How to Make a Beanie from a Sweater Sleeve

Have you had your fill of winter yet? Has Snowmageddon depleted your creative energy? Well, guess what? Here's an unexpected and easy sewing project to make for your little ones in one evening. This easy little project may just make these last days of winter a little more bearable, once you see your little ones wearing these cute little beanies on their heads.

These beanies were made with the leftover material from an upcycled sweater project that I shared a couple of weeks ago. The sweater originally had gigantic baggy sleeves that proclaimed, "I'm so outdated!" They just had to go. So, I cut them off and made a cute pair of boot cuffs, and still had a bit of leftover sleeve material. Instead of tossing them, I thought, "Why not make hats for the boys?"

Here's the original sweater. It's a hand-knit wool sweater and a bit on the heavy side. This project is totally doable with the heavy wool sweater, but would probably work out even better on a medium-weight sweater. You'll need need at least 12 inches of a sleeve to work with (per hat).

Here's how I made these cute little beanies:

Start out by serging each trimmed end of the sleeve to prevent the sweater from unraveling as you work on it.

Turn the sleeve inside out, fold one end, and pin it. (This is the top portion of the hat. So, if the sleeve has a smaller end, it would be ideal to use the smaller end here.) Side note: the photo shows both ends pinned, but you can pin each end and work on them one at a time.

Sew a line about 1 inch above the fold of the sleeve, leaving a 1 inch opening between the starting and ending points. Be sure to run the sewing machine forward and backward a couple of times to prevent the stitch from unraveling (at the starting and ending points), especially since the ends are not connected. (I used a serged stitch here, but a straight stitch would be fine too.)

While the sleeve is still inside out, fold the opposite end of the sleeve over, pin, and sew two separate lines over the folded portion.  Make one about 1/4 inch above the fold and one about 1 inch above the fold to create a faux brim. This time, make sure to connect the beginning and ending points.

Guess what? That's all the sewing needed! For. Real. Gasp!

Set aside the sleeve/hat. Braid three strands of yarn into approximately the length of 2 feet.

Tie one end of the braided yarn onto a small crochet needle.  Thread the yarn through the top opening of the hat (the end with the 1 inch opening) and out the other end to create a "drawstring".

Pull the yarn tight and tie square knot. Turn the hat right side out and pull drawstrings through the small opening at the top of the hat.

Trim the ends of the drawstrings, leaving approximately 8 inches (or more if you like), and tie off the ends. Make two pom poms and attach them to each end of the drawstring.

Double threaded a plastic needle with yarn, then "embroider" a cute pattern onto the "brim" of the hat.

Wa-La! That's it! Easy-Peasy. Who would have ever thought to make a hat out of a sweater sleeve??
:)

Sweater Boot Cuffs from Sleeves DIY in 15 minutes or less

I have a "thing" for upcycling clothes. I've mentioned it before, so I apologize if I sound like a broken record, but I LOVE it. I find it incredibly gratifying to change up an unused article of clothing into something better. I also find it fun to save the unused and discarded pieces for future projects. It's kind of like a game for me...or more like a challenge - "How many different things can I make from this ugly sweater?" The answer? Lots of things! Last week, I shared about how I converted an ugly sweater into an awesome, non-dorky vest...well, at least I think so. Anyway, I saved the sleeves from the sweater and decided to use them for something else - Boot Cuffs.

I know what you are thinking - "Wait a minute...didn't you make boot cuffs a couple of years ago?" Nope. It was leg warmers and mock boot socks. Here's the thing - the legwarmers and boot cuffs are awesome (and yes, I still wear them and still get compliments), BUT some of my boots fit so snugly, I'm not able to wear the leg warmers and zip up boots. Oh, the tragedy! (First world problems right here.)

Enter the boot cuffs - the perfect solution for snug fitting boots. Isn't the whole point of wearing leg warmers to show off the cute "socks" by allowing them to peek over the top of your boot anyway? (Well, aside from the fact that they provide extra warmth). Duh! Why didn't I think of this sooner? I'm going to blame it on the Mom Brain. Yeah. By the way, I forgot to mention this earlier, but this project was so easy, it only took 15 minutes to make. Sssssssssssscore!

So, it all started with the sweater. Sweet, wonderful, loud, hand-crafted sweater from Norway. It spoke to me that day in the second-hand store and said, "You know I'm wonderful. I just need a little work. Please buy me so I can reach my full potential." So, of course, I had to oblige.

Here's how I made the boot cuffs:

I started out with two leftover sweater sleeves.

