In Jest slippers by Anna Tillman

This is the first time I've knitted a project for felting (deliberate felting!)

I couldn't believe she was being serious when a friend picked these and asked me to make them for her. They're the most fun pattern in Anna Tillman's book, and they look quite ridiculous when knitted to the pattern before felting.
 I knew that knitted fabric shrinks when felting, but I'd no idea just how much. And of course this means that there's a lot of knitting to do. Even though they're knit on 5mm needles, each was like a full-length sleeve and seemed to take an age.
The result is so worth it. The felt is sturdy and thick and looks much neater than the original knitting. Here they are with my hand for scale - pull the other one, it's got bells on!

2 comments:

Misty Cottage Crafts said...

Those slippers look amazing! I can't believe how much they felted down.

peahen said...

Thank you! I'm really pleased.

It's my first go at felting, I knew that wool shrinks quite a bit (haven't we all found out by accident?!) but I had severe doubts as I was knitting and saw how large they were coming.

It's best to felt little by little so that you don't go too far, but I feel that they would have just kept shrinking and shrinking (the fabric gets firmer and firmer too).