We are always on the lookout for creative projects people have crafted up, so when Kate from Nearly Crafty approached us about her new upcycling sweater tutorial we were thrilled to share it with you. It’s a Hot Mess Mommy type of project – affordable, stylish, and easy to make. I definitely have a handful of sweaters that could use a makeover for spring.
Complete your look with Kate’s tutorials for a Anthropologie-Inspired Pendant Necklace, Beaded Cuff Bracelet, and Tressed Chain Bracelet. They are all great additions to your jewelry collection, and simple to make.
Learn How to Add Leather Cuffs to a Sweater here…
Kate lives in Seattle with her husband, two children, and two dogs. In a past life she was a prosecuting attorney, but now her idea of a hard cross examination is trying to figure out how exactly all the doll heads ended up in the air vent. She enjoys baking, eating baked goods, smelling sleeping babies, and shoes. She really, really likes shoes. Check out her crafting blog, Nearly Crafty, for all sorts of projects and failures.
How to Add Leather Cuffs to a Sweater
With two small kids in the house, I end up with some form of filth on me pretty much every day. On a good day, it is food. On a bad day, it is some form of bodily fluid. Because of this glamorous life, I don’t like to spend a ton of money on my clothes. My pre-child fashion forward self gets in a huff about this choice and I usually find myself modifying low cost clothing to make it look a little more luxurious.
I found a basic sweater at Old Navy for $20 and made an easy change on the sleeves to make it look like a high fashion sweater. All you need is a sweater and a small bit of leather.
Materials
· Sweater
· Leather scrap
· Sewing machine and leather needle
· Glue – it needs to work on leather. I used Fabri-tac.
· Scissors
How To
1. Cut out two rectangles from your leather scraps. Mine were 8 inches x 16 inches and I ended up with a nice thick, wide cuff.
2. Put your sweater on and figure out where you want the end of the final cuff to hit you.
3. Remove you sweater and measure up 3.5 inches from the final cuff end point. Mark the spot with a pin.
4. Measure the second sleeve and mark in the same way.
5. Cut the sleeves at the pins.
6. Fold the top edge of your leather rectangles over and glue them down.
7. Once the glue is dry, fold your leather in half. Line the top seam up with the bottom cut edge.
8. Sandwich ½ inch of the sweater sleeve in between the leather.
9. Holding the leather in place, sew your leather/sweater sandwich together close to the top edge of the leather.
10. Once you have sewn around the entire top edge of the cuff, insert one edge of the cuff into the other and sew them together from top to bottom.
11. Trim off any excess leather.
12. Go enjoy your new customized sweater!
Love this idea!! I’ve got a Craft Gossip post scheduled for later today that links to your tutorial:
http://sewing.craftgossip.com/tutorial-leather-cuff-sweater-refashion/2014/04/03/
–Anne