upcycling old wool blankets

Wool Blanket Upcycling

This post was originally blogged on House of Estrela as part of Refashion Month. With all the Fashion Revolution stuff going on, I thought it was perfect timing to bring it back home. Don't forget to join us on April 24th and take the Fashion Revolution pledge.

I get great satisfaction out of being able to give an old item a whole new life. It's thrifty, eco friendly and great for the creative imagination…I will warn you though, if you're new to repurposing, refashioning and upcycling, you may find it hard to throw anything away. Everything now has the potential to be something else! I will never pass up a wool blanket, they have so much potential.

Blanket Coat

1. Make a Coat! I made this coat from one Queen size wool blanket. It it the warmest thing I own and is affectionately called my 'blanket coat'. You can read all about it here. I think a kids Bomber Jacket made up in a wool blanket would also look amazing. I don't find my jacket itchy, but if you're worried, you can always line it, particularly for kids.

Sleeping Bag

2. Baby Sleeping Bags! No one seems to use blankets for babies or toddlers these days, it's all about the grobag. These sleeping bags keep your baby nice and warm even if they roll around or kick about. I have made up quite a lot of these over the years, from lightweight Summer bags to these warm Winter bags. I love using wool blankets for the batting because the wool is breathable, which is perfect if your baby is a sweaty sleeper like my boys!

3. Ironing Board Cover! Ok, this one isn't very exciting, but if your ironing board needs a new cover, why not make it instead of buying one. Use your favourite crazy print fabric on top (the one you bought because you had to have it, but it's too crazy to use on anything) and then use one or two layers of an old woolen blanket as the padding underneath. The wool can withstand high heat from the iron and is great for holding in the steam.

Cathedral Window Pincushion and thread basket

4. Pin Cushion! Did you know you aren't meant to put the polyester toy stuffing into pin cushions?! It can rust your pins! I also find that pincushions stuffed with hobby fill tend to be too light and move around a lot when I'm trying to stick the pins in. My solution is to use the scraps from my other wool blanket projects. I cut them into little pieces, about 1/4″ square and use them as my stuffing. I will admit my hand can get cramped up doing this, so I usually give the job to hubby! The wool has a bit more weight to it, so my pin cushion stays still and my pins won't get rusty! All the details for the Cathedral Window pincushion above and matching thread catcher can be found here.

Saucepan Handle Cozy

5. Oven Mitt or Pot Handle Covers! Pieces from a wool blanket also make the perfect insulation for an oven mitt or hot handle cozy. The wool works just like insul-bright and you don't need to try and remember which side of the insul-bright goes where!

6. Casserole Carrier! I might be cheating a little bit…this idea is pretty similar to #5 in that it uses a wool blanket for the insulating layer. Take your casserole to the next Pot Luck in style. You can find a round up of free casserole carrier patterns here.

7.Quilt Batting!I've heard of many resourceful people who use the blankets as quilt batting! Second hand blankets have usually been through the wash a lot, so any colour run and shrinkage has been taken care of. I'd suggest trying to get a plain, light coloured blanket for this project as you don't want some bright green tartan pattern showing through your quilts top layer.

8. Hats! When I think of a winter hat, I usually think of knitting. Sewing is much faster, so why not sew a hat? I love this boys hat pattern from See Kate Sew. It's also available in an adult size version.

9.Slippers! Slippers are often made from old felted wool sweaters, but a wool blanket will work just as well. There are a lot of tutorials around for making slippers just your size. You can find a few here, here, here and here.

10.Christmas Stocking!Ok, Christmas is probably the last thing on your mind, so you can file this idea away for later. A lot of wool blankets come in traditional tartan colours… think bottle green, reds and gold. These colours are perfect for Christmas stockings! I have a free stocking pattern here.

How would you refashion an old wool blanket?