You know that one hoodie? The one with the perfect fleece interior but a hood so heavy it constantly pulls the neckline against your throat? Or maybe you just realized that layering a hooded sweatshirt under a denim jacket makes you look like a bulky marshmallow. Honestly, the "hoodie-turned-crewneck" look is a whole vibe, but if you go at it with kitchen scissors and no plan, you’re going to end up with a frayed, lopsided mess that stays in the back of the closet until you finally use it to wax your car.
Learning how to cut a hood off a sweatshirt isn't just about hacking away at the fabric. It’s about understanding how knit fabric behaves when it’s under tension.
Most people think you just follow the seam. That's a mistake. If you cut right on the seam, the structural integrity of the shoulders can start to fail. Sweatshirts are typically made of jersey or French terry—fabrics that love to roll and fray if they aren't handled with a bit of respect. Whether you want a raw-edge punk aesthetic or a clean, "I can't believe this used to have a hood" finish, the process requires a steady hand and a very specific type of blade.
The gear you actually need (don't use kitchen shears)
Stop. Put down the scissors you use to open bags of frozen peas. If you want a clean line, you need fabric shears or a brand-new rotary cutter. Fabric shears are ground at a specific angle to slice through fibers rather than crushing them. When you use dull household scissors, the fabric bunches up between the blades, leading to those jagged "teeth" marks along the neckline.
You also need a seam ripper. This tiny tool is your best friend if you’re trying to preserve the original collar ribbing, though most people doing this project are going for a more relaxed, open-neck look. Grab some tailor’s chalk or even a piece of dried-out soap to mark your line. You can't eyeball a curve on a garment that stretches; it's a recipe for disaster.
Why the "seam-only" approach fails
The biggest misconception about how to cut a hood off a sweatshirt is that the seam is your guide. Sweatshirt hoods are usually attached with a 4-thread overlock stitch. This stitch is incredibly durable because it wraps around the edge of the fabric. Once you cut into that overlock, the "chain" starts to unravel.
If you cut exactly on the line where the hood meets the body, you're leaving behind a bulky ridge of thread. It feels scratchy against your neck. It looks cheap. Instead, you have two real options: you either cut above the seam to leave a bit of the hood’s "stand," or you cut about a quarter-inch below the seam into the body of the sweatshirt to create a true raw-edge crewneck.
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The Raw Edge Method
This is the most popular way to do it. You’re looking for that 1980s gym aesthetic—think Flashdance but less theatrical.
First, lay the sweatshirt completely flat on a hard surface. A carpeted floor is terrible for this because the fabric will snag and shift as you cut. Fold the sweatshirt in half vertically, matching the shoulder seams perfectly. This ensures that the left side of your new neckline matches the right. If you cut it while it's lying flat and open, you will almost certainly end up with an asymmetrical hole.
Mark a line with your chalk. Start higher than you think you need to. You can always cut more off, but you can't sew the fabric back on once it's gone. Follow the natural curve of the original neckline, staying roughly a half-inch away from the seam.
Once you’ve marked it, use long, smooth strokes with your shears. Don't "snip-snip-snip." That creates jagged edges. Slide the bottom blade of the scissors along the table surface to keep the garment steady.
Dealing with the drawstring dilemma
What happens to the strings? This is where people get tripped up. Most hoods have a drawstring channeled through the brim. When you cut the hood off, you’re losing that channel.
If you like the look of the strings hanging down from a crewneck—which is a specific "deconstructed" fashion trend seen in brands like Off-White or Yeezy—you’ll need to secure them. If you just cut the hood off, the strings will fall out. You can tack them down with a few hand stitches at the shoulder points before you make your final cut. This keeps that "industrial" look without the strings sliding out the first time you put it in the wash.
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Finishing the edge so it doesn't disintegrate
Cotton-poly blends are the most common sweatshirt materials. The good news? They don't fray as badly as woven silk or linen. The bad news? They roll.
A raw-cut sweatshirt edge will naturally curl toward the outside. Most people actually like this. It hides the minor imperfections in your cutting. To encourage a clean roll, once you’ve finished the cut, grab the neckline with both hands and give it a firm, steady stretch. You’ll hear some tiny pops—that’s just the remaining threads settling. The fabric will immediately start to curl.
How to prevent "The Great Unravel"
If you hate the rolling look and want it to stay flat, you have to seal the edge. You don't necessarily need a sewing machine. A product like Fray Check can be applied along the cut line. It’s essentially a liquid plastic that binds the fibers together.
However, if you have a machine, running a simple "stay stitch" about an eighth of an inch from the edge will stop the rolling and the fraying. Set your machine to a long straight stitch or a narrow zigzag. This gives it a "manufactured" raw look that holds up through fifty laundry cycles.
Transforming the "V" neck vs. the "U" neck
When you're figuring out how to cut a hood off a sweatshirt, you have to decide on the shape of the front. The original hood usually meets at a point or overlaps at the base of the throat.
- The Deep U: If you cut straight across the overlap, you’ll get a wide, gaping neck. This is great for showing off a t-shirt underneath.
- The Notched V: Many people prefer to leave the "overlap" intact but remove the hood. To do this, you cut the hood fabric away but stop right before the "V" where the hood ends meet. This leaves a small triangular detail at the throat that looks intentional and high-end.
Common mistakes that ruin the project
The "Walking Cut" is the number one killer of DIY sweatshirts. This happens when you cut through both layers of fabric at once while the sweatshirt is lying flat. Because the top layer moves slightly differently than the bottom layer under the pressure of the scissors, the back of the neck often ends up much deeper than the front.
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Always cut the front and back separately if you aren't confident in your pinning. Cut the front curve first, then flip it over and trim the back. The back neckline should always stay higher than the front to prevent the sweatshirt from sliding off your shoulders every time you move your arms.
Another disaster: cutting the shoulder seams. The shoulder seam of a sweatshirt is a high-stress area. If you cut too close to the point where the sleeve meets the neck, the weight of the sleeves will literally pull the shirt apart. Always leave at least an inch of "meat" on the shoulder between the neck opening and the sleeve seam.
Maintenance and the first wash
The first time you wash your newly modified sweatshirt, it’s going to produce a lot of lint. This is normal. The cut fibers are shedding.
Pro tip: Put the sweatshirt in a mesh laundry bag for the first two washes. This prevents the raw threads from wrapping around the agitator of your washing machine or sticking to your socks. After the dryer, you’ll see the "roll" has fully set. Take a pair of small embroidery scissors and trim away any long "whiskers" of thread that appeared during the cycle.
Actionable Next Steps
- Test a "Burner": Don't start with your $80 vintage find. Go to a thrift store, grab a $5 heavy fleece, and practice your curve-cutting technique there first.
- Iron Before You Cut: It sounds tedious, but a crisp, flat neckline is much easier to mark and cut accurately than a wrinkled one.
- Choose Your Depth: Put the sweatshirt on while it still has the hood. Use a safety pin to mark exactly how low you want the new neck to go. People often cut too low and realize later that their bra straps or undershirts are way too visible.
- Secure the Shoulders: If the shoulder seams look like they’re starting to gap after the cut, use a needle and thread to do a quick "backstitch" over the seam ends to lock them in place.
Removing a hood changes the entire silhouette of a garment. It turns a bulky piece of outerwear into a versatile mid-layer. Just remember: measure twice, use actual fabric shears, and always leave more fabric than you think you need. You can always go deeper, but you can't go back.