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Recently I purchased a feltmaking kit from my favourite local sewing shop - Clothkits. The felting kit was made by Gillian Gladrag.
The felting kit contains all you need to get started with feltmaking – a large bamboo mat, a piece of netting, and an assortment of dyed wool roving.
I also purchased a kit for making a handfelted purse.
The purse kit contained enough dyed wool roving for making the purse, full how-to instructions and a plastic template that was used to shape the purse.
I followed the instructions for making the purse – and it did turn out as the instructions said it would. However, I was not entirely happy about the finished size. I thought it was a bit too small to make much of a purse. I tried to stretch the felt to make it larger, but it was too thick. This was my mistake – not the maker of the kit. I think I should have used thinner layers of felt as I was laying them out on the felting surface. Then it would have been much easier to stretch the purse into a larger shape.
Felted Flower Pot
But all is not lost – I decided to reshape the purse into a flower pot instead and fill it with felted flowers.
How to Make the Felted Flower
To make the felt flowers, I felted a few different coloured pieces of felt. I made these much thinner this time so that they would be very pliable. The felt squares were approx 8 – to 10 inches in size.
Once the squares were felted using the rolling mat, I continued the felting process by dipping the squares alternately in hot and cold water to felt them further to quite a firm stage. The felt squares shrunk about another 10-20% in size.
I folded the felt piece in half and half again, and cut out a circular, petal shape from the centre leaving about an inch of trim around the outside.
The inner circle will be the base of the flower, and the outer trim the petals.
Arrange the petal trim around the base of the flower, starting with the outside and working your way in.
Begin to needle felt the petal trim to the base of the flower, felting along the inner edge, and leaving the outer edge loose, as petals.
Keep felting your way along to the centre of the flower, arranging the petals in a circular shape into the middle. Use the felting needle until the petals are firmly in place.
Turn the flower over and using the felting needle, felt the bottom of the flower so that it is firm and holds the petals in shape. Needle felt a few indents into the flower so that the bottom of the flower doesn’t lay flat but is also shaped.
And to add a finishing touch, felt a bit of black wool into the centre of the flower.
Feltmaking Books
Felting – The Complete Guide
Combine painting and sculpture, wrap it up in the delightful texture of wool, and you have felting.
UK: Felting
Little Felted Animals: Create 16 Irresistible Creatures with Simple Needle-Felting Techniques
How to make the cutest little miniature animals, using just a few simple tools and some wool roving.
UK: Little Felted Animals
Feltmaking Kit
Did you know that the ray’s of the sun can be used to dye yarn? A solar oven can be constructed easily from simple materials.
Find 2 sturdy cardboard boxes that will fit inside each other.
The larger box should have a well-fitting lid.
Line the outside of the larger box with aluminum foil – shiny side out.
Line both the outside and inside of the smaller box with aluminum foil.
Place the smaller box inside the larger box.
Fill the gap between the 2 boxes with straw or cut up newspaper.
Cut a flap into the outer box lid – to the size of the smaller box.
Line the inside of the flap with aluminum foil – this will reflect the sun’s rays into the box.
Or use a mirror.
Find a piece of glass to fit over the box to use as a lid.
Paint the bottom of the inside of the box black.
Or find a piece of sheet metal to place into the bottom of the inner box and paint this black to absorb the heat.
Dye pots for a solar oven must also be black or a dark colour in order to absorb the heat.
The dye pot should also have a lid.
Place an oven thermometer into your solar oven so that you can see if it is working.
The solar oven will need to be moved during the day to follow the sun’s rays.
Solar Cooking
More information about cooking with solar power.
Solar Cookers
Some great images of different types of solar cookers.
Natural Dyes and Mordants
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As I travel on the train to work in London every day, the journey gets quite long and tedious. A 2 hour commute is a long time. Knitting helps to make this daily grind a bit easier. I have found that knitting small items is quite easy to do on a train and doesn’t disturb other passengers too much. I do get some funny looks sometimes as I pull my handspun yarn and knitting needles out of my bag.
