Can felted items be trimmed?

[Hello Again]

Ok, I just got my first felted bag out of the washer. Looks gorgeous and I'm thrilled at my first effort.

 

However, the left side is longer than the right side (they were even when I made it, I swear!) and it is quite noticable. I was wondering, can the "high" side be simply trimmed with scissors? I have tried stretching and pulling the low side but it only has so much give, and the sides are still noticably uneven.

 

If trimming is not doable or generally considered a bad idea, what are some fixes for bags which are uneven like this?

 

Thanks!

[sewmom]

I was able to adjust a bag that was "wonky" at the top by putting the larger part ONLY into a bowl of just-out-of-the-microwave boiling water, to re-felt just that portion. It worked VERY well!

[jpr54_]

u can cut felted wool but u need to sew piece back together

[Hello Again]

u can cut felted wool but u need to sew piece back together

 

Er, I'm just talking about trimming the top. Not cutting it apart.

[wren]

I have cut a loop off of a felted purse--it didn't unravel or anything, but it did make an unattractive raw edge where I cut it. I think that I will be able to make that look better by putting it back in the wash for a bit, but I haven't actually done that yet. (I don't have a washing machine, so I tend to do lots of felting all at once.) This probably isn't enough information to make you want to attempt it, but I thought I should share my experience.

[JCB]

Er, I'm just talking about trimming the top. Not cutting it apart.

 

You can trim felted wool without danger of it's fraying. I have a bag where one side on top is a bit higher than the other. I plan to trim it, and then just re-felt the cut part by hand using hot water w/ soap in a small bowl, then rinsing with cold. Not sure how this will work out... I just want to get the part I cut look like the part I didn't cut.

 

Joan

[sherryzzz]

I had a felted bag that just didn't turn out, so I cut it into circles. I didn't like the raw look of the cut circles, so I put them through a cycle in the washer again. The edges re-felted very nicely and I used the circles as coasters. (I even had enough circles from the bag to make a second set of coasters which I tied up with ribbon and sold.)

 

I've also had some luck with spritzing a bag that was very misshapen until it was pretty damp and then being able to pull it back into shape. You might want to try that first.