Lion Wool?

[reecie]

anyone used it? either i wasn't patient enough or this stuff just doesn't felt well. if it's me...go figure! if it's the wool then i'll never be buying it again.

 

i AM new to felting and that was my 1st project...any suggestions welcomed

[DesertCrocheter]

Has the new Lion Wool appeared in the stores yet? Wasn't available yet in mine as of this past weekend. If it's 100% wool, it should felt. Are you sure it wasn't Wool Ease? Patty

[RebeccaVelasquez]

what didn't work out? do you have before/after pics??

[threeolivemartini]

i bet you have wool ease and not the 100% wool..

[reecie]

nope, it's definately lion wool. 100%. made sure it wasn't wool ease. got it at AC Moore Wednesday. I work at Michaels (crochet instructor), and they don't have any wool at my store. it's rose 105. i dunno...maybe i'm not patient enough. i can scan the piece to let you see what i've done and maybe someone can suggest something. altho not tonite, it's way too late. i'll add photos tomorrow

 

thanks in advance!

[losingmymind2]

Reecie, when I felted, I had to do it about 4-5 times thru the wash cycle before it was what I wanted. You may have to pop it back in a few more times. Lion says their wool is good for felting, but I haven't tried it yet.

 

Kathy

[threeolivemartini]

sometimes it does take several run thrus.. did you put anything in there to help with the agitations.. i use tennis balls.. and sometimes i will even add a kettle of extra hot water.. and then to the rinse add ice.. so the temps are extreme

[reecie]

i think my 2 biggest problems were not enough patience, and nothing added to help w/ agitation. i'm going to try the same piece again. i did add boiling water, but didn't think about adding ice! i also may have had too much soap

 

thanks to everyone for all their help

[deneen]

The extra soap is actually good. You could add vinegar too the change the pH. I found with most Lion brand and Paton wool, I have to run it through 3-4 times.

[HollyM]

I did a bag with Peace Fleece that shrunk but still had a lot of stitch definition. I have a front loader, which has worked fine for other items, but wasn't doing it for this one.

 

What I finally did was put 2 5g buckets (big orange ones from Home Depot) in the tub. One bucket filled with hot water & some soap, the other with cold water water. Then I took a new, clean plunger and plunged the heck out of it in the hot, then dunked in the cold. Repeat several times.

 

Since it was in the tub, splashes weren't a problem. I was much happier with the final result and it was faster than waiting for the washer to fill & drain.

 

To be safe, I wrote "Craft use only" on the handle of the plunger and I keep it in my craft room, not the bathroom

 

Holly

[natalie058]

I've done the same thing as Holly, only in a double kitchen sink with one sink hot and one cold. It was my first time felting and I didn't want to watse a whole bunch of washer loads on just some little purses...

 

So I busted out my dad's old wooden washboard [for some reason we have like 3 of these laying around here] and scrubbed away on that thing, switching sinks every few mintues. My arms were *very* tired the next day, but the little purses fulled up nicely...

 

I think next time, I'll use a plunger - much less physical labor, LOL!

[dudleyspinner]

some colors of wool felt much better than others. White wool that has been bleached doesn't felt well, the bleaching damages the scales on the wool fibers. The scales are like pinecones, when they are heated expand, cold they contract. If you take a piece of the yarn and wet it, soap it, and roll into a ball like dough, it should start to felt after a few minits of working, if it doesn't, it is not a good choice for felting.

Deb

[reecie]

i LOVE the plunger idea! and we already have the buckets! thanks:cheer

[allimac]

I haven't tried felting before but am dying to make the handbag I saw in one of the new crochet mags...was thinking of using Lion or Patons brand, so thanks for the info...keep us posted on how it works up.

[reecie]

mmk, what i've found works best for me...and it might not for anyone else. washers and dryers are different. i wash 2x in hot/cold cycle high and low adjitation, then i dry it on high till it looks like i want it.are you making the bag in the fam circ crochet? i'm working on it now! using some wool i found in the garage and patons wool. i'll be posting it to the show n tell as soon as i get it done

[allimac]

yes, that's the one....can't wait to see yours, am going to AC Moore this wkend to get wool:1sheep . I love the colors in the picture, but not sure what they carry. May have to go to Fabric Place for Patons. Ka-ching$$!