I use circular needles so that I don’t stab whoever is sitting beside me with the end of the needle. I invested in a set of wooden circular needles from Knit Pro – they are fabulous to knit with.
UK: Knit Pro Symfonie
Knit Pro Symfonie Wood Circular Needle Interchangeable Deluxe Set
US: Knitters Pride Cubics Symfonie
Knitter’s Pride Cubics Symfonie Rose Deluxe Interchangeable Circular Needle Set
This is the knitted square that I designed yesterday as I travelled into work.
I knitted this with the gray Shetland yarn that I handspun earlier this week.
Shetland Squares No. 1
I cast on 26 stitches and knit this square on quite large knitting needles – 8mm – because I want the finished piece to be very light and airy. I will be putting all the knitted blocks together into an afghan. You can adapt this pattern to just about any yarns that you have on hand. Just continue knitting until the piece is square, or reasonably so.
This pattern is knit as a simple 4 stitch rib, with a bit of a cable twist added to it.
Knitting Chart ‘Rib Twist x1′
Legend
1/1 LC
Slip next st to cable needle and place at front of work, k1, then k1 from cable needle
Knitting Pattern ‘Rib Twist x1′
Row 1 (RS): k1, (p1, k4) x 5.
Row 2 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 3 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 4 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 5 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 6 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 7 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 8 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 9 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 10 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 11 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 12 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 13 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 14 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 15 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 16 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 17 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 18 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 19 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 20 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 21 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 22 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 23 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 24 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 25 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 26 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 27 (RS): (k1, p1, k1, 1/1 LC) x 5, k1.
Row 28 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Row 29 (RS): k1, (p1, k4) x 5.
Row 30 (WS): (p4, k1) x 5, p1.
Wool Roving
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I recently purchased some Shetland wool roving samples from World of Wool. The sample pack was 100 grams each of 4 natural shades of Shetland wool – White, Grey, Moorit and Dark Brown.
Sample Pack of Shetland Roving
I thought that I would spin these yarns up and knit an afghan consisting of different knitting patterns.
Here is the first one:
Single Ply Shetland Handspun Yarn
Single ply spun at 22 wpi
2 Ply Shetland Handspun Yarn
2 ply spun at 8 wpi
approx. 600 ypp
Knit Sample – Cable Wobble
Knitting Chart – Cable Wobble Pattern
I cast on 26 stitches and knitted this in a modified cable pattern over 4 stitches using 8mm knitting needles.
I have knit this on fairly large needles because I want the finished afghan to be quite light and airy.
If you are using handspun yarn of a different weight, follow the pattern along until you have formed a square.
This square uses approx. 20 grams of handspun yarn.
The knitting chart was designed on my new knitting design software – Knitting Chart Editor from Cathy Scott’s Stitch Mastery
I am very pleased with this software – I have searched for some time for knitting chart design software that is intuitive, easy to use and has the flexibility to also add your own stitches.
The software produces the chart and also the text form for knitting patterns – for those of us who find this easier to follow.
Also, Cathy was very helpful when I had a few hiccups with installing the software.
Legend
2/2 RC
Slip next 2 sts to cable needle and place at back of work, k2, then k2 from cable needle
2/2 LC
Slip next 2 sts to cable needle and place at front of work, k2, then k2 from cable needle
Knitting Pattern – Cable Wobble x4
Row 1 (RS): k26.
Row 2 (WS): p26.
Row 3 (RS): k26.
Row 4 (WS): p26.
Row 5 (RS): k3, (2/2 LC, k4) x 2, 2/2 LC, k3.
Row 6 (WS): p26.
Row 7 (RS): k26.
Row 8 (WS): p26.
Row 9 (RS): k3, (2/2 LC, k4) x 2, 2/2 LC, k3.
Row 10 (WS): p26.
Row 11 (RS): k26.
Row 12 (WS): p26.
Row 13 (RS): k2, (2/2 RC, k4) x 3.
Row 14 (WS): p26.
