National Ugly Sweater Day DIY

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Happy National Ugly Sweater Day!

I was recently challenged by my friends at Value Village to create a DIY Ugly Christmas Sweater… and of course I couldn’t say no! I love DIY projects, even if I’m not necessarily the most skilled crafter in the world. The good thing about Ugly Christmas Sweaters? They’re not supposed to be perfect, so even if you do make a mistake, no one will know!

I thought I’d share my process for creating this silly, tacky Christmas sweater in honor of the holiday and in hopes of inspiring you to make your own! I mean, doesn’t everyone need an ugly Christmas sweater in their life?!

DIY Ugly Christmas Sweater for National Ugly Sweater Day

National Ugly Sweater Day: DIY Ugly Christmas Sweater Project // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blog

Supplies:
– Old Sweater
– Needle
– Thread that is similar in color to your sweater (I used black)
– Decorations (I used mini ornaments, a mini garland, pom pom balls, and a mini stocking)

1. Plan it out: The first thing I did (after finding these sweaters at Value Village and picking up decorations, anyway) was to plan out my sweater. I laid my sweater out and then placed my decorations on top until I had figured out a plan of action. If you think you might forget what you planned out, snap a photo with your phone to reference later!

Basic Sweaters for DIY Christmas Sweater Project // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blogger

2. Prepare your needle & thread: I decided to sew everything on to the sweater instead of gluing because I actually like this sweater and want to be able to wear it again! With thread, you can easily snip them and it’s like it was never there. If you don’t know how to sew, hot glue will work great too. Prep your needle and thread by threading your needle, and then knotting the end of your thread. I did a few knots to be sure they would stay in the semi-open weave of this sweater.

3. Sew your first decoration on: The first item I placed on my sweater was my mini stocking. You can pin it in place if you’d like, but I just sewed it straight on using a simple running stitch.

Sew a Mini Stocking on Your DIY Ugly Sweater // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blog

4. Sew on your garland: The next item I placed on my sweater was the garland. I wanted this to look similar to a layered necklace, so I took one long piece of it, laid it out, and cut off the excess. To sew it on, I just did one stitch over and over again to hold it in place on the looped side. Then, I tied together the two ends with a piece of thread and then did the same stitch over and over again on that side.

Ugly Christmas Sweater DIY: Sewing Garland On // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blog

5. Sew on your ornaments: Similar to the garland, I placed the ornaments where I wanted them, then I did one stitch over and over again to hold the ornament in place.

DIY Tacky Christmas Sweater: Sew Ornaments on // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blogger

6. Sew on your pom poms: The last item I put on my sweater were these small pom pom balls. For these, I placed them where I wanted them, and then put the needle straight through the middle and back out again a few times to hold them in place. Make sure you’re making a very small stitch so it’s not very noticeable.

7. Add any other decorations you’d like: I called my sweater good at this point, but get as creative as you want! Ribbon, bows, holiday fabric, tassels, rick rack… the list of options that would make your sweater look extra festive goes on and on!

DIY Ugly Christmas Sweater for National Ugly Sweater Day // hellorigby.com seattle fashion blog

Have you ever attempted to make a tacky Christmas sweater? I’d love to hear about your creations if you’ve made one or are planning to!

11 thoughts on “National Ugly Sweater Day DIY

  1. Laura

    I was invited to a few “Ugly Christmas Sweater” parties this holiday season and I didn’t go because I didn’t think it would be fun. Now after seeing this I think I might have enjoyed at least making a few for the friends that went.

    Reply
  2. Heather Serra

    Dammit! I just had ugly sweater day at work! I didn’t participate because I’m lame and didn’t even considering doing it myself. Great tutorial! It’s not to late for me I suppose. This looks fun! :)

    Reply
  3. Vicky @ Avocdo Pesto

    Love this! My mom was asking me all about what an ugly sweater xmas party is (she’s Russian so had no idea) bc they were having one at her work and wish I could have shown this to her so she could just make her own!

    Reply
  4. illy junus

    Love this, I should go when my friend invite me for DIY ugly sweater, I pass it, since I don’t know what to do. Thanks for the tips

    Reply

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