Woolen winter mittens in minutes:- The blue mens large-size wool sweater shown below ended up in the washer and super-hot dryer, which resulted in the garment shrinking, as wool will do, down to a child-size item. The arms of this sweater, however, had been stuffed with socks (dont ask!), so they retained their bulky shape throughout the process. The final outcome was very heavy, sturdy semi-felted wool on the trunk, and loose, airy wool on the arms. The thick, stiff fabric that occurs when wool is heated and agitated, such as in a washer or dryer, is actually a desirable product if you want the equivalent of boiled wool. Boiled wool was used during the Middle Ages as a type of poor-mans armor: it was thick and durable enough to protect wearers against arrows and knife attacks. Today, the wool industry in France knits beautiful super-large berets and vests, then boils them until they felt and shrink into normal-sized hardy, warm, boiled wool garments. So, although this favorite blue sweater is past the point where it can be used as a sweater again, it can still be converted into mittens, one lightweight pair from the sleeves, and one super heavy boiled wool pair from the body. The second step is to make a pattern of your hand, or the hand of the person who will receive the mittens. Place your hand on a sheet of paper, fingers together and thumb extending to the side, with wrist extending straight (rather than angled to one side). Now, using a pencil, trace around your hand. Keep the pencil vertical (upright) as you trace. This will help keep the hem area consistent. When youre done, youll have a pretty clear outline of your hand. Next, soften the outline and round it out into a true mitten shape. Then add about ½ inch to the edge, all the way around. This will allow for the hem. Now, trim the pattern out of the paper, and make a duplicate pattern, so that youll have one for each hand. The third step is to lay the two patterns onto the sweater. Turn the sweater inside-out first. You can use either the body portion of the sweater or the arms, or both, if youre making two pairs of mittens. Leave the cuff edges on to act as cuffs on your mittens-to-be. Pin the patterns in place temporarily, passing your pins through both thicknesses of the sweater. If you use the sweaters arms, lay the pattern so that the pinky side of your pattern is against the arm seam. This will reduce the amount of sewing youll have to do. The fourth step is to mark around the edge of the pattern, leaving a clear outline on the sweater. I used a black indelible marker pen to outline my patterns on this blue fabric, but chalk or a wax marker may work just as well. Carefully remove the pattern, and pin the two layers of fabric together again. Now, trim around the pattern mark line, leaving the side-seam intact. The trimmed fabric edges may have a tendency to unravel a little bit at this point. You may wish to use your marker to draw a sewing line about ½ inch in from the cut edge. Thats where youll sew the pieces together. The fifth step is to sew the mitten seam, about ½ inch in from the cut edge. If youre handy or so inclined, you can use a running slip stitch to catch and hold the cut edge down (the same style as the arm seam on the sweater). Plain cotton-polyester thread works fine for this, but for more fancy mittens you could use a lightweight worsted wool yarn in a contrasting color. Ive sewed mittens using dental floss and probably fishing line would work as well. The thread should just be sturdy enough to hold the weight of the fabric firmly together.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 04:34:51 +0000
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