Sewing With Nancy

For many of us, sweatshirts are a wardrobe basic. Decorated sweatshirts have played a starring role during many seasons of Sewing with Nancy. Looking back at all the styles created,

I decided to feature a two-part series

"The Best of Sweatshirt Makeovers" with my guest, Mary Mulari, who's the self-proclaimed goddess of sweatshirt embellishments. During the next two episodes, you'll see sweatshirt favorites recorded over several years of Programming. Mary, it's fitting that you're here with us during this compilation because you designed them all. Well, thanks, Nancy! The most frequent request in sweatshirt style makeovers is to change a pullover into a cardigan. We'll show those transformation techniques, along with learning how to apply simple appliqus to the cardigan remake. The flowers and vines cardigan showcases my simple asymmetrical placket, with faux-suede appliqus, and an eclectic combination of fabrics and trims. You'll also see other applique variations, giving options beyond the holidays. "The Best of Sweatshirt Makeovers" That's what's next on Sewing with Nancy. Sewing with Nancy TV's longest-airing sewing and quilting program with Nancy Zieman is made possible by Baby Lock a complete line of sewing, quilting, and embroidery machines and sergers. Baby Lock, for the love of sewing. Madeira, specializing in embroidery, quilting, and special effect threads because creativity is never black and white. Koala Studios, fine sewing furniture, custom-built in America. Clover, making a difference in sewing, quilting, crafting, and needle arts for over 90 years. Amazing Designs and Klass needles. We'd like to begin by pointing out the basic changes we're going to review, and, Mary, we'll show that on your Flowers and Vines sweatshirt. Here at the bottom of the sweatshirt we've removed the bottom ribbing. We've added a placket with some embellishments and closures on the placket. And then, finally, appliqus. See here on this edge and at the bottom left side of the sweatshirt. Now the changes are really simple, a lot of straight stitching. So, this is going to take you an evening to make the changes. The first thing to change would be to remove the ribbing, just cut it off. That's an easy step, Nancy. It's going to make this sweatshirt more comfortable for a lot of people. It will hang differently from having the ribbing on. One way that you can change the bottom is to hem it, to turn it up. A lot of women find that a sweatshirt is too long anyway, and so this is a great way to shorten it so it's more appropriate to their size. But if you're tall like me, perhaps you'd like to face that hem. You need all the length you can get. That's what we've done on this particular style. This time, we build a facing that's added to the bottom edge of the shirt. It starts out 4" wide. We cut it to the circumference of the bottom of the sweatshirt and we add 1/2". Sew it together into a tube. It's now 2" wide, and double. So, we're going to place it at the bottom edge of the sweatshirt on the right side of the garment. Stitch just with a 1/4" seam allowance or a presser-foot width seam allowance. It doesn't really matter. That's right. On this side, you can see we've stitched it already. We can turn that facing to the inside of the sweatshirt. We'll add a few pins to make it lie in place. Then of course, we're going to sew it. I always like to topstitch from this side. A single or double row, it's up to you. Either way, yes. A simple change, but it's still a pullover because we don't have any opening. Right, we turn it into a cardigan in the next part of the process. It's important to measure and mark the center front line on the sweatshirt. We have it marked here with a chalk marker. We measure that and add 2" to the measurement. I always like a little extra fabric, Nancy, because it just seems like a safe thing to do. That's going to be the length you'll need for your placket piece. The placket piece is 7" wide and the measurement, plus the 2". We also have fusible interfacing back here and we've pressed back the top edge 1/4". Our next fold is on this side of the placket. We iron back 1-1/2" of fabric. That is the fold, the line we're going to meet to the center front line on the sweatshirt. We place it about 1/4" above the seamline of the ribbing on the sweatshirt. Then we add some pins. And we can, in aligning the two lines, we're going to get this nice and straight on the sweatshirt. I'm going to make believe I've pinned all the way down. But you'd pin the entire length. That's right. After doing the pinning, you're going to stitch on each side