Some people may have sweaters hanging in the back of their closets and collecting dust. Maybe it's because they now live in a warmer climate, or maybe they simply don't like the way the sweaters feel or fit. Still, it can be such a waste to see a perfectly good sweater going unused. Before you decide to give it up, try turning it into a pillow cover instead.
You can easily purchase a small, undecorated pillow and dress it up with a beautiful old sweater. We especially like this one because the buttons give it definition and a whimsical nature. Place the pillow anywhere you like — from a bedroom to the living room to your favorite chair — and watch the compliments pour in.
Advertisement
Materials
- Undecorated, square pillow about 16-by-16
- Wweater, preferably one with buttons
- Scissors
- Pins
- Sewing machine
- Needle
- Thread that matches the sweater
- Undecorated, square pillow about 16-by-16
- Wweater, preferably one with buttons
- Scissors
- Pins
- Sewing machine
- Needle
- Thread that matches the sweater
DIY Everywhere
Instructions
1. Lay out sweater out flat on a clean, dry workspace, and place the pillow underneath the sweater to determine where you want to material to fall.
1. Lay out sweater out flat on a clean, dry workspace, and place the pillow underneath the sweater to determine where you want to material to fall.
2. Cut the sweater around the pillow on all four sides, leaving a bit of extra fabric around the edges. On sides where the sweater is sewn shut, cut off the seams to create two pieces of fabric roughly the same size and separate from one another.
3. Place the top piece of fabric on top of the pillow and the bottom piece underneath it. Both should be placed with the inside of the sweater facing out. (The buttons should be facing in.)
4. Pin the fabric together on each side of the pillow but one. Place the pins close to the pillow, leaving a little excess fabric, and remove the pillow.
5. Sew the fabric pieces together with a 1-inch seam using a sewing machine, removing the pins as you go. Once the three sides are sewn shut, cut off excess fabric on the three sides, cutting close to the seams.
6. Turn the whole thing inside out, so the buttons face out again.
7. Place the pillow back inside, and maneuver the pillow and the fabric until they look how you want them to.
8. Cut away some of the excess fabric on the side that has not been stitched. Make sure the two sides can meet, and pin them together, folding the tops in slightly so the unfinished parts of the fabric do not show.
9. Use a needle and thread to hand stitch the last side of the pillow together, removing the pins as you go.
Advertisement
10. Tie off the end, and cut off the excess thread with the scissors.