None of the clothing that turned into this garment was suitable on its own – the cable turtleneck sweater had too much substance to work under a vest or tabard; the taupe sweater was too small; the pleated skirt pleated my hips when fitted to the waist. But all three got collected over several months when our local thrift store had a worthwhile dollar rack because they had 'potential'.
And one day, when I was sorting through the stash of 'potentials', the three pieces of clothing somehow cosied up near enough to each other so that I suddenly saw the 'potential' and wondered what would happen if I took the sleeves from the taupe and cut off the waist band of the skirt and teamed them together with the ivory cabled…….
It is a coat dress that is perfect for this time of year and this part of the country when stores and restaurants tend to turn on the heat (it is, after all, December) but leave the doors open (it is, in any case, Victoria) and such a coat dress can be comfortable in this indoor/outdoor environment.
With clothing costing a dollar I am willing to experiment. And most things - if not all – on a dollar rack have something seriously wrong with them like stains or broken zippers or moth damage so I have no problem rescuing them as pure fabric.