Tutorial: How to Pack a Suitcase

Hello, hello! 

Let me just read your mind really quick. Here are a couple of thoughts you're probably having about the title.

"But I already know how to pack a suitcase", or "How hard is it to pack, seriously?" or maybe "This is NOT a refashion."

Well all I have to say is, I KNOW. Packing a suitcase, for me, is a no brainer. But for others (like my man cake) packing a suitcase or bag is an excuse to throw everything inside with no organization what so ever. I cannot do that. Nope. The Refashion Noob does not live that way.

So I decided, while I'm packing for my trip to Tennessee, why not show you all how I pack a suitcase, and share a couple of tips that make the trip way easier for me.

First, gather everything you want to take with you. This should include clothes, necessities, make up (which could technically count as a necessity, at least for me), medicines and emergency items (like allergy medicine or insulin), electrics (laptops, nooks, e-readers, etc.), chargers for your electronics, extra batteries and anything to entertain you during the trip (like paper, pencils, magazines, whatever).

Here is what I'm packing.

You are looking at a (temporarily) disorganized pile of make up, necessities, and clothes. Keep in mind I'm not leaving until tomorrow, so I haven't packed things I will be using tonight, like medicine, and my laptop. 

Next, I paired together similar items. Here's how I did it.

First I put my necessities together.

Make up (in the circle pouch), my tooth brush and tooth paste, deodorant, and jewelry (in the striped pouch).

Next I paired together my under garments, which you don't need a picture of. You know what that stuff looks like.

Then I paired together my tank tops and similar-cut shirts.

Next was my bottoms.

And then the dressy "going out in public" shirts.

Then I piled my pajama tops...

...and my pajama bottoms together.

And lastly, I piled together a "random" clothes pile. The only item in the random pile was my jean jacket from last week's refashion.

Next I got my suitcase ready. My suitcase is just a regular ole' suitcase. It has the bigger area for clothes and such, then two smaller zippers on the front.

When you open the suitcase and look inside, you see that there are bars inside. My suitcase rolls on wheels, so the bars are there for the handle. Anywho, here's a picture of the bars.

See 'em? Most people make the mistake of piling clothes on top of the bars. Although that will happen eventually, it's important to make the bars work for you instead of against you. 

I grabbed the heaviest items from my piles, which happened to be my jean jacket, and my bottoms. I rolled them, and packed them between the bars.

I then packed my under garments in the extra space between the bars. It's obviously not pictured, because I'm not a fan of sharing my undies on the internet. Can you blame me?

Anyways, once I had packed the heaviest items, and my under things, I was left with a pretty flat surface of fabrics. I then laid out my next heaviest items, the dressy shirts. 

As you can see they are laying pretty flat, which helps decrease the chance of wrinkles. My next items, the pajama tops and bottoms, fit perfectly on top. 

Since they weigh less, and since I don't care about wrinkles, I could fold them more than the other items. And lastly, I piled on my tank tops.

Everything fit perfectly, because I distributed the weight. The heavier items on bottom are supported by the bars, and the lighter items are on top, creating a cushion. 

Next, I filled the top zippers with my necessities.

I zipped everything up, and that was it! I still have a top zipper that isn't being used (which I will fill with chargers for all of my electronics). As you can see, I still have room for anything else I might decide to take with me.

Since the packing is done, I shall now share with you a few tips and tricks that makes traveling easier for me.

1. Clean or straighten up your house or room before leaving. 

This one may seem like a pain, but it definitely helps. After coming back from vacation, you're less than happy to be "back to reality". The last thing you want to think about is cleaning up the mess you left behind. Straightening up before leaving makes coming home a relaxing thing. Now the only thing you need to worry about is checking voice mails and unpacking.

2, Pack items that may leak towards the top of your suitcase.

If your lotion, shampoo, or soap is prone to leaks, pack them towards the top of your suitcase (or maybe that little zipper on top). This makes them so much easier to check on, or clean up. If you have to dig around in your bag to find the source of that frilly-smelling liquid, you are going to have a terrible time. And it could potentially end up on clothes or (eek!) your electronics. Skip the headaches and plan ahead. Make them easily accessible. 

