I saw this Anthropologie sweater and decided to attempt to replicate it. See the before.
It was basically a sweater with baubles that ran like swiss dotting on the front and sleeves. To make the baubles I used marbles and a sweater material that would shrink a little (but not too much). I also changed the buttons to the wide wood ones.
If I had to change one thing about this sweater it would have been the length. I had hoped to find something just about five inches longer (the length of the Anthropologie version) but this sweater fit almost every other criteria that I had to use it.
Also, the baubles came out rather larger than the Anthro version. I was surprised because I thought they'd be too small at first. Maybe you could remove the marbles all together and just use rubber bands to pinch a piece of the sweater.
But the process to make the baubles was relatively easy! There are so many ways to embellish a sweater with baubles! The possibilities are endless.
Now I know what you're all going to ask. "Will it hold up in the wash"? And my best guess is....no. If you want to keep the bauble shape you either have to dry clean it or wash stains out by hand as they happen. Have any of you ever used 'Dryel'? I always wondered how well that worked and whether or not it was economically better than drycleaning.
And a couple of you have asked about whether or not hot glue will hold up too. And I haven't tried to wash any of the sweaters that I've used hot glue with yet but what I would recommend is to wash it on the delicate cycle and let it air dry.Hope that helps!
1. Wet your sweater and ring out the excess water.
2. Take a marble and place it under the sweater and use a rubber band to cinch it in place.
3. Stagger the placement off the marbles on the front and sleeves. Then put in the dryer and dry completely. To keep the marbles from falling out and making a lot of noise in the dryer, what I did was stuff the dryer full of towels. I could still hear them banging around but it was much softer and more tolerable than having nothing but the sweater in the dryer.
4. Remove the marbles. I then removed the old button and added the new wood ones.
Done.
Like not spending money? 
47 {comments}:
Very neat idea, the baubles!
I've used Dryel and would use it again. I don't know if it gets clothes as clean, but it works well enough for me. For anything that needs pressing, though, such as a wool jacket I just made, I'd rather take it to the cleaners.
I use Dryel all the time for "regular" cleaning. Special items or major stains still go to the cleaners. But the Dryel works fine for my day-to-day use. I prefer not having to go to the cleaners all the time.
That looks great! How loud were all those marbles bouncing around in the dryer?
WOW! i love your blog. you are totally inspiring!
Hi!
I love this sweater idea, but I'm de-lurking to thank you about a post that you made a month or so back - the one where you advised the use of a stabilizer for finishing lace after you cut it.
I just purchased a new machine and couldn't finish my lace at all - I was getting pretty annoyed at myself for not being able to learn the machine, but then I remembered your TP trick. Working well!!
Thanks so much!!
You are so talented. I am amazed at how you figure out how to replicate these awesome details.
will the "bumps" stay in the sweater when you wash it again?
gsvee,
Hah! It's funny you ask. I DID have a problem with that. But what I finally did was stuff the dryer with towels. That did the trick! In fact I'll add that in the post. It's a good thing to advise.
That is so clever of you!!! I so love visiting your blog as you always have great ideas. Thank you so much.
Heather,
My best guess is....no. If you want to keep the bauble shape you either have to dry clean it or wash stains out by hand as they happen.
Maybe 'Dryel'? I always wondered how well that worked and whether or not it was economically better than drycleaning.
Wow I really love this idea !! How on earth do you come up with so many creative ideas?
I use Dryel on a a lot of my clothes and it's great! I'm a stay at home mom so we can't afford to be dragging my entire wardrobe to the cleaners all the time! Dryel makes a spot treatment too, which you can use on stains before you put it in the dryer. That spot treatment is like magic.
I"m a Dryel user as well. It works fine for me, although with a big stain I think I'd still take it to the regular cleaners.
oo. its wonderfull. you are so creative. please look at my blog after 1 hour. ı will add a knitwear like you did.. byess..
I wonder if this would work as a more permanent solution... use a needle and thread and roughly sew a circle (or around the circular shape you have right now), pull it closed a bit (just enough so it holds the circular shape a bit), shove a pom-pom inside and loosely sew a few stitches across the back (just enough to make sure the pompom stays inside). Just an idea.
This is awesome. I love embellish your knits month..
