How to Make a Felted Basket From an Upcycled Sweater

This pliable 10-inch-tall knitting basket was made using a well-loved sweater.

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Updated on August 25, 2023

Nothing makes a cozier storage accent—perfect for craft supplies, small books, or card games—than a well-loved wool sweater. Give your favorite jumper (or a salvaged thrift store-find) a new life by turning it into a felted bin.

This pliable 10-inch-tall knitting basket was made from a snowy Aran sweater. The sweater was felted, a process that tightens the fibers to make the cloth more durable, then cut and sewn to create the versatile bin.

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

Ruler
Paper
Pins
Iron
Basic sewing supplies
Scissors
Sweater comb

Materials

Wool sweater

Instructions

Prepare the sweater.

Cut off the sleeves of felted sweater with scissors. Cut sleeves at seams to open them up. Cut the sweater body at shoulder seams to open up the neck. With a sweater comb, remove any pills from sweater.
Sew the sleeves and armholes.

Sew the shoulder ends of the two sleeves together with a zigzag stitch; do not overlap the pieces. (We used red for visibility, but thread should match sweater.) Sew armholes on sweater body closed, so you are left with a tube.
Shape the basket.

Measure the circumference of the sweater's body at the waistband. (Measure from side seam to side seam and double the number.) Use the dimension to create an oval paper template. Center the template on the stitched sleeves; cut out.

Pin the waistband end of the tube to the base. Machine-stitch with a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Fold the top edge over into the basket, and secure it to the base with a whipstitch. Steam-iron the finished basket to refine its shape.

How to Make a Felted Basket From an Upcycled Sweater

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

Materials

Instructions

Prepare the sweater.

Sew the sleeves and armholes.

Shape the basket.