Upcycled Dress into a Lace Back Vest (the how-to)

I bought a lacy dress at Forever 21 on clearance a few summers ago.  It was great for walking to the beach in Chicago.... but now that I am beachless in Charleston, I decided to upcycle it.

I've slowly been collecting lace back vests (like this one form Charlotte Russe).

I decided this would be the perfect next life for my dress.  So I trimmed off the bottom with my rotary cutter, mat, and guide thingy.

Originally, the lace was on the front of the dress.  For the vest, I wanted it on the back.  So I put my mat in between the front and back of the dress with the original back of the dress facing up.  I lined my guide in the center of the tag all the way down the back.  Next, I cut down with my rotary cutter and cut out the tag.

If you wanted, you could hem it... but I like the unfinished look.

here's the front:

I hope you enjoyed this how-to!  If you give this a shot.... please take pics and post links in the comments!  I would love to see your projects.