Moving...into a Cardigan

Remember how I told you last week that we are moving? I knew you would! The last time we moved I was pregnant, Allen was already in Maryland and the company was paying for the whole move so I didn't pack one single box. These three ladies showed up in the morning and the whole house was packed by the afternoon. It was insane. They packed everything, I think that if I had given them a chance, they would've packed me (mostly because I was hovering over them a tad). This move is going to be different. Very different. Allen is moving back to Charlotte before me. The company isn't paying for the move so I'll be packing all of those boxes (not in a day) and oh, I have my own little helper. She'll be helping me add hours to the packing process.  She already helps me so much with the laundry!

Since I'll be packing myself, I've come up with a new word association for moving. Moving = Purging. If we don't use it, we are losing it!! Goodwill is no longer just where I shop - we have already brought a couple of loads over there and we have way more to go. My big fear is that I'll go back and accidentally buy some of the things I've brought over there. That could be the reason that I've secretly been going through Allen's Goodwill pile. It's a good thing I do too, because that's where I found the perfect project sweater! I had been eyeing this little pin from Vanilla Joy that changes an old sweater into a new cardigan and this was the perfect sweater for it. 

After I rescued the poor sweater from the Goodwill box, I gathered some supplies and got to work. I made a few changes to the original tutorial because I didn't have everything she used and I ran into some "technically difficulties."

First - get your old sweater and lay it out flat. I ironed mine a little because it was really wrinkled (yes, that is after ironing... don't judge). Fold your sweater in half so you can find the middle. I had a lot of trouble with this step on my sweater. The cut of the neck and the sleeves made it awkward to fold so I turned it inside out (#2). After it was inside out, I got out my rotary cutter ruler and a sharpie. It was time to mean business. I used the ruler as a guide and marked down the middle of the sweater with the sharpie and laid it back out flat (#3). I was able to use a sharpie because of the color and weight of my sweater. If you are using a light color or lightweight sweater, it would be better to use tailor's chalk or a marking pencil.

Now it's time to become one with your rotary cutter. I said a little prayer and cut right down the middle of the front of the sweater (#4). I made a few changes on this next step. I didn't have any of the peel and stick heat bond so I used some ancient stitch witchery that I had in my sewing box. It does about the same thing but is not as stiff. I placed a piece on each side of the cuts and carefully folded the sweater over on the stitch witchery (keep in mind the sweater is still inside out (#5). Go find your iron and iron down the folds carefully. After you have ironed the sides down, it's time to get the sewing machine out. I sewed the sides down to secure them and to make it look more finished (#7). Because the neckline of the sweater was so thick, I couldn't sew over it with the sewing machine so I hand stitched the very top (#8). After you've stitched it up - turn that sucker right side out and put it on!! That's what I should have done. 

Instead of putting it on, I decided I would take a picture of it later. Suddenly it was WAY later and dark outside. Keep that in mind when you look at my AMAZING photo of my new cardigan.