That Felty Feeling Part 2

Now...where were we? Ah yes! I was about to throw the bag into the washing machine!!!
Well despite my misgivings I decided to throw caution to the wind and go for it. So into a laundry bag went the bag, I added a towel to the washing machine to get some agitation going, machine set to 40 degrees medium wash and then the nail biting began!

I swear to god that was the longest wait ever!!! I tried to distract myself by keeping busy but I couldn't resist peeking nervously into the machine a few times! Couldn't see a thing haha!!!

And then the time came......

Ah yes....just the right amount of fuzziness!

Stitch definition still present! Whoop Whoop!!!!

One very happy Maria :-)

Next came the task of choosing a lining for my bag. I opted for for a polka dot pattern in a linen/cotton mix. A perfect weight for a bag lining. Now I'm not a great sewer so the next bit was pretty scary stuff! I placed the bag on top of the lining and cut around it leaving a 1 inch seam allowance. I decided to double line the bag (won't do that again!!!). So basically I made a lining that looked the same on both sides. Miraculously it actually fitted snuggly inside the bag. I attached the lining by hand sewing. Having come this far, I really didn't trust my machine sewing skills! 

I even stitched in my very own label!

So this is the finished bag. I'm very pleased with it! I added some handles that are just the right length so the bag snuggles very comfortably under my arm.

A little peek of the lining. Oh I do love polka dots!!!!!

So now I'm no longer a felting virgin, I plan to do another felty project. Next time real fuzzy felt! Not a sign of a crochet stitch in sight. Ah I'm itching to get started already!

Before I go, can I suggest you pop over to my good friend Anita's blog. Yours truly is a guest blogger over there today :-)

Til next time!

Maria x

Getting a feel for felting part one!

Arghhh!!!!! Where does the time go? It honestly feels like 4 days since I last posted rather than a couple of weeks. But, to be fair, they've been crazy crazy busy weeks. There was a birthday to celebrate (obviously I'm 21 again!!!), 2 major inspections at work and a guest room to finish (remember the room of doom???). So I'm in catch up mode again. But's getting there. Oh it's all starting to feel calmer. Much calmer!

In the whirlwind of hustle and bustle over the last few weeks I've haven't had much hooky time. Sad times! However I did manage to finish my felted bag. Being a complete and utter Virgo I like things to be perfect. I'm obsessive about neat finishes, so the thought of willingly chucking a finished and very pretty crochet item in the washer when it clearly states on the yarn label HANDWASH ONLY!!!! kind of goes against the grain! However I really wanted to try out this felting malarkey.

So in true Virgo form I did a test felted square. I used Icelandic lace weight wool.

Beautiful colours all neatly caked (guess who treated herself to a yarn winder???) with a dark grey for the edges. I chose the Maybelle flower pattern with this edging technique. Very simple but effective.

I loved how the dark grey just seemed to make the coloured flowers pop! Now yes I wanted a felted finish to this bag but I still wanted to see some stitch definition. So next came some experimental washing of a sample square! I tried a 40 degree quick wash. When I took it out of the machine I thought it needed more felting so back in it went! 

Yup, 2 washes gave just the right look I wanted! Happy with that I went on to hook up enough squares to make a nice sized bag.

I joined them using that gorgeous bright green and a double crochet stitch. At this point I seriously was having second thoughts about flinging it in the washer! I mean doesn't it look lovely? 

Check back tomorrow to see whether or not I was brave enough!!!

Til then...

Maria x