Anyone make mittens out of recycled wool sweaters?

[Pam_and_Abigail]

I'm thinking of trying something like this, rather than the apparently painful process of knitting (bear with me, I love it, but at this rate, I won't have mittens for myself for another decade!)

http://www.backwoodshome.com/article...gelista84.html

Wondering if anyone else has ever tried this?

[captivatedlife]

That looks like a decent tutorial - it's about how I would do it.

Good luck!

[granola_mom]

I saw the same sort of tutorial on martha stewart. I've had this cashmere sweater for quite a while, that got felted after only a few wears I couldn't bear to part with it... I thought, one day this has got to come in handy, if only for a future child! (yeah I'm a packrat like that). I think I'm going to make the hot water bottle cozy out of it. Good luck!

[mamakima]

yes....and they are always a hit! I'm always on the lookout for interesting sweaters....my favorites are striped or fair isle. have fun..

[Ambrose]

Do you think someone could use this method to make finger gloves? DD hates mittens and she has no gloves/mittens yet for this year so I'm wondering.... but at the same time I don't want to ruin the wool if I screw up.

[melibee]

I think that the gloves would not work as well because you'd have thick seams running up each finger.

[~Stephanie~]

I make mittens out of recycled wool too. Mine are three pieces though. The top of the glove is one piece, then the bottom is two pieces. Then they have a cuff Let me see if I can find a picture........
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...bystuff001.jpg

I line them with microfleece so they aren't itchy and they are super duper warm!

[secretresistance]

Those are awesome, Stephanie! And they look more user-friendly than what I came up with yesterday.

I made a pair of felted-sweater mittens for DD, but messed up in a couple of key areas. I think I'll be able to succeed on my second try, but I definitely need help on the cuffs or I'm going to have to resort to a button-closure.

[~Stephanie~]

I found this pattern.

http://familycrafts.about.com/gi/dyn...me/mittens.htm

It isn't exactly like mine, but is similar in that it is three pieces. Thought it might be a good jumping off point for you.

[marybethorama]

Thank you so much!!!

I have a pattern for fleece mittens but I really don't like it. It's very fussy and hard to get right.

The Hancock pattern looks so much easier. I can't wait to make mittens.

[Proudmom]

My sister and I made these last year for ourselves and children. We also made matching hats. They worked really well. We were originally inspired by a Martha Stewart issue.

[greenfish]

Wow!! I've got to try this project! One question, is there any way to get some stretch in the cuff so it can easily go over a small hand, but also stay on? Or is there something I'm missing...

[Proudmom]

When cutting out the mitten, use the waistband or sleeve cuff.

HTH,
PM

[ilikethedesert]

I was just thinking yesterday that I wanted to make these!!!! Thanks all for posting patterns. For the cuff dilemma, I was thinking-as I was awake at 4am for my nightly pregnancy insomnia- that I would make them have extra long "sleeves" that could be worn up the arm a bit for extra warmth, but also to help keep them on. Anyone tried this? Does it work?

Can't wait to try!

And for the Mom fretting about messing up a good sweater- try a thrift store. You can almost always find inexpensive wool there.

[Pam_and_Abigail]

I have my sweaters washed and dried and ready to go... but they're sweaters I like and I'm having a hard time taking the scissors to them. I just have to remind myself that I like them, but not to wear. One was too small, and the other had this weird thing going on in the shoulders, like it was owned by a football player. I got it on the cheap rack at the thrift store.

I need mittens badly for myself, so that should drive me!

[ilikethedesert]

I MADE SOME mittens!!!

I just finished a pair! I traced my girls' hands and cut out the shapes a little bigger than the lines. We needle felted designs on recycled and felted wool sweaters and I blanket stitched around the edges with the stitching on the outside so it would show. I figured that way there would be no seam on the inside. I finished my (almost) three year olds and still need to stitch my 5yolds. Here are some pictures!
one
two
three
She's been wearing them in the house for about 20 minutes so I guess she likes them!!!

I tried to make them long so they'd fit up her arm a bit to keep them on, but they were a bit too narrow, so I had to trim them. Next time I'll make the sleeve part a little looser because these are pretty snug to get on! They're cute, though.

[TheHealingRoomChir]

Wow, you've inspired me. I have a whole bag of sweaters for felting and I was trying to think of some ideas for them. The kiddos go thru mittens like crazy, so I think I'll try! I'm not very good as sewing, so if anyone figures out any tricks, I would love to hear them!

[greenfish]

ilikethedesert--those are GREAT! Thanks for posting!

I looked at needle felting in a craft book at the store yesterday and felt overwhelmed by how complex the designs were. It's lovely to see a nice simple design that really works. I'm going to have to play this game as soon as my final papers for the semester are written...

[red_trillium]

oh mittens! how cute. i've got some old kid sweaters from the thrift store to use up.

i've made some similar to these before for myself, only they were mloves, or glittens, i guess you could call them. lol i make a thumb hole, and one lobe for the pointer and middle, and one lobe for the ring and little finger. the warmth of a mitten, with the desterity of a glove! lol i've been meaning to make some for the kids, but haven't gotten around to it. they are so much fun to wear.

[greenfish]

Mittens!!

Thank you for this thread! I hadn't heard of this before and I'm now totally hooked.

The mittens I made today for all of my girls: http://www.flickr.com/photos/12379589@N02/2113456128/

I haven't decorated my partner's yet because I don't know what she wants. But the little girls love them...

Some questions, though, if anyone is still reading this: the sleeves didn't felt as thickly as the body of the sweater (and there wasn't anything in the sleeves, either!) So the mittens with the snowflakes are a little looser (you can tell 'cause you can see the knit stitches), which is fine, I'm just trying to figure this out. Is this normal? Is it just unpredictable?

Also...I didn't worry about bias (or whatever you call it on knitting) with my partner's because I was trying to use every last scrap of material...will they wear in weird ways or once the stuff is felted does the orientation matter less?

Thanks!!!