Upcycle Old Mittens for Winter Decor

This post is definitely not a tutorial.   I would not insult your intelligence that way!  This is simply meant to show you some fun ways to upcycle old mittens for winter decor.  Easy Peasy!

I did not have any mittens to start with, not having little ones at home anymore.  But I remember once a year cleaning out the coat closet and throwing out so many that were missing their match.  I wanted to catch you before you did the same!

Cutlery Holder

A few years ago, I was longing for the cute little Christmas stocking cutlery holders at the Pottery Barn.  We were having several people for Christmas Eve dinner.  I thought they would be adorable on my Christmas table.  Then I looked at the price tag!  They were 4 for $42.00!  I needed 12 and I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.  So I found some little mittens at Walmart…2 pair for 98¢ so I bought several! Plenty for the table and several others for future projects.  I glued on sparkle bows and snowflakes and they were just so pretty!

So this year, in my quest to clean out my craft bins, I decided to put the extras to use.  

My first project was to simply make a cutlery holder that was more appropriate for my winter breakfast table. A gold glitter bow is just a little too fancy! The little white buttons I found are perfect and remind me of snowflakes.

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Winter Porch Sign

My next project came to mind when decorating my front porch for the winter season.  I loved my big Christmas porch sign and I hated to take it down.  Since the flip side was just bare wood, I decided to make it reversible.  I painted it a cream color with paint leftover from another project.  Using black wooden letters that I had purchased on clearance, I spelled out winter and glued them to the wood.  Since I knew the overall look of the porch would be black and white, I was also able to use up some Buffalo checked mesh I had on hand as well.  The final touch was to upcycle old mittens and an old black hat.  

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Mitten Banner

Those who follow the blog know that I have a love/hate relationship with the space above my fireplace.  While it is large and gives me a lot of space to be creative…I miss the pretty wooden mantle in our first home.  To compensate, there is rarely a time during the year where there is not a banner of some sort stretched across it.  Those extra mittens are the perfect thing for this season.    Using mini clothes pins, I simply attached the mittens to a heavy white string, added some pretty crafting letters and snowflakes.  As a final touch, I put a little bit of greenery into each mitten.

Mitten Garland Highlight

Realizing I still have 3 sets left, I thought they would make a cute little accent to my staircase garland. Using four of the remaining mittens, I spaced them out between the pine cones and stars. The mini clothes pins used on the banner worked perfectly here as well.

Mitten Lampshade Accent

With my last pair I decided to dress up my entry lampshade for the season.  I have always added bows and ornaments to my shades to make them a little different then what you see everyday. A tiny little pin holds them in place

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It’s always fun to find a use for something that on the surface looks unusable. I remember throwing out so many lone mittens when my kids were small. Just like the socks that mysteriously disappear from the dryer! I hope this post will give some ideas on how to upcycle old mittens in your closet.

Before you go, be sure to stop by the Library for some winter printable art to add to your winter decor! Simply click here, enter your password, download, and print. If you haven’t joined us yet, subscribe below and an email with your member password will hit your inbox in minutes. Let’s decorate our way through 2021 together. See you soon!