December 17, 2009

More Felt Fun






Yesterday morning, when I was supposed to be writing four articles (wild yeast collecting anyone?) that were due that afternoon I was instead playing around with another felted sweater. I know - procrastination - what can I say, I'm a last minute girl.

I'd actually felted two lambswool sweaters that I'd found while perusing the Goodwill a few weeks ago. I also, by the way, got a men Harris Tweed blazer for $3.50. HARRIS TWEED! I haven't yet decided what to do with that, but I'm thinking skirt, if my sewing machine ever recovers... But back to the sweaters. After hacking off the sleeves for fingerless gloves and the bottom for an as yet undetermined rectangular project, I used the scraps to make this uber quick flower.

Five rough circles (I used a ribbon spool as a pattern). And yes, there are seven there, but I only used five....










Two cut to make thin petals.












Two little slits in the center of each, run a twist tie through and done.














For kicks I pinned it to the other sweater which, once felted, was just Evelyn's size. As a connoisseur of flowers as accessories she loved it and pointed it out to the grocery store clerk, the Lowes key guy and everybody we passed on in the parking lot until she forgot she had it on and went about the rest of her day. As a lady should. I'm on the hunt for a big red button to sew into the center but for now, I like it the way it is. Sort of carnationy. And if she looses it, well, there are always more wool scraps....

I've also had a few requests for fingerless glove instructions. Let me tell you, this is just about the easiest thing you can make. The super simple version is to cut the sleeves off a felted sweater, pull them over your hands so the wrist part sits at your knuckles, mark where your thumb should go and then cut a slit a little longer than your thumb is wide.

The harder version (which is still ridiculously easy) is to then turn the sleeves inside out, mark where you need to stitch in to make them tighter around the wrists. Take them off, sew, remove excess fabric and you have fitted sleeveless gloves.

* I prefer to have the seam of the sleeve along the bottom of the glove rather than the side. If you want to do this, just make sure that's where the seam is when you are marking and cutting the thumb hole.

It's a great - stitch while you watch TV- kind of project and I finished them up last night doing just that (hence the dim photos, sorry). I'm hoping to move onto the rectangle tonight. I have a few ideas but since some of them are Christmas gift related, any successful projects will have to wait till after the holidays.