Infinity Scarf from Quilt Scraps

Have you ever had a project go horribly wrong after sinking a ton of work into it? They say every cloud has a silver lining and I’m here to tell you how true that is!

Last year I dropped off my 10-year quilt with a professional quilter. That’s the queen size quilt that I started 10 years ago and have made every excuse not to finish. Unfortunately, the quilter made a mistake when setting up the king size sheet (used as the backing) onto her quilting frame, By the time she got to the bottom of my quilt, the backing ran out. She had no choice but to remove the bottom row from my quilt in order to fit the backing. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was. I tucked the extra row of patchwork away in my sewing room, not wanting the reminder.

Not long ago, I was admiring infinity scarves on Pinterest, (all good things in my life begin with Pinterest inspiration, it seems) and it occurred to me that the very loooong row of patchwork that I’d tucked away might make an interesting infinity scarf. Not only was it pretty patchwork – it was long enough to wrap at least once – maybe twice!

I set out to find a backing fabric that would work well for a scarf. Flannel makes a great backing material because it’s soft and warm – both good things this time of year. Be sure to pre-wash to avoid shrinking in your finished item. approx.

The scarf turned out to be an amazingly easy project. If you’d like to make your own – raid your scrap basket to create a piece of patchwork in the pattern of your choice at approx. 8″ wide and 54″ long for a double loop. (for a simple strip patchwork primer, you can refer to the first part of my reversible table runner post).

My quilt leftovers measured 8” x 84” so I cut my flannel backing to the same size. I had to sew two 8” wide sections together on the short ends, then cut them to the right length. (NOTE: This made my scarf long enough to wrap it twice, creating three loops. If you want a scarf that will wrap twice, 54-58″ would be sufficient.)

I placed the flannel and plaids right sides together  and pinned every few inches. I sewed along both long edges, fixing my stitch at the beginning and end. 

That created a long tube, which I then flipped right side out. 

I brought the short sides up towards each other. I placed the plaid pieces together so that the joints lined up where the flannel was. I started sewing on the flannel in a circle.

I stopped sewing when there was about  5″ opening.

I cut a ~30″ piece of black thread, threaded a hand sewing needle, then tied the end into a knot. I placed the scarf on my knee so that I could keep the opening flat. I ran the needle through the opening and slip stitched it shut. When the space was sewn completely shut I tied the thread into a double knot.

I now have my first infinity scarf that is unlike any other. It’s surprisingly warm, which is great because the temperatures are dropping quickly. Now that I’m done, I should work on finishing my 10-year quilt… but maybe not. Christmas crafts are calling my name!