Tutorial: Upcycled Denim Wreath with Yarn Flowers

I know I’m not the only person in the United States (or the world, for that matter) with a stack of old jeans in the closet. Instead of staring at that pile, I decided to do something with at least one pair. (I had to start somewhere, didn’t I?) I transformed those ragged jeans into an easy peasy decorative wreath adorned with yarn flowers.

This post contains affiliate links. Supplies for this project were generously provided by Beacon and FloraCraft.

Upcycled Denim Wreath with Yarn Flowers

Tutorial by Underground Crafter

Materials

• Red Heart Soft (5 oz/141 g/256 yd/234 m/100% acrylic) – 1 skein ea in 9925 Really Red (CA) and 2515 Turquoise (CB), or approximately 6 yd (5.5 m) in ea of 2 colors in any medium weight yarn.
• Boye Flower Loom.
• Fabri-Tac fabric glue.
• A retired pair of jeans.
• 10″ (25.5 cm) FloraCraft Easy Wreath.
• Fabric scissors or rotary cutter.
• Picture hanger (optional).

Project Instructions

• Make 4 yarn flowers with your Flower Loom. Fasten off with long yarn tails. (You can find my video tutorial, How to Make a Yarn Flower with a Flower Loom, here, along with links to more Flower Loom tutorials.) I used CA for the petals and CB for the center.
• With fabric scissors, cut 1 leg off jeans. (photos 1-2) (Depening on the size of your jeans and your wreath, you may need another leg.)
• Cut off the hem of the jeans leg. (photo 3)
• Turn the leg inside out. (photo 4)
• Trim off the side seams of the jeans leg. (photo 5)
• Now you’ll have 2 pieces of jeans leg. (photo 6)
• Cut the pieces into long strips. (photo 7) I didn’t measure mine before cutting but each strip was about 2″ – 3″ (5 – 7.5 cm) wide. These strips don’t have to be perfectly straight.
• Apply Fabri-Tac to the wrong side of the narrow edge of the jeans strip. (photo 8). Tip: Keep things neat by working over a surface you can discard after the glue dries, like used newspaper, or a paper or plastic bag.
• Place the narrow edge of the jeans strip, glue side down, onto the wreath and press it down firmly. (photo 9)
• Wrap the jeans strip around the wreath. Overlap each wrap of the strip over the edge of the last wrap to cover the wreath. (photos 10-12)
• As the jeans strip runs out, use the Fabri-Tac to glue the narrow edge in place at the back of the wreath. Attach a new strip, using the Fabri-Tac to glue the narrow edge to the last strip at the back of the wreath.
• Continue wrapping the jeans strips until the entire wreath is covered. (photo 13). Use the Fabri-Tac to glue down the last narrow edge at the back of the wreath.
• Position the yarn flowers evenly spaced on the front of the wreath. Tie into position at the back of the wreath. (photo 14)
• Apply the Fabri-Tac under the ties to glue the yarn flowers onto the jeans strips. (photo 15)
• Allow the glue to dry. Cut off the excess yarn tails.
• Attach a picture hanger to the back of the wreath if desired.
• Enjoy your Upcycled Denim Wreath with Yarn Flowers!

© 2016 by Marie Segares (Underground Crafter). This tutorial is for personal use only. You may use the tutorial to make unlimited items for yourself, for charity, or to give as gifts. You may sell items you personally make by hand from this pattern. Do not violate Marie’s copyright by distributing this tutorial or the photos in any form, including but not limited to scanning, photocopying, emailing, or posting on a website or internet discussion group. If you want to share the tutorial, point your friends to this link: https://undergroundcrafter.com/2016/07/08/tutorial-upcycled-denim-wreath/. Thanks for supporting indie designers!