Re-purposed wool sweater = new handbag

When I saw the lovely cabled and embroidered wool sweater at the Goodwill I knew I had to felt it and make it into something--plus it was 1/2 off! So of course I bought it, felted it--and wow! did it shrink....and then decided this sweater would make a very nice new purse. I used a thrifted pillow case to line the purse and made the shoulder strap out of the sweater's arms...really happy with this one because it is roomy and I added some pockets to the lining for my cell phone, pens and other small objects.

I needed some way to close the purse--so I added a crocheted edge with button loops and used some nice vintage mother-of-pearl buttons.

and now I have a "new" handbag for spring! so far I'm liking it...and it took me one afternoon to make! Once I felted the sweater, the sewing went pretty fast. I sewed the lining in by hand around the top edge.

Aunt Esther's Motto (one of them) : "A stitch in time, saves nine." I guess this is more about mending--which she was an expert at doing---but this recycled sweater purse made me think of her. She would have like this concept, as she was very thrifty. She was my Great Aunt (grandmother's sister) and I learned alot about life from her--so I'm calling this Aunt Esther's Handbag ;-)

These pillows started life as a cashmere or angora sweater

I really enjoy thrift stores. I think it is about finding that useful bargain---or finding odd stuff I can re-pupose into something useful, or maybe it is the books scout in me that always is looking for the $3.99 book that I know I can sell for $125?

My fave  Aunt Esther used to say "A stitch in time saves nine." I like to think she would have loved the notion of re-purposing old discarded sweaters into useful and pretty pillows since she also was all about re-use. 

How to make a re-puposed thrifty and cheap but lovely pillow:

Recently I scored at my fave thrift store two nice very soft sweaters--a cream all cashmere man's sweater and a blue wool/angora cabled sweater--at 1/2 off! which was about $3.00 a sweater.  I spent another $5.00 on pre-made pillow forms...and then cut the now washed sweaters into the correct size squares ( I used the front and back of each sweater--saving the sleeves for another project) and sewed these pillows. They are oh--so soft! and huggable and now live on our couch for everyone to enjoy.

a Christmas Elf trick : cashmere sweater repurposed into Panda Bear

The Winter Holidays always make me think of toys! I have 3 wonderful Grandsons so let the toy making commence! here is the first one---a Panda Bear for wee baby Aram.

I am always keeping my eye out at thrift stores for good sweaters to felt --especially if they are marked down---and one day I scored this soft brown cashmere sweater for 1/2 price ;-). After washing and drying I proceeded to cut the sweater up and created ---- Aram's Panda! for his holiday gift from Grandma.

Stuffed toys are so much fun to create! even if they are time consuming....

Re-vamped Crazy Quilt Purse

My friend Debbie in Alaska made this purse for me eons ago---I used it so much I literally wore it out. So recently I added some trims to cover the worn fabric areas on the edges and a new strap...voila! purse is back in business. What do you think?

I have always loved crazy quilts---I love the crazy fabrics and all the embroidery. I get plenty of compliments on this purse when I use it...even if my two lovely daughters do think it looks too awfully "hippy dippy"---who cares? When it comes to fashion I just go with what I like...not what is the current trend. This purse has a zipper closure, hence it is very practical for a city. I made the strap out of a strip of a vintage quilt top.

Re-fashioned, re-purposed, recycled sweater to hoodie!

I have been "thrifting" wool sweaters...and I always throw them in the washing machine and dryer to felt them (ie. shrink them) once I bring them home. So when I decided to sew some clothes from my stash of thrifted felted sweaters imagine my delight to realize that this lovely--now very soft (after the felting in the washer) men's wool sweater now fit me perfectly. It was rather an ugly plaid sweater though--so I decided to make it into a "hoodie" for myself.


I started by adding the hoodie pocket on front---I cut the pocket from another sweater, hemed the curved edges with my sewing machine and sewed it on by hand with some lovely rainbow variegated wool yarn (actually I used a sock yarn) with a blanket stitch.

Then I decided to do some embroidery over the black plaid lines to brighten the front up to go better with the bright colored pocket...again I used the rainbow yarn and a herringbone stitch. I sure wish I had taken a photo of this sweater before I re-purposed it---but sorry, I didn't!

Next was the hood--I cut out the ribbing around the neck of the sweater---being careful to cut right at the seam so the neck wasn't to big. I hada couple of argyle sweaters--but after felting they both seemed to have some holes in them---so I used parts of 2 of them to sew the hood, and then turned the neckline under and sewed the hood to the neckline by hand. Then I also embroidered a herringbone stitch around the neckline to finish it off.

and voila! I now have this very comfy hoodie---which I have been wearing everywhere! I love having the pocket in front for my cell phone or keys, and the soft wool is just the right warmth for this time of year. And so far I have been receiving many compliments on my "new" sweater....despite the funkyness---folks seem to like the obvious handmade look of this sweater and so do I....

