Comfy Sews: Shawl Collar Sweater Tutorial

Welcome to those of you visiting from over in the "Mommyhood"!  I'm so excited that Shannon asked me to be part of this month long battle she is having going on over on her blog, Luvinthemommyhood - Comfy Sews vs. Cozy Knits.  Guess which side of the ring I'm on?


For those of you that know me, you know I am all about the sewing over on my blog, The Cottage Home.  On a rare occassion I pick up my crochet hook and maybe someday I'll learn how to knit, but for now, the sewing needle is my tool of choice.

As of lately I've been slightly obsessed with felted wool.  I thought this would be a great project to bring some of those on the "Cozy Knits" side of the ring over to the dark-side, "Comfy Sews".  Surprisingly this project has minimal sewing and does not even require a sewing machine (though there is some hand-sewing involved).  So if you have ever thought about trying a sewing project, trust me, this will be right up a beginners alley!

I don't know if you'll believe me, but this is just one large oval of fabric! You can use regular fleece fabric, recycled felted wool sweaters or, if you knit, you could simply knit your own fabric oval and felt it.  If you have never felted wool before, click here to view my latest tutorial.

Let's get started..........


Fold the yard of fabric in half length-wise, then width-wise.  I am using a large piece of felted wool here (that I purchased from my thrift store and felted at home), but you can use any fabric you like that won't fray.  We are leaving the edges raw and the arm holes raw, so you don't want a fabric that will fray.  Fleece would be a nice choice or you could even try to use some kind of knit. 


Cut a quarter circle.  Divide your length measurement in half and your width measurement in half and connect the dots with your curve.  This will give you an even oval.


Unfold your oval piece of fabric.  As you can see, it is a rather large oval, that's why I included the first diagram.



Measure half your width and half your length to find your center point.


Measure the widest part of your back (up by the shoulder blades).  Cut your arm holes 9"-10" long in the center of the oval - they should be cut your back measurement apart.  My back was 17", therefore each arm hole was cut 12.5" in from the edge of the oval (see first illustration).


After you have cut your arm holes.  Fold over the top of the oval 9"-10".  The 9"-10" is for the largest part of the curve.


Try on your shawl sweater to determine button placement.  My button placement was about 3" from the edge.  You can sort of see the white head of the pin in the picture above.


This next step is completely optional.  I wanted to make a special monogrammed button, but you could definitely use any button you have on hand.  If you aren't monogramming your button, you can skip the next several steps.  I also used some wool suiting fabric for my covered button.


Trace your covered button template onto the fabric.


Trace your button inside the template with a water-soluble fabric marker.