Making more work for myself

Yesterday was 50% off sale at Value Village.  Would have said no to going, since I have been buying too much clothing lately.  But my roommate was really excited, so I only went in looking for a pair of black pants I could wear at work.  And maybe Dansko clogs (you never know).

Damn, I hate that store.  Or maybe it's just my willpower.  I tried on black pants.  Oh, wait.  Shoes first.  Found a pair of Dansko sandals!!  Also a comfy pair of Clark's sandals, and a low-heeled pump that would be perfect for trying on black pants with.  Back to trying on black pants.  In addition to the great-for-work basic black pants, I tried on a pair of OMG-I-look-hot-in-these black pants from Charlotte Russe.  What was I thinking?!  Well, they were just in the pile of black pants, who knew how fabulously un-work-wardrobe they truly were.

Well, fabulous black pants stayed on my body while I went back to the clothing racks to find a shirt to wear with them.  And here's the part I hate:  I'm a person who sews.  I can mend things.  I can restyle things.  Therefore, thrift store clothing with little "problems" can become my newest project.  I'm so bad: at least 50% of the clothes I buy at thrift stores need some form of alteration before I can wear them.

Among my $30 (after the half off) worth of purchases were two blouses with unwearable sleeve issues.  Here are the "before" pictures:

 Cute green tunic.  Sleeve looks kinda OK, but is completely non-functional: can't raise your arms in the least.

 Shiny goin'-out-to-dinner blouse with ruffle detail down the front and on the sleeve band.  Can you tell how much these ruffles stand straight out from the sleeve?  Downright silly.

And again, can't raise arms because of the tight gathering on the sleeve band.

So, as it stands, I have two more projects in my sewing basket.  Both shirts have had the offending sleeves dismantled and are awaiting inspiration.  Stay tuned for the "after" - at some future date.