Re-purposed sweaters baby blankie

I have been rather absent here as I hunt for a job---which, ironically, is a full time job--but now I think it is time to move on from my life transforming trip to Ghana, Africa and return to the main blog topic: creating crafty objects and art !

I have a special baby shower to attend this weekend and created several presents for the baby girl due to enter the world in June...first, I created a baby "blankie" intended for laying on the floor for the tiny baby to lie on and have "tummy time." This blankie is made of wool sweaters I felted (washing with soap or detergent and hot water in the machine, then drying in a hot dryer--felts a wool sweater up nicely)--then I cut squares, sewed them together---and since I thought the little "quilt" looked a bit plain--I used some wool crewel yarn to embroider flowers on some squares. The blankie is backed with colorful cotton flannel.


And I knit a little baby girl hat out of cottons...in spring colors.

Even though I have been absent here I have been busy creating more crafty objects--so will be returning to more regular blogging --and I have quite a bit to share with you! so do check back...

Inchies + Squared

Four Inchies + mounted on a fabric covered stretched canvas. Working title : "Four-squared Flowers" and yes, they are re-purposed postage stamps, plus beads & other bits. I was aiming for a botanical theme on this one.

DIY Raining Bookshelves!

Repurposed dresser drawers!

On my recent trip to Portland I snapped these photos of my son-in-law's bookshelves --which he created from some old dresser drawers...I love the paint job--with the Northwest rainclouds, just dripping...and I thought they were put together creatively---a nice practical re-use of some old drawers.

There must be something to the saying " necessity is the mother of invention..."

Cashmere and Lace Repurposed (Creative Every Day!)

I love cashmere, but right now I can't afford the yarn---at least not enough to knit myself a whole sweater. I'm always looking at lovely new cashmere sweaters--but again-the cost! And I am larger sized woman, so the choices are limited. Then one day in a thrift shop (while shopping for wool sweaters to felt for various projects) I spied this very large black men's turtleneck sweater. Hmmmm...it sure was soft! so I checked the fiber content---it was pure cashmere! I bought it in a flash.

I should have taken a shot of this sweater when I started--when it was a very large man's turtleneck...anyhow, I have refashioned (repurposed, recycled?) this warm, soft, cozy, fuzzy all cashmere sweater. Now I find myself wearing it almost everyday around the house, because it is so soft and warm.

First I threw it in the washing machine and then dryer with a load of wool sweaters--hoping to shrink the sweater some---but I discovered that cashmere doesn't shrink much, and it sure does not felt at all. So next I took out the scissors and cut out the turtleneck and then I turned the edge under and hemmed around the neck--by hand. The sleeves were much too long, so I cut them off and also hemmed them by hand.
Then I used some washable wool sock yarn to crochet the edging around the neck and sleeve cuffs. I just used a steel crochet hook and poked it right through the hemmed cashmere edge to make a row of single crochet, then crocheted some shells into this row of single crochet, and finished with picot row.



The neck and sleeves edging took me 2 evenings to finish--and now I have my own warm cashmere sweater, created for about $10.00. And I can just throw it in the washer and dryer to clean it, since the fibers don't shrink. Plus, every time I wear this sweater somewhere I get compliments on it.....

Sewing Paper Holiday Cards

Take some nice deckle-edged paper, tear it to the correct size, sew on some (previously used) holiday postage stamps---and Presto! a nice new (upcycled?) card for the upcoming Holiday Season. I also sewed along the outside edge of the cards. Some cards I hinged with the zigzag sewing---rather than folding the paper. I have saved up holiday postage stamps for a few years, but I sure would love to find a source for purchasing some more....

Sweaters "Repurposed" into handbag

I buy wool sweaters at thrift stores or garage sales--throw them in the washing machine and dryer---shrink them to the max--and then have nice, heavy wool felt to create handbags with. This bag is large--I wanted a bag I could carry all my usual purse detritus and a knitting project and a small sketchbook and maybe even a paperback book to read. Seems I'm spending quite a bit of time lately on the bus or BART, and since I like to knit or read while I travel, and needed a roomy bag that would carry everything. On this bag I also created a large closing flap on the front---and sewed on crocheted granny square (from another unfinished project.) I used the buttonholes from the sweater on the lower flap edge as a closure. The handle I made out of strips I cut from the sleeves of the sweater--then I braided the strips---this makes a nice sturdy handle.



And I lined the bag--isn't this fun lining material? I thought this fabric complimented the greenish tweedy wool nicely---and I also made some functional pockets inside for keys and cellphone---the two items I am always digging around in the bottom of my bag for. Took this bag out for a spin today and she got her first compliment!