Sweater Tunic Refashion

Remember the sweater legwarmers I made Samster to go with her tshirt dress? Well I couldn't just toss the rest of the sweater so after a little finagling I changed it into a little sweater tunic.

(Samster has a new habit of kissing everything. And I mean, EVERYTHING. Even the floor. The kid has a lot of love to give.)

It was actually pretty easy, and the results were kind of cute which is a bit surprising considering I had no idea what I was doing.Nonetheless, I thought I'd give you a quick tutorial...even if you don't have a sweater to make this from the basics are there for reconstructing a garment.

Here's what I was left with after cutting off the sleeves for the legwarmers. (the sweater was a size 6-8 girls, I needed 18 mths)I flipped the sweater inside out and using some of Sam's existing clothes as a
guide I pinned how much I wanted to take in on the sides, underarms & sleeves.Err on the side of caution, you can always take it in more later if it's too big. I'm constantly having to remind myself that once I cut I can't put it back. Perhaps I should tattoo that on my hand. Although P has already told me he does not find tattoos attractive, I would imagine a 'sewing tattoo' wouldn't change things. But I digress, once you get it pinned sew along your pin lines. You can try it with just a basting stitch, (a really wide stitch that's easily pulled out) try it on your munchkin and then go back & adjust. Once you get the fit you want use a small zig-zag stitch or serge your new seams. Also know that once you cut the sweater material it gets super pissy and wants to unravel, you'll need to be careful not to encourage this behavior while stitching it. Treat it with kid gloves & don't pull or tug if you don't have to. Turn it right side out and you should have something like this...Now for hemming the sleeve openings. This took a bit of trial & error. Just folding them under & stitching did NOT work for me. In fact, it was a hot mess. Bunching, unraveling...awful. What did work like a charm? Hem tape! AHA! I keep this on hand for whenever I'm too lazy to hem my pants the old fashioned (aka correct) way.It was great for this project because I didn't have any hem lines & the tape pretty much glued all those little rebellious sweater stitches into place. Submission!

That's it! Instead of adding to my trash pile a little sweater tunic is a new addition to Samster's wardrobe. If only my husband knew how many mall trips I was saving him. Hmph.PS- a few of you have asked me about the blocks, they're by Melissa & Doug, we LOVE them! Here's the link...Wooden Animal Nesting Blocks