Front load washer?????

[Kimberly]

Well I have finally finished working on Deneen's Marvelous Felted Mini Tote bag and had an "Uh-oh" moment! Can I felt it in my front load washer??? I would not be able to take it out before the spin cycle - I can set the spin cycle to the lowest RPMs possbile, but is this going to hurt my bag?

This is going to be a long process if I have to felt it multiple times.....each cycle lasts 77 minutes on this stupid machine....longer if I make it a heavy duty wash!

[HollyM]

I have a front loader and I have used it for felting. On mine (whirlpool) you can hit cancel/stop at any time and it will drain the water and shut off. It is kind of a pain though, I have had better luck using two 5gal buckets (one filled w/ hot water, one w/ cold) and a new plunger with "craft use only" written on the handle Put both buckets in the bathtub to contain splashes and plunge your heart out! Move the piece from the hot bucket to the cold every few minutes and refill either as needed.

 

HOlly

[Kimberly]

Great idea - I'll have to try that one! I do not think that I can stop mine in mid cycle - I would look, but the instructions are all in flemish for one machine and french for the other machine!

[deneen]

Kimberly, unfortunately, I have never had the problem with any of my items "fulling too fast or too much". Can't wait to see it!

[deneen]

Kimberly and anyone else wondering "how to felt, troubleshooting, etc". I have been having a time lately with nothing fulling properly, etc.

 

I had to look to the big guns: Knitty.com

This should answer any questions you may have had and also enlighten you on some shortcuts that are supposed to help. All I know is that tomorrow, the washer, a bucket of ice water and a nasty fed up felter are going at it!

[thecrochetdude]

Great idea - I'll have to try that one! I do not think that I can stop mine in mid cycle - I would look, but the instructions are all in flemish for one machine and french for the other machine!

 

 

hee heee... you said "flemish"....

[Kimberly]

Kimberly and anyone else wondering "how to felt, troubleshooting, etc". I have been having a time lately with nothing fulling properly, etc.

 

I had to look to the big guns: Knitty.com

This should answer any questions you may have had and also enlighten you on some shortcuts that are supposed to help. All I know is that tomorrow, the washer, a bucket of ice water and a nasty fed up felter are going at it!

Well, I will be following your example and going for it with an ice bath....I just need to chizzle open my freezer to get at the ice....darn european kitchens & fridges!!!!!!!!

Needless to say the round in the washer did no good...Well, very little good! It took a grand total of 133 minutes to run a wash on hot through.....I use cold water for everything so its usually 77 minutes for my wash loads!

[deneen]

Kimberly, I know this is a pain in the patooty, but get a bucket or pot and fill it with hot water and then use another with ice water. Wear rubber gloves, it helps. Dip the bag in the hot water and slosh it around, gently wring it out. Lay a towel on your table or counter and put a squirt of dishsoap on the bag. Rub it, I mean really rub it all over, abuse it, make it pay for the frustration it has caused you. Now, dunk it back in the hot water and rinse a bit and then dunk into the ice bath. Repeat this a few times. It should help.

 

Of course, if worse comes to worse, bring it home to the US when you come back for the holidays and toss it in your mom's machine!

[threeolivemartini]

that is wild kimberly.. my front loader has more options and i can set it to go on any number of them and have had good results.. i thinkg i am with you .. i would do the bucket thing you probbly would get better results in the 133 minutes spent in churning it yourself .. lol

[Kimberly]

I resorted to the buckets last night...Spent 20 minutes chizzling ice off my freezer door so I could open it up (picture college dorm roof fridge with the itty bitty freezer section at the top of it) I of course used the chizzled ice in my ice bath....reuse reduce recyle

Well, I abused my bag , trying to let it know who was boss and who was going to win in our confrontation......in the end, it looks a bit better but it is still laughing and taunting me......

Round two starts tonight!!

[dudleyspinner]

Kimberly,

I happen to have an old wash board that I use for felting. Maybe you can find one somewhere. They really are the most efficient way of felting. I also use home made soap and keep the suds to a minimum.I soap in hot water, rub a while, then plunge into cold. With the wash board you can control the direction of the shrinkage by which way you rub.

Deb