How to make a Bow Back Cardigan

Greetings!

Today I’ve just got a quick and easy customisation to show you which you could make to a cardigan, jumper or even a tshirt. It was inspired by a Topshop cardigan one of my friends was wearing one time. You know when you look at something and think ‘I could make that!’? Well this time, I actually did!

Here’s the original inspiration…

Lace bow cardigan – back view – from Topshop

Here’s how I made my own version:

Step 1 – Pin and baste lace strip in a dipped curve across shoulders.

Step 2 – Pin and baste lace strip for right-hand side of bow, flipping over at the lower corner.

Step 3 – Pin and baste the left-hand side of the bow as symmetrically as possible to the right-hand side.

Step 4 – Pin and baste the two ‘tails’ of the bow.

Step 5 – Using an applique zig zag stitch (I used stitch width 2.5 length 0.5), sew around the edges of the lace strips on the right side, with stabilising tissue paper on the underside to help it glide through more easily. Reducing the tension on your machine will also help with this stitch. I reduced from 5 to 0.

Step 6 – Remove stabilising paper from the wrong side of the garment. It should now look something like this on the wrong side. You can still see my basting stitches here as I didn’t remove them.

Step 7 – Admire your work on the right side!

Tada!

I love this unexpected detailing on an otherwise really plain cardigan. I used up some vintage lace that was with my grandma’s sewing stuff and it took around an hour to do. Simple, but effective!