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11.09.2009

Weekend Getaway Project - Scrunchy Gathered Scarf, Tutorial Tuesday

This was my contribution to the Soul Sisters Extravaganza this weekend: Scrunchy Gathered Scarves. You get a lot of bang for your buck, it is a great accessory for yourself, and also a great gift to give this holiday season. It's really a win/win project. I found some directions from Oh So Happy Together, and tweaked them as I so often do!

Supplies:

2 or 3 yards Jersey knit - To make several, like we did, for your girlfriends or for gifts, use two yards. To make one scarf, you can get one yard and sew the strips together to meet the length requirement.
Thread
Elastic Thread (found in the elastic aisle)
Scissors
Sewing Machine
And about 10 minutes of time

Cut your 2 yards of fabric into 12 inch wide by (at least) 72 inch long strips (your fabric will end up being half as long when you finish, so the longer the better). I like to wear it two ways, as a long drapy scarf and as a tighter neck scarf.



At this point, you can decide to taper your ends or to cut the ends apart, like this, at least 12 inches up from the bottom. I might even make longer tails if I did this again.



Hand wind the elastic thread onto your bobbin, loosely or it will pull too tight and break (use ordinary thread on top), turn off automatic tension control, and sew with a basting stitch from the center of one tail alllll the way to the end. Then again from the center of the other tail allll the way to the other end. So, you have two long seams about 3 inches apart, down the center. (Make sure you back stitch at the beginning and the end, basting stitches will pull out easily if they aren't anchored like this.) See how it is bunching up as it passes through the machine? (click the photo to enlarge) It's like magic!



Here is how it looks all sewn - just two straight seams from end to end:




Now, prance around all giddy-like with your cute new scarf. Make sure to pose for pictures and make plans to give them to everyone on your Christmas list with a neck.




I hate flash, so I did some posing with my scarf in good light against my favorite red wall just for you. See all the variations?





We used our coupons and bought 2 yards of jersey knit for $5.99. Then we cut the fabric into about 6 scarves...you do the math.

Want another fun scarf tutorial? Girl in the Sticks knocked out a Fleece Spiral Scarf in about 10 minutes with some extra fleece.




Tomorrow you will need about 1/4 yard (or scraps) of satin or chiffon, (any meltable synthetic material), a candle, a few seed beads, sharp scissors, and a needle and thread for our next adventure ... I'll be waiting!

I'm linking up for DIY day with Kimba...did you know she moved? Well, you can still find her by clicking the button below.

DIY Day @ ASPTL


Just a Girl is also having a party:



And so is Kathy's Cottage and Cleverly Inspired!
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57 comments:

  1. I love it! Ya know I keep saying this all around blog land. I SO wish I could SEW! Thrifty and beautiful = PERFECT to me!

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  2. Darling scarf!

    I so wish I could sew, too!

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  3. Cannot even tell you how much I LOVE THIS SCARF! Way too cool. Thanks for sharing the tutorial.

    pk @ ROOM REMIX

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  4. Ooooh! I love it! I'm SO going to have to make one or three! ;)

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  5. I love that...of course, I don't get how you did it, but I love it nonetheless!!

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  6. Girl, you are rockin' that scarf! ;) I love it!!! Cute cute cute. I might have to see if I can figure it out. Visiting from Kimba's party. :)

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  7. I actually just purchased one very similar to these. And now that I have you, I will be making some of these myself :) Thanks for the tutorial!

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  8. I'm usually not a scarf person but this is just too great not to make! Thanks for sharing.

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  9. Oh My Gosh!!! Those are adorable! So glad to hear you had a fun weekend. We had a girls trip of our own...not nearly as productive as your's, but still a ton of fun ;)

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  10. Okay, I saw one of these a couple of weeks ago at Walmart for about $10--loved it, but didn't want to buy it. Now I can make my own! Hurray! Thanks so much for sharing this with us. ;) You know, I might even have some jersey on hand? I'll have to check that. :)

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  11. Gorgeous! I will feature this at somedaycrafts.blogspot.com It is definitely scarf season!!!

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  12. love these! Just saw one like it at LOFT for over $30!!! Thanks for the tut-I will be using it!

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  13. This scarf is way too cute! I Love It! I need to try this.

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  14. So cute! I bought a scarf similar to that a couple years ago. Now I'm regretting that purchase! :)

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  15. so cute! i already have way too many scarves, so i guess it can't do any harm to have yet another, right? ;)

    i just found your blog and love it! love your sense of humor!

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  16. i am so going to try this - thanks! they are AWESOME!

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  17. I so wish I could sew. That scruncy scarf is just way too cute.

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  18. Love these scarves!!! You make it look so easy!!!
    I will have to try!!! Thank you for sharing!!

    Mama Holli

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  19. This is such a good idea, I'm passing your post along to my daughter.

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  20. Just figured out my sister gifts...thank you very much for sharing!

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  21. Those scarves are adorable! I'm so jealous of crafty ladies.

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  22. LOVE this! I'm definitely making one. Thanks for the tut!

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  23. How much stretch did your fabric have? I went looking for solid color jersey at Joann but could only find prints or solids that were 60% poly or 95% cotton and 5% spandex. Any feedback on that??

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  24. Ooooh this is FANTASTIC! I know what I'll be doing this weekend... Thanks so much! I'll be linking as well.

