Here they are! The FIFTEEN finalists! There were supposed to be only ten finalists but every entry was so creative into the Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Design Challenge that the judges had trouble narrowing it down any further…..so we’ve decided to leave it up to you! So here they are in no particular order! Pick which one you love the best and think is the most creative! Thanks to the judges (Shari, Dana, Disney, Candace and Rae) for all the hard work they did in narrowing the entry field down to 15 from 154 entries!

Voting has ended.

1. Chicken Nuggets Dress: Sarah Boyd from 2 Giggle Boxes
The dress was inspired not from chicken nuggets…… but from four pet goldfish that Sarah’s daughter chose to name “chicken nuggets.” Sarah created the fishbowl on the top of the dress using lightweight vinyl PVC. The underwater world was created using applique and fabric painting. The bottom of the dress features imported Japanese fabric sewn into a bubble style.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Halter/Tie-Back Dress

2. Yeti Dreams of Soup Dress: Beth from Lemon Cadet
Beth used reverse applique to turn one of her yeti t-shirts into the main focus of this dress. She added freehand embroidery starting with the bowl of soup and then adding the dream-like thought bubble.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress

3. Rainbow Ruffle Dress: Shelly from I Like The Way You Do
Shelly went for the “kid land” couture look for her full length “formal” gown. The entire dress is made from 100% recycled t-shirts including the multi-colored straps and tie backs (which were actually hems from shirts, repurposed).
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Halter/Tie-Back Dress

4. Spring Fever Dress: Vanessa from Punkin Patterns
Vanessa used three different plain fabrics in a dark pink, light pink and green. The appliqued flowers came from a really beautiful border fabric. The applique goes all the way around the dress and the pockets hide where the applique pieces meet giving the fabric the illusion from far away that it is one piece of fabric.
Pattern: The Paper Doll Dress

5. B&W Mod Twin Hoodies: Sophia from Chimi and Changa
Sophia used fabric black paint and stencils to add her graphics to the black and white hoodies. She added a little bit of spunk using these neon fabric spray colors…..black and white…simplicity and cool modernism.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Hoodie

6. Airplane Pants and Shirt: Sascha from Piccoli Piselli
Sascha used the Sienna Dress pattern to make a raglan tee for a boy! The outfit was made from a bunch of old T-shirts. She cut two oval elbow patches and saved the pocket from an orange tee to use on the pants.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress, Lil Leggings

7. Kung Hee Fat Choy (Happy New Year) Top: Shannon from Happy Tomodachi
Shannon used red and gold t-shirts: red-good luck, gold-wealth and happiness. She stenciled the character for “Double Happiness” at the top using freezer paper and Jacquard Neopaque fabric paint and added some 3-D gold glitter paint for some subtle “zing.” She appliqued the flowers using fabric from the original t-shirts and fusible webbing and dusted the flowers with glitter paint for sparkle. She then used hems from the original t-shirts to trim the sleeves and bottom hem of the new top.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress

8. Church Waders: Sabra from Sew a Straight Line
Sabra started off with a mens pair of dress slacks that she purchased at a local thrift store. For this pair of overalls she left the main body piece wide and added “manly tucks” instead of gathering. She also carefully cut on one of the back welt pockets from the original pants and appliqued it to the butt of the overalls!
Pattern: The Paper Doll Dress

9. Knit Mermaids: Nicole of Cole’s Corner and Creations
Nicole started with some knits from her stash and some fleshy material used for ice skating costumes. For the bodice, she used Embird to merge the ‘boobie’ parts (seashells and starfish) together into one 5X7 embroidery hoop. Lastly she added bling around the neck, ruffles and fins!
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Halter/Tie-Back Dress

10. Monster Hoodie: Lynette from Get Your Craft On
Lynette appliqued the eyeball on with creepy red veins stitched in the corners. The mouth of the monster doubles as a pocket for little hands. The teeth are painted on with velveteen paint that give them a bit of dimension, using a freezer paper technique. She used the freezer paper technique to add all the hands. The spikes on the head was large Ric Rac sewn into the seam!
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Hoodie

11. Pirate Booty Dress: Karen from Landes in D.C.
Karen used a hand-me down toddler “Pirates of the Caribbean” tee with coordinating soft and scrumptious jersey cut from two Talbots’ tees donated by the model’s grandmother to make this dress. She created the pirate treasure map by drawing free-hand on freezer paper and carefully stenciling it onto the dress. “X marks the spot on this Pirate Booty dress.”
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress

12. Gracyn Dress: Lindsay from The Cottage Home
Lindsay wanted to design something that had a real sweetness to it, but was still somewhat earthy. The Gracyn dress was made from two recycled t-shirts & knit yardage. She added an organic looking bird & tree applique made from a thick bronze metallic fabric. On each sleeve Lindsay added a band of light pink & purple fabric from the recycled t-shirts and left the edges raw.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress

13. Super Girl Hoodie Dress with Removable Cape: Angie from Mama Lusco
Angie embellished this hoodie dress by adding freezer-paper stenciled stripes to the bottom of the cape and a star in the middle of the cape. She used a shiny blue paint to give it super hero style!
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress, Recycled T-Shirt Hoodie

14. Cotton Candy Couture: Alexis from Made by Lex
Alexis used a bunch of different t-shirts to make a striped skirt at the bottom of this dress and added a pick-up where the tulle under layer shows. To get the layered flower detail she appliqued cotton pieces on top of the t-shirt and added dimensional pieces to go on top. There are layered flowers with beads and buttons, chiffon petal flowers, tulle pom poms, and silk ribbon swags. She gathered the sleeves up the middle and added lace bows from on of the t-shirts. A matching hair piece to top it all off!
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress

15. GI Joe (My Hero) Dress: Ashley from The Clarks
This entry a little different……there is no blog post linked because the Ashley created this dress for her daughter to wear in March when she meets her daddy in Germany. He is currently in Afghanistan……he left just before his daughter’s first birthday. He checks Ashley’s blog regularly and she wanted him to be surprised when he sees this dress. She created the dress by lengthening the hoodie pattern and adding a ruffle at the bottom. She used Dylon’s Olive color to tie-dye some white knit fabric to resemble a camouflage color. She added cuffs to the sleeves from the collar of the pink t-shirt and used a freezer paper stenciling technique to add a red, white and blue stripe to the ruffle.
Pattern: Recycled T-Shirt Hoodie

First Prize:
:: Choice of one of the following: 50 Person Tie-Dye Party Kit, Screenprinting Kit, or $50 Dharma Trading Gift Certificate.
:: $25 Lil Blue Boo Etsy Store Gift Certificate.
:: Choice of boy or girl nursery painting from my fine art website.
:: “Challenge Winner” badge to display on blog or website.

Second Prize:
:: $25 Dharma Trading Gift Certificate
:: $25 Lil Blue Boo Etsy Store Gift Certificate

Third Prize
:: $15 Lil Blue Boo Etsy Store Gift Certificate