Gonna Try this (HELP PLEASE )

[Katchkan]

Okay I have my yarn and yes it is all wool. I checked it to be certain by placing it in bleach and There aint nothin left of the poor little snippets I placed in there.

Have my design figured out.

Crochet loosely? ( Correct. )

Okay once I have my piece crocheted. what are the next steps.

Is there someplace I need to go to find the basic instructions. I have figured out the gist of this, But Can't seem to find the specifics.

I know you wash it in hot water and rinse in cold. But do I use soap, If so How much what brands.

Okay I am pleading ignorance and trusting you guys to steer me in the proper direction.

Thanks in advance. I know you all wont let me down.

[viggie]

Thanks for asking this! I've been considering doing the same thing, but I haven't found anywhere that tells you exactly what to do. I think a lot of people will probably be interested in the answers

[GinaLaughed]

This is a knitting site but these are the instructions I followed to felt my bag today.

 

http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter03/FEATfelthis.html

 

Have fun! I just felted my first bag today and here I am sitting here rolling up a ball of yarn for my next felting project. (I tried dyeing it and it got horribly tangled.) I'm going to do Deneen's Marvelous bag next and then I'm headed for the FCEC Felted Bag on Monday when I can buy more yarn.

 

I'm truly addicted to felting!

[Katchkan]

Thank you for the link, Feel like I just might be able to give this a go. Will let you all know how it goes.

[smokeyp81]

I just read the article that Gina linked to and I agree with most of her ideas. One thing I would definetly do is put your item in a pillowcase or pillow protector. It will keep most of the fuzz out of your washer. Why pick fuzz out of the water and risk plugging up your washer if you can contain it in a pillowcase? Also, I never use any soap and my items always felt. That way you don't have to rinse.

 

Have fun! Felting is great and fast becomes an addiction! I find myself haunting the local thrift stores for 100% wool sweaters to unravel!

[losingmymind2]

Trust me on this one, folks, a pillowcase is a VERY good idea. First (and only so far) felting I didn't and I'm STILL picking fuzzies off my felted bag too, because the towels I used for friction (no jeans here) linted.

 

Kathy

[Katchkan]

All advice is appreciated as this is a totally new realm to me. I am working on crocheting my piece now. We will see how it goes.

[racerose]

All advice is appreciated as this is a totally new realm to me. I am working on crocheting my piece now. We will see how it goes.

 

I have some felting instructions from a book at home. I'll post them later.

 

I used a little bit of Woolite, which I don't think is necessary; but smells nice.

 

And keep in mind that you can always throw it in the dryer after washing. Drying it will felt it even more; but be careful not to dry it too hot or long.

 

Zippered pillowcase is a must.

 

It's really not hard. Especially for me, since I was felting sweaters by accident before I even knew what felting was.

[racerose]

Here's the felting instructions in "Hip to Crochet" book by Judith Swartz:

 

Machine wash with a hot wash and cold rinse in a regular cycle. Set the machine for a small load. Add a very small amount of mild detergent or dishwashing liquid. Too many suds can hamper the felting process, so use soap sparingly. Placing the item in a zippered pillow cover or zippered lingerie bag augments the agitation process (fibers rubbing against each other) and keeps loose fibers from clogging the washing machine. Put old towels (less lint) or T-shirts in the washing machine with the item being felted to improve agitation and keep the load balanced.

 

Allow the item to go through the wash and rinse cycle, but, to keep it from becoming distorted, remove it before the spin process starts. If the felted item does not shrink sufficiently during the first wash cycle, don't drain the water from the machine; simply reset the wash cycle and allow the piece to go through again, testing frequently for shrinkage. Remember, it is almost impossible to stretch an over-felted piece to increase its size, so it is best to go slowly and check often until you obtain the desired size.

 

Remove excess water by wrapping the piece in several large bath towels and squeezing. pull the item into shape, pat the edges smooth, and straighten any distortions by pulling nad patting the piece into chape. Allow the piece to air dry. Felted items can be dried in the dryer , but the hot air may cause further shrinkage. Check felted machine drying frequently.

 

And remember, superwash wools do not felt. Also, white or very light colors bleached by the manufacturer do not always felt as readily as darker colors.

I hope this helps! Good luck!

[GinaLaughed]

I just read the article that Gina linked to and I agree with most of her ideas. One thing I would definetly do is put your item in a pillowcase or pillow protector. It will keep most of the fuzz out of your washer. Why pick fuzz out of the water and risk plugging up your washer if you can contain it in a pillowcase? Also, I never use any soap and my items always felt. That way you don't have to rinse.

 

Sorry, I forgot to note that a pillowcase is a must! I had posted in my other post that I decided to go without the pillowcase (because I had read the article I linked to) and that was a big mistake! I put my bag in a zippered pillow protector for the second go round and for the rinse (since I had used detergent).

 

I know all the directions say not to, but I went ahead and let my bag spin for a couple of seconds, but only until all the water had drained out, with no ill effects. It really helped so that I did not have such a sloshy mess. I don't know if I would advise others to do this since I have no experience in this area. I just wanted to share what I did.

 

I'm almost done with my second bag that I'm making to felt. I'm using Fisherman's wool on this one and I'm excited to compare the differences in the wool I used.

 

I hope you'll be able to share pics of your felted project, Kathy. I'm hoping to post mine tonight. I just haven't had time to download them from my camera to my computer yet.

[Katchkan]

Thanks ever so much that was exactly what I needed. Should be ready to give it a try late tonight or tomorrow morning. I really do appreciate you taking the time and effort to get this information to me. I am sure I am not the only one who will benefit from this.

That's what I love about this place.

[Katchkan]

Well I just pulled my purse out of the washer. It fulled nicely, just didn't shrink as much as I thought it would. I can see where I need to tweek my design to get what I am looking for. This one will make a good tote for me, but will redo it to make a better one for my swap partner. So close but not quite.

[Katchkan]

Just one quick note. I did not have a zippered pillowcase so I placed mine in a regular pillowcase and folded the top down, I then used a cloth covered elastic band for your hair and wrapped that around it several times. Worked great, as I could open it up and check on the progress and close it back up, without having to buy something special for what maybe a one time thing.