Thrift Flip Tutorial: How to Upcycle an Old Cardigan
Today, I want to show you how I used my items from my stash to thrift flip an old grandad-style knitted cardigan into a cute and trendy jacket.
I always keep any pockets I remove from garments when I upcycle them. I also have a stash of fabric scraps, knitted granny squares that I took from another thrift flipping project, and vintage buttons.
So let’s see how I transformed this rather dull gray cardigan into something special.
Tools and materials:
- Plain knitted cardigan
- Fabric scraps
- Buttons
- Knitted granny squares
- Pockets
- Pins
- Scissors
- Hand sewing needle and thread
- Sewing machine
1. Decide on an overall look
I wanted a vintage patchwork look. And it happened to be around St Patrick’s Day when I did this, so I decided to incorporate some green into my design.
The pockets I found in my stash gave me more ideas. You can take your creative inspiration from almost anything. Just run with it!
2. Applique
I had some flower shapes so I cut some simple straight stems from them from various green fabrics.
I cut some more fabric into a simple childish tree shape and cut a thicker stem for that. Some off white fabric became a cloud.
I arranged the flowers on one side of the cardigan and the tree and cloud on the other, and pinned them in place.
3. Pockets
At first I thought of making pockets from the granny squares I had.
Another idea was to use knitted trivets or potholders, and use the top ring as a pocket fastener with the addition of buttons.
I decided in the end to use two red flap pockets and I’d taken from a vintage dress.
I arranged them so it looked as though the flowers and trees were growing out of them.
4. Elbow patches
Two of the granny squares became elbow patches that I hand sewed in place.
A quick trick for you is to slide a glass jar inside the sleeve to make hand sewing easier when you don’t want to stitch through both layers of a garment.
5. Buttons
Buttons can make a real difference to any garment. The cardigan had simple flat buttons, which looked fine.
But then I found these vintage wooden buttons that picked up the red from the pockets.
I tried both styles of button, and eventually went with the vintage ones and I’m really glad I did.
6. Put it all together
I used some decorative stitching on the patchwork fabric scraps. You could also pad them out with some batting or felt to give a 3D effect.
I sewed them in place first, then added the pockets by stitching around the side and lower edges.
I sewed the top edges in place under the flaps, so the pockets were usable.
Thrift flipped cardigan
Of course, your cardigan will look very different from mine. I hope, though, that this has given you some thrift flip ideas for using your fabric scraps and other bits and pieces you may have collected.
Have confidence in your own creative ideas and you’ll end up with clothes that are unique and reflect your personality. And that’s what true style is.
I hope you enjoyed seeing how I go about a project like this and I’d love to know what you think of it in the comments.
Next, learn How to DIY a Cozy Granny Square Scarf.
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Comments
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That's the cutest! I keep every little thing too, especially buttons. I'm 54 now & have been keeping buttons since I was around 12. Keep up the GREAT WORK & NEAT IDEAS! btw: I agree on the ancestry thing. My grand and great grandparents all from Germany, Ireland, & are Native American, but I'm American. I think the reason so many Americans do what you say is because our grand/great grandparents were really into heritages & nationalities, it's odd when you think of it, but at the same time, I think it was their way of trying to teach about their "old ways", but change them to fit their new lifestyles here. I hope that makes sense. My PaPa taught me a lot in this manner, but he went into depth about specific things. HAVE A GREAT DAY IN CANADA!
Your New Friend& Follower,
Barbie from Illinois, USA