Arggh! Well, I was initally pretty disappointed.

Not at all like felt, in my opinion. Still too much like knitting with fluff stuck on it. Guess I was hoping for some kind of magical transformation. Hmmm, suppose I was also hoping felting might be something I’m naturally good at: a craft for impatient, messy and distracted people! 😀

Put it through the washing machine again, then with dirty clothes for a normal (cold) wash, then tumble dry. Slightly better, but stitches still pretty clear. However. Started looking around the internet last night (looks like a good book here p.15) and walked down to my local library today. Not as disappointed now. I reckon if you look closely at the book photos of felted knits, mine’s pretty much the same.

As for the embroidery, I’ll go chain stitch next time. Chain stitch’s about the thickness of the sewing on the back, which turned out best. And as the book says, it shrinks far more top/bottom than side/side. 21 down to 14cm top/bottom, 21 to 17cm side/side.

Before felting (yes, I know technically it’s actually fulling). Front and back.
I was trying for a range of thicknesses in the embroidering, just to see which looks the best & how subtle I can be … unfortunatley, the more I look at it, the more I hate that cream!!!
Memo to self: always use fun colours, even if you’re just testing. 😀

I don’t quite know how it happened.

I was idly looking at craft-related blogs, clicking on links from one to the other, admiring swaps and craft-alongs, smiling at finished products on Flickr, skimming Self-Portrait Tuesdays … I started to see craft blogs as a real community, a way of having other craftspeople chat with me in my livingroom, even though they live over the other side of the world. In short, I wanted to take part … so here goes.

My first blogged project. An experiment with making knitted felt (something I’ve never done before). I was thinking a pot holder, perhaps, or even a scarf. Mainly I can’t wait until I’ve knitted enough to start embroidering on it in purple – I was thinking dandelions or maybe paisley… and then I can’t wait to put it in the washing machine and start felting!

Ok, so it’s not the nicest cream, and in fact it matches my rented house’s carpet perfectly… oh well, I just bought the cheapest 100% wool I could find. It’s my hand in the picture, and my new baby daughter’s.