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  25. I have been shopping lately and seeing scrunched up scarfs...I kept thinking how to make one...then came across your tutorial. THANK YOU! I will be making one for my friends for the holidays! They are simply amazing.

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  26. Love this! I'm going to whip some up for gifts!

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  27. I love the scarf, went out and bought some material and the elastic thread today. I just got done sewing my scarf and it is still flat! I did the baste stitch all the way through. I'm so bummed. What did I do wrong, do you think?

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  28. I just whipped up a few of these this evening and crossed off some names on the Christmas list. Thanks for a great tutorial!

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  29. I have to try this sooner than later! Thx for sharing!!

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  30. I am having trouble with this. I have a machine with a drop in bobbin and I think that my bobbin tension is self correcting and not allowing it to bunch. Did you have this problem?

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  31. I'm with a couple of the others - I tried this and my scarf turns out flat! I would appreciate any suggestions if anyone gets it to work!

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  32. Juniper here! I've been answering folks individually, but I'm going to post this for any future trouble shooting.

    Some girls mentioned that their top loading bobbin machines are self adjusting for tension...mine is a side-loading bobbin (Kenmore) and it works beautifully. You would have to read your manual if this is your trouble.

    The most important step is the step I messed up my first go around. You must back stitch at the beginning and the end, to "tie off" your ends and anchor them. If you skip this step or it doesn't tie off well, the tension of the elastic will pull the stitch right through the fabric leaving you with a flat scarf.

    5 of us followed these instructions and it worked like a charm. Just mess around with stitch length and tension and you should be fine.

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  33. Love this, I am usually a knitter but I love this scarf!
    I linked to you on this post http://knittingdragonflies.blogspot.com/2009/11/this-and-thator-getting-ready-for.html
    Happy holidays
    Great blog
    Vicki

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  34. I have a drop in bobbin and still can't get it to work... So bummed would love to make these... Any new suggestions?

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  35. I'm baffled. We all talked about how easy it was and how it seemed you couldn't mess it up.

    Your machine must be self adjusting the tension. That is my only suggestion. My bobbin is an old school side loader. See if you can set it manual. You need the tension to get the elastic to spring back.

    See if you can borrow a friend's machine to try it.

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  36. I love this blog! Thanks for all of your wonderful ideas. I posted about the Scrunchy Gathered Scarf over on my blog today! I will be back to visit often. :)

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  37. Just found your blog last week and what perfect timing, our niece (who's a freshman in college) is coming over tomorrow for her birthday. Got out some black jersey and whipped one of these up today. I think its adorable! I think next time I might make it even longer since it really gathers up quite short (or at least mine did :) Thanks so much!

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  38. Oh my gosh I love this! I have two young adult daughters who I think would love these too (and of course I want one!) Time for a trip to buy Jersey knit:>) Thanks for linking up!

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  39. I loved this tutorial, I tried making these, and I could not get the desired effect the elastic thread should have given the fabric, I experimented with my tension, and stitch length, all to no avail. Help! What am I doing wrong?

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  40. OOps! I just read your answer from previous questions asked, sorry I did not look at the history of questions and comments, before I asked. I will experiment with it some more, cuz I am bound and determined to make these work on my bobbin top loading machine!!! There has got to be a way!

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  41. Love the scarf! There is a jersey knit one just like this at Banana Republic retailing for $50. Check it out!

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  42. LOVE this! So very, very clever!

    I was wondering if you think it would work with other fabric. I got a steal on some cotton crinkle, but it has a good amount of natural stretch to it...do you think it would work?

    I suppose at $1.50/yard I should just go for it.

    Thanks for sharing!!

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  43. I was having trouble getting my scarf to bunch also....I first found that if I hand-thread the elastic thread on my bobbin, I have to pull it really tight the whole time I'm wrapping it around. That helped it to bunch quite a bit when I started sewing the basting stitch. The other thing I did is I did NOT backstitch at the beginning or the end. I left it loose, so when I got done, I could pull on the elastic thread (just like you would to gather something) and make it as bunchy as I wanted. Then I tied the elastic thread to my top thread with a square knot several times to make sure it wouldn't come undone. I too was frustrated with my "flat" scarf but now that I got it to work, I'll be making several more. Thanks,
    Melanie

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  44. Love this scarf! Definitely need longer than 72" for a nice wrap around/drape. I think I did 90" for the first one and turned out well.

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  45. I just made one tonight as a christmas gift and it came out SOOOOO cute!!! my friend loved it! now i want one for myself. Thank you sooo much for the idea!

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  46. This is exactly what I am looking for!! Thanks!!

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  47. Love this tutorial! Gave you a shout out on my latest post!

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  48. My friend is a scarf fanatic and her birthday is right around the corner. I don't believe that she owns one of these. I am going to make her one this weekend to send to her for her birthday. Thanks for posting how to make it.

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  49. Grrreat scarf & a grrreat blog!! =)

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  50. I tried and can't get this to work. So just to make sure I understand...You use regular thread on the top and stretch fabric on the bottom, correct? Also, my machine doesn't have a basting stitch selection...what would be another option? Molly Mudra (mudrafamily@yahoo.com)

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  51. Hi!
    Thanks for this neat tutorial. I linked it to my blog. www.lifeinthischapter.blogspot.com. If you would prefer I remover it, I will immediately. All credit is yours! Wanting to try this project soon!

    Deb

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