of the fold. That's right. About a 1/4" on each side of the fold, the center mark. Imagine that we've already done this. This is a sweatshirt that's done to that point. Except Nancy has to cut it. Virtual cutting! But now we'll finish the job. Now we have a cardigan sweatshirt. Presto! Well, not quite. Not quite. We have two edges now to complete. This is the edge that will be basically hidden when you wear this sweatshirt. We're going to press this edge toward the sweatshirt toward the other side of the sweatshirt. This is called four-handed sewing. That's right. It would be handy at home. Then we're going to tuck that back so we expose only a little bit, maybe about 1/2" of the facing. Here at the bottom, too, we have too much. That is a place where we might trim some off. Then tuck up what is extra and fold that back, also. You'll see the finished sweatshirt in just a few minutes but we're going to stitch right along the seam or right within the seam whatever you'd like to do to hold that in place. If you pink or serge the edge or you don't have to worry about any other finish. That's the underside. Now we have this larger piece of fabric. Here we can vary the width of our placket. I'll just give that a quick press. We turn this back, also. We need to make sure that it aligns so that when we stitch in the ditch or stitch from this side that we catch the back side of the fabric so a little bit of checking. You could have it extend 1/2" or more depending on the width that you'd like. But let's talk about this top edge. It doesn't look very good right now. I like to angle it, Nancy, because it lies better when you wear the sweatshirt. You don't have a piece of ribbing that wants to roll, either in or out. So we stitch that down in the process of completing this placket. There's an angle on both sides of the cardigan. If we look at our finished garment we'll see how Mary has done the simple straight stitching. just to hold that placket in place both on the overlap side and the underlap side. At the top neckline we can see how she has stitched back the fold so that it's at an angle. It's a sweatshirt, after all. We don't have to do a lot of fancy stitching. We're calling this "Sweatshirts for All Seasons." Here's the same variation, this time for the holidays. Deck the Halls, adorned with ornaments plus the same placket opening, but a little extra treatment. This has a ric rac addition. This ric rac is positioned on your sweatshirt prior to sewing the placket. That's right. It's placed to the left of the center front line. Here's the line. I like to baste or stitch this down in place before I add the placket. Once the placket is added, we stitch that down......in the same manner. If you didn't have ric rac you could add other types of trim in this same manner. Let's take a close-up look at Deck the Halls. You can see Mary's addition so that the trim is caught within the seam allowance. The closures. We're going to spend a lot of time on closures. The magical closure is... Ponytail holders, my favorite. I've chosen five. I don't usually put my closures all the way to the bottom. I don't think it's necessary. I've cut these ponytail holders a little shorter because I'm using a smaller button. Then we've added another piece of fabric on the top. Let's just show them with a ponytail holder that's not stitched into place. You would simply lay it on at the correct length at the length of the placket and cover it with a piece of fabric or trim. Maybe sew this together a little bit ahead of time. The buttons are placed on the reverse side. This is very simple sewing. Place it, then do the stitching so that it looks the way you'd like it. You have a transformation for a "Sweatshirt For All Seasons." Throughout this program we're going to be showing you 13 different variations of sweatshirts for various seasons. They all have some appliqus on them but this is simple appliqu work, Mary. It is. It's not satin stitching. It's a more open zigzag stitch that's faster and easier. We're going to make it continue to be easy and fast by tracing the designs of the appliqus that you'd like to choose onto a paper-backed fusible web. Fuse this to fabric, cut around the edge and reposition this on your fabric after you've removed the paper, and press. Standard things that we've gone through on Sewing with Nancy over and over again. In your needle, choose a rayon embroidery thread and a lightweight thread in the bobbin. You're working with standard embroidery techniques. I like to use an embroidery needle since I've chosen to work with embroidery thread. If you're working with cotton