I love projects that are cute, budget savvy and eco friendly, and these adorable upcycled sweater DIY projects totally fit the bill. Whether you have old sweaters lying around or go perusing your local thrift shops, be sure to keep these projects in mind when you need a quick gift on the go!

Supplies for all of our upcycled sweater DIY projects:

• Sweaters! Whether you choose to buy a thrifted sweater or use one you already have, either works. My husband’s favorite Christmas sweater had moth holes, so I used that one (in red), and then I went on the hunt for a fair isle patterned sweater. to use.
• Glue gun and hot glue sticks
• Ribbon
• Scissors
• Cute accessories such as berries and the like

Here is the first of our projects – a wine bag!

If you’re headed to a party and need a hostess gift, a bottle of wine is a good go to. It’s even better when it is wrapped up in an adorable fashion. You will need either a needle and thread or a hair tie for this project.

Steps:

1. Lay your bottle along the sleeve of the sweater in order to get an approximate measurement on where to cut off the sleeve. Be sure to leave a tiny bit of room for closing up the bottom of the wine bottle bag.
2. Cut off the sleeve! Commit. You can do it, although I realize it’s hard to destroy clothing (think of it just as fabric).
3. Turn the sleeve inside out and close the bottom. I chose to use a tiny rubber hair tie, but you could also use hot glue or sew up the bottom. The GREAT thing about wine bottles is that the bottom of the glass is inverted instead of flat, so you can tuck your enclosure into that space. Perfect!
4. Turn the sleeve right side out, slide the bottle in, and tie the outside with ribbon and whatever embellishments you like. Voila! Super cute and easy with high impact. Adore!

Here is the second of our upcycled sweater DIY projects – a tiny tree. So cute!

In addition to the supplies in the photo above, you will need a foam form. They come in a variety of sizes, and I chose a small and medium one. They also come in both white and green.

Steps:

1. Lay the foam form on the sweater, and cut out a size that is appropriate for your form. You will be rolling the form, so be sure to cut it out in some sort of arc, although you don’t have to be exact.
2. Take an edge of the sweater, and hot glue a line down one side of the form. Keep rolling the form and hot glue from top to bottom along the way.
3. Make the ends meet up around the back side, and glue. You can make a straight line cut vertically once the glue dries to finish covering the form.
4. Cut off excess fabric at the bottom and hot glue the bottom. Cut out a circle of sweater, and hot glue it over the rough edges on the bottom so that it is finished nicely.
5. Do the same with the top, although you may be able to wrap the top without using a circle depending on the thickness of the sweater itself.

Isn’t that a cute one? I love the fair isle sweater look on this one!

This is such a cute upcycled project, and they make great ornaments and gift tags. Mini sweater trees!

Besides the original supplies, you will also need cardboard for the next of our upcycled sweater DIY projects.

Steps:

1. Cut out a cardboard shape that you like. You can make your tree with or without a trunk.
2. Wrap the cardboard with the sweater, and glue with hot glue. I also was careful to finish the back with a piece of the sweater so that no cardboard was showing.
3. This is the fun part! Add buttons, ribbon or whatever embellishments to decorate your trees. I went plain, and I also added twine for hanging. Cute!

These are so fun as gift tags, decorations and ornaments depending on their size.

Here’s one last look at these fun, eco friendly and inexpensive projects. So fun!!

Craving more inspiration beyond our upcycled sweater DIY projects? Check here for other ideas!