Introduction: Are you looking for a creative way to repurpose old sweaters and stay warm during the chilly months? Look no further! In this step-by-step guide, I’ll show you how to transform old sweaters into a cozy blanket that’s perfect for snuggling up on cold nights. Let’s get started!
Step 1: Gather Your Supplies Before you begin, gather the following supplies:
- 8 or more 100% wool sweaters
- Sharp scissors
- Wash away stabilizer
- Rotary cutter
- Quilt ruler
- Sewing machine (a walking foot is highly recommended)
- Iron
- Backing fabric & binding fabric
Step 2: Prepare the Sweaters Using sharp scissors, carefully cut along all seams of the old sweaters. Then, wash and dry all the sweater pieces according to your desired washing and drying preferences. This helps to felt and shrink the fabric.
Step 3: Trim and Assess Trim off cuffs and seams from the sweater pieces to see what large pieces you have to work with. Use the largest pieces as your base size and cut out rectangles from sweater fronts and backs.
Step 4: Create Patchwork For the patchwork, cut straight edges on the sweater pieces and stitch them together. Use strips of interfacing beneath the seams to prevent rippling. Iron everything as you go to flatten out the fabric.
Step 5: Trim and Match Trim the patchwork rectangles to match the size of the wholecloth pieces.
Step 6: Stitch It Together Lay out all the pieces and start stitching them together in columns. Iron everything as you go to ensure a smooth finish.
Step 7: Layer and Quilt Lay your finished top on top of the backing fabric and use safety pins to prevent shifting. Quilt the layers together using your preferred method.
Step 8: Finish the Edges Optional: serge around the edges to prevent slipping or do a basting stitch. You can also curve the corners to make binding easier.
Step 9: Add Binding Cut strips of the backing fabric into 2″ wide strips for binding. Sew the binding onto the edges of the blanket and hand-sew it to the back.
Conclusion: And there you have it! Your old sweaters have been transformed into a super cozy blanket that’s perfect for keeping warm on cold winter nights. Enjoy your new creation!