3. If flying (or driving somewhere chilly) wear your heaviest and bulkiest items. 

When I tell people this trick, they think I'm crazy. They don't seem to understand the point I'm making. If you're flying to your vacation destination, you quickly realize how airports jack up the price of your bags and suitcases if they weigh over a certain number. Wearing your thick boots or heavy winter coat on the plane keeps you from packing it, which in turn keeps your suitcase from weighing over the limit. Also, no one wants to try to shove a thick coat into a bag. It hardly ever fits, or it takes up too much space. Again, save yourself the hassle. Bundle up!

4. Lastly, go through your wallet

One of the major worries of traveling is the potential for identity theft. The less you carry with you, the harder it is for thieves to find what they need. Go through your wallet and purse. Do you need all of your credit cards? Take out that social security card. And while you're at it, take out anything else that is unnecessary or taking up room. You're bound to buy something while on vacation, so make sure you have room for it. 

Well, that's all I have for this tutorial. Was this helpful at all? Want more tutorials on different topics? Want me to just stay with the refashions? Let me know in the comments below.

The Flirt Skirt

Hello, hello! 

I am so very happy to announce that I will be leaving tomorrow for a vacation out of state! My lovely man cake's father lives in Tennessee, and we decided to head on down for a five-day visit. Don't worry though, I promise to (attempt to) squeeze in a few refashions while relaxing. 

Speaking of relaxing, I have quite a long drive ahead of me, so I decided to refashion something that would be cute and comfy for traveling. 

Today's refashion started out with this block-like shirt.

I mean really, look at this crazy block action going on.

I think outfits like these are spawned by designers who spent too much time playing with Legos as a kid (or an adult. Seriously, how awesome are Legos?). 

I actually really enjoyed this shirt for a few reasons. The blocks were very romantic colors. Reds, pinks, yellows. It reminded me of Valentine's Day. And the back of the shirt had an awesome button-up neckline. I eventually decided to get rid of the back pieces though, but not before harvesting the buttons. I may or may not be a button addict.

Regardless of my addictions, I laid the shirt down and chopped off those sleeves. 

Then I snipped off the top part of the shirt, threw it on, and promptly took pictures.

I call this one "Crazy Cat Lady", because no human being would ever love a face like this (except for my man cake :D).

After I had released all of my inner silliness, I tried on the bottom part of the shirt around my waist. 

I may not be an expert, but that looks a little too big, right?

I took in one side, pinning the fabric with clothes pins instead of my regular pins. The fabric was a little silky, and I knew my normal pins would slide off.

I then chopped off the fabric from the right side of the pins. I sewed the skirt closed, but only halfway up. I had other plans.... (mysterious, huh?)

I took my trusty needle and thread, along with a cute, matching button and got to work.

I sewed the button on toward the top of the fabric, and cut a little hole into it for the button hole.

Peak-a-boo! 

I tossed on the finished product, paired it with a white t shirt and the necklace I made from an earlier post, and my travel outfit was complete.

Tada! I now have a silky, comfy skirt to wear for the very long car ride. I'm assuming it's going to be a little hot in Tennessee, so this skirt's airy fabric is perfect.

I have a thing for funky- patterned bottoms, so this will definitely fit in with the collection I have started. So, what do you think? Will I be drowning in my own sweat in Tennessee? Will I find the time to post while on vacation? Will I ever find a better place to take pictures besides my Dad's bathroom? Tune in next time!

Summery Knock-Off Dress

Hello, hello! I know I've been missing for a few days, but in those days I took off, I helped move my man cake into his new apartment (yay!) and visited my momma, sister, and lil' brother. Fun times were had all around, and I enjoyed taking a little break from everything.

But...I am happy to be back to work, and am so excited about today's refashion. I can't wait for you to see it!

Today, I started with a piece of inspiration that I found from Anthropologie.

Isn't it gorgeous? I love the colorful pattern that turns into a matching solid. When I first saw it, I knew I had to have it, but once I looked at the price tag, I knew I'd rather make it. How much does this cost, you ask? Well, only $128.00. Let that sink in.

I don't think, at any point in my life, I have ever bought something that cost that much. I don't think I could justify spending that much money on a dress. EVER. 

I'd rather make something that I know I will absolutely love, and that wouldn't cost nearly that much.

