I bought dress at a thrift store a few weeks ago for $6. It was a little bit of a splurge for me, since I could tell right off the bat that it needed some work. I didn't much care though, because I really liked the delicate pattern and the demure nature of the dress. I forgot to take a before picture; I was a little too eager to get started on the project. It fit so poorly. The sleeves were too long and baggy, my little twiggy arms got lost in all the fabric. There was a pocket over the right breast, which made me look like I sagged unevenly. Ew. The high, sans-collar neckline and the long dress length just screamed matronly. I'm 25. My clothes should make me look like I'm 25, not 65. It kinda looked like this dress from my flickr stream, but worse. So, this is what I did:

• Shortened the sleeves by 3 inches(!)
• Took in the sleeves and sides of bodice by 2 inches
• Removed the breast pocket
• Shortened the skirt by 8 inches
• Turned the collar into a V-neck
• Added a giant bow to the neckline

Much better! You can't see the bow very clearly from my pictures, but it looks far more pronounced in person. It probably would've made more of a statement had I attached a bow in coordinating fabric rather than the same fabric. Next time, perhaps. I was a little worried that I was going to hem the skirt a little too short, but it turns out it's the perfect length! It covers what it needs to & shows off the rest. It'll be the perfect summer dress if the weather ever decides to warm up past 50º.