Recycle Wool Sweaters Into Mittens
Have you ever wondered how you could recycle wool sweaters into mittens?
Well - here's the information you've been waiting for so long. Just
follow these simple instructions and you'll have a pair of cozy woollen mittens in no time.
The easiest way by far is to use the sweater sleeves. You may as well use the cuffs that are already there
and reduce your sewing requirements.
You will need...
- felted wool sweater
- tape measure or yard stick
- pair of sharp scissors
- marker pen
- blunt end needle
- yarn or thread for sewing pieces together
- pins or safety pins
You will need to know how to sew back stitch too.
Read the instructions then take a good look at the pictures and all will be clear.
Here we go with your instructions how to recycle wool sweaters into mittens...
- First of all, push your hand into the sleeve from the cuff end. This way you can feel how long your mittens should be at the cuff, so you know which part of your wrist should be at the start point of the tape measure.
- Take the only measurement you need. Lay your hand on the tape measure with your fingers pointing along the numbers. Take into account the depth of cuff that you want and note the measurement ONE inch past your fingertips. (Mine was 10 inches - 2.5 inch cuff and 7.5 inch hand length including seam allowance).
- Turn your sweater inside out. Place your tape measure on your sweater sleeve and cut straight
across the sleeve at the correct measurement. Repeat on second sleeve.
- Pin or safety pin the sleeve together to prevent twisting. Place your non-writing hand on one cut sleeve piece with your wrist over the cuff section and the sleeve seam right next to your little finger. Spread your thumb away from your hand so that it lays parallel with the sleeve fold.
- Keeping at least a ONE INCH space around your hand and tapering from the sleeve seam, draw a rounded mitten edge around your fingers and down to your thumb joint. Keeping a HALF INCH space around your thumb,draw up the length of your thumb and around the top tapering the thumbs'top curve into the sleeve fold.
- Cut along your line. Pin your second sleeve together, place your mitten template on the other sleeve so the seams are on top of one another. Draw around and cut out the second mitten.
- You're now ready to back stitch
your mittens about a quarter inch in from the cut edge. Work back stitch from the sleeve seam all the way around the open edge for each mitten, tapering into the seam and the fold.
- When you're done stitching you might want to trim your seams down to about a quarter inch width. You should also make a small snip in both mittens at the point where your thumb and hand meet. Snip in towards the seam but be sure not to cut your stitching. This will prevent your mitten wrinkling at the thumb joint.
- Turn your mittens right side out and you're done!
So - there you have it! Now you know how to recycle wool sweaters into mittens. Don't throw away the rest of the sweater yet. You can save the small pieces to try some needle felting. The rest you can turn into a bag or a multitude of items.
You could try needle felting or embroidering a design onto the back of your mittens to spruce them up a little, or you could
crochet an edging around the cuff.
If you decide your mittens are a little loose at the cuff, stitch some elastic around the inside of the cuff or make a decorative band across the back of your wrist by crocheting with some fancy yarn around the elastic.
There are other ways you can recycle wool sweaters into mittens, but this is the easiest method and the results are great, as you will see.
I hope you've enjoyed learning how to recycle wool sweaters into mittens. Come back soon and find out what else you can make from recycled wool sweaters.
Find out how to felt wool in your washing machine.
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