Tagged: Kenya
Kenya safari skirt
You can’t beat a bargain like this – £2 reduced from £3.95 from the Hospices of Hope shop in Orpington.
I have had this silk skirt in stash for a while now, but it only ever had one destiny: to be part of my safari wardrobe. The khaki green colour, which I’m generously calling ‘olive’, conjures up safari and jungle images for me. It’s a colour I’d otherwise never wear, and you know I am fond of a challenge, so I set to work.
Outfit: Betty Draper does Kenya
One of my personal favourite projects from last year was this Betty Draper-inspired dress. You can read the original post here.
This was made from a sheet that I bought for £4.99 in Oxfam, and I’m really glad I bought it. I still have the pillowcases left to make something else for next summer!
The final dress was very like the Betty Draper original, except the skirt wasn’t as full, giving it more of a 60s vibe than 50s.
Black and Blue
This beach cover-up was £4.99 from the British Heart Foundation shop in Scarborough. It’s made out of that really thin, gauzy material that’s perfect for hot weather.
Unfortunately for me, it was just too short to be a maxi. Something had to be done…
Outfit: Magnum PI in Kenya
Just a quick post today. This Hawaiian shirt remake formed part of my wardrobe for my trip to the British Virgin Islands a couple of years back, but I have worn it countless times since then. It originally came from the big Goodwill in San Francisco… I think it’s safe to say that this is one of the most travelled items in my wardrobe. Not bad for $10. You can read the original post here.
Kenyan Bombshell
This project started with this blue dress. It’s really slinky, with a high lycra content, in other words, perfect for swimwear.
I actually bought this a really long time ago in the Children’s society shop in Upminster (£6.99). It was brand new with the tag attached.
I always had swimwear in mind for this but it wasn’t until Heather released the Bombshell swimsuit pattern that this dream really became a plausible reality. I know I’m probably the last person in the world to make this pattern, but whatevs. It’s a superb pattern and I can’t recommend it enough.
Outfit: African print
I’m sure you remember this dress in African style fabric that I bought from Thrift Town in San Francisco a couple of years ago. This project was top of the list when packing for my holiday as I really wanted the chance to wear this in Africa (Kenya to be precise). Sadly this little African inspired number didn’t make the cut.
I doubled my money with this by turning it into a skirt and top.
Explorer outfit (Kenya ft. Budapest and Middlesbrough)
Happy New Year, Refashioners!
I’m going to start the year off with an extended series of posts showing the holiday wardrobe I made/acquired for my trip to Kenya last month. Spoiler alert: there are trillions of pictures #sorrynotsorry
First off is an outfit that was invaluable when exploring this beautiful country. I started with this vintage blouse that I picked up on a trip to Budapest last year. It has broderie anglaise style lace around the neck and arms and down the button placket, so pretty. Unfortunately it was a bit too big.
I bought this in a vintage shop (below), not a charity shop, so prices were a little more than I am used to. I paid 3500 Hungarian Forints for it, and left feeling a little ripped off (I did not haggle; I’m British). On actually checking my mental arithmetic using a calculator, it turned out to be only £9.50 so not really a big deal. The shop was quite cute with lots of unusual vintage gear, including loads of bags and hats. Unfortunately my luggage space was limited!
Turns out that Hungarians love second hand clothes shops and I spotted several of them on my travels. I was a little disappointed to realise that most were full of clothes from the British high street, but still enjoyed having a rummage. I did memorise the Hungarian for ‘second-hand clothes’ before I went over (in case you wondered, it’s ‘használt ruha’) to help me find suitable shops.
Anyway… I digress. To complete the outfit, I selected this vintage Benetton skirt in the Age UK shop in Middlesbrough (from the sublime to the ridiculous…)
There isn’t a before pic of the skirt (sorry) as I didn’t really alter it much, you get the idea from the pictures below. It’s made from this incredible 100% cotton fabric printed with vintage French maps. Over the maps are palm leaves and tropical flowers. It fit the retro Africa vibe of my holiday wardrobe perfectly.
The overall look I’m aiming for is “Dirty Dancing Baby in slightly more grown-up vintage outfit”.
Charity Shop Chic 
