Roundup: 15 Felted Sweater Experiments (by me!)

Writing recently about my granddaughters’ wool clothing made me reminisce about all the items I’ve played around with out of felted sweaters. Today I’ve put together a Green Sheep roundup of THINGS-THAT-AREN’T-BLANKETS. Some of them are one-offs; some of them I chose to make a batch of and sell on Etsy. I posted about nearly all of them on this blog.

(But I didn’t post about this kitty, so he’s a bonus. The pattern is not original to me, although I did adapt it for felted sweaters. Unfortunately, I can no longer find the original (a library book?) to give the designer credit. Does this little guy not look like a rodent from the back?? It would be fun to play around with the pattern and see what other animals it could become.)

Now: On to the roundup!

Here are 15 non-blanket experiments (i.e. with the exception of leggings, tunics, slippers and hooded jacket, I drew up my own patterns). The list starts with the WAY-backs, from 2010, and comes up to the present. The links go to original blog posts, most of which were pretty spare in terms of info. But there are a few more pictures. Maybe they can get your own creative juices flowing ;)

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1.  Sachets

2.  Coasters

3.  Running Leggings

4.  Draft Dodger

5.  Baby Lovies

6.  Fingerless Gloves

7.  Christmas Stockings (The prototypes. Later ones.)

8.  Ponchos

9.  Sewing Kit

10.  Sweater Coat

11.  Slippers

12.  Mittens (My first try! My next ones. Later ones.)

13.  Assymetrical Hooded Jacket

Gray jacket

14.  Vests

15.  Children’s Leggings and Tunics

These are all a lot of fun to try and to tweak. Certainly, having felted sweaters on hand gives a new dimension to gift-giving. And still? After all is said and done, making blankets is the thing I love the most ♥

Still looking for that something-special gift?

Hi, folks! I completely forgot to announce this here on the blog, but I have wonderfully warm woolen mittens and fun one-of-a-kind Christmas stockings in my Etsy shop! There are just a handful (heehee!) of mittens left, so check them out now if you’re interested.

Link here: www.etsy.com/shop/TheGreenSheepStudio

Our faithful US Postal Service’s 3-Day Priority Mail will get them to you before Christmas if you order by this Friday, December 16 (if you are in the US).  It’s getting risky after that, but I’ll do my best to ship items quickly!


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Thanks for looking! Etsy shop link: www.etsy.com/shop/TheGreenSheepStudio

I’ve Had Some Catching Up to Do

Okay, it only took me a month after Art in the Barn to post new things for sale in my Etsy shop…! But I’m finally finished :).

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(There was some shop upkeep required as well. I find myself wishing those software/app developers would go on vacation and allow a little moss to grow under their techie creations back at home. It’s hard for us ordinary folk to keep up!)

Over at my Etsy shop you will find these two blankets now for sale:

Sing a New Song

“Summer Nostalgia” (57″ x 70″)
The “Summer Nostalgia” story is posted here.

"The Redbud"

“The Redbud” (62″ x 76″)
“The Redbud” story is posted here.

In the Etsy shop there are also several pairs of fleece-lined wool mittens…

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…and lots of keepsake Christmas stockings for the special people in your life.

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Please come take a look. The doors are open for Christmas shopping, window shopping and anytime shopping. Invite your friends!

 

 

Mittens!

Fortuitous events caused me to make a handful of mittens this year even though I hadn’t been planning on it. They were fun! They’re up in the Etsy shop if you’d like to see them there.

In response to popular request, I make my mittens with a bit longer cuff and keep it adjustable (it’s not tacked down). This means your wrists are just as protected as your hands are — no breeze can touch that tender skin at the end of your coat sleeve. Each mitten is also snugged in at the wrist to keep it comfortably in place. All mittens are lined with fleece for double warmth.

These mittens actually fall into two categories. First, there’s the traditional design, where the most interesting fabric is on the back of the hand:

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Then there’s the nontraditional design, where, just for the fun of it, I put the interesting pattern on the palm side of the mitten. I enjoy the “surprise factor” of these :)

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And they’re ready in the nick of time — many of us have snow coming soon! If you’re interested in staying warm in winter with some mittens from The Green Sheep, please come browse my Etsy shop.  Take care and stay warm!

fall and fingerless gloves

I’m feeling a bit forlorn about no Green Sheep open house this year! The past two falls I had the thrill of preparing, anticipating, and showing new things. The best part is letting others see and feel this wool in person — it’s simply impossible to represent its softness, drape and presence in a photo.

Why no show this year you ask?

1st — we were a little preoccupied with a wedding in the early months :)

2nd — after the wedding, so many of you placed special orders with The Green Sheep that not much other sewing got done!

3rd — my dear mom is staying with us for several weeks and our time has been full of wonderful things (but, ahem, not sewing).

Not that I’m complaining about any of these great reasons that I’ve become a slacker.

However, I have been playing a bit, thanks to a friend who recently asked about fingerless gloves for a birthday gift. In response, I pulled out a pattern I used last Christmas to make some wristwarmers (a.k.a. fingerless gloves) for my two daughters and a few others. I reworked them with improvements, and wah-lah!  (Please excuse the photo composition and focus; I had a tough time being my own model!)

The gray pair

The tan pair

The red pair

The green pair

All of these fingerless gloves are very soft, made of either cashmere or lambswool.


lined mittens

With fall nearly here and winter around the corner, I’ve been sewing up a batch of my lined woolen mittens (from felted sweaters, of course!).  Here’s a sampling:

grey with orange cuff, pearly button

heather green with green cuff, crocheted cream button

warm brown with dark brown cuff, vintage button

dark pink with purple cuff, wool wine button

mottled blue and green with green cuff, tiny green buttons

houndstooth with tan cuff, fabric knot button

pale salmon with heather brown cuff, pearl buttons

turquoise with warm brown cuff, tan buttons

dark purple with grey cuff, tiny purple buttons

snowflake on charcoal with blue cuff

olive green with heathery blue cuff, silver flower button

soft purple with grey cuff, silver flower button

blue with dark blue cuff, dark blue 1970s button

navy, brown, and grey stripe with tan cuff, brown button