Make a silk purse of a sow's ear

Etymology  Coined by Stephen Gosson in 1579 in the book The Ephemerides of Phialo: Deuided Into Three Bookes p62v Verb  make a silk purse of a sow's ear (third-person singular simple present makes a silk purse of a sow's ear, present participle making a silk purse of a sow's ear, simple past and past participle made a silk purse of a sow's ear)    

  (idiomatic) To produce something refined, admirable, or valuable from something which is unrefined, unpleasant, or of little or no value.         1884, Charlotte M. Yonge, chapter 22, in The Armourer's Prentices:              "He always was an unmannerly cub," said Master Headley, as he read the letter. "Well, I've done my best to make a silk purse of a sow's ear!"          1997 May 23, Joanna Biddolph, “Mandelson has become PR’s new role model”, in PRWeek, UK, retrieved 16 Dec. 2009:              PR people can make a silk purse of a sow's ear.          2001 January 6, Penny Jackson, “House & Home: On your marks. Get set. Sell!”, in Independent, UK, retrieved 16 Dec. 2009:              A smart development can make a silk purse of a sow's ear, and the effect on older properties can be quite dramatic.  

Usage notes      Often expressed in the proverbial form: you can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear.  Translations to produce something refined, from something which is unrefined      Chinese:          Mandarin: 化腐朽為神奇 / 化腐朽为神奇 (huà fǔxiǔ wéi shénqí)      Finnish: tehdä jotain hyödyllistä (+ elative)     German: aus Scheiße Geld machen (de) (profane)     Italian: cavare sangue da una rapa, cavar sangue da una rapa     Russian: сде́лать из дерьма́ конфе́тку pf (sdélatʹ iz derʹmá konfétku)  See also      put lipstick on a pig     polish a turd