Can an item be felted in just hot water or does it need to be washed....

[Jempast]

I am going to try felting this week. I was wondering if I could just put my crocheted item I want to felt in a sink full of hot water or do I need to wash it in the washing machine with hot water?

[losingmymind2]

I have successfully felted small pieces by hand. You need friction/agitation to get the wool to felt, so what I do is:

 

Place item and some baking soda and/or dishwashing liquid (no chlorine) in the sink.

Add hot water as hot as possible, if necessary add some from kettle.

Take a potato masher or new plunger (plumbers helper) and start mashing and smashing away.

 

If you want, you can agitate and rub with your hands, but you might want rubber gloves to keep from stripping the oils from your hands.

 

Just work the wool item until it is as felted as you want, then rinse well in cold water to stop the felting process.

 

I add a bit of hair conditioner to the final rinse water.

[Krakovianka]

I've felted small items by hand before. You need hot water and friction, of course, but another thing you can do is subject the piece to temperature changes. Keep a bowl of cold water nearby, and every so often, plunge the piece into the cold water. When I felt by hand, I can *feel* the wool getting harder and firmer in my hands when I do this. Then, back to the hot water for more rubbing and scrubbing. I use a tiny drop of detergent in my hot water, so my finished piece smells "clean" (but then, most of my wool comes from thrift shops, and I want it to be washed anyway).

[MaryPat]

Here's a brief discussion of hand felting.

http://knitting.about.com/od/felting/ss/hand_felting.htm

[smokeyp81]

I have tried to felt by hand to save my washing machine from the fuzz that comes off....in my opinion...don't bother. Unless you don't own a washing machine and it's your only option. I tried to felt in a bucket with super hot water and I used a clean plunger. I was so sore the next day I couldn't beleive it! It took forever! It can be done, but it takes a lot of "elbow grease"!

[prim-in-tyme]

Thanks for all the advise !I just wet felted a hat in the laundry mate washer and I think I will try to refelt it in the sink..

[Schmetterling]

You can do it in the sink no problem but the agitation is a critical factor. If you do it in the washer be sure to toss in some jeans or towels or something for agitation.