother finally

    2 min read

  • Article

    A happy New Year!

    Jan 1, 1970

    I love January and making plans for what I’d like to achieve in the forthcoming months, don’t you? Here at The Pattern Pages, we will be making a few changes. Emily will now be working more on the design of the magazine and keeping you posted on our

    1 min read

  • Article

    A Creative Calling

    Jan 1, 1970

    A Creative Calling
    6 min read

  • Article

    In This Issue

    Jan 1, 1970

    In This Issue
    1 min read

  • Article

    Totally Me-made

    Jan 1, 1970

    Totally Me-made
    5 min read

  • Article

    Pin Board

    Jan 1, 1970

    We're hoping to not need to wear this coat for a few more months yet, but it's so gorgeous we might have to start making it now. It takes a very special coat to get us looking forward to colder weather! The Juliet Coat from By Hand London is understa

    3 min read

  • Article

    10 Minutes with… Pattern Union

    Jan 1, 1970

    TELL US HOW YOU FIRST GOT INTO SEWING AND HOW PATTERN UNION STARTED? I started sewing when I was six, on a Singer hand crank sewing machine with beautiful decorative decals. My mother worked in fashion, so I had access to material and notions, and I

    2 min read

  • Article

    WE Apparel Kits

    Jan 1, 1970

    WE Apparel Kits
    2 min read

  • Article

    Raquel Seydewitz

    Jan 1, 1970

    "I’m Raquel, I’m a 64-year old Mexican-American expat living in Taipei. When my older sister Bea taught me to sew when I was 16, I didn’t have much use for it, but after a 40-year break I’m back at it with a vengeance. After I retired from teaching i

    2 min read

Related categories

Reviews for Rip It!

3.5/5

9 ratings1 review

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • 4/5
    one of the most practical books I have read on de-/re-constructing clothes, and one which assumes basic sewing knowledge, thus packing in more design ideas

    1 person found this helpful

Book preview

Rip It! - Elissa Meyrich

Also by Elissa Meyrich

SEW FAST, SEW EASY

Based on classes taught by Elissa K. Meyrich at her sewing school

where creativity is more than just pins and needles

237 West 35th Street, Suite 603

New York, NY 10001

TEL 212-268-4321 FAX 212-268-4329

www.sewfastseweasy.com

FIRESIDE

Rockefeller Center

1230 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10020

www.SimonandSchuster.com

Copyright © 2006 by Elissa Meyrich

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

FIRESIDE and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

For information regarding special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-800-456-6798 or business@simonandschuster.com.

Designed by Georgia Rucker, www.grfix.com

Manufactured in the United States of America

3  5  7  9  10  8  6  4  2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Meyrich, Elissa K.

Rip It! : how to deconstruct and reconstruct the clothes of your dreams / Elissa Meyrich.

p.   cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

1. Clothing and dress—Remaking.  2. Clothing and dress—Alteration.  I. Title.

TT550 .M49  2006

646.4′04—dc22   2005044767

ISBN-13: 978-0-7432-6899-8

ISBN-10: 0-7432-6899-7

eISBN: 978-0-743-28240-6

Dedication

This book is dedicated to everyone who wants to be creative with fashion and sewing. It is intended to encourage you to think in new ways. Being creative to me means coming up with something brand-new or breaking new boundaries by devising new ways to do old things. Often while I am teaching, I am asked so many questions that could be answered with the experience of just doing it. Read the instructions carefully before trying to sew the projects. Always keep in mind that if you make a mistake, it’s merely a learning experience. So have a good laugh and continue on.

Enjoy and your creativity will flow….

