Mend and Make Do: Repairing a Cashmere Sweater in Alabama Chanin Style With Reverse Applique

A simple way to repair a cashmere sweater. Here's how I did it...

Ah, cooler weather... time to change up the wardrobe. Well, I discovered something when unpacking my sweaters: HOLES! One of my favorites is a "cheapie" I bought a couple years ago at the Atlantic City NJ Old Navy Outlet. It is 100% cashmere, and I bought it on sale for under $10. It was so nice..... soft, warm, cozy.

What to do???? I set it aside, and found more sweaters that had small holes. So... inspiration time! I went onto my Sweater Surgery board on Pinterest and my Sweet Home Alabama Chanin board on Pinterest. Brain blast!!!!! Reverse applique coming up!!!

I prowled the internet, and found this pattern for a Classic Play Wand by Katie Lewis, of  The Red Kitchen. She made a guest post on U Create With Kids. I thought that star pattern would be a perfect template for my sweater hole problem. I printed out that pattern and gathered my supplies:

Mark-B-Gone Marking Pen
Super-Sharp Scissors 5" long
Stitch Witchery Fusible Web
Fray Check
Darning Needle
Gray Embroidery Floss

I cut out the star, and traced it with the marking pen. This is what it looked like after I removed the pattern. The star covers the holes.

Here it is, with the star cut out.

I placed that star on top of my "donor" grey cashmere sweater, and cut out a square of it that covered the star space.


Here's the square and the star after being cut out.


I grabbed my roll of fusible web. I cut the pieces of the fusible web, so that the strips go around the edges of the square.

I got a cool, damp cloth after flipped the patch onto the inside of the sweater, and steamed it on the "wool" setting.

Then, the same process on the outside.

I applied Fray Check to the star cut-out outline. It's to reinforce the star by keeping it from fraying.

Then, I used a darning needle with a length of embroidery floss. I did not separate any of the strands, because I needed something durable for my embroidery. I embroidered around the outside of the star, in the style of Alabama Chanin. I really admire their work, but I can't afford it...

Here's what the repair looks like up close. It took two times embroidering around the border.

This is what it looks like on. It's back to be a soft, warm and cozy sweater, but now it has a funky new flair.