Crispina ffrench

Learn how to felt wool and you can try out one of many ideas to upcycle sweaters into an array of useful household products and fun gifts — no sewing machine required! The following is an excerpt from The Sweater Chop Shop by Crispina Ffrench (Storey Publishing, 2009). Using recycled textiles to create home accessories, sweaters and even furniture, Ffrench has rescued nearly 500,000 pounds of clothing from landfills throughout the past two decades.

It’s true that our kids’ fiber-craft book Stitch Camp is chock-full of boredom-busters and gifts kids can make, and those are great reasons to — sales pitch alert! — buy it for your children. But there’s also a bigger, deeper case for kids crafting, and it’s this: people who do meaningful things with their hands are happier than people who don’t.