zippers Archives ~ Angela Wolf's Sewing Blog

DIY: REFASHION A SWEATER INTO A SWEATER JACKET

I bought this sweater a few years back because the fabric is soft and fluffy, but I never wear it because the collar is too tight! I leave it in the drawer and pet it every once in a while 🙂 Even when I would attempt wear the sweater on a cold, wintry day; it was off in less than an hour; it’s even too uncomfortable to wear fishing! I would say to myself, “f I could just open that collar up.” Then it occurred to me … add a zipper and refashion the sweater into a jacket.

Supplies:

22” separating zipper (measure in the center of the sweater from the top of the collar to the hemline to determine the length of the zipper)
4 pieces of vinyl cut the length of the center front by 3” wide
Fusible interfacing 2” wide by the length of the center front of the sweater, including the collar
Non-stick foot
Zipper foot
Universal thread in coordinating color

Prep & Mark the Sweater

Start by marking the center front of the sweater. I am marking the sweater a contrasting color thread, if the fabric allows you can use a fabric marking pen or tailors chalk.

Turn the sweater inside out. Center the fusible interfacing along the center of the sweater and press in place.

Cut along the center marking, from hem to the top of the collar.

Sew the Zipper

Line up each side of the zipper with the vinyl as shown. Stitch along the edge of the zipper teeth.

To read the full blog and finish up your sweater upcycle, head over to my post as a Brother Expert Consultant on the Brother Stitching Sewcial. This is such a quick way to customize any bowl, I can’t wait to try different fabrics for the holiday season!

Cheers,

Behind the Scenes Live with Angela Wolf

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At Your Side Virtually! Episode 228 Quick Christmas & Holiday Gift Decoration Ideas

by Angela | December 17, 2021 | At Your Side Virtually!, Home Dec, Sewing Projects | 0 Comments

Quick & Easy Christmas & Holiday Decor Quick Table Runner Instructions Fabric Requirements: a. Center fabric: Sew together seven of the quilted blocksmade in the 7 7/8 x 14 in hoop. Five of the blocks will havethe applique design and the two ends will be...

Episode 199: At Your Side Virtually! Mug Rug and Coffee Deco with Kathy Stipe and Barb Mikolajczyk

by Angela | September 2, 2021 | At Your Side Virtually!, Embroidery, Home Dec | 3 Comments

Episode 199 ~ At your side 🧵 Virtually! Create a mug run and decorate your coffee mug with vinyl Join Brother Brand Ambassador Angela Wolf and Brother Educator's Kathy Stipe and Barb Mikolajczyk Designing Mug Rugs in My Design Center-Quick and Easy Supplies needed:...

Embroider 103 Learn How to Embroider on Hats

by Angela Wolf | April 15, 2021 | Embroidery, Online Classes | 91 Comments

Learn How to Embroider Hats Join Angela Wolf and Cindy Hogan for a 90 minute virtual class and learn how to embroider hats with any embroidery machine and a 4" by 4" hoop! Learn the best stabilizers and hooping techniques. This is a virtual class, live with Angela...

Embroidery 102 Embroider Small Letters Recipe Project Virtual Class

by Angela Wolf | March 16, 2021 | Embroidery, Events | 69 Comments

Embroidery 102 How to Embroider Small Letters with Angela Wolf and Cindy Hogan Learn how to embroider small letters on a thin kitchen towel and fine cotton or linen - perfect for napkins! Learn the best stabilizers, thread, and hooping techniques. Cindy's digitized...

Learn How to Sew on Clear Vinyl

by Angela Wolf | January 5, 2021 | At Your Side Virtually!, Fashion Sewing, Home Dec, Sewing, Sewing Projects, Tutorials | 5 Comments

Episode 133 ~ At your side 🧵 Virtually! Organizing and Sewing Clear Vinyl It's January and that means it time to organize for a new year! Today I show how to sew clear vinyl for bags to store patterns and ideas for organizing button and beads; two of my my favorite...

Apron Sew Along

by Angela | May 7, 2020 | Beginners Guide to Fashion Sewing, Fashion Sewing, Home Dec, Sewalong, Sewing, Sewing Projects | 0 Comments

Apron Sew Along An apron is such a fun accessory to wear in the kitchen, at work, while dyeing fabrics, gardening, you name it! I thought it would be so fun to sew an apron and each day have guests on the live show showing how to embellish with embroidery, quilting,...

Great class for beginners or advanced!! I’ve been sewing for a very long time, but have always avoided knits. This class takes the fear out of sewing with knits. Loved all the tips for sewing with knits from cutting them out to sewing it up. Thanks Angela for sharing your time and knowledge with us.

Sharon Moore

Sewing a Zipper with the Laser Vision Guide with Brother Dreamweaver

Hope you are all enjoying February, I can hardly believe it’s almost over! I spent last week taping season 5 for It’s Sew Easy TV, despite the cold and snow – we had a successful week. Here is one of my favorite photo’s on set with June Mellinger (Brother) and Christopher Straub (Project Runway). I have to say, he is one talented designer! He even left an autographed handbag for Katie, my ninth grade apprentice. She absolutely adores him and I can’t wait to see her face when she opens her gift 🙂 By the way, that handbag in the photo is fabric he designed. I foresee an order with spoonflower soon.

I have been busy working on some custom garments and my new collection, which I will be sharing over the next few weeks, including launching some new patterns. First, I have to share one of my last gown dilemma’s. The fabric was gorgeous, but challenging to work with … slipper, shiny, textured, get the idea? I was having a heck of a time inserting the back zipper. I couldn’t use a hidden zipper, as I could not find a color to matched the fabric. The problem occurred when I was topstitching around the zipper. I hand basted in the zipper, marked the center back seam with chalk (that was also basted closed), and marked the stitch line with chalk. The fabric really presented a challenge with the texture. Being a total perfectionist, I ripped the topstitching out twice because it just was not straight enough. Then I remembered the Laser Vision Guide on my Brother Dreamweaver XE VM6200D. This worked like a charm! I was able to line up the laser light with center back seam and topstitch perfectly straight, all the way around the zipper. I won’t forget about that handy tool next time. Here is the short video I put together if you want to see more details. Now, back to the cutting table. Enjoy 🙂 xoxo Angela

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=af20N8dbmE8]

Brother™ has provided me with the DreamWeaver XE, but all opinions expressed are entirely my own.