Comments on: Things I Learned Felting Sweaters.

By: Pinktulipza

Pinktulipza — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 07:29:15 +0000

Very useful post again, thanks! I am currently looking at felting sweaters but cannot find any locally. Our weather is far too warm for wool or cashmere sweaters. Only a few upmarket shops sell some and they are really expensive. Do you perhaps know of any online sources where I can find good priced sweaters to felt?

By: two bits of string » Blog Archive » 15 Things To Do With Old Sweaters

two bits of string » Blog Archive » 15 Things To Do With Old Sweaters — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 18:56:59 +0000

[...] Step one: Shrink a sweater. Put a sweater into the washing machine using hot water and a little bit of soap. Dry it in the dryer. You should have a sweater that is about 20-30% smaller than before. (repeat?) Here are some tips. [...]

By: Sister-Diane

Sister-Diane — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:39:40 +0000

Right you are, Janet, and thanks for calling attention to my omission. I learned this very important precaution after this post, and have included it in my live classes and subsequent posts on felting, but had completely forgotten to stop back here and add it. Great advice, to be sure!

By: janet

janet — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:10:23 +0000

Hello all…OK, enough..stop right where you are. Do not put another sweater in your washer without first enclosing it in a mesh bag or I like to use a pillow case and rubber band the top shut. All those loose fibers you keep talking about are KILLING your machine! I have been site surfing and almost everyone is leaving out this step. Believe me..your washing machine motor and pump will thank you. Of course if you have a washer death wish, this is the fastest way to put it out of it’s misery. Hope this advice helps…have fun felting.

By: Craft Leftovers » Book Review :: Sweater Surgery!

Craft Leftovers » Book Review :: Sweater Surgery! — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:48:56 +0000

[...] you want to go grab some sweaters to use right now, this day, this second – Sister Diane wrote up what she learned from felting sweaters and I wrote up this tutorial on recycling a sweater for [...]

By: Craft Leftovers » How To:: Recycling Sweaters for Yarn

Craft Leftovers » How To:: Recycling Sweaters for Yarn — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:56:17 +0000

[...] great use of sweaters from the thrift store is to felt them. Diane of the Crafty Pod talks all about it here in this great post she wrote up about [...]

By: kristinroach

kristinroach — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 16:21:36 +0000

Oh those are such great tips! Thanks for sharing. I’ve been doing a lot of felting of sweaters lately and this will really help out. I got a whole bunch for free from the consignment shop I work at, but now I’m starting to run low and I will need to start digging at the thrift store for them and your fiber content tip will really help me find what I’m looking for. You rock sister D, I can’t wait to see what you are scheming up for the next meeting!

By: MysticSpiral

MysticSpiral — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 22:43:08 +0000

You can patch the holes in a felted sweater by needle felting embellishments over them. My favorite options are:

1. Find a cookie cutter slightly larger than the hole, fill it with wool roving, and jab with a felting needle until the whole area is felted down. This gives you a beautifully regular shape that can be repeated in multiple places on the same project. (I have a number of sets of cookie cutters that are different sizes of the same motif.)

2. Needle felt scraps of wool (other animal fibers work as well, I solicit scraps from all my knitter friends) to your felted sweater to create linear decorations that cover small holes.

3. Create a 3-d embellishment that can emerge from the hole. For example, a small bouquet can be needle felted through a hole so that it looks like a boutonniÃ¨re a small portion of a face can be needle felted in such a way that it looks like someone is peeking out of the hole.