Sorry I didn't get this up this late. It's been a busy day. And thank you to all who left comments about Eloise. She still has a fever and I might take her back in tomorrow if it continues through the night. I'm a little worried it might be strep.
This sweater got a complete makeover. See the before. First I snipped of the arms and made them into boxy short sleeves. I also cut the neck into a scoop and used the extra material I cut off to make the cowl neck. I added new sailor anchor buttons and made the "band" embellishments.
It has a very 'band' look to it which is what I was going for. I figured I needed some reason to break out the old flute and show it off to the kids. They were adorable trying to play it. They would blow into the hole and hum as if they were making it whistle.
1. Snip off arms leaving 4".
2. Cut off collar.
3. Cut off buttons.
4. Cut a scoop neck.
5. Fold sleeve in.
6. And stitch in the ditch to secure folded sleeve in.
7. Take the extra material and....
8. Sew it to the neckline to make a cowl neck.
9. Then stitch in the ditch to secure the cowl the same way you did the sleeve.
9. Cut five white rectangles with pointed edges sew them down the front of the sweater as well as buttons on either side.
10. And sew twisted embellishments to top of rectangles.
Sorry I didn't get this up this late. It's been a busy day. And thank you to all who left comments about Eloise. She still has a fever and I might take her back in tomorrow if it continues through the night. I'm a little worried it might be strep.
Like not spending money? 
17 {comments}:
very cute and nautical! i hope eloise gets better, i'm so sorry!
OMG. LOVE LOVE LOVE
I hope Eloise feels better. As a flautist and band geek, I was very happy to see this. It looks amazing!
Thanks so much for all of these gorgeous knits! I get the winter blues every year and these projects have brightened both my spirits and my wardrobe! I hope that your little peach feels better soon!! xoxo
Great job on this one, and I aboslutely love the flute in the photo shoot. Re Eloise, you've probably been told this zillions of times, always trust your instincts.
I just saw a sweater similar to this at the mall less than an hour ago and thought "I could make that!" I just thought I'd have to find the right sweater, but I think I actually have one, now that I see this post!
Thanks!
Very pretty, navy is my favorite. :)
How do you prevent bunching of the knit fabric when you have to take it in under the arms and on the sleeves? That was my BIG problem today. What kind of stitch do you use for knits?
I haven't commented before but your sick baby drew me out of hiding. Strep was my first thought when I read through yesterday's post. I can't believe they didn't do a culture when you were in, especially after they said she showed signs of a sore throat. I would trust your instincts and go back tomorrow. Poor little pumpkin. I hope she feels better very soon and that you get some peace of mind.
I loved band and I love this look. I really like the neck and sleeves. I am impressed that you see so much potential in garments that I would have dismissed.
Mrs Nautic is coming !!!
So beautiful !
I can't quite tell, did you turn this sweater into a pull-over or did you leave it as a button-up? Either way, it's gorgeous, I really want to try this for myself!
I just wanted to say I'm new to reading your blog, and I have enjoyed the sweater makeovers very much! Some have been quite "kooky" but that's OK. I like kooky! ;)
I hope your daughter is doing better and on the mend. Remember though, no apologies are ever necessary to blog readers when it comes to family obligations. Sometimes in this "tuned in" society we currently live in, we lose perspective on what is important and what is real. I find myself needing to disengage from my blog now and again, to regain my equilibrium.
I hope you and your family have a Merry Christmas!
Great idea but I can't help thinking of meat when looking at the white and red!
Sonia,
First always use a 'stretch' needle when sewing knits. That helps. You can also use a stretch stitch if you machine has it. It looks like 3 parallel stitches OR a zigzag stitch that is broken up. See here:http://sewing.about.com/library/weekly/aa112500a.htm
You can also buy special feet to help reduce bunching. A walking foot with a bar will help. It prevents the top layer of fabric from shifting by moving it under the needle at the same rate as the machine's feed dogs are moing the bottom layer, preventing puckering and pleating of the layers.
If you don't have a stretch stitch or don't want to buy a walking foot you can also, do this:
Set the tension high and the stitch long. This may bunch the fabric so after you get to the end of a stitch DO NOT backstitch and DO NOT cut the thread. Instead pull the thread a foot long off the machine and push sweater flat to remove the bunches. Then put back on machine and backstitch.
HOPE THAT HELPS!
Anonymous,
Yeah it does kind of look like that.
Funny!
I bought them at the fabric outlet down the street from me. It looks like they were made out of brocade and the different wefts have different effect on the dyes which causes the varied dying effect.
My question is - how is your hair done?? It's soooo cute!
I like the sweater too, of course. :)
I'm loving this sweater!! I linked to your tutorial over at Craft Gossip Sewing:
http://sewing.craftgossip.com/tutorial-marching-band-inspired-sweater-refashion/2010/12/19/
--Anne
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