When it's cold outside, you want to sit all day wrapped in a blanket. However, not everyone dares to do this if they have to go to work. In this case, a poncho will come to the rescue. Being traditional clothing in Latin America, it came to us in the form of a warm cape. You can sew it yourself from a warm stole.
DIY stole poncho
Making a poncho from a stole with your own hands is quite simple. This does not require any complex patterns or measurements. But like every hand-made product, it will stand out with its special energy and originality.
Materials and tools
To make a poncho you will need:
- scarf stole;
- scissors;
- threads;
- chalk for drawing on fabric;
- a little imagination and decorative elements (buttons, fasteners, lacing, braid).
You can sew either on a sewing machine or by hand.
Description of the work process
Having prepared everything you need, you can begin:
- Fold the stole in half crosswise, then in half again lengthwise.
- The corner where the center of the scarf is will be cut off for the neckline. To do this, you need to measure 10 cm to the side and down and draw a line with chalk. The result is a triangle that needs to be cut off.
- Having unrolled the stole, fold it in half lengthwise. On the front side of the future poncho, lengthen the neckline by 5 cm.
The result should be something like this:
You can make hundreds of different variations of ponchos from it.
You can wear it straight without cutting or sewing anything else.
Important! To maintain a neat appearance for a longer time, it is necessary to treat the neck. To do this, you can overcast the edge with knitting threads, or sew on braid.
The second option looks more interesting, but it will also take a little more time to create. For this:
- Cut the front side of the workpiece along the fold line to the very bottom.
- Finish the edges with a blanket stitch or braid along with the neckline.
- Make slits for the loops on one half of the front and overcast the edges.
- Sew buttons on the other half.
The second version of the poncho is ready:
Reference! Buttons can easily be replaced with a large pin or brooch.
A slightly similar result can be obtained by sewing buttons on one edge of the stole and loops on the other:
Another original option is to sew the edges of the stole along only one shoulder. In this case, the bend of the scarf will pass along the second shoulder. The seam should be length from shoulder to elbow.
Instead of a seam, you can also use buttons or a zipper to connect.
A poncho can be not only warm, but also light for the summer. To make it you will need two chiffon, satin or silk scarves measuring approximately 60 cm by 180 cm.
Important! Scarves can be either the same color or different.But they must be in harmony with each other and be of the same type in texture.
So, you need to fold the scarves right sides together. Sew along one edge, leaving a 45–50 cm long slit in the middle for the neckline.
All you have to do is unfold it and you're done!
Attention! If a summer poncho can be made from two scarves, then the winter version is better made from one. Otherwise it will be quite heavy.
Some tips
- To make the poncho more functional, it is better to hem the lining from the inside out. This way it will be warmer and neater, and such a poncho will last longer. It can be made from ordinary lining fabric, but it is better from cotton or flannel.
- You also need to pay attention to the finishing of the edges obtained by cutting. If they are not trimmed with braid, they should be finished with an overlocker or a hand-stitched overlock stitch.
- If buttons are used as a fastener, then there should be few of them (2–4 pieces), and they should be large. Since a poncho is a very voluminous cape, small details on it will simply be lost.
- You can also make pockets for the poncho. They can be either a purely decorative element or have a functional meaning.
- If your hands are comfortable with the knitting needles, then you can attach a warm collar to the stole poncho. And then you can safely walk in it until late autumn.
- When you don’t want to reshape your stole, you can use a strap. By girdling a scarf with it, we get outerwear that resembles a poncho.