My first felting project, got any tips?

[CLLinda]

I am waiting for some yarn to come in from Patternworks so that I can try my first felting project. I am going to make a hat out of some purple wool yarn. I love making hats, and I thought if I learned to felt, It would open a whole new door to my creative side.

 

Is there any good tips on how to felt? I have a pattern, and a book about crochet felting.

 

I can't wait to try this project, once my yarn comes in.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Linda:cheer

[nataleeza]

Oh, you're going to have so much fun!

 

My main tip would be to check it's prgress frequently once you've started felting. It can be slow to start, but once the felting starts it gets a lot quicker, and you don't want to make it so small that you can't stretch it back.

[francesca]

You're bold to felt a hat as a first project! I started with felted bags until I really got the feel for how much a certain pattern and yarn shrink during the felting process.

 

That having been said, make sure your stitches are relatively loose so that there is a lot of free space around them to agitate during the felting. Also, don't be alarmed if your hat seems huge before felting--it will shrink down to size.

 

Best of luck! I'm a felting addict and I'm glad to see other crocheters catching on. Post a pic of your hat when you're done! Can't wait to see.

[jpr54_]

what pattern for hat are u using?

[CLLinda]

My yarn came today! I am so happy! But I have so many other things to do that it may have to wait until after the holidays or maybe during Christmas Break from school before I get to it.

 

The pattern I bought was from patternworks and it is a Fiber Trends one called Crocheted Felt hat by Bev Gadeskas.

 

It calls for a size K hook. Is that big enough? or should I try an L or M? I am a little nervous but excited at the same time. I do love trying new things and this is a big step for me.

 

I bought a pretty purple coat for the winter and wanted a hat that I made myself to go with it. So I think this derby style hat will be just great, and help keep me warm in the boonies of McHenry County, Illinois. I hate winter. If I could move to someplace warm, I would do it in a heartbeat! But it does give me excuses to make lots of fun scarves!!! I will post a picture of it when finished. Getting my daughter a digital camera for the holidays (and my usage as well)

 

Any more hints and help would be great.

 

linda:cheer

[jpr54_]

i would definitely suggest doing a guage test square-

i did not do this but i do now-

i used the same pattern-and did not get good results-

the hat was enormous even after the first wash-

i have to go back to the laundromat to wash it again-

i think it was the wool i used-

the pattern was easy to follow-

[CLLinda]

Were you happy with the final product? The yarn I bought was from Brown sheep. I hope it felts nicely.

 

Let me know what kind of yarn you tried.

 

 

Linda

[jpr54_]

I made a bag using lambs pride and it felted beautifully.

The yarn I used was from a small company Kraemer yarns-

[tagteacher]

I just made a small felted purse. It was 7 1/2 " x 14" before it was felted. After washing it and then wetting it again in very hot water, it is still the same size. What am I doing wrong?

[YarnThing]

I find that the best stitch for crochet when you are going to felt it is the Half Double Crochet. It has been my experience that this particular stitch felt evenly both width and height. The double crochet shrinks up too much width wise versus height and the single crochet in my opinion leaves too much stitch definition for myself.

 

I also like to wash mine in hot water in the washer a couple of time to make sure the bag is felted nicely and I don't have any holes.

 

It is important to remember that you need 100% wool to 75% wool blend to felt...the lower the amount of wool the less amount it will felt.

 

It is also possible to felt something while holding on to a tag along yarn or fun fur with the wool. makes a really nice finishing touch.

 

I know that there is a really good felting site called http://www.woolcrafting.com that explains a lot about felting crochet. go check them out if you have any questions...maybe you can find answers there :-)

 

Good Luck...you are going to LOVE Felting!

 

OH...and lambs Pride felts GREAT! So does Patons Classic Wool, Lion Brand Wool, and Ella Rae Wool. Just thought I would throw that out there.

[Doey]

I'm a very tight crocheter.... I generally use no smaller than a J hook on most everything I make ( it gives me the guage of a H or I hook ) .... with the felting I find that I like the K size for most sports weight yarns and a M or N for worsted weights and double stranding. I find that my projects seem to be softer if I use double crochets and stiffer if I use single crochets. I have tried to practice on not crocheting so tight but I guess its just me. But I am getting looser. I made some awesome crocheted rag rugs using fabric strips.... they were really stiff... that big big turqoise hook was almost to small for my tight crocheting!

 

Have a great crochet day!

Doey

[smokeyp81]

Here are a couple of hats that I have made using the Fiber Trends pattern. (the same as yours). I used a K hook and had no problem. I also followed the pattern as written.

 

 

This one was made with Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride. It has a great "halo" from the mohair.

 

 

This one is made with SWS. Be careful if you use that yarn.....it felts extremly fast!

 

Don't stress too much about the felting process. It is great fun and you will be "hooked"...no pun intended!