How to Make a Basic Sweater Something Special

Erika Kern, contributor

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A spray of lazy daisies turns a bargain sweater into a great boutique find.

Erika Kern

Before: This sweater has a great shape and I love the color, but it lacks personality.

 

Erika Kern

After: With some yarn, two stitches, and a little time, a $20 bargain becomes a whimsical sweater worthy of the finest boutique.

Erika Kern

A spray of lazy daisies turns a bargain sweater into a great boutique find.

Photo: Erika Kern

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I often find myself longing for beautiful boutique sweaters, but their $100, $200, and sometimes $300 price tags stop me in my tracks (especially these days!). Here's an easy way to turn this basic sweater into a fabulous find. I bought a new sweater with a wide, scooped neck, but you can use this technique on any sweater you find. It's a great way to spruce up a thrift find or something you already have in your closet. It's also a wonderful gift idea for that fashionable friend on your list.

You'll need:

• A sweater
• Yarn (Make sure your yarn is the same material as your sweater. If you're stitching on wool, use wool; on cotton, use cotton, and so forth. My sweater is a washable wool blend, so I used washable wool yarn.)
• Large tapestry needle

I don't use a hoop when working on knitwear because it stretches out the fabric far too much. I use my fingers to add any tension I may need while stitching. You can use any stitch you wish when working on knits, but I liked the idea of a bunch of lazy daisies densely packed on one shoulder and then scattering out down the front and back of the sweater.

Here's how to make a lazy daisy with a French knot center:

The first petal of a lazy daisy is just a detached chain stitch. Start your stitch as you would a chain stitch, bringing your yarn up through the sweater and down into the same hole, making a loop. Bring your needle up away from your first stitches, through the loop.

Finish your stitch by locking the stitch down on the other side of the loop.

Begin your next petal alongside your first. Continue using the detached chain stitch until you have five petals resembling a daisy.

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My embroidered ...
ringelpunkt

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Comments (14)

TexasRanchGal writes: To keep the knit from stretching when embroidering, baste wash away stablizer larger than the size of your hoop over the top of the area you are sewing and when you put it in your hoop the knit will not stretch. Also try drawing your embroidery design onto the stablizer and then rinse the item once you have finished the project.
Posted: 2:33 pm on November 22nd

sophiecai writes: it really looks great on you.....you are so talented to make a plain sweater so special.....and thanks for sharing
Posted: 9:49 am on February 17th

Macu writes: I like your sweater very much, now I want try if I can do it, despite I dont know nothing about embroidery and that stuff!!
Sorry for my english. Greets from Argentina!

Posted: 11:10 am on October 18th

Macu writes: I like your sweater very much, now I want try if I can do it, despite I dont know nothing about embroidery and that stuff!!
Sorry for my english. Greets from Argentina!

Posted: 11:05 am on October 18th

Macu writes: I like your sweater very much, now I want try if I can do it, despite I dont know nothing about embroidery and that stuff!!
Sorry for my english. Greets from Argentina!

Posted: 11:04 am on October 18th

Macu writes: I like your sweater very much, now I want try if I can do it, despite I dont know nothing about embroidery and that stuff!!
Sorry for my english. Greets from Argentina!

Posted: 11:04 am on October 18th

glamspoon writes: so simple, but so elegant!
Posted: 4:06 pm on October 3rd

Minakshi writes: This is so preety and simple, would love to make it!!
Posted: 1:11 am on September 17th

ringelpunkt writes: At last - i did it!
Posted: 12:28 pm on September 12th

susanstars writes: That is awesome, Erika! I want to make one too... :)
Posted: 8:15 pm on December 6th

LindaPermann writes: I made it! (If you enable the "patterns and designs" tag I'll post in the gallery-- for now here's a link: http://lindamade.wordpress.com/2008/12/06/and-the-winner-is-2/). Very fun!
Posted: 4:41 pm on December 6th

erika_kern writes: Thanks! It's so easy to do too.
Posted: 1:08 pm on November 26th

LindaPermann writes: oooh, i love it!
Posted: 12:35 pm on November 26th

kaytet writes: this is just lovely! and it looks great on you!
Posted: 12:23 pm on November 26th

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