Starting at the cuff (the portion of the sleeve that sits on your wrist), measure approximately 8 inches down and serge a line completely around the sleeve. Trim off the excess fabric below the serge.

Turn the serged sleeve cuff inside out, fold the fabric, and pin. Serge (or use a straight stitch on) the pinned portion of the fabric.

Almost done (believe it or not)! Turn the sewn cuff right-side out and slip it onto your leg, just below your knee. If the cuff fits snugly, breathe a sigh of relief and relish in the fact that you have completed this simple project with very little effort. However, if the cuff came with really baggy sleeves, like mine did, you have one more adjustment to make. Since the baggy sleeves fit loose around my calves, I had to taper the sleeve portion to create a snug fit. While wearing the cuff, get an approximate idea of how much fabric needs to be removed to achieve the desired fit around your calf. Turn the cuff inside-out again and mark the fabric. If you like to be precise, you can use a measuring tape and mark off the excess fabric. I'm impatient, so I estimated and marked about a "pinch" of fabric. Sew a line down the marked path and trim off excess fabric.

Turn right-side-out and wear! That's it, friends! Super quick and easy!

Hey, guess what? Did you like this little mini-upcycled project I did with the leftover scraps from last week's project? I made something else, too. Come back next week and see what it is. :)

Easy Upcycled Sweater Vest Tutorial

Did you know that upcycling is one of my favorite things to do? You didn't? Well, now you do. I get a great amount of satisfaction in converting an unwanted article of clothing into something new and different. It's just so much fun. I've had this sweater in the back of my closet for a while, begging to be changed into something else. It needed to be upcycled. Rest assured, I never actually wore this sweater until after I upcycled it. (I heard those sighs of relief. Yeah.) This hand-knit sweater from Norway was truly a diamond in the rough with its Fair Isle pattern, beautifully crafted buttons, and amazing fold-over collar, but it was hard to appreciate it's beauty. So, I gave this sweater a small make-over and turned it into a sweet sweater vest. When I wear it now, I pretend I live in Maine...because, somehow, Maine seems exotic to a person who has lived in the desert for most of her life. And in my mind, people in Maine wear sweater vests like this. Don't be offended.

A couple of years ago, I bought several clothing articles from a second hand store. It was one of those sales where you stuff as many items into a bag as possible and only pay 25 cents per bag. It was awesome. I found this awesome red sweater at that sale too. When I first found it, I was like, "Oh...wow...that's...loud," and then I put it back and continued sifting through the clothing piles. But, I couldn't get that sweater out of my head. Sure, it was loud, and even a bit eccentric, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I actually liked this sweater. Not as it was, but I knew it had potential. So, I stuffed it in my bag, purchased it and brought it home. Little did I know, that at that time, I was pregnant with our second kid. (Pregnancy is not kind to me, and I have a very limited amount of creativity during this time. The only desire I have during these moments is to lay face down the couch with a trash can nearby, for puking, until my due date arrives.) A few days later, I found out I was pregnant. All plans to revamp this sweater were forgotten about until recently, when I switched out my seasonal clothes and came across this sweater. After casually considering my options for a month or two, I finally decided this eccentric sweater would be so much more awesome and a lot less crazy if it didn't have those frumpy, baggy sleeves. So, I got rid of them and now it's an awesome sweater vest and, currently, my favorite thing to wear. (I try not to wear it everyday because people might start to think that I don't wash my clothes.) ;)

Before the upcycle

Before I start, let me just tell you, I am not a sewing expert in any way, shape, or form. I know how to work a sewing machine (uhh...mostly...or I can read the manual) and I can sew a straight line, but that's about it. This is an easy project, so don't get intimated if your seamstress skills are lacking. If I can do this project, you can too, provided that you can work a sewing machine...at least a little bit. :)

Ok. Project time.

A closer look at the serged sleeve. Hard to see due to the fact that the thread is also red.

Start out by serging the top and bottom portion of the sleeves in a straight line, just above the armpit (pictured above) to prevent the sweater from unraveling once it's trimmed. Repeat the serge on the opposite sleeve, as well.

Once you have serged both sleeves, cut off both the sleeves below the serged line. (Side note: I recommend saving the sleeves to upcycle into something else - like maybe these awesome leg warmer/mock boot socks)

Once the sleeves have been cut off, decide where you would like the top of the vest to end on your shoulder, and mark it.

Draw a rounded path on the top portion of the sleeve from the top of the marked shoulder to the bottom near the armpit.

