Refashionista // Sweater into cropped cardigan

When you look through my refashionista archives you'll probably notice that I love making over sweaters. Whether into skirts or socks, or cardigans. Knits of all kinds are my favorite material to work with, and although I know that most of you don't have a serger/overlocker nor a cover-stitch machine, I still recommend giving knits a try. There are ways to work with knits on a regular sewing machine (a post about that coming soon), so don't shy away from them even if seems intimidating.

My number one favorite thing about knits besides the comfort factor is how easy they are to fit. Woven fabrics can be temperamental when it comes to getting a good fit. So, I would pick a knit over a woven any day. But, enough of the praise, let's talk about today's refashion, shall we?

This loose-fitting cropped cardigan is an iteration of this sweater into cardigan refashion I did over a year ago. While my first version was super simple and quick to make, this one has more bells and whistles and therefor takes a little more time as well.

The style was inspired by the cardigan in my spring sewing inspiration post. As soon as I saw it, I knew the sweater in my stash would be perfect for recreating the look. 

Although I love the outcome, I do have a few regrets. First, I wish I would have measured the width better. It came out a tad too loose, and the front overlap is also too big. I should have just taken it in more at the back seam. The shoulders a little bit wide as well. I was going for a droopy shoulder, but the fit didn't turn out to be perfect. I have a feeling I should have sewn the shoulder seams slightly curved. I just thought I'd share the messy behind the scenes details as well. Not every refashion I make turns out exactly the way I envision.

Here's how I did it:

1) First, I removed the sleeves. You can do this either with scissors or a seam-ripper. 

2) Second, cut off the upper part of the sweater, just below the neckline. Sew a straight seam at the dotted line. This will become the center back seam. So, moving forward, the width of the sweater becomes the height of the cardigan and vice versa.

3) Cut the sides of the sweater straight, eliminating the armpit curve. 

Measure your back width (from shoulder tip to shoulder tip). You can add a few centimeters to that measurement if you want your cardigan to be more loose-fitting. Mark the sides of the soon to be cardigan using this measurement, so that the center back seam (the only seam there is at this point) is in the center of the marks.

4) Fold the sides of the long sweater panel towards the center, so that the side mark is on the fold. The folded part will become the front of the cardigan.

Next, mark the shoulder seams. I wanted my finished collar to be 5 cm high, and my shoulder width was 10cm, which meant I needed to mark a 10x10 square (since the collar will be on the fold later) to the upper corner of both sides. Your measurements might differ a little. 

5) Cut and sew according to the lines. You should have a sort of bottle-like shape to your cardigan at this point. 

I will move on to the sleeves now, and come back to the cardigan after that. I straightened the sleeves and cut them to elbow-length, but you might not need to make these steps. 

Back to the cardigan:

1) Place the sleeve to the side of the cardigan and mark how big of a hole you'll have to cut to fit the sleeve in. Cut both armholes. Sew sleeves to the cardigan.

2) Since my cardigan was already pretty short, I decided to make a faux hem for it. I used the cut-off side strips of the sweater to piece together a long band for the hem. Then I sewed it to the bottom of the cardigan. If your cardigan is long enough to fold and sew the hem as is, you don't have to do this step on your version.

3) Now is a good time to give the garment a good press all around. To stretch out the ribbed part in the front, just stretch and pin it to the ironing board and steam well. Let cool before removing pins. With some fibers, you'll need to do that after every wash, but some fibers will also stretch out completely and stay that way even after washing. 

Also, fold and press the hem and sleeve-hems. And, Fold the collar in half (along with the whole top hem) and press well. 

4) Finally, sew the top and bottom hem, and the sleeve ends.

Quick tips for sewing all of this with a regular sewing machine:

1. Use a narrow zig-zag stitch or the knit stitch (that looks like a lightning bolt) to sew the center back seam, and the shoulder and sleeve seams. 

2. Use a wider zig-zag stitch to cover raw edges.

3. Use a twin-needle for the hems.

I'll go more in depth on this topic in an upcoming post.

I feel I'm gravitating more towards boxy cuts these days, which is something new for me. I love that I can wear this cardigan wrapped and sealed with a pin, which is a more sophisticated and feminine look, or leave the front open for a more modern and edgy look. I also love that the sweater is made of cotton, which makes this the perfect spring/summer cardigan. I know I'll get lots of wear out of this in the coming months. 

I hope you got some inspiration to take on a sweater refashion yourself, and a good idea of the process behind making this one. If you have any questions about this tutorial, or requests for upcoming posts (what would you like to learn?), let me know in the comments.

Happy sewing!

xo. Hanna

P.S! Don't forget there's still time to crab something from the shop half off with the code ENDSALE!