I'm a huge dryel fan. I have to wear suits for work and dry cleaning costs can be exhorbitant. I usually dryel my suits and blouses 3 or 4 times before I take them to the cleaners for a really professional clean. It saves me hundreds of dollars a year.
just brilliant!!!
I love the result
It's so sweety!!!
i love the baubles idea!!!
I love the overall look of this. Super neat.
Love the buttons! Not so sure about the bumps but the large buttons really lift the cardi.
I would imagine that you could just reapply the marbles after you washed the garment and dry as before. Love the look. Baubles were always one of my favourite looks in the eighties. Cherrie
My goodness! I should have send all my sweaters to you before donating them to Red Cross. At least you can re-purpose and create a new life for them. Can you work with cashmere sweaters?
I have access to fabric, trims and button wholesale stores in garment district. What I don't have is a brilliant and creative mind like yours.
I use Dryel also. They are okay but can't compare to professional cleaning. Again, dry cleaning chemical is hazardous to health.
Not so brilliant mind - NY
I love to use Dryel on my clothes, though I still send my husbands shirts to cleaners since they press them too.
And I love your sweater even more than the Anthropologie one. Though it would look nice with a little extra length as well, I like the larger baubles on yours for sure.
amazingly creative!! i would have never thought to use marbles!!! re: dryel. i ahve used it...have no idea if it worked!
Just found your blog and look forward to looking around.
I wash a lot of dry cleaning only clothes by hand or in the washer (in a pillow case). I worked at a dry cleaners once for four days, and I only use Dryell now for sweaters and suits and wool stuff. Most other stuff I will just risk regular washing it. But I get most my stuff at thrift stores and don't want to spend more than I paid for an item on dry cleaning. I've even had vintage dresses come out fine (using the pillow case method in the washer, cold water). I haven't ruined anything yet. :)
very cool technique! you are so inventive.
This is so creative! I would have never thought in a million years that the original sweater could be recreated by hand! As for the hot glue staying in tact during the wash - probably not. I use Beacon Adhesives fabri-Tac permanent glue and it amazing! It always hold up in the wash and it is so much easier to use than hot glue.
that is soo cute, i like yours better than the original and i order most all of my clothes from anthro!! how in the world do you figure out the things that you do!!!??? i can't wait to make this one, just have to get some marbles..did the bumps hold up well all day when you wore it?? wondering....if you know what you are going to do for the last few days although, i am sad for this to come to an end...i have a ton of cool new sweaters...thanks to you!!!
I think your cardigan looks even better than the anthropolgie one. Nice work!
This is lovely!
For people wondering if it will stand up to washing, the answer is no. BUT, if you use a pure wool sweater and machine wash it on a low-ish temperature (don't want to shrink it) with the marbles tied in, it will actually felt the wool a little so that your 'bubbles' will become permanent and therefore wash-proof!
Hope this helps someone get creative! :)
What a fabulous idea!
This is the cutest yet. Love it.
I use Dryel all the time on my sweaters. one economical tip is that you can really pack the Dryel bag full. I think the instructions say somewhere between 3-7 items, but it works just as well if you fill the bag.
Very interesting. I wonder if you could have created the same look without it washing out by using trapunto. Now I want to try that. Inspiring.
I love this idea. Seems like it could give character to almost anything.
I really, really love this one! I have one cardigan on my dress form ready to finish embellishing thanks to you. Hopefully I will have it finished before Christmas. :)
You did shibori! I love that technique - so fun!
OMG! You are so amazing.
Maybe if you sewed the bumps around the circle (on the inside) they would stay, then there would be no need to re-marble if you wanted to wear it again.
This is terrifying. I've loved all the others, but this... ;\
Your version of this sweater is SO much cooler than the anthro version - good job! The buttons really add to the look.
I really like this one!! Maybe I could try it too!!
I just did my very first DIY! So exciting!!!
Just discovered your lovely blog and I am reading your 30days of embelishments. This one is amazing. Wow.
Wow! what a cool and clever way to embellish a sweater!
Oh my gosh, how clever! Love the result =)
une idée géniale j' adore c' est du plus bel effet bravo et merci du partage je vais m' inscrire a ton blog a bientôt sur le mien j' ai des idées moi aussi biz
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