(iCandy) anthro inspired cardi - Combo

Sick of these yet??? I hope not! {Confession: I made this a few of months ago, and wanted to post it before everyone retires their sweaters till fall.}

I know, I am ready for spring fashion, too.  But, in most of the country, it is still pretty cold outside, so therefore relevant.
Anyway, this sweater redo has been a staple in my wardrobe.  I took these two inspirations

And came up with this, again using a thrifted V-neck.

I cut the center open, finished the edges, and sewed the trim on.

Then I cut petal and leaf shapes out of old sweaters.  The cream petals are out of a felted sweater, and the grey are cut out of a cotton cardigan that I resized and took in on the sides, having a scrap of extra fabric left over. I fused all the shapes down first with Steam A Seam, then, using embroidery thread, hand stitched each petal and leaf down.  It didn't really take long at all.

For the flower centers, I just used a tiny piece of this sweater that came off when I cut the V-neck.  I twisted it and hand sewed it to the sweater.