I’ve been coveting a crocheted granny square top for ages but no matter how much I practice I just can’t seem to get the hang of crocheting beyond the very basic chain stitch, humph! I thought my cozy top was to remain an unsatisfied fashion craving until I spied the perfect refashioning victim for a mere $2.99 during a recent trip to the thrift shop.
I snapped it up and let my imagination take over to create this magnificent bit of sustainable unique style:
Hit the thrift shop and create your own cozy colourful top with My Refashioned Crocheted Granny Square Top Tutorial:
Grab a granny square blanket that’s the same width as your outstretched arms from wrist to wrist (to avoid having to hem the finished top it should be your desired length when folded in half) + a loose fitting sweater.
Fold the blanket in half lengthwise and place on a flat surface.
Fold in half again width-wise.
Mark the top left corner with a pin, when unfolded this will be a perfectly centered mark.
Unfold the blanket once & use that pin as a guide to center that loose fitting sweater on top of the blanket with the sleeves splayed out
(learn how to easily add pockets to any sweater with my quick tute)
Use the sweater as a guide and chop out the excess blanket fabric on one of the sides to create the basic body and sleeve shapes of the top.
Remove the sweater, evenly fold the chopped side over the remaining blanket and use it as template to cut out the rest of the basic top shape.
Stitch the raw edges together on each side using a tight zig zag.
Chop off any excess yarn bits.
Flip the top right side out and hand stitch some coordinating yarn along those new outside seams for extra strength.
Find the closest square to the center of that top folded edge and carefully remove it to create the head hole, et voila! A perfectly finished crocheted neckline!
I’m now on the thrift shop hunt for a few more granny square blankets in varying sizes to create a skirt, a cardigan and as well as a funky dress idea that’s been lurking at the back of my refashionista brain for a while!
What granny square fashion would you rock?
Take a peek at all of my tutorials for gals over here then transform your entire wardrobe for pennies with my groovy CoaR tutorial collections right here:
This sweater looks great on you! I love how colorful it is. This is one of my favorite refashioned items. If I get a sewing machine from Santa this Christmas, I might try something like this. Just fantabulous really!
Fingers crossed Santa brings you a nifty thrifty sewing machine! I so wish I could get the hang of crochet but until I do I think I’ll be stitching up a few more faux crocheted clothing items 😉