How to customise your own Christmas Jumper!


Wondering what to wear on Christmas Jumper Day, or even throughout the Christmas season..? Watch the 2nd in my 12 Days of Thriftmas videos, and read on for more tips and tricks!



Let's start by asking why we'd be making our own Christmas jumpers, when we can buy one anywhere, for very little? Here's 'the science bit', before we get into the nitty gritty of how to create one for yourself... 

Amid growing concerns over fast fashion and its effect on the environment, this year Save the Children has said that rather than call off the charity’s annual Christmas jumper day on Friday (which has raised more than £21m since its launch in 2012) – it was encouraging buyers to reuse and upcycle jumpers instead. “As we have become more aware of the impact that fast fashion is having on the environment, we have been working hard to make sure that people can still take part in this annual event, without exacerbating the enormous climate problems we now face and which, we are aware, is one of the biggest threats to children around the world,” said Gemma Sherrington, the charity’s executive director of marketing and fundraising. 

I concur! Of-course, Save the Children is an incredible charity that's worth supporting - that goes without saying - it's just a question of how we do it... and how do we make sure the jumper is something we'll wear more than once?

As I said in my video, I think the main question you need to ask yourself, is how do you make this personal to you..? A Christmas anecdote, something that pops up every year - maybe it's something as simple as your favourite Christmas movie, or song - that's your starting point. Unsurprisingly, my inspiration was Rod...and the memory of him seeing snow for the first time :)



  I started by printing out a photo of him to use as a stencil, as I'm not particularly gifted in the art department!
I cut out the pieces of the picture of Rod, choosing how I was going to make it 'pop'. essentially I wanted the ears to sit further forward than the rest of his face...


I found a kid's jumper in a charity shop, the same colour as Rod (or at least, how I always think of him, young and ginger!) - and bought it specifically for the fabric for this project...


I did this on my sewing machine, working around the edge of the face first, tucked over a collar made from the same fabric. I then added the ears, a few buttons for the eyes and nose, then a collar, and a bow made from red ribbon... Finally I sewed on some shiny buttons I had in my stash for the falling snow.


You can see I wasn't going for realism here... ;)
The great thing about this particular project, is that it's likely you've already got everything you need - a jumper you love, some fabric scraps (or old clothing to use for fabric), and a needle and thread. And if this project seems a bit late to start this year - I would definitely recommend picking a Christmas jumper up in a charity shop - there are SO many to choose from, and most of them have been worn only once... so, why buy new..? 

I hope you have fun making one for yourself (or your fur-baby, as in my video...) - please share, I'd love to see your creations!

See you soon, with the next of my 12 Days of Thriftmas...
Bug Warm Christmassy Hugs,

Gema, and Rod x 

p.s. If you're interested in trying out Frixion pens (I mentioned them in the video) - I love them, here's an affiliate link to them on Amazon. Also the acrylic pens... highly recommend them all! ;)

p.p.s. The next video is all about finding the beauty in broken things... that's all you're getting for now!

 


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