Allow us to introduce ourselves: Our names are Lucy McBride
and Lesley Burr. We’re two bloggers with a love for fashion, among other things. Our site, Rusted Revolution, began as a side project – a hobby through which we could channel our observations on fashion, music, travel, food, and the arts, sharing them with whomever cared to look. Since RR’s birth in early September 2010, a growing Internet following has encouraged us to provide our readers with consistent news, trends, and reflections in the vast realm that is pop culture.
While most wardrobe malfunctions aren’t as public,
or as revealing, as Janet Jackson’s circa Superbowl XXXVIII, they can nonetheless be just as dismaying. Be it a rip in your stockings or a stain on your blouse, any minor mishap can ruin a collegiette’s™ carefully put-together appearance. While it may be tempting to throw out a jacket with a stuck zipper, or pay an arm and a leg to get a hem mended by a professional tailor, don’t. I promise you these quick tips can serve as a temporary stop-gap (think when you’re running from class to work and don’t have time to change), or can even be a permanent solution to your fashion woes.
Not a sewing expert? Clumsy with safety pins? Have a tendency to turn your whites pink in the wash? Never fear, these solutions are truly simple. Despite the fact that Lucy and I are DIY fanatics, we’re even bigger fans of making our projects (and lives) as easy and pain-free as possible. I swear on my life these solutions are super easy to follow and just as easy to carry out.
Run in Stockings
For stockings, you have two alternatives. You can either stop the run from becoming bigger or help it along:
1.) To stop the run from spreading, clear nail polish will do the trick. Just paint along the run, let it dry, and you’re good to go. Hairspray can also help keep a run under control in a pinch.
2.) If you’re wearing a casual outfit, or are on the more daring side, why not use the run to your advantage? Don’t shy away at the sight of it… rock it! Holey tights are totally grunge and totally in, so why not make like Courtney Love and rip some more holes in it? The more holes there are, the edgier you’ll look, not to mention it’ll no longer look like an accident. Use a fork (or your fingers) to snag and rip your tights even more.
Loose Button
Much like a run in a pair of stockings, a button unraveling can be solved by clear nail polish or hairspray. Just put a little on the loose and frayed ends of the thread to temporarily hold the button in place until you have time to mend it properly. If the button looks like it’s going to fall off at any moment, however, I recommend removing it altogether and stowing it in a safe place so as not to lose it. If you don’t need to hold your clothing closed, great. If you do need that, just use a safety pin instead for the time being.
Rips in Clothing
Safety pins are the only real way to effectively hold a rip together until it can be properly sewn. Unfortunately, it’ll be virtually impossible to hide this, but at least you can comfort yourself knowing that the rip won’t get any bigger. However, assuming you have the proper outfit on, safety pins can be used to creatively cover holes. For example, if you’ve just torn a hole in a pair of jeans, why not use ten pins on one small hole, and pin them across the hole? It’ll hold the rip closed and look deliberate, as if you bought the jeans decorated with that extra bit of hardware. It’ll certainly look cooler than those awkward iron-on patches…
Falling Bra Strap, Loose Waistband, and Other Ill-Fitting Dilemmas
Safety pins are the best solution for any of these dilemmas. However it takes a while to get the hang of using a safety pin properly. It can get tricky trying to pin a bra strap to your shirt or mend a falling hem in a way that is secure, yet discreet. My suggestion is, if possible, take whatever article of clothing off that needs adjusting, and turn it inside out before pinning. That way, you will have an easier time pinning, but when you flip the garment back the right way, the pin will easily be hidden from sight.
If you don’t have a safety pin handy, use a bobby pin to clip the falling hem or strap up. It won’t be very discrete, but it’s certainly better than accidentally flashing someone. If you’re in a real pinch, some double-sided tape can work, although the results will not last very long.
Staining
Staining problems fall under one of four main categories:
1.) Makeup – Non-oily makeup stains, like mineral powder or blush, are the easiest to handle. Just brush your clothing lightly to get rid of any loose makeup clinging to it, and then wipe with a damp cloth. It should come right out. For oily stains, try to catch them as soon as possible. Blot at the stain using dish detergent (one that has oil/grease-fighting properties) and then launder as you normally would. For super tough stains, try blotting at them with a non-oily makeup remover very gently, so as not to spread or rub the stain deeper into the fabric.
