DIY Studded Sweater

J Crew Studded Sweater

Studs are everywhere, and have been for seasons. They’ve progressed from dainty pegs, to spikes off the shoulders and on shoes, and have now become even more rough and unrefined as seen on the Alexander Wang Duffle – a bag that will work out your bicep and carry your belongings at the same time. The juxtaposition of these harsh studs applied to something beautiful like leather or a knit is what makes the style work, and the arrangement of them in a simple and composed design allows the style to look refined and edgy rather than just biker-gang hardcore. This DIY is incredibly easy and requires very few supplies. I got my sweater at a thrift store and I chose something with a thick weave so I could easily push the bolt through without tearing.

Look at your bolt. You want the flat capped end to be the end that is on the inside of the sweater, and the spiky end facing out. I don’t know too much about hardware, so I am not positive about what these are called, but just make sure you have a screw with a flat end to it, not a pointy end, and nuts that fit on them. I used two slightly different sizes so I could vary them in the pattern.

Push the bolt through from the inside. I just started in the middle and made a pattern as I was going, but if you want to plan it first, sketch out what you want on a piece of paper before you begin.

Now put the nut on to hold the screw in place. You will end up with this:

Repeat until you are happy with the results. I also rolled up the sleeves and  put one nut/bolt pair on each to keep them rolled up. A few of them I put through on the sides through both layers to cinch the sweater in a little bit. Go crazy, do whatever you want. I liked it best with a symmetrical design and I focused a lot on the shoulders.

Next time I will definitely try this on the bottom of a bag to recreate something that looks like the Alexander Wang Duffle. I’m also gifting 2 nuts and 2 bolts to male friends as cufflinks. As soon as I find a french-cuff shirt that doesn’t look ridiculous on me, you’ll see me in my nuts and bolts cufflinks too.