Recycled T-Shirt Yarn Tutorial

Hi! Merry Christmas! (A little late, but it is still the Christmas season on the church calendar, after all.) We had a wonderful one, and I hope you did, too.

We hit the jackpot with our Christmas gifts for the kids this year. I will do a summary post in the coming days, but for today, I wanted to tell you about two gifts that were a big hit with the girls. We bought Maya (age eight) one of these (crafted by a local artist):

And Ellery (age five) some of these:

And used this tutorial to make recycled t-shirt yarn for both. Jason and I had a blast making yarn, and the girls have had so much fun crafting with their new gifts. Maya’s already made (and gifted) four potholders, and Ellery has knit two doll hats. People around my house better be watching their t-shirts, because if they’re not nailed down, I’m turning them into yarn. It’s completely addicting! I hope to use their gifts myself, as they look so fun. I’m also going to make a few rugs out of recycled t-shirt yarn, either crocheted or braided. Maybe both?

A few tips on the t-shirt yarn: 1 1/4″ wide t-shirt strips (prior to stretching and curling) make the best potholder yarn, but for the Knifty Knitter, thinner is better. I’m thinking 1″ or less for my next batch for Ellery. Too thin, though, and the yarn will break when you stretch to curl. If you’d rather buy recycled t-shirt yarn, try Etsy. Lots of good stuff there, including inspiration for other projects that can be made from this yarn.

About these ads