2.) Pit stains – Yellow stains on the armpits of a blouse are a pain, and super embarrassing. It happens to everyone, but the good news is, it doesn’t have to happen to you any more. There are a couple of household items that can make all the difference:
• Hydrogen peroxide – one stain remover you definitely have lying around the house. For white shirts, pour the hydrogen peroxide directly onto the stain and let the shirt sit for an hour. Once the peroxide is good and absorbed, you can wash the shirt as you normally would. For colored shirts, however, you need to dilute the peroxide with water. Using a solution that’s one-half peroxide and one-half water, soak the stains in the liquid, wash as normal, and repeat the process if needed. Dry the colored shirt in the sun.
• Aspirin – another handy dandy stain remover. To remove stains from white shirts, mix a couple of aspirin in a cup of warm water and apply it to the stain as a pre-treatment. Then wash the shirt as you normally would and the stain should fade.
3.) Bleach stains – While there’s no way of removing bleach stains, you can use it to your advantage. If the bleach stain happens to be towards the bottom of the shirt or on a sleeve, cut off the hem or the sleeves and turn your shirt into a crop or tank top instead of throwing it out. If it’s a big ugly blotch in the middle, try bleaching the rest of the item. Free People’s blog offers an awesome tutorial on the reverse tie-dye method and Denimology has a creative bleaching and studding denim project.
4.) Other – Honestly, I swear by the Tide-to-Go pen. It’s a lifesaver and it has worked on almost every stain I’ve ever had, particularly food and ink stains. Just be sure to take care of it ASAP.
Pilling
Pilling = the biggest nuisance to plague your clothing. Pills are the tiny balls of fiber that make fabric rough and sloppy. To get rid of pilling, there are a few simple options. Using duct tape or Velcro®, simply run the sticky side over the fabric and the pilling should hopefully come off. If not, you can run a razor blade along the fabric, cutting each ball off one at a time, though be very careful as to not rip the surface of your clothes.
Stuck Zipper
A stuck zipper doesn’t have to mean the death of your favorite jacket or jeans. Sometimes, they’re salvageable. The fix can get a little messy, but it’s worth a shot. Rub something a little slippery along the zipper teeth (wax, soap, butter, paraffin, Vaseline®, etc.) and with a little tugging, the zipper will hopefully be good to go.
Broken Heel
This is the mother of all nightmares. It’s hard enough walking in heels as it is – try walking with one broken one. If you don’t have a back up pair of shoes at your internship office desk or in the backseat of your car, there are a couple of temporary solutions you can use:
1.) If you have superglue lying around, it should do the trick.
2.) Duct tape is another useful alternative — just roll a piece or two up, sticky side out.
3.) Gum, in a pinch, may also work. Chew a couple pieces up and stick them in the gap where the heel meets the sole of your shoe. Just make sure to press down really well so that the gum spreads evenly around the base of the heel for maximum stickage.
Of course, they won’t last very long, so I recommend hobbling to the nearest pair of shoes in your size and changing into them, but these should last you until your meeting is over, or until you make it to Aldo.
Lost drawstring
Drawstrings are meant to make clothing adjustable and comfortable, but often they are more work than they’re worth. What do you do if the end of your drawstring gets eaten up? Simple enough: get a wire, thread it in, and try to catch the missing end of the string to tug it out. If it’s impossible to grab, pull out the drawstring and re-thread it through the waistband by attaching a safety pin to the end and using it to guide the string through.
Gum
Don’t panic, there’s still hope for those jeans that have someone else’s ABC gum stuck to the hem. This may sound weird, but it works. It’s not guaranteed to work every time, but if your designer jeans are at stake, it’s worth a shot. Stick your pants (or other article of clothing) in the freezer. When the gum is frozen solid, you should be able to scrape it off of the fabric with a blunt knife.
And there you have it, some quick and easy ways to fix fashion woes! As much as we hope we’ll never encounter these problems, we all know they happen on a daily basis. Hopefully with these tips, you’ll be better prepared in the face of a style disaster.
Photo Sources:
http://www.venturevalkyrie.com/2010/09/26/would-corn-by-any-other-name-taste-as-sweet/674/janet-jackson-wardrobe-malfunction-1
http://amazonablog.com/fall-09-trend-ripped-tights/
http://veryverychic.typepad.com/veryverychic/paris-fashion-week/
http://reportyourcomplaint.com/horrible-smell-stink-at-family-dollar/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pilling.jpg
http://www.notmartha.org/archives/2008/09/15/my-very-stuck-zipper/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yuan9lifes/3117470170/