Woolly Jumper Upcycling - Fab Felt Bag

Manmade fibres have accounted for the demise of the 100% lambswool woolly jumper and in general they are few and far between on the high street. I have to say that in terms of fashion I have never been a fan, hating the scratchy feel of the wool against my skin. However, these days I have fallen in love with these jumpers; not for fashion reasons but for crafting and I often scour the local charity shops hunting for unwanted woolly bargains.

The reason for this is felting. It can be a  hugely straightforward process involving shrinking a 100% lambswool jumper in the washing machine. This has the effect of binding the fibres in the wool together to make a wonderful dense felted fabric that is ideal for sewing projects which won't fray when you cut into the fabric.. The key is to make sure sure that your jumper is made from 100% lambswool - any hint of a manmade fibre and it just won't work.

All you need to do is throw your unwanted jumper into the washing machine and wash on a hot or boil wash -  90 degrees works best. This will shrink your jumper to approx two thirds of its original size but will have magically bound the fibres to give it a thicker feel. Once dry it will be ready for a new life in the form of any sewing project that takes your fancy.

When I found the above jumper in my local charity shop I was delighted - colourful stripes for fab
upcycling ideas. So I have set myself the task of producing three projects from a single unwanted jumper....



 ....and here is the first - a cute and colourful handbag. It is the sumplest thing to make. Cut two pieces of the fabric in any shape. For this bag I chose a rounded bottom and added a simple flower. This was made by using the cuff from the jumper with a big pink button in the centre which matches one of the woolly stripes.

Once you have added any embellishments, pin the two pieces together with the right sides facing inwards and sew around the edges with a 1/2 cm seam. Backstitch is good as it gives extra strength or you can use a sewing machine. Turn the bag the right way around. To neaten the top edges fold inwards 1cm of the fabric and sew to give a neat edge.

To make the handles cut two strips 3cm wide from the sleeves of the jumper and fold over each other to form a tube shape then secure in place using overstitch. Position these on the inside of the bag and secure with a few stitches.

 Once complete all you need to decide is whether to give as a gift or to keep for shopping expeditions!  More woolly jumper upcycling ideas to follow.

Halloween Just For Me

We love Halloween in our home. One of my boys even says he prefers it to Christmas. Although I am sure if we decided to celebrate All Hallows Eve instead of Christmas he may have a huge rethink.

A Monster Halloween Party became a tradition in our family many (full) moons ago. Last year we entertained 30 children and 20 adults with a garden party at home with all manner of games and tasty treats and this year we plan to do the same. The boys first began discussing this year's party in February at which point we all had to agree that Halloween planning was firmly off limits until at least 31st July!

As you can imagine this has become a regular topic of discussion over the past couple of weeks in our household. Costumes are yet to be decided upon but one thing has been made to clear to me: this year I have to make more of an effort than just dragging my pair of neon yellow and black stripey tights out from the bottom of my drawer where they remain from one 31st October to the next!

As the boys grow older they are moving away from the cute costumes and fun decorations that so often adorned the house and as far as they are concerned, the more gruesome the better. Although they appreciate the work that goes into my home made decorations they would much rather have a groaning plastic ghoul hanging in the porch to greet trick or treaters than a goggle eyed, woolly legged fabric spider!

I am sad to say that this year at Hope & Gloria Sewing Clubs we have had no opportunity for Halloween decorations. Half Term is later than usual so our workshops will mean the start of many Christmas Projects, and in schools we have been so busy with our Woodland Creature inspired projects that there has been no time to fit in the odd felt pumpkin or fabric Witch's Cat.

So this year my Halloween Projects are just for me! The first is my Fat Bat Door Garland. I was really happy with the result and it will look fab hanging over one of the doors inside our home this Halloween - I guess the boys may win with the ghoul on the porch, but I plan to make many more Halloween themed garlands to hang indoors - results to follow soon....