Sweater Skirt and Legwarmers
An old sweater is remade into a high-waisted miniskirt and legwarmers. Put Flashdance on your dvd player and dance around like a maniac.
You will need:
- One old sweater
- 2 metres (78") of 2.5cm (1") wide elastic for waistband
- matching thread
- sewing machine
- large safety pin
Cut through both layers underneath the neck.
Turn the sweater inside-out. Using a narrow zig-zag stitch, or an overlocker (serger), stitch a gentle curve, joining up with the existing side seams. Take care not to stretch the fabric. Practice on the neck scrap piece first, adjusting the tension and stitch width on your machine until the fabric is not distorted.
Trim off any excess fabric to make a 7mm (1/4") wide seam allowance, and finish side edges with a zig-zag stitch or overlocker (serger).
Turn skirt right-side-out. To make the waistband casing, fold over the top opening 7cm (3")
Fold edge back up to line up with the first fold. Pin the 3 layers together.
Using a narrow zig-zag stitch, or an overlocker (serger), stitch the raw edge to the first fold. Take care to stitch through all three layers.
Leave a small opening to thread the elastic through.
This is how the waistband looks from the right side.
Measure your waist. Cut the elastic 5cm (2") less than this measurement. Attatch a safety pin to one end and thread it through the waistband casing. Stitch both ends of elastic together. Stitch casing opening together.
To make the legwarmers, trim top off the sleeves.
Treat the top of the legwarmers the same as the waistband.