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1:

The Basics

CHAPTER 2:

T-Shirts

CHAPTER 3:

Sweatshirts & Sweaters

CHAPTER 4:

Pants

CHAPTER 5:

Skirts

CHAPTER 6:

Accessories

GLOSSARY

RESOURCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

So many people have the creative desire to reinvent their clothing or add a special-looking garment to their wardrobe without spending any money. It’s likely you are one of them and that is what attracted you to pick up this book. Perhaps you have a plain T-shirt from the Gap you would love to jazz up into something stylish or you might have attempted to change vintage or thrift-shop clothing into something new. Or you have a shirt or skirt that sits at the back of your closet because it just needs something. This book will help you learn the approach and the techniques used to deconstruct and reconstruct clothing. Rip It! will free you from the frustrations of not being able to implement many of your ideas and give you a working knowledge of techniques to help you translate your personal designs into new clothing by showing you step-by-step methods and giving you guidelines to get started.

We’ll start with all the tools you’ll need, the basics of cutting fabric, and easy layouts using patterns; then we’ll move into simple ways to reconstruct the look of a garment. Each chapter covers a different category of clothing—including accessories—and teaches you several techniques to redesign them. I’ve even included a resource list of where to find all sorts of trims, patterns, tools, and fabrics.

Deconstructing and reconstructing clothing is not new. It started in the 1950s when teenagers started to cut off their old Levi’s to turn them into Bermuda shorts, deliberately leaving the cut edges frayed for a washed, worn look. In the 1970s, with the emergence of punk rock, fashion designer Vivienne Westwood turned T-shirts, sweatshirts, and other garments into radical designs and became one of the most original and influential designers of our time, giving deconstructed and reconstructed clothing a place on the runway.

Deconstructed clothing then moved into high fashion and became more of an intellectual process that inspired another diverse direction of silhouettes and ideas. Japanese designers were some of the first to do this by simply turning the raw seams of garments to the outside for display. Designers Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons and Issey Miyake are examples of this style of design.

Designers in New York, London, Paris, Milan, and Tokyo are all influenced by deconstruction-and-reconstruction fashion. This new-old approach and energy has inspired many to try inventing their own street wear. The desire to create a personal style and need to feel unique continues to drive this trend forward, and there are magazines and websites devoted to this D.I.Y., or do-it-yourself, movement.

Some of these D.I.Y. designers have even opened their own shops, featuring their own versions of deconstructed and reconstructed T-shirts, skirts, pants, and accessories, often made out of vintage clothing. Project Alabama, a company known for their handmade unique designs out of recycled T-shirts that are sewn in Alabama, has been written up in several fashion magazines and sells clothing from $250 to $4,000 dollars in stores like Barneys New York! Celebrities have gotten in on the act, too—when Britney Spears performed in jeans that she’d torn the waistband off of, it had a profound impact on jean companies who hurried to create jeans with the same look. Gwen Stefani and Beyoncé Knowles appear in videos with their unique versions of cut-up T-shirts and dresses. Fashion ads are featuring rock stars wearing short cut-off jean shorts with frayed edges. A lot like it all began in the ’50s.

For many years, I was a sportswear designer in New York’s garment industry. After working for other companies, I designed and manufactured my own line of contemporary sportswear. It wasn’t until I started teaching sewing that I realized how many people share the desire to create their own clothing. Students often tell me they want to make something that is totally their own because they don’t like what they see in stores.

Throughout the years I worked in design rooms, I accumulated many design and sewing techniques. Surrounded by some of the best sewers and patternmakers, I was lucky to be able to learn from pros. Rip It! is my way of helping aspiring designers achieve their dreams. This book is intended to inspire and help you to bring to life some of your own creations. So let’s just rip it and get started bringing out your inner designer!

CHAPTER 1

The Basics

It’s always important to have a storage box of tools, notions, and supplies to use when your inspirational moments occur. I call these items the Survival Sewing Kit, the things you should try to keep in your sewing box or storage bin. You don’t want to be in the middle of reinventing your old skirt and not have the supplies to finish. This chapter includes all the necessary items as well as some extras you should keep handy in one place. Though you don’t need every single thing on this list, buying them all (with the exception of a sewing machine, iron, and ironing board) shouldn’t cost

Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1