Serge along the outside of the drawn path on the top portion of the sleeve only. Trim away the top part of the sleeve (after the top has been serged). Using the path made from the top part of the sleeve that has been cut away, trace the sleeve path onto the bottom half of the sleeve, serge, and then trim. (Be sure to connect the serge lines from the top portion to the bottom portion.)

Once the top and bottom of the first side of the sweater have been serged and trimmed, fold the sweater in half and trace the sleeve path onto the top portion of the opposite side of the sweater. Serge the top portion of the sleeve, cut away the excess, retraced the path onto the bottom portion of the sleeve, serge, and trim again. 

Turn the sweater inside out, pin the raw edges, and sew a straight stitch along the edges. Trim the excess thread, turn inside out, and wear! 

I'm so pleased with how this turned out and it allows me to indulge in my Maine fantasy. Did you know I live on the coast and have a boat dock at the edge of my yard? I like to wear this sweater vest while I sit on the dock, sip the cappuccino in my mug, and watch the fishing boats off in the distance. Well, maybe not, but I can always pretend. (This sweater vest makes it all possible.)

And look - the collar is still just as awesome as it was before. 

If it gets really cold, I can wear the sweater like this. Will you still be my friend if I wear it like this? ;) Go and make a vest for yourself now!

The Upcycled Sweater Series Part 5 - Sweater into a Skirt Tutorial

Today is the last part of the series, and it's also my favorite project out of all the sweater projects that I've done. Be sure to catch up if you haven't read Parts 1-4. Part 1 was a tutorial on leg warmers. Part 2 was about making mittens and a scarf. In Part 3 you can learn how to make arm warmers, and Part 4 you can learn to make an infinity scarf, and a sweater vest.

For the last project, I made skirts from mens sweaters...

I used the arms from both of the sweaters to make leg warmers in Part 1. To start out, cut apart the sweater's shoulders (after the arms have been cut off).

This sweater was a men's size large. I wanted to use the bottom of the sweater (the part that sits at the waist), as the waist for my skirt. However, as it was, it was too large to fit snugly around my waist (fortunately!).  Start by measuring your waist or the place where you want the top of the skirt to fit. Subtract 3 inches from your waist measurement. Then, divide that number in half and use that number to mark off where to cut the waistline. For example: If my waist is 25 inches (it's not), then I subtract 3 and end up with 22 inches. From there I divide 22 in half and end up with 11. So that means I need to mark off a waistline that is only 11 inches long when the sweater is laying down (and trim off the excess fabric outside of the marked off waistline).

I used chalk to mark my sweater. Also, make sure that you turn the sweater inside out before marking, pinning, cutting, and sewing!

After marking off the waist on your skirt, use a yard stick or a straight surface to mark the outline of the sides for the skirt. (I don't have a yard stick, so I used a scrap board instead.)

 My mom helped me. These are her hands, btw.

Then pin along the marked part of your fabric, cut about an inch outside the marked line, serge the ends, and then sew along the marked edges. (This is always a challenge for me. Seriously, I have the hardest time sewing in a straight line!) Repeat on the opposite side.

Almost done. After deciding on the length of the skirt, trim the bottom giving yourself about an inch or two to work with. Serge the bottom, fold up the fabric to where you would like the hem to be, pin it, and hem by hand (blah) to avoid stretching the fabric in weird places.

And now you have a skirt like this!

The slit in my skirt was where the bottom of the sweater's armpit started. You don't have to do it this way, I just wanted the skirt to be longer.

The next sweater wasn't as involved as the previous one because it was a smaller size (Medium)

This sweater fit my waist well as it was, there was no trimming and cutting along the sides or the waist. After I cut apart the shoulders, I measured the length I wanted my skirt, serged it, and hemmed it with my sewing machine. (This fabric wasn't as stretchy and textured as the previous sweater was, so it was relatively easy to hem with the machine, carefully.)

I also added slits to this skirt as well (to get more length). But, I hemmed the slits by hand after I serged the fabric, because I didn't think I could hem without stretching the fabric while maneuvering it through the sewing machine at those angles.

And this is the finished product.

I find that when you can't figure out how to pose for a picture, it's best to cover your eyes! ;)

I have to tell you guys, this was such a fun series to create! Although I don't do it as often as I would like, I love to up-cycle clothing. All of the projects in this series were relatively easy. I would definitely not consider myself to be a seamstress...I have a hard time sewing in a straight line! But I do have a sewing machine, and I know how to work it...or at least how to look something up in the manual and follow the instructions. So if I can do these, so can you! Don't be intimidated. Try them and show me what you got. Go and do one right now!!

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