I love paying nothing for “new” yarn. Don’t you?

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Read my Disclosure Policy for more information. Thanks for your support!

In these times of high inflation, I’m trying to find ways to fulfill my yarn addiction but not spend a lot of money doing it. Sounds like an oxymoron, but it IS possible.

One way to accomplish this is to reclaim the yarn from old projects to make something (relatively) brand new.

I’ve crocheted a lot of tops and sweaters over the years. Many of them I’ve only worn a couple of times. So they hang in my closet, gathering metaphorical dust (probably some real dust in there, too).

I guess I could donate them. And I’ve done so in the past. But why not reclaim the yarn to get a second use out of it and save some money in the process?

The Caterpillar — Spiderweb Cardigan

I made this cardigan back when I first moved to Hawaii. It’s Mary Miller’s (RIP) Spiderweb cardigan.

I attended one of her classes at a Crochet Guild of America conference back in 2006, a year before moving to Hawaii at the end of 2007.

I loved the pattern when I first saw it and HAD to make it. It’s one of the first pieces I crocheted after my move, and I mainly made it mostly to see if I could.

Fifteen years later, I wasn’t that attached to it like I was back in the day and didn’t have a problem taking it apart.

Spiderweb Cardigan Yarn and Hook Size

I used a 100% worsted-weight cotton yarn (Lily’s Sugar and Cream Cotton) and a 5.00 mm hook.

The resulting fabric was a tad heavy for Hawaii weather, at least in the summer. So I had to limit wearing it to the cooler, rainy season, especially with the long sleeves.

But after a while, I stopped wearing it altogether and added it to the soon-to-be growing collection of crocheted tops and wraps in my closet.

Keep in mind; this yarn is 15 years old! So there has been some discoloring. But it has held up very well, probably because I wasn’t wearing it.

And I figured the discoloring would give the new piece that distressed vintage look that’s seems to be so popular today.

The Butterfly — Moonstone Kimono

So when I recently came across the Moonstone Kimono by Erica Fedor, something said, “Crochet me!”

I wasn’t currently working on anything, and I NEEDED something to crochet. And the lacy stitch pattern kept pulling me in, so I just HAD to make it.

The design is VERY easy to execute, consisting of a back panel and two front panels.

And the stitch patten is a 4-row repeat, with one of the rows being straight double crochet (dc). So I figured I could easily crochet it in the evenings while I binge-watched movies and TV shows.

But I had a big problem — not enough yarn in my stash to complete it. And then I remembered the purple Spiderweb cardigan I’d made back in the day.

Long story short, I took the cardigan apart and reclaimed most of the yarn, a task I actually found to be quite relaxing.

Plus, my Fitbit recorded me taking over 10,000 steps, and all I had to do was wind yarn into balls. Yeah, I know. Not real steps, but it made me chuckle when I saw it.

And this time around, I used my 4.50 mm Clover Amour ergonomic hook instead of a 5.00 mm hook.

Tweaking the Pattern Was Easy.

Because the pattern design is so easy to execute, I could make some adjustments to adapt it to my unique situation. I —

• Shortened the length of the kimono to make sure I had enough yarn to complete it.
• Added three extra rows of the stitch pattern (minus the last dc row of the 4-row repeat) to the front panels to accommodate my bust line. I learned this little trick from talented designer “J” of J’s Knit and Purl Jam in one of her YouTube videos.
• Added an extra row of double crochet to the sleeve and body edges.
• Made a double crochet decrease (dc2tog) after every 5 stitches in the second dc row at the bottom edge. It had more stitches per inch than the body and sleeve edges. And I wanted the edges to be even all the way around.

I like the nice, loose fit. Along with the lacy stitch pattern, open front, and lack of sleeves, it should allow those exquisite trade winds Hawaii is famous for to keep me cool.

The question is, Will I wear it?

The answer is, YES.

It turned out well, IMHO. I’ll definitely wear it just to see how it feels as the weather starts to heat up. The fabric is still heavy because of the yarn weight. But for the reasons I’ve given, I’ll definitely give it go.

And I might even make it again, this time in a slightly lighter weight yarn. That is, unless some other pattern/design hasn’t caught my fancy that I just HAVE to make.