How to Sew With Old Sweaters

• 1). Inspect your cotton sweater. Identify stains and holes you want to avoid. If you have a piece measuring more than 6 by 6 inches without holes or stains, you can easily make this into a pillow front. Cut away the seams of a sweater until you have separated the front and back pieces.
  
  
• 2). Draw a square with your tailor's chalk and ruler around the area you want to feature. Sew along this square. Sew a second square 1/4 of an inch outside the borders of your first square. This will lock your knit stitches in place. Cut around 1/2 of an inch around your outer set of stitches.
  
  
• 3). Cut two strips of muslin measuring 2 inches wide and the same length as your square. Cut two strips 2 inches wide and 4 inches longer than each side of your square. Pin two shorter strips of muslin along the sides of your square with the edges meeting and the strips facing inward. Sew along the two edges, allowing a 1/2-inch seam allowance.
  
  
• 4). Pin the two longer strips along the top and bottom edges of your piece, facing inward. Sew with a 1/2-seam allowance. Measure your square. Cut a piece of muslin matching these measurements. Place on top of the right side of your first piece, pin together and sew on three sides and 3/4 of the fourth side, using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Turn right side out and stuff with fiberfill. Turn raw edges of last seam under and finish with small back stitches.
  
  
• 5). Inspect a wool sweater the same way you would a cotton sweater for sewing. Turn small pieces such as sleeves into bags. To use larger pieces, cut the seams apart and sew along the edges you want to lock in place. Use this piece as you would a regular piece of cloth.
  
  
• 6). Felt wool sweaters to lock in fibers. Machine wash the sweater and tumble dry warm. Take out the sweater and cut out the pieces you want to sew. Sew pillows, mittens, hats and even new, smaller sweaters for smaller-sized adults or children.