I started out with a cute patterned tank top and a big black shirt.

I love the summery feel of the patterned tank. So cute. 

So, I started off with a big ole' chop.

And then another big chop.

I paired the top of the tank top with the bottom of the black shirt and got to pinning.

Look at the hot pinning action. When I was pinning the fabric, I left the sides untouched, meaning I only sewed the front and back. I did this because the black shirt was far bigger than the tank top, and I knew if I tried to sew it like normal, I would end up with a jumbled mess.

So I got to sewing the front and back.

Look at me go. But I didn't forget the sides. I sewed one of the sides closed, with a ruffle type of effect.

See the ruffles? Cute, huh?

I pinned the other side closed with my favorite brooch, and slipped on the new dress.

Tada! I am so in love with this dress. The tank top's fabric hugs up top, while the black t shirt fabric is light and flowy on bottom. I love the accent the brooch gives. 

Don't worry about the extra fabric I have lying around: I've got an awesome idea for those, but it will be a later refashion.

This is probably my favorite refashion to far. I just love it. And it's a huge plus that I saved myself over 100 dollars. Leave me a comment and tell me what you think!

Expanding the Closet

Hello, hello! 

Today's refashion is really important to me because there have always been a few articles of clothing that I believe every girl should have in her closet.

The first thing I believe every girl should have is a pair of nude heels or wedges. Nude heels, in my opinion, spice up any outfit, makes your legs look longer and leaner, and can be the single piece that ties it all together.

The second article is a cute printed scarf. Nothing says comfy like a scarf, and the print can take one outfit, and make it an entirely different one.

And the last article is a jean jacket.

A jean jacket can do so many things. It can add a rustic feeling to an outfit, make a skirt look a little less dressy, and can match with almost everything you try on.

Sadly, I didn't have a jean jacket in my closet. Until now.

Today's refashion started out with this jacket.

It is way too big for me, the length is not flattering, and the collar reminds me of the 80's. Nothing said "don't mess with me" like an upturned collar.

Since I'm not a bad boy from the 80's, and since I'm only a little taller than 5 feet, something needed to be done.

First, I took out those strings.

Why were those even there? When I pulled on the strings, it didn't tighten like it was supposed to. I'm thinking the strings were just too old, and had lost the elasticity. So I had no problem with cutting those out.

Next, I measured where I'd like the jacket to end on me...

..and promptly got to cutting.

Buh-bye, unflattering length. I shall not miss you.

At this point in the refashion I realized I was hungry. So up to our kitchen I went. I made a delicious smoothie, and then went back to work.

NOM NOM NOM.

Once I got back to the refashion, I knew I didn't want that collar on there. So I grabbed my trusty seam ripper and got to work.

I can honestly say the longest part of this refashion was taking off the collar. That thing was ON THERE. Someone really didn't want this collar to come off. But it was no match for me. After about an hour and a half, I had viciously ripped that thing off.

Bam! Take THAT, collar! Don't mess with me!

Next, I knew those sleeves were not my fave, and so I got to cutting them off. 

Snip!

I tried on the jacket at this point, and realized I was still swimming in it. Although I wanted the jacket to be bigger and comfy, it was still too big.

So I grabbed near an inch and a half of fabric from the inside, and got to pinning.

I'm sure you know by now that when I pin something, I sew it. I didn't take pictures of my awesome sewing action for two reasons: One, I've sewed enough things for you to know what it looks like, and two, I kept messing up, and it was really aggravating me.

But no worries, I finally got my fingers working, and I sewed it all the way up. 

I put on my outfit for the day, threw on the jean jacket, and that was that!

I really love this jean jacket. I worked really hard on it (stupid fingers! You know how to sew!) and I've been dying to add a jean jacket to my closet for a while now.

My mind could not let go of all the waste I had left over. Those awesome, deep pockets! After some long thinking, I finally came up with an idea that will allow me to use up all the left over pieces. I will be sharing this refashion with you soon. But, that means this refashion (and the refashion coming up) are completely no-waste refashions! I'm so excited! No clothes and pieces in the trash can and landfills!

So, what do you think? Any guesses as to what I will be making with the left over pieces? Let me know in the comments below.