Row 15 (RS): k26.
Row 16 (WS): p26.
Row 17 (RS): k2, (2/2 RC, k4) x 3.
Row 18 (WS): p26.
Row 19 (RS): k26.
Row 20 (WS): p26.
Row 21 (RS): k3, (2/2 LC, k4) x 2, 2/2 LC, k3.
Row 22 (WS): p26.
Row 23 (RS): k26.
Row 24 (WS): p26.
Row 25 (RS): k3, (2/2 LC, k4) x 2, 2/2 LC, k3.
Row 26 (WS): p26.
Row 27 (RS): k26.
Row 28 (WS): p26.
Row 29 (RS): k26.
Row 30 (WS): p26.
This is the first of the knitting swatches from my new handspinning project. I still have several grams of wool roving to spin and more swatches to knit, so check back soon for more.
Rib Twist – Shetland Squares No. 2
Wool Roving
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If you have been following some of my posts to our Forum, I had mentioned that I was on a search for a new sewing machine. When I moved to London several years ago, I had purchased a budget sewing machine – a Janome. At the time I knew that I would eventually need to get a better quality machine in order to sew handwovens, but at that time, it met my basic sewing needs.Since I rented a weaving studio at Wimbledon Arts Studios, and have started to weave again, the first warp that came off my loom caused me problems when it came time to hem the edges of the sauna towels that I had woven. The fairly loose twill weave and roughness of the tow linen caused the old sewing machine to choke. The thread constantly broke, or the seam skipped many stitches. So I did a bit of research on the suitability of sewing machines. I was looking for one that would have the power to sew heavier or thicker fabrics, yet could also handle fine silks.
What attracted me to some of the Janome sewing machines is that they have a heavy duty motor. And can sew both jeans and leather. The Janome has 7 separate feed dogs, giving you better control for feeding the fabric as you are sewing.
About Janome
“In Japanese, the word Janome (pronounced Ja-NO-me) means “eye of the snake.” The company earned the name in the 1920s when founder Yosaku Ose, a pioneer in Japanese sewing manufacturing, began to use a round metal bobbin system instead of the traditional long shuttle. The Japanese thought the new round bobbin looked like a snake’s eye, and from the innovative design, a name was born.”This Janome sewing machine has a top-loading bobbin that is very easy to thread.
At first I considered purchasing the Janome DC3050 Computerised Sewing Machine because it seemed to have all the features that I was looking for. Then I found the Janome DXL603 (Janome 3160 QDC in US is similar I think) – that is more geared to the quilter, yet also had the more powerful motor that could sew the heavier fabrics. It is fully computerized and has 60 different stitch types, probably more than I will ever use, but the option is there.
And there happened to be a special promotional offer that gave me a quilting table that attaches to the free arm, giving me a larger surface for spreading the fabric on as I am sewing. It also came with additional foot attachments.
- Walking foot, quilting guide
- Darning foot
- 1/4″ seam foot
- Ditch quilting foot
- Craft foot
As I read through the instructions, and threaded the needle for the first time, I was delighted to find an automatic needle threader, that is easy to use, and seems to work flawlessly.In the past, when I have started to struggle with threading a sewing machine needle, it has been an indication to me that it may be time to visit my optometrist.After trying out the various stitches, I then tested the sewing machine on a remnant of the linen towel warp that my previous machine had struggled with. I was very happy to find that this Janome was able to sew the fabric without a hiccup. I used an overcast stitch along the edge and then turned the edge over tohem it. The sewing machine was also able to stitch flawlessly through 3 layers of the loosely woven linen fabric using the standard No. 14 needle.
The Janome DXL603 doesn’t need oiling. But if you are sewing with handwoven fabrics, please be aware that these tend to create a lot of lint, so you will need to clean and brush the lint from the bobbin casing and feed dogs quite frequently.So far, I am very happy with my new sewing machine purchase.
Sewing Machine
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The Yarn
I spun some hand dyed Corriedale top for this hat. It was spun at approx. 8 tpi and 12 wpi.
