By Lauren Schiavone
Hometown Weekly Staff
The return of both sweaters and pumpkins is synonymous with autumn, so the idea of combining the two into an upcycled craft makes perfect sense -- and that's exactly what the Medfield Library did on Thursday, October 20.
Held in the Meeting Room of the Medfield Public Library, Adult Services and Programming Librarian Bri Ozanne instructed patrons to BYO sweater and prepare to make a cute, simple craft. Sweater pumpkins -- small, pumpkins crafted out of sweater materials -- require minimal supplies and yield a unique result.
Bri’s demonstration included simple steps, no fuss and no intricate sewing or measuring. She began by cutting the sweater inside out, stuffing it with fiberfill and wrapping twine around the top and for a stem, then securing it with hot glue. Crafters couldn’t contain their excitement when Ozanne stuck a needle through the sweater pumpkin with twine, separating the charming pumpkin into plump sections. “Oohs” and “ahhs” filled the room when patrons realized they’d soon have a sweater pumpkin of their own.
With enthusiasm already running high, Ozanne disappeared to find more craft materials for the enthusiastic crafters, returning with pipe cleaners and ribbons -- perfect additions to construct stems for curly vines and leaves.
Crafters took direction and combined it with their own creative liberty. Style of twine and yarn, pumpkin size and texture all varied with the individual crafters; soon, those in attendance had produced a beautiful and adorably misshapen pumpkin patch.
“This craft you can do at any level,” Ozanne shared. “It’s great to work on a project and get everyone together for a craft, but it’s really about people.”
To that end, with sweater-pumpkin-toting strangers leaving as friends, the Medfield Library's sweater crafting session was especially successful.
