DIY Sweatshirts-Restyled... Four of them!

I LOVE sweatshirts.  When the weather turns cold I am ALL about staying warm!

I also LOVE cuteness.  When the temperature drops I am ALL about staying warm AND cute.

So... I would like to share FOUR ideas for restyling a sweatshirt so you can be cute and warm at the same time these autumn and winter months!!!  These are all VERY easy.  I'm only capable of the basics when it comes to sewing; if I can do this, so can you!

Please note: All of the sweatshirts I didn't already own I bought at thrift stores... these are not expensive projects!

The first one is the sweatshirt pictured above: All of my Hearts

You will need:

One Sweatshirt in your size (mine is dark blue) (you can always take it in if its a bit baggy)

Another sweatshirt at least the same size (bigger is better) in a contrasting color (I used teal)

Two other sweatshirt colors (red and grey in my case) (I bought several children's sweatshirts at thrift stores)

Thread (color of your choice)

 Fabric Scissors

Tailor's Chalk (or just a marker!)

I've had this old sweatshirt for a LONG TIME!  I really didn't want to get rid of it, but it was in desperate need of restyling. 

 :-) 

1. Lay out the sweatshirt that you will be wearing in the end!  I had to measure to make sure the heart I made in the other fabric was big enough to cover the words.  :-)

2. Cut your other sweatshirt in half, then fold one side in half and trace half of your huge heart.  Cut it out and unfold it.  (Keep the unused half for another project!!!)

3. Turn your first sweatshirt in-side-out and pin the heart on the inside wherever you want it to be.  Make sure the good side of your heart is pinned against the interior of the sweatshirt.

4. Sew it into place.

5.  Turn the sweatshirt right-side-out and cut inside the stitching leaving a little edge around the heart!

6. If desired, cut three smaller hearts (alternating colors optional), pin them in place, and either machine or hand-stitch them into place.

7.  If you look in the above picture, you can see that I added the teal fabric from the heart to the ends of my sleeves and at the bottom.  I simply cut off the cuffs and bottom of the other sweatshirt, pinned them into place, and attached them for extra warmth.  They make a really cute accent too!

8.  Wear and ejoy!

Second Sweatshirt-Restyled: Whoo's Sweatshirt?

This sweatshirt is super cute to wear!  I've been wanting something with an owl on it and thought one day, what's stopping me from making something???!!!  Erm, nothing!  So, this is what I came up with.

What you will need:

Sweatshirt in your size (mine is dark grey)

Large piece of sweatshirt fabric of a contrasting color for owl body (hehe, I just used the unused half of the teal sweatshirt from the first project!)

Small piece of sweatshirt fabric for beak and wing (I used maroon)

Small piece of sweatshirt fabric for larger part of eyes (Light grey)

Small piece of black sweatshirt fabric for pupils

Thread (Black is best)

Fabric Scissors

1. Decide what size you desire your owl to be, then trace and cut!

2. Cut out your wing, parts of eyes, and beak, then pin into place to be sure they all match up.

3. Sew your wing into place.

4.  Remove the beak and set aside while sewing on the eyes.  The easiest way to think of this step is to make a sliced pizza out of your owl's eye!  :-)  I think that doing this really adds to the eyes.

5.  Now stitch around the eyes, making the edge secure.

6.  Now stitch your beak into place (I hand-stitched mine since it was so small)

7.  Pin your owl to the outside of your sweatshirt and sew into place.

8. Wear and enjoy!

This was so easy, right?!  And I am IN LOVE with mine!

Okay... now we're going to get a little more "dressy".

Third Sweatshirt-Restyled: Doiley Doll

This was also a blast to make!  SO super-easy and is perfect if you want to dress up a pair of jeans OR want to wear a warm, yet pretty top with a nice skirt!

What you will need:

White Sweatshirt in your size (I actually took it in a little to match the dressier look)

Three white doilies (If you don't have any handy, I found some at Jo-Ann Fabrics... and most antique stores have them for only a couple dollars)

Round Elastic Cord

White Lace Trim

White Thread

1. Remove original neckline.  Don't worry about it being too big afterwards; we're gonna take care of that!

2. Pin doilies into place wherever you desire!

3. Sew into place, making sure all of the edges are sewn down.  Stitch along the neckline where the doiley hangs over the edge.

4.  Cut off access doiley.

 Now we're going to work on the neck.  Mine was quite large and hung too far out on my shoulders to be modest, so I came up with a cute and quick solution! 

5.  If your lace trim has one side gathered, trim it off so that both sides are even length-wise.  You don't need very wide trim, just wide enough to be folded over the edge of your neckline with the elastic cord inside.

6.  Pin lace around the neckline, one half on the outside and the other on the inside (you know, just folded over the edge), starting and ending it on one of the shoulders (overlap it a little so you can't to hide the edge).  Feed your elastic cord through before you sew it into place!  Cut off access lace and leave both end of your elastic cord hanging out.

7.  Sew around your neckline, attaching the lace.  Leave a small opening where the elastic sticks out.

8.  Pull on your elastic cord until the neck is as tight as you desire (tie your elastic in a bow and try the sweatshirt on to be sure to goes on and off comfortably), then knot the elastic tightly and cut off access. 

9. Sew opening shut.

10.  Wear and enjoy!!!

So fun, eh?!

Okay, just one more to go.

Fourth Sweatshirt-Restyled: The Fuzzy Cardigan

YES!  This is a sweatshirt-into-cardigan refashion!  I found this sweatshirt last week in a box of fall clothing and had been wondering what to do with it.  I wanted to make it dressier, if possible.  It fit me nicely in the arms, but the chest and waist were VERY unflattering... PLUS I couldn't really find any ideas online that I cared for.  SO, I got creative yesterday and came up with this!

What you will need:

Sweatshirt in your size (it should fit quite nicely, not too bulky)

Lace Trim

Hook and Eye

Fabric Scissors

Dark Thread

White Thread

1. Lay out your sweatshirt, making sure its even (arms don't really matter, just the body).

2. Cut up the center (I just eye-balled it).

3.  Fold each edge over twice and pin, this gives it a neat, clean edge.

Your sweatshirt should look like this when you go to sew.

4.  Stitch up the center of the fold on both sides with dark thread.  You have now made your cardigan!

Now comes the fun part!

5.  On the outside, pin your lace trim with the gathered side lined up the the stitches you just made, starting just below the collar and going all the way to the bottom (fold it under for a clean edge on both the top and bottom).

6.  Sew into place (make sure to switch out the dark thread for the white thread!).

7.  Try on cardigan and measure where your waist is.  In that spot, on the inside, attach hook and eye.

8.  Wear and enjoy!!!

I adore this cardigan!!!  So classy, yet so comfy!!!

I hope you've enjoyed these ideas for keeping warm AND cute! 

So, which one was your favorite?  Are you going to try any?  If you decide to, make sure to send me pictures so I can see how yours turned out (or even post them on your blog and send me a link!)!

Hope you have a loverly day!

God bless and keep warm!!!