Caitlin Trantham is a pretty awesome young woman. At 33, she’s a mom to three kids, a military wife, and essentially a creative machine. In her spare time, she likes to redesign thrift store clothing. And let’s just say that she certainly has a knack for it.
A true lover of vintage fashion, she loves visiting thrift stores to pick out clothing with potential. She then turns them into amazing outfits that anybody would love to wear.
Besides her love for vintage fashion, she began creating her own clothes because they had become a little too pricey and the designs she wanted were getting difficult to find.
Speaking with Bored Panda she shared that she only began sewing 7 years ago and started with quilting. Even more impressive, she began working on clothes only a year ago.
Check out her jaw-dropping outfits!
There’s a first time for everything
This is a stunning dress! It was only $5 and she only spent $4 for the RIT synthetic dye. This was also her first time dip-dyeing a dress!
“As soon as we got to the beach, the waves got me, and that’s why the bottom is so much darker.”
Here, she cut the back of the bodice from the original. Then she cut the front from the upper part of the skirt. Lastly, she added pockets.
The tropical vibe remains undefeated
Every now and again, she stumbles upon a challenge! Apparently, this was one of them.
“This makeover was way harder than I expected. I had to do a lot of creative cutting and piecing to get everything in place.”
We would have never known!
Trantham says buying this dress was an easy decision. She just loved the sunflower buttons!
“I originally planned on keeping the 90s vibe, but the silhouette came out so 50s.”
We love it!
Unfortunately we didn’t get to see what this outfit looked like before the transformation. Bummer, we know! But she certainly made this dress a nice body-hugging, yet conservative, outfit.
Wow! She really did a number with that shirt! The coolest part is that she used part of another dress to complete the ensemble. She also changed the buttons and bought the belt from Goodwill.
Believe it or not but this outfit isn’t a complete remake. Instead, she simply used what was available.
“Just learning how to detach a skirt from the bodice and reattach is easier than you might think and opens up so many possibilities”
This is a prime example of how doing a little goes a long way!
Nobody likes an itchy dress
This simple style looks so trendy. Interestingly enough, Trantham wasn’t a big fan of the original. She says the fabric was thick and the neck was high which made it unfit for the weather. Also, the zipper was itchy!
“Now it’s the comfiest dress ever!” she exclaims.
Here is another amazing before and after from the creative. This dress looks fantastic! Clearly, it went through a phase or two.
“I took off the neckpiece and saved that beauty for later. Then I chopped off the bottom and used that material for spaghetti straps and a shawl.”
Shoulder pads not making a comeback?
Yikes! It looks like this dress needed a bit of work. It even came with shoulder pads!
“Oh lord, these sleeves were BAD.”
However, she tore them off before the initial picture. We would have loved to see that!
You thought it was a dress, didn’t you?
Check out this romper in disguise! Apparently those who complimented her outfit referred to it as a dress. Who would have thought? The jean jacket really brings it all together.
Don’t be afraid to dream big!
Now this dress seems to have taken a bit more time than some of the others. She made it into a two-piece and even bought a lime polyester shirt and cut it into shorts.
“I desperately wanted shorts in the skirt, because I hate worrying about my butt hanging out.”
This project was referred to as a beast! It’s easy to see why. There is clearly a lot going on here – frayed fabric, shoulder pads, and “stiff ruffled fabric in the shoulder.” But as always, the results are stunning! Look at the bows! They were made from the ties from the back of the dress.
“
Old lady florals are my JAM”
We have florals again! For this project, she simply removed the shoulders and the puff pads. Then she altered the waist. There’s beauty in simplicity, folks!
This pretty dress went from being an everyday number to a “date night” special. She picked this versatile dress up at Goodwill for $4. To take it a step further, she added a strapless bra into it!
We love a good romper! Although she says that making a romper is anything but easy, she certainly makes it look good! The bow in her hair is the perfect topping to this adorable outfit.
Just a touch of butterflies
This dress was a little big but after separating the front and the back, she was able to make it work! To achieve this style, she had to cut out a new shape and then stitch it back together. Whew!
We weren’t able to see what this outfit looked like before she altered it but we’re sure it needed a bit of work! Based on what she’s done with past outfits, she surely used her imagination. Just look at how she uses that belt!
When you’re short on tops, make one!
This outfit is definitely a favorite! You wouldn’t believe that the top on the right is something she made herself.
“After lots and lots of thinking, planning, and pattern drafting, I was able to make it a full dress!”
She credits being short as one of the reasons why it all worked out.
A touch of personality never hurt
This dress is super unique and fun. While there’s no telling what it looked like before, we imagine it wasn’t this fitting. She pulled this look off effortlessly.
Even the best get a little help sometimes
This dress still had the tags on it when she picked it up from Goodwill. She downloaded the pattern from McCall’s website and followed the step-by-step instructions. Who says that help is a bad thing?
If you don’t know where you’re going, wear this
This dress gives off a Madame Secretary vibe meets a day at the church picnic. It’s extremely versatile, which we love! We can almost bet that the design around the neck was all her idea.
We would love to see what this was before
This is so cute! The color is super festive. Easter dress, maybe? Something tells us that those sleeves didn’t look this awesome before. What a cute style!
When you have something good to work with
She sure has a talent for getting these dresses to fit so well! The original dress isn’t that bad either. Still, taking off those sleeves was definitely the right call.
This dress looks like it’s from a much earlier era. The 50s, perhaps? This ensemble is perfect, even for today.
Whatever the before photo looked like, it likely didn’t look this great! The straps and the embroidery in the front look marvelous. Even the length is perfect.
We might have our winner! The slit is magical – it’s not too high so you can wear it comfortably and confidently. This dress is simply exceptional. It’s another one we’d love to see what it looked like before.
A little bit of this and a tad bit of that
Can you believe that she passed this dress up? Okay, at first glance, maybe. But look what she did with it! It truly is in the simplicity.
This looks so fun! It can be worn at a dinner party or just for fun. The color is so pretty. Of course, the belt just makes everything click. Could it be that she shortened the length just a tad?
This dress has 5 layers! It’s like a cake which makes it ideal for a perfect ending. Trantham says the back didn’t turn out exactly how she wanted but it still looks great!
Aren’t these outfits wonderful? Do you have a favorite?
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Caitlin Trantham is a pretty awesome young woman. At 33, she’s a mom to three kids, a military wife, and essentially a creative machine. In her spare time, she likes to redesign thrift store clothing. And let’s just say that she certainly has a knack for it.
A true lover of vintage fashion, she loves visiting thrift stores to pick out clothing with potential. She then turns them into amazing outfits that anybody would love to wear.
Besides her love for vintage fashion, she began creating her own clothes because they had become a little too pricey and the designs she wanted were getting difficult to find.
Speaking with Bored Panda she shared that she only began sewing 7 years ago and started with quilting. Even more impressive, she began working on clothes only a year ago.
Check out her jaw-dropping outfits!