Knitted Hat Pattern
Knit in the round on circular needles
Cast on 80 stitches
Rolled Brim:
Knit 8 rows
Purl 3 rows
Seed Stitch:
Row 1
Knit
Row 2
K1, P1
Row 3
Knit
Row 4
P1, K1
Continue knitting in Seed Stitch for a length of 5 inches:
Top Edge:
Knit 3 rows
To begin decreasing for the top of the hat, divide the hat into 8 equal portions:
Knit 9, K2 Together,
Repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit.
Knit 8, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 7, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 6, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 5, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 4, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 3, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Knit 2, K2 Together, repeat to end of row.
Next row – Knit
Break the yarn leaving about 6 inches of thread.
Using a darning needle, thread the yarn through the remaining stitches on the needle.
Pull the stitches together tightly and sew the remaining end in.
Machine Felting
Now comes the scary part. To felt the hat, you will need to wash it in your washing machine. If you have a top loading machine, this process is a bit more controlled, as you can open the lid on the washer and check on the hat every few minutes. Since I’m now living in London, I only have a small side loading washer, that doesn’t open during the wash cycle.
Yes, this was nerve wracking, but I put the hat into the washer and added about a tablespoon of liquid washing detergent into the detergent loading tray. I set the washer to the gentlest setting, turned it on, and tried not to fret.
I did not add anything else to the washer – no other clothing, tennis balls, running shoes or other items. ‘When you add other things, it creates more agitation in the wash cycle, and causes the woollen item to felt more.
The end result was perfect!
Wool Roving
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I attended a needle felting workshop. Here’s how to make one of these wonderful little people.
Needle Felting
The Parts:
Fleece
Body, Head, Mouth, Eyes, Clothing
The Body
Form a piece of wool into a cone shape, and jab the wool with the felting needle, all over. Continue to push the needle in, working your way around the cone. Be very careful not to jab your fingers as the needles are very sharp..
Continue to work the needle around until the cone becomes quite hard. Leave the top centre a bit softer and form a bit of a dent into the top of the cone, as you will be needle felting the neck/head into this.
The Head
Take another piece of fleece and shape it into a small ball. Needle felt this all around until it is medium firm.
Take another piece of fleece and wrap it around the round ball, leaving the loose ends to form the neck.
The Nose
Take another small piece of fleece and fold it 3 times in one direction and then fold it over. Felt this into place on the head, forming the nose.
Position the neck into the indentation in the top of the cone-shaped body. Needle felt the neck/head into place.
Making the Top Lip
Take a very small piece of fleece and needle felt a thin line down the centre
Top Lip
Lift the felted fleece carefully from the foam sheet and fold it in half
Needle felt the outside edge of the fold until it is quite firm
Place the Top Lip under the Nose
Holding your thumb under the lip, carefully needle felt the lip into place, feathering in the edges of the fleece.
The Chin
Form a small ball and place it under the top lip, and needle felt it into place.
Bottom Lip
Make the Bottom Lip the same way as the Top Lip
Needle felt the Bottom Lip into place, covering the chin and smoothing the edges into place.
Form The Cheeks
Take small pieces of fleece and shape them into cheeks and needle felt into place
The Eyes
Making the Eyes
Using white wool form small balls and needle felt the eyes into place
Add some black wool for the centre of the eyes and add a touch of white.
Now that you have the basic shapes made for the face, you can continue to needle felt it todefine the desired shape and look of your needle felted doll. To design the clothing, needle felt small pieces of roving and shape these into skirts, pants, hats etc to clothe your doll. Add them to the doll and lightly needle felt them into place.
The felted little people:
Needle Felting
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Knitted and felted slippers – dyed with lichen. The lichen-dyed yarn samples were knit into squares, sewn together, and then felted by tossing into the washing machine. What a great way to use up small bits of yarn!
