So now is truly the moment of truth for the Anna mittens. I just weaved in the last end and I'm about to throw them into the washer on 40'C for felting.
I am also going to throw in my slippers which I made just before Christmas that sadly turned out a tiny bit too big... Either I will ruin both of them, one of them or they will both turn out fine... I tell you, felting is SCARY!!!!
Now, you might be interested in how to felt in the washer so why not make a little step by step how I do it and blog it for you guys? Sure! Why the heck not! On to the washer we go!
First I wet the objects I am to felt...can't really remember if it's nessesary... Don't really care about what temperature that water has at this point, but it's just what I do... I sound SOOOO professional right now! I think it was to open the fibers so that the felting would start faster?
Then I put them in the washer along side a pair of jeans, you can also use towels. This is actually an old pair of mine whom I used so much that it started to get huge holes all over the place, they have now become my "felting jeans" and that is litterally their only purpose.
It's important to put something in with the objects you are felting because it causes friction and friction is one of the things that needs to happend for the felting to actually take place. You need heat and water, usually combined also known as hot water...either 40'C (104'C) or 60'C (140'F) if you're using a washer. If you're hand felting then you can just use as warm water you can manage. You will also need motion and friction. If you just put your object in hot water and let it sit for an hour, nothing will happend to it...except for getting wet... When you're handfelting you need to rub it against something or itself to get the felting started, this is where the jeans (or towels) come into the picture if you're felting in a washer.
Then I add a splash of green soap, you can also use a soap for wool or silk fabrics for a softer felting, but I prefer green soap myself...just what i grew up with when we felted in kindergarden, school and at home...cause we actually did alot of felting.
If you're nervous about leaving the machine on, then pause it frequently and check the result. When it's felted enough for your desire, stop it and rinse out the remaining soap. If you're too scared to use the washing machine, then felt by hand. The only downside to felting by hand (besides it takes forever and it's hard) is that the thing you're felting may get uneven felted. In a machine, the result get's alot more even and prettier.
Pepsi desided to join in on the action cause he's tired of being an adult and wants to shrink down to kitten size again...
Now. When you're finished felting, let it dry, but while it dries, you can shape it. Let's say you're making a pair of slippers, you can stretch them if they're a tad too small. You can give them the shape of a foot so that they're easier and more comfortable to use for the first time. I do not recomand flatten a pair of slippers down like a pair of socks and let them dry like that. They're horrible afterwards!
Got more felting questions? Leave them down below and I'll try to answer to the best of my ability! Wish me luck! I'll blog the results as soon as they're finished!
