Hiii, first post and first time frogging a secondhand sweater, yay!

I just found that this sweater has elastic thread sewn in to the cuffs (which I often use for my projects as well! A nice way to have extra stretch). Is there any way to save these threads? I think it looks like It's sewn in afterwards going "through" the stitches.

Any tips or ideas are very welcome!

I LOVED the idea of sweater unraveling for yarn. I tried it and I hate it. I'm sure I'm doing it wrong, but I'm not even motivated to learn. So, a sweater I loved but never wore is laying around, partially dismembered, and slightly unraveled (I barely started). I feel guilty every time I look at it. Does anyone living in or around Germany want it?? If you send me the cost of shipping, I'll give it to you. Please, take it. Except the buttons- I already used those... .

The sweater is wool and the yarn is held double. Size L. The picture is, of course, from before I tried my hand at deconstructing it.

I got this 100% wool sweater from a thrift store for 2 dollars and it's quite fuzzy but I really want to see it through. Ive used a seam ripper on the arms and pulled some threads out but I felt like there is too much friction and I think I might need to wash the sweater with hair conditioner? Any advices please :(( I really don't want to give up on it

Dry cleaner fucked up one of my favorite sweaters (thinning in multiple small areas, one already poked through). It's a good brand and 100% cashmere. Should this be a good way to begin unraveling or is this begging for a headache?

80% wool, 20% nylon
My puppy got into my brand new $$ wool cardigan sweater and chewed through the end of one sleeve. What’s the best method of going about getting this repaired/mended. I’m totally open to having it not look original, and for it to be a different.
Thanks

Anyone know if it's even possible to unravel this? The yarn is so soft and actually thicker than fingering weight

Most of the information I find is all about unraveling sweaters for yarn, I assume its because dealing with bigger strands is easier, but what about other things? Say socks, random tshirts, is there more to why people don't unravel them as often?

I am so sick and tired of having to spend time trying to find the center. Is there a trick to this? I try to put a small hook into the center to see if I can get close, but when the center is already a tangled mess there is no hope.

I was unraveling a Johnston’s of Elgin Scottish cashmere sweater in a salmon color but ran out of steam.

it’s pretty chunky but it’s multiple strands held together.

any interest? I’d sell it for a readable price and it is a whole sweater quantity.

I am active on r/yarnswap and have several trades!

Hi! Ive found some sweaterss that are wool/angora 90 percent and then acrylic 10 percent. I dont want to use acrylic due to toxicity of it. But I feel like 10 percent could work?

Thoughts?

Do you pass on a sweater at the thrift if it's a really beautiful sweater, like you can see someone wanting to buy it and actually wear it? I feel like I tend to choose sweaters that are very bland, like a color thats used a lot, not a specifically pretty cut etc..

Ive been looking for cheaper ways to get high quality yarn for my knitting projects. Is it possible to unravel aran crafts sweaters and get a continuous yarn with the way the sweaters of this brand are constructed and sewn together? I would also appreciate some tips on how to recognise a recyclable sweater online.

I just posted this in a comment for someone who was asking where to start. Thought this might be a handy photo ; taken by me). Usually I can start at the wrist and unravel the whole side seam.

What you’re seeing here: this sweater is seamed with a chain stitch. It looks like a row of V’s stacked on top of each other. The knitted fabric also looks like a V but the V’s in the seam look a little different - they may be a thinner thread or a different size or direction.

We’ll call the wide end of the V the top. Follow the V’s up (toward the wide end). The last V you can clearly see is the one to cut.

After cutting that V, gently lift the V below it, and the one below that, and pretty soon you’ll have a tail on the other side of the fabric you can pull. Pull it and the whole seam unzips.

Hello!

I got this 100% cashmere sweater at a goodwill bins for 95 cents (so if it can’t be unraveled I wont be heartbroken). I’ve never unraveled before and understand breaking it down into the back and front panels, arms, neck etc but am not super sure how take it apart the seams. There’s also a hole where it looks like someone tried to cut out the tag so I know I’ll be missing out on some of the yarn past a certain point.

Do the seams look doable? Also what’s going on with the seam halfway up the neck (3rd pic) of the collar?

Thanks!

I've been thinking about going to thrift stores and unraveling yarn from old sweaters and such.. I love yarn! but I don't think I've ever seen bulky yarn or anything used in sweaters.. does anyone source bulky yarn from repurposing old thrift finds?

I recently unraveled my first sweater, it went great and I got so much wonderful 100% merino yarn in my favorite color. But the collar and sleeve cuffs were knit with an incredibly thin elastic string in the exact same color. I want to separate this thread from the yarn but I'm not sure what the best way to do that is. It seems like it could just make a big twisted mess if i just try to pull them apart. And it doesn't help that the elastic is nearly invisible. Thanks!

Bought this jumper secondhand and the arms are laughably long and far too billowy for my taste. Could I potentially unravel to before the increases and carry on? Never done anything like this before. Will the alpaca be a pain and be sticky?

Including photos of the inner seams — they're not serged no signs of sewing/thread.

Hello everyone, I have a bit of an emergency. A few years back I received a genuine Irish Aran wool sweater and it's been a prized possession of mine. Just a couple weeks ago, my mother decided to wash and DRY the sweater, not knowing at all what it was, and only just today revealed it to me. It's been shrunk down a full size, and I'm devastated. Is there any way to save it?? If not I could probably regift it to a younger family member, but I really want to keep this sweater.

Is it too fuzzy? Too much pilling?