Upcycled: Cowl Scarf from Old Sweater

{This post is a part of Frugal February, a month-long series where I am challenging myself to not spend any money on projects. I will be using supplies I already have, upcycling old materials and finishing abandoned projects. The hubby is rejoicing. Note: this does not apply to recipes and food posts, since I have to eat anyways!}

One of my favorite wool sweaters has gotten a little tight on me over the years:

I used to wear this sweater all the time!  I have great memories of it so I didn’t want to get rid of it so I decided to upcycle it into a cowl scarf.  I’m really into cutting up sweaters and turning them into scarves, like this tutorial I did last winter on how I cut up Jeff’s cashmere sweater and turned it into an infinity scarf.  This was a pretty quick and easy transformation and can be done with any old sweater. This one is nice because it has the buttons down the front and a cable knit design so it makes the scarf a little more interesting but I have a couple plain sweaters that I plan to transform, too.

All I had to do was cut the sweater off beneath the armpits, fold over the raw edge, and then sew to secure the hem:

I ended up sewing twice over the hem to secure it and keep the knit from fraying, since the wool was a loose weave. Try not to stretch out the hem when you stitch it.  I was going to replace the ivory buttons with some wooden ones but ended up keeping the original ones. I kind of like how they blend in.  I love how warm and cozy this cowl neck scarf is!

Now I need to figure out what to do with the leftover arms. Leg warmers, maybe?

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tagged as: scarf, sweater