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Brush up on your creative talents and spruce up your wardrobe.

Sort through your clothes and discover a new way of looking at extending your existing wardrobe. Spend some time looking through your clothes and seek items you can rehash, revise, refresh or rejuvenate.
What you can't use, swap with friends and family or take to a collection box for someone else to use. Don't hold on to items that will clutter your home.

Take your time and window shop and flick through magazines to get a feel of the current trends and new fashion look. Then check through the haberdashery section of department stores and cheap shops and select colorful buttons, ribbon, lace, sequins and shiny rhinestones similar to what you have seen on the new season fashion wear and ready to wear clothing.

I have seen an ordinary denim jacket transformed into designer wear' by using just colored buttons on pockets, the collar and back of the jacket. This is where your creative talents come into play. You will need to come up with an idea of your design and then create it with items you can buy from the haberdashery department.
Keep an open mind and get ideas from window shopping as this will give you many clues as to what works.
Ordinary jeans can become new fashion with iron on sequins and shiny rhinestones. A plain blouse can be transformed simply by remove its existing buttons and using new chunkier style, contrasting colored buttons. Clothing with frills and flounces can be easily revised by removing or cutting down the extra fabric. Sometimes the new season clothing is slightly shorter. Remember to do some homework and look at how shop items are finished on the edges. Some are turned, others are left raw and some are frayed. Tops and simple jackets that lend themselves to cutting into this length only need a scissors and very little to rework. Your favorite dress can be cut down to a top. A top can be shortened or the sleeves adjusted or cuffs removed. Collars can be removed from tops for a totally different look. Your favorite trousers can be turned into a shorter length. Depending on the current fashion trend, trousers can be anything from ankle length, under the knee, above the knee to shorts.

Add transfers to plain shirts and t-shirt tops. These are simple to do. Select a picture from a magazine that appeals to you and use a warm to hot iron to transfer the image onto special paper bought from a haberdashery department store. Transfer this image to your new' top.

Skirts and dresses can be extended in length by adding a contrasting fabric panel, ribbon or lace. Likewise, they can be shortened for a more casual look.

Don't be afraid to experiment. The only down side may be that you have to throw it out. But, if you succeed you have a lot to gain. You will be encouraged to source new ideas and new ways to change your clothing at a fraction of the cost and it will always be fresh and creative.
Good luck in your new creative pursuit.

Learn more about this author, Dina Psichogiopoulos.
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