Upcycle your old clothes
Overview
This is a free six week course, during this time you will learn how to use different decorative textile techniques to upcycle your old clothes.
Week one
Paper pieced patchwork techniques
Learn simple hand stitching techniques to create patches that can either repair holes in clothes or be used to make something completely new.
What to bring
Please bring one garment with you. This can be an old item or a charity shop find that you’d like to upcycle or personalise.
Garment types include jeans, skirts, sweatshirts, sweaters or shirts.
What we will supply
- Fabric pens
- Fabric scraps
- Patchwork templates
- Pencils
- Pins Scissors
- Sewing cottons
- Sewing needles
Week two
Embroidery stitches
Learn how to create simple embroidery stitches to cover a hole in an old pair of jeans or freshen up a faded shirt or dress.
What to bring
Please bring one garment with you. This can be an old item or a charity shop find that you’d like to upcycle or personalise.
Garment types include jeans, skirts, sweatshirts, sweaters or shirts.
What we will supply
- Acrylic templates
- Calico to practice stitches
- Embroidery threads
- Fabric pens
- Scissors
Week three
Sashiko stitching
Learn how to upcycle old or second-hand clothing using simple sashiko stitching to give the items a fresh new look.
What to bring
Please bring one garment with you. This can be an old item or a charity shop find that you’d like to upcycle or personalise.
Garment types include jeans, skirts, sweatshirts, sweaters or shirts.
What we will supply
- Acrylic templates
- Calico to practice
- Fabric pens
- Paper for design
- Pencils for design
Week four
Appliqué techniques
Upcycle your existing wardrobe by combining old scraps of fabric and simple hand stitching techniques.
What to bring
Please bring one garment with you. This can be an old item or a charity shop find that you’d like to upcycle or personalise.
Garment types include jeans, skirts, sweatshirts, sweaters or shirts.
What we will supply
- Bondaweb
- Fabric pens
- Fabric scraps
- Pencils
- Pins
- Scissors
- Sewing cottons
- Sewing needles
Week five
Peg loom weaving
Transform your old t-shirts into a small rug or placemat using peg loom weaving.
What to bring
Please bring two or three t-shirts with you, these will be used to create 3cm fabric strips.
What we will supply
- Cord to create weft
- Peg loom weaving looms
- Rulers
- Scissors
Week six
Make a memory cushion
Use simple hand stitching techniques to upcycle an old sweatshirt or knitted sweater to make a memory cushion to remember a loved one.
What to bring
Please bring one garment to make your memory cushion. Garment types include jeans, skirts, sweatshirts, sweaters or shirts.
Feel free to bring extra fabrics to decorate the front of your cushion with.
What we will supply
- Cushion pattern
- Fabric scraps
- Pattern paper
- Pins
- Scissors
- Sewing cottons
- Sewing needles
Key information
Each session will last three hours. Please note that this course is structured over six weeks and builds upon each session. It's not possible to attend individual weeks out of order; participation should begin in week one and continue through to the end.
Start dates are as follows:
- Morriston Library, Tuesday 6 May, 1-4pm
- Killay Library, Wednesday 7 May, 1.30-4.30pm
- Gorseinon Library, Friday 9 May, 1-4pm
- Townhill Library, Monday 12 May, 9.15-12.15pm
- Gowerton Library, Monday 12 May, 1.30-4.30pm