Thrift Store Refab: Sweatshirt Edition

It's Autumn!!  That means crisp nights and walks in the leaves. What could be better than a great sweatshirt??  Anyone who uses Pinterest has probably seen people pinning these DIY sweatshirt pictures (here and here).  I figured I would give it a shot!!  So, I headed to my local thrift store to see what I could find.

Lo and behold, I found this beauty!!  Size XL, and for only $1.74?!?  Yes!!

First things first, let's cut it down to size and make it fit.  I put it on inside out and started pinning the sleeves until they fit.  Once I was done pinning, I sewed them using a zigzag stitch. Why zigzag, you say?  Well, zigzag stitches stretch a little, and that is good to have on a stretchy material. Otherwise, I might bust a seem, and that would not be pleasant. I also cut off the excess sweat-scraps, otherwise my arms wouldn't fit in the sleeves!

Next, I sliced it right down the middle. I could have left it like this, making it a weird sweat-cardigan, but, alas, that was not my long term plan.  Back to work!!

I also had this gem hiding in my stash that I got for $1.50 a couple months ago. I like the stripes so I decided to use the material as an accent.

I cut off the bottom hem, and sewed it to the edge of the opening I just made.

I knew that it was going to take some work getting this thing to fit me. So, I put on my beautiful sweat-cardigan and pulled the edge over pretty far.

I used some chalk to mark where I wanted it, and then sewed it in place.  Weeeee!!

It still didn't quite fit, so I put it on inside out again and started pinning the sides. Sew sew sew!  It finally fit!

This is what I was left with, but I still wasn't happy with it. What to do? What to do?  Aha!! Remember my sleeve sweat-scraps?! I bet they would make an awesome cowl!! 

I sewed the two pieces together, cut it in half length-wise, and sewed on some more of my striped fabric as a lining.

Then, I sewed all of my raw edges under and pinned this bad boy in place. I messed with a few options, but finally decided on doing a cross over in the front. The hardest part of this whole project?  Sewing this damn cowl in place. There were just so many layers of fabric that my sewing machine said to me, "Look, lady, I just can't do it today. I need a break.  It's you, not me." But after a long talk, a few tears, and a cup of tea, we worked things out and powered through.

For the finishing touch, I found two yellow buttons in my stash and slapped them on there.

And here's the final product!!  Seriously, though, you can do this one.


Total cost (with a little extra thrown in there for the buttons and thread in my stash): $3.50.

Word.