thread, then you'd use the corresponding needle. It's a zigzag stitch. Mary, you're going to give us suggestions on positioning, stabilizing, and the width. I have my sweatshirt all set to stitch on. And underneath, I have a piece of stabilizer that has been positioned under the design area. I've already started my zigzag stitching. I'll continue around this Christmas ornament. I think you can see it goes pretty fast, much faster than our satin stitching would. As I work my way around, pivoting the fabric and I'm almost done. I'm using a high contrast color thread. I would use matching thread, but this, so you can see, is the contrast here for television. The width that Mary used was a "2.0" and the length was "1.0". Maybe not so much wider, but much longer than you would use for a traditional appliqu. That's my preference. I always like to suggest experimentation. Sure, do a little test. You'll see other types of stitching on the other appliqus throughout this program. You'll look at our tulip tree. The tulip tree has a blanket stitch. It's a little different decorative stitch. With Mary's appliqu for Deck The Halls she used matching thread, not on her sample, but on the garment. Here we have contrasting thread. You can see the little zig into the appliqu. It gives a nice little additional added interest. This is another option. That is, to work with the blanket stitch. Now Mary, you've changed threads. You're ready to do some high contrast stitching. I've changed the thread and the stitch so now I'm ready to sew the blanket stitch on the edge of this appliqu. I've used, again, a contrast color thread. This is a quick stitch to get around this design that's been fused in place. So it straight stitches along the edge of the fabric and then zigs into the appliqu. It's a real favorite, I think, of mine and lots of other people who do appliqu. It's really a favorite, because it is quick. Because we're working with a sweatshirt, this is a simple type of sewing. We don't want to have elaborate stitching. This is the perfect way of adding a nice appliqu touch. Appliqus can be subtle or dramatic. Mary's striking decorated sweatshirt is the perfect choice to wear while strolling through the farmer's market. The impressive appliqu cascades across the front of the cardigan with artful flair. Yet requires a minimum of creative time. Here are a few tips on adding across-the-front appliqus that Mary and I will detail for you. So far, we've shown you the basics. Making the change to the cardigan the hemline change working with the ponytail holders as button loops and doing the appliqus. Mary, now it's all variations of the theme. That's right. And we'll start with looking at some of the details on this sweatshirt, the pink sweatshirt. We start at the bottom. This is looking familiar. We've hemmed it. We have the same cardigan placket technique here that we've shown before. This time, we have a bunch of flowers. And the stems go across the sweatshirt. Some of the flowers have button centers. Working up, some of the buttons are used in the closures. At the very top, we have our very famous ponytail holder used as an elastic loop. This is very easily sewn to the wrong side of the cardigan placket. It's a pretty simple step, Nancy. It's just zigzagged or straight stitched. It isn't concealed in any seam. We're breaking a lot of rules. But after all, these are sweatshirts. We keep saying that over and over again, but that's important to know. Now the vines and the stems you didn't use straight of grain fabric. You kind of have to know a little bit about fabric for this one. These are bias strips, Nancy. They are 3/8" wide. They have fusible web on the back so we can easily iron them into place. That helps, because we're going across the sweatshirt and it's helpful to have the vines fused in place. When positioning this-- Mary completed the sweatshirt. She made the placket and then placed the vines on top of the closure. She then topstitched everything in place. The paper-backed fusible web has a little bit of stickiness to it. Even though the sweatshirt that is to my right isn't the "right" design you could just kind of place it on to see where these could be positioned. So, where one would end the other would begin. You could get it to cross over. It's not continuous of course, but it does cross over. The fact that it's bias, you can bend it very easily into shape. You can see how nicely this goes. Granted, wrong fabric for this leaf mixture design. This one uses the same concept but these branches are 1/2" wide. They're also cut on the bias. This placket is pretty