I have had an absolute ball in the studio this week and couldn’t be happier with how this little project turned out. So I thought I would post up a tutorial so you could make one of your own. And the good news, although I have pics of this modeled on a kiddo, I have a 57cm head and this fits me easily – it is super stretchy!

If you have been following along for a while you will know that I have a real affection for projects using up-cycled materials, and those that don’t create textile waste. This project ticks all the boxes, and gets extra points for being quirky and fun 🙂

Read on below the pic for all the details.

The beanie itself is made of t-shirt yarn. If you have not heard of t-shirt yarn before, then a quick google search will fill you in. There are also loads of great tutorials around on the best ways to make it, so I won’t go into that here. But basically this is a long strip of jersey fabric (old t-shirts or remnant fabric) about 1 inch wide.

I knitted it on a loom in around 45 mins, so you don’t even need to know how to knit for this one and it is super quick. If you have not seen loom knitting before, it is worth checking out. I have been able to knit since I was a kid, but I find loom knitting faster and more fun. My 6 year old daughter (the one in the pics above) can do it too!

For the basics on loom knitting check out this great you tube video, and for what I did differently to use this mega chunky yarn, check out the you tube video below:

Then… Pom Pom time!

Making a faux fur pom pom is pretty simple:

1. Take a square of faux fur (mine was 24 cm square – it is a huge pom pom) and cut a circle from it.
2. Take a strong thread and, starting from the fur side, sew a running stitch all the way around the outside of your circle. End on the fur side too.
3. Pull the 2 ends of your string until the hole is almost closed, and then stuff the pom pom with the off cuts from your faux fur circle.
4. Pull your strings the rest of the way and then tie a firm knot. Stitch across the opening a couple of times to make it secure.

Then you can go ahead and stitch your pom pom to your beanie and you are ready for cuteness.

A note on materials – I purchased new fur fabric for this project as I couldn’t locate any begging to be upcycled (although sources of fur material could be thrifted faux fur jackets/collars or even stuffed toys). I purchased 20cm (24cm) in width and cut it into squares. Each square makes a pompom including the outside and the stuffing so there is no waste 🙂

If you make an oversize beanie with a huge pom pom, be sure to grab some pics and hashtag them #SEW4BUB I would love to see your creations!

As always, thanks for reading.

Liz xx