Wednesday, December 14, 2011

*Guest Post* Recycled Wool Mittens

Giveaway closed.  Congrats, Jess B. (lucky #1!) on your win!


I would like to introduce you to a local here in our small town, Connie.   Connie is an amazing seamstress and crafter.  She believes in the warmth of wool (as do we!) and I think this is an awesome unique way to recycle products for warmth (and a great gift idea as the holidays approach!)

Winter is here. And in Wyoming it is here to stay for awhile. It’s no secret that I don’t like the cold. I like to spend the cold weekends in the house where it’s nice and warm. I enjoy sewing, my daughter has been making jewelry, my son loves to play cards and my husband watches football. It doesn’t get much better than that.


If we do venture outside on the coldest of days, I like to wear wool. I have this weird fascination with
wool. I love its textures, beautiful colors and warmth.


Last year a friend of mine from Wisconsin showed me a pair of mittens that had been made with wool
sweaters. It was love at first sight. I came up with my own pattern and went shopping. I hit all the
second hand stores I could find and bought up their 100% wool sweaters. Once they are washed and
dried (everything you’re not supposed to do with wool) they turn into a wonderful, soft piece of wool
felt that can be cut apart without unraveling. It’s just like a piece of craft felt you would buy at the store.
But, instead of buying another item, I am using a product and “upcycling” it. Upcycled means taking
something that served one purpose and redesigning it for another. A sweater’s purpose is to keep our
body warm, and now it can be repurposed to keep our hands warm.
Toddler Mittens


Women's Mittens


The mittens are lined with cozy fleece so they are nice and soft. Each pair is one of a kind which makes
them very unique. I often use several sweaters for each pair. The final product is beautiful and warm.
They become something that satisfies my need to be warm and they surround me with wool and
beautiful colors at the same time.


These mittens make nice gifts and it’s a great way to stay warm while keep that old clothing out of the
landfill. Next….wool hats! I can’t wait to share.

Thanks, Connie!  It is a breath of fresh air to take a step away from all our "techy outdoor gear" and reuse things AND stay warm!  Husband gave me a pair of these mittens for Christmas last year and I LOVE them and wear them often!

Connie has been very generous in offering to give one of you a pair of women's mittens AND a pair of toddler mittens (fit up to a 3 year old, winner's choice of boy or girl color.)  To enter, simply comment on this post!

Also, if you are interested in purchasing some of her mittens, she sells them too!  Women's size are $20 and toddler sizes range from $10-20 depending on the size.  Feel free to contact her at dmock@dteworld.com with questions, comments or orders!

13 comments:

  1. How cool-I knew Connie was a talented seamstress, but I have never seen these mittens! Jess Bressler

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  2. Wow - these are beautiful!! I admit that I clicked the picture because I wanted to see if they were easy enough to make myself. Nope!! Would love a pair!!

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  3. Awesome! wish I had the time to be so crafty!

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  4. Love the mittens! Passing this idea on to my more cfart friends.

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  5. what a great idea!! i love these!

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  6. I'm wearing my upcycled sweater-slippers right now! I love felted wool. In fact, all my partner wanted for Christmas was for his old saddle pad (from when he used to own a horse) to be cleaned and restored. I talked him into felting it, and love the result. Not it is totally functional as a baby play mat!

    So yes, we love felted wool, and I would love a pair of these swank mitts.

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  7. Connie's mittens are the BEST - I have worn them extensively as have all the friends I have given some to.
    Warm, durable, recycled, beautiful & one of a kind!
    Try them - you'' be glad you did!

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  8. Connie's mittens are the best!
    warm, recycled, beautiful & one of a kind!

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  9. I love these mittens! What a great idea - wish I could make these, but will settle for trying to win a pair.

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  10. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  11. Would love to win ones for me and my oldest. It gets very cold and snowy here in Buffalo NY. Deleted my other post because of misspellings :)

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  12. I just so happened to be in the market for new gloves for C, what a great idea!

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  13. I received a pair from my daughter this past xmas... and a smaller pair for my new grandson - both made from a sweater I had worn for years through the winter. I was tickled to say the least - and they are super warm.... great idea, and a wonderful gift!!!

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