straight-forward. We've used a more traditional closure here three buttons and buttonholes. Now you might notice that I didn't place them at equal intervals because why not break the rules and choose a different way of doing things. And again, I didn't continue them down. The leaf shapes, now this isn't natural because of course, on twigs like this you wouldn't find every leaf shape in the world. But I put a lot of them together. You wouldn't find them on sweatshirts either. No, that's right! You're excused! The other detail that's shown on three of the leaves is that I used the same shape and did a stitch around as an outline kind of a shadow of the leaf shape that is beneath. A lot of interesting combinations, using ponytail holders on the outer edge of the placket or placing three buttonholes asymmetrically spaced, using vines across the edge and shadow stitching for the appliqu. Now it's time to feature a few of my favorite sweatshirt makeovers for kids. Pulling a sweatshirt on or off a little guy can be a challenge. This Construction Zone Sweatshirt with my signature easy-to-apply zipper makes this an easy sweatshirt to wear and gives a point of interest to the pullover. Add an appliqu to ensure that this will be your little guy's "go-to" shirt on a cool day. This zipper is sewn directly to the sweatshirt in an easy technique and we add some extra fabric at the tops and bottom. So, on the sweatshirt that you are working with, you'll have to mark the center front. You make it about 5" long, Mary. That's right, the zipper is about 5", it's short. It can be of any length, actually but we've chosen this length. We shortened it. You're not going to buy a zipper that is 5" long. Use "zipper by the yard" or a longer zipper that you shorten with a stitching across the ends and stitching across the top. You simply just place it, matching the centerlines. I would put it about a 1/4" below the top of the neck ribbing. And I'd pin it into place securely, and then, with a zipper foot on the sewing machine, I'd sew twice on each side of the zipper. We have that sewn twice to the zipper on this sample. You've used contrasting thread in this area. I wanted you to be able to see for television. But if you use matching thread your stitching doesn't have to be quite so perfect, and it won't show. We've already cut this open after stitching. That's why you can see the division at the neckline. After cutting it open, trim away the excess fabric next to the stitching. This is super simple. That's right. Now it's time to close off the ends. We'll use a strip of fabric. This is no-fray fabric. We'll wrap the ends of the zipper this way kind of folding this in half. We'll pin each of these to the top of the zipper. This is like a faux-suede or you can use a heavier weight denim, if you'd like. That wouldn't be a no-fray. But this is definitely no-fray and you won't have to worry about the edges. At the bottom we'll sew two of these same size strips of fabric. We'll sew one in place first and then the second one over the top. So, a simple zigzag stitch to secure these faux suedes or these non-raveling fabrics into place is all you need. Then now it's time for the trim, Nancy. We've chosen more of that same faux suede fabric. We've used paper-backed fusible web on the back of these pieces. And now we can put them into position here on the sweatshirt and fuse them on. But of course, we'd use a press cloth over the top, as well. On this sample, it has been fused. You can see I'm zigzagging over, but notice that the sweatshirt has been turned inside out so I could get into this small confined area. That's so important. It's going to make sewing so much easier on these small garments. If we look at Mary's finished sample with the dump truck in place we have button wheels that you would sew on securely. And wow! In a couple hours, you'd have a transformation. But there's more. That's right. We can place that zipper in another position and that would be here at the raglan seam of the sweatshirt. And this time, I used a single bar at the bottom. To trim the shirt-- Gosh, I love these dinosaurs and so do a lot of little boys. Again, this was cotton fabric placed on the sweatshirt with paper-backed fusible web. Use your favorite tracing technique and zigzagging using a medium-width, medium length stitch. With a few new ideas, you can make great transformations! When choosing our favorite sweatshirt makeovers for this series, the goals were simple. Make certain the sweatshirts have a focal point, and that the sewing is easy. My Ruffles and Frills Sweatshirt certainly fits the criteria! The ruffled