Nothing pisses me off more than a moth hole or snag in a sweater. Are you with me? Do you want to light them on fire? I have spent years mourning the loss of a kick-ass sweater to a hole. I have repaired them as best as I could, but sometimes they get so bad, you want to move to Arizona so you never have to think about sweaters again. I was put on this earth to look amazing in sweaters. I love sweaters, especially pretty and expensive ones. They are nostalgic love letters to myself. They remind me of when I went to a bonfire or threw up after too much eggnog at the work holiday party. I just want to live in a world with moths that love sweaters and leave money on them instead of heinous holes.

This craft will allow you to re-purpose your sweaters, creating boot socks, hats, leg warmers and scarves. You need very little in the way of supplies – and just a little bit of sweat equity and ingenuity.

Supplies:

  1. Old sweater
  2. Yarn needle
  3. Yarn in matching color
  4. Textured fabrics
  5. Basic sewing needle
  6. Matching thread
  7. Wine

Steps:

  1. Take your ruined sweater and decide what you want to do with it. Boot socks are a good way to start. Start by repairing the hole if it is on the arm of your sweater. Turn the sweater inside out and tie tiny knots to secure the hole and close it up.
  2. Cut the arms right off in a straight line. You do not need to measure to do this. Just eyeball it. Do the same on the other arm. Then, take the arm sleeve and flip it inside out and fold over the cut end about an inch. Fold it over twice, so the outer threads do not pull. Next, take yarn needle and thread and weave in and out or in loop motions to secure the fold. If you are using a tight-knit sweater, you can use a basic needle and thread. Sew all the way around and then tie off the thread and cut it. Do the same with the other sleeve.
  3. Next, decide if you want to get fancy with your socks. You can add textured fabric or lace to the tops. Keep the sleeve inside out and try the sock on your leg. Take the lace or fabric and pin it into place. Then, take off the sock and hand-stitch the embellishments with a basic needle and thread. Use your imagination to figure out other projects. It is not hard. Use the whole body of the sweater to make an infinity scarf. Or use just one sleeve to make a hat. Get creative; either way, you were never going to be able to wear it again.
  4. Because nothing goes better with sweaters then wine, pour yourself a glass. Grab your skis and head off to the slopes to be the snow bunny you were meant to be. Save me a seat on the ski lift next to Hans.

By Jamie Burke