Hi lovely readers! I am Sara from Made by Sara and I am really happy for being here as a contributor. I love to make clothes for my three kids (I must confess that I sew more for my girls than for my boy… Shame on me!) and also for myself. This year one of my goals is to go back to sew more for myself because, truth be said, my kids wardrobe is already bigger and better than mine and I am in desperate need of new clothes for my stay-at-home-mom uniform. (And I bet you know what I mean, right?)
As a contributor here at Patchwork Posse I will be sharing some tutorials and hints & tips about apparel sewing. We will be making a couple of clothes upcycling and refashions, and also sewing some clothes from scratch either using patterns or drafting them ourselves (how exciting is that?).
Today I will be showing you how to make a new cardigan from a sweater you already own. It can be an old sweater that became too small or a new sweater bought on a sale, when our size was no longer available but we loved it so much we got it nonetheless (I am so guilty of doing that, ha!).
This simple upcycle can also be made on a kids sweater! So, have that in mind before handing over your kids clothes. You can easily also add some lace or a band hem to make it longer, if you need to.
Materials:
- a sweater,
- bias tape in a matching or contrasting color (Note: The amount of bias tape depends on the sweater you’ll be upcycling. I needed 1.5 yards for this cardigan, so you can have an idea, but it is a bit long (below the hip line)),
- thread, pins, scissors, ruler, sewing machine.
3-Steps DIY Sweater into Cardigan
1) Find the center line of your sweater. Mark it with a tailor’s chalk. Cut along that line.
2) Pin the bias tape to one of the center edges – right side of the bias tape with wrong side of the cardigan. Stitch. Fold the bias tape to the right side of the cardigan. Pin and edge-stitch. Repeat on the other side.
3) Cut a strip of bias tape that is as long as the sum of both center edges plus the neckline. Pin around the neckline – right side of bias tape with wrong side of cardigan. Stitch. Fold the bias tape to the right side of the cardigan. Stitch all around the neckline and along both ties (to close the bias tape).
Tie a lovely bow and you’re done!
Now go get those sweaters you don’t use anymore and turn them into lovely cardigans you will wear! Three steps and about 20 minutes it is all you need to make yourself a new cardigan for those chilly Summer nights or early Fall days!
I will be back this week with tips on how to make and sew bias tape! In the meanwhile you can get to know a bit about me at this intro post or please visit Made by Sara for more tutorials. You can also find me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.
Happy sewing!

Becky Jorgensen is the creative quilter behind Patchwork Posse, the Patchwork Planner and her online quilt group Patchworkers Plus. You can find her patterns in books, magazines, and her quilt membership. Gather your quilting supplies, organize your sewing space, explore the process of disappearing quilt blocks, or finish a free quilt pattern. I'll help you use what you have, finish what you start and make your quilting journey fun!
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