detail of satin stitching on the ribbing is a special effect that is enjoyable to sew while adding subtle frills. You saw that Mary's sweatshirt has an appliqu on it, but the appliqu isn't going to be the star feature right now. The star feature is what we used to call 'lettuce edging' or 'lettuce zigzagging.' I did this many years ago, but it's great to bring it back. This time, in the middle of the ribbing. That's right, Nancy. It's a more comfortable place for some people who don't like a ruffled edge on the very edge of the ribbing. On this sample, I've marked with a fabric marking pen the center of the ribbing. I've started to pin, separating the ribbing so that the new fold is in the middle of the ribbing. Pin all the way around, just a few anchor pins. Your machine setup is going to be a zigzag stitch. You'll need to use all-purpose sewing thread, contrasting color. We like to use something with a little contrast. This is a knit, so we're working with a ballpoint needle. Mary has thread and needle already in her machine. I'm ready to sew. I've set the machine at a "2.5" width and a "0.5" length. As I sew, I'm going to very deliberately stretch the ribbing as I sew. That's something that we haven't always been doing, but I'm going to sew stretching both ahead and behind my stitching. Getting all those stitches in there really distorts the ribbing. You'll see behind me what I've already created at the neckline is this ruffle edge. But it's not an edge-- It's a ruffle in the center of the neck ribbing. You'll have matching thread in the bobbin and the top thread. You could also just zigzag lettuce-edge the top edge. On the red sweatshirt, Nancy, I stitched twice around. I wanted a really full stitch on the edge of the neck ribbing. I did the same, two times around on the cuffs. But this time on the cuffs I stitched in the center of the ribbing of the cuff. The cuff ribbing is a little wider so it's easier to find that marking and to fold it. Whether you have an open-air stitch as we had on the pink sweatshirt or a heavier concentration of thread on the outer side you get different looks. Speaking of a different look, we have a little appliqu that you've added to the front. This time again, ragged edge or raggedy edge appliqu and small buttons for the eyes and the nose. I did some extra stitching for the whiskers of the cat. These variations are simple but they have drama and make great makeovers! During this first episode of "The Best of Sweatshirt Makeovers," Mary and I chose sweatshirt remakes and styles that have stood the test of time. Mary, I know that you encourage viewers to use your ideas, but then to kind of make it their own. They can make some changes, subtle or dramatic, that fits their personality. The techniques are always constant, but the color choices and trims that people use are really where the personality comes in. When I'm speaking at events, I'm delighted to see how people have used the ideas we've shared on TV to create one of a kind sweatshirts. Next time on Sewing with Nancy, Mary will be back and we'll look at a second episode of "The Best of Sweatshirt Makeovers." If you'd like to re-watch this episode, many of the seasons of programming, I encourage you to go to NancyZieman.com and then you can watch at your convenience. Or join the sewing and quilting conversation on my blog or other social media platforms. Well, Mary, we have some ideas to pass along. More ideas to come. But we also encourage you to share your photos of your sweatshirt remakes that you may have made so that we can see what you're doing. Thank you for joining me. You're welcome. And thanks for joining me at home. Bye for now. Nancy and Mary have written a fully-illustrated book entitled The Best Sweatshirt Makeovers that is the reference for this two-part series. The book includes more than 50 easy-to-sew sweatshirt transformations. The book is $19.99, plus shipping and handling. To order this book, call 800-336-8373

or visit our Web site at

sewingwithnancy.com/3001 Order Item No. BK3001 The Best Sweatshirt Makeovers. Credit Card orders only. To pay by check or money order call the number on the screen for details. Visit Nancy's Web site at NancyZieman.com to see additional episodes, Nancy's blog, and more. Sewing with Nancy TV's longest-airing sewing and quilting program with Nancy Zieman has been brought to you by Baby Lock; Madeira Threads; Koala Studios; Clover; Amazing Designs and Klass Needles. Closed captioning funding provided by Riley Blake Designs. Sewing with Nancy is a co-production of Nancy Zieman Productions and Wisconsin Public Television.