Block 1
Cast on and knit a square in garter stitch
Block 2
change the yarn colour and continue to knit another sqaure
Block 3
Pick up 14 stitches from the side of the 1st square and
continue to knit another square in garter stitch
Block 4 & 5
Change colour and knit another square continuing on from Blocks 2 and 3
Cast off the edges of Blocks 4 and 5
Block 6
Pick up stitches from the inside edge of Block 3
and knit a square in another colour, casting off when the block is completed.
Join Block 6 to the side of Block 2
Join the edges of Block 4 and 6 and sew together.
Join the edges of Block 5 and 6 and sew together.
This forms the back of the heel of the slipper.
Block 7
Knit another block for the top toe of the slipper and
sew this to the 2 outside edges of Block 1.
Fold Blocks 2 and 3 over and join the edges to Block 7.
Size Chart
The sizes of the squares give an allowance for felting shrinkage, however you will need to experiment with your yarn as different yarns felt and shrink at different rates.
| Toddler 1 – 3 years |
2.5 inches |
| Children 4 – 9 yrs |
3 inches |
| Womens |
3.5 inches |
| Mens |
4 inches |
Natural Dyes
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Jo posted these pictures and instructions on how to warp a Rigid Heddle loom, to our Forum.
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1. tie the end of your warp to the anchor (at a distance that is the lenghth of the warp you want…..
NOTE: clamp loom to a stable surface…. |
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2. Sley the slots (only) in the reed – by looping the end of the thread. The slip that loop over the stick attached to the back roller…… |
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Repeat this till the warp is the width you require…..
wrap around your anchor and then unwind the yarn to the heddle and pull loop of yarn through the next slot and so on…….. |
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This is what your finished warp will look like….. |
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Another view of finished warp…. |
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Now it is the time to cut the warp from your anchor…..
It may be best to have someone help you wind the warp as this can help keep even tention and makes it a lot easier for you…….. |
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I usually put paper between the layers of wound warp on the back beam……
When you get about 1 foot away from the “fixed” heddle (your heddle should be in the “fixed” position throughout warping)….
It is now time to sley the holes…..
take the top thread from the slot, starting on the left and put it in the hole to the right…… |
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Now it’s time to tie the warp to the front stick that is attched to the front roller/beam…..
Please be sure to tie with even tention…..
Here is what the warped loom looks like….. |
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Now it is time to weave……
usually you need to weave what’s called a “heading”…..just a few wefts till the warp is even (notice the taping at the front – you just want to get past this). When you put in a weft thread into the warp angle it up toward the heddle at about 45 degree angle – this will help to prevent the weaving drawing in at the sides……. |
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Now beat down that weft – not too hard – if you pack them down too hard your fabric may not drape as nicely.
Finally, always wet finish your piece. I wash my woolen item in the washing mashine with hot water but others prefer warm water or even hand washing – this can be an area to experiment as the wet finish can make or break a piece…..
Happy Weaving !! |
Knee Rugs woven on a Rigid Heddle Loom
Weaving Books
Weaving Made Easy: 17 Projects Using a Simple Loom
The small, portable rigid heddle loom can be used to easily produce loose, drape-friendly fabric as well as dense, sturdy material.
UK: Weaving Made Easy
The Weaver’s Idea Book: Creative Cloth on a Rigid Heddle Loom
Techniques include leno, Brooks bouquet, soumak, and embroidery on fabric.
UK: Weavers Idea Book
Rigid Heddle Looms
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19th Century Quilts
Mothers of Invention
25 Millennia of Innovation
Curated by Marijke Kerkhoven and Dr. Elizabeth Barber
19th Century Recycling
Handwoven Quilt
1890
Made from handwoven fabrics
Blocks are all handstitched
Quilt sewn from handwoven fabric
Quilted with tufts of wool yarn
Hand woven quilt Pattern
A free quilting pattern that you can use with handwoven fabrics.
Twenty-five Stories
Japanese Kimono
Weaving Looms
[worbay]weaving loom[/wordbay]
1943-44
fabrics and textiles
Textiles Postage Stamps
Northern Ireland
Textiles Postage Stamps
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