Have you ever made something and thought it was exactly what you wanted, only to discover that you actually hate it? Or, maybe you don’t hate it, but it definitely is not what you envisioned it being? Is it destined to spend the rest of its days shoved into the back corner of the bottom drawer? Don’t worry! I’ll walk you through how you can reuse yarn from a sweater (or any project) that you don’t like!
Recently, I put on a sweater that I made and decided that I actually don’t like it at all. I love the idea of that particular pattern, but it just doesn’t lay right on me. The same is true for a cardigan I made out of the same yarn. I love this yarn, and really want a sweater or cardigan that I can actually wear made out of this yarn. So, I’ve been frogging away – taking both sweaters apart and balling up the yarn so I can make something that I will actually love wearing! It’s kind of a bittersweet feeling, to be sure. But, I know that any sadness I feel over tearing out the hours of work will be more than made up by the joy of a garment that will be used.
What can I do with an item that I don’t like?
If you have an item that you have made that you don’t actually like, there are a few things you can do.
- Put the item in your drawer or closet and let it rest for a bit to see if you like it better the next time you pull it out. If the answer is still no, then it will be time to try one of the other options.
- Give it as a gift to someone else or donate it. I only recommend this option if you think that someone else will like it. If you truly hate it and don’t think anyone else would either, then move on to another option.
- Take it apart (or frog it) and make something new with the yarn! Really, this is an option! For a long time, I thought there was some kind of unwritten rule against taking something apart once it was complete. There is no such rule! If you don’t like it, you don’t have to live with it!
How do I frog something?
The very simple answer to the question is that you simply take it apart! The actual steps will depend on the item and how it was originally constructed. Here are some tips to help you along the way:
- Don’t be afraid! You’ve got this! Since you already decided that you will not use the item in its current state, you have nothing to lose. You are liberating the yarn to be used for something that will actually bring you joy!
- Start from the end and work backward. This works best for projects that you have made personally. If the item was made by someone else you can still try to figure out where the end would be.
- Undo any seams first. Try to find where the ends were woven in and work from there. Once you have undone any seams, then the individual pieces are much easier. Once you have individual pieces, undo the ending knot and pull the yarn to unravel.
- Ball up your yarn as you go. This is a must! If you try to lay out your yarn and roll it up at the end, you will make a giant mess. And so many knots. Just trust me on this one – keep your life simple and ball as you go.
- Use a yarn needle to help with tangles. A yarn (or tapestry) needle is a big help in finding ends and loosening any knots that are being stubborn. Use the tip of the yarn to separate and loosen knots that have tightened up while you are unraveling.
- Don’t be afraid to cut. If you come across a tangle or knot that seems impossible to unravel, cut it. Try to cut as close to the knot as possible to preserve as much yarn as you can. But, it is much better to have yarn that is intact than to have sections of yarn that are frayed because of knots.
- If the yarn is really wavy, let it rest. If your item is old or has been washed several times, you may find that the yarn is really wavy when you take it apart. If it is just slightly wavy, you can usually get away with just balling it up and working the new project. If is really curly and difficult to work with, try wrapping the yarn around a yarn swift or the back of a couple of chairs and dampening it with a spray bottle. Let it dry completely and see if that helps the waves relax. You can also try using a steamer, but be careful with synthetic fibers as they can melt!
How do I reuse the yarn from my sweater?
The first step in how to reuse yarn from a sweater is determining how much yarn you have. The easiest way is to weigh the yarn with a kitchen scale and then figure out the yardage.
If you made the original project, hopefully you know what kind of yarn was used. If so, check the label (or look up the yarn online) and see how many yards there are per gram or ounce. Then multiply the total number of grams or yards of yarn by the number of yards per gram (or ounce) and see how many yards you have.
If you do not know what kind of yarn you have, try comparing it to other yarns in your stash.Find a yarn that is the same thickness and feel and use the information from that label as a guide.
One you know how many yards you have, you can search for a pattern that uses that amount of yarn! Ravelry is a great resource for this. You can search by the type of item you would like to make and filter the results by the weight of yarn and the yardage used. You can also look through any patterns in your stash to find a match.
For example, when I finished frogging my two sweaters, I ended up with 766 grams of yarn. I knew that the yarn was Brava Sport from Knit Picks. Brava Sport has 340 yards per 100 grams. That means I have 7.6 units (each unit is 100 grams, 766 divided by 100 is 7.6). Then, I multiply 340 yards by the 7.6 units and see that I have 2,584 yards of yarn to use. Then, I searched through my various patterns and found a cardigan in my to-be-made stash!
This is a basic overview on how to reuse yarn from a sweater. The most important part is to not be afraid! Just because you didn’t like what you made the first time around, that does not mean you failed. You still learned through the process. And, by frogging and reusing the yarn, you get to learn more and end up with something that you love at the end of the adventure!
If you are looking for some ideas of what to make with your “new” yarn, check out My Favorite Free Patterns – compiled just for you!
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