That’s where I come to the rescue!  I love to find old woolen items, blankets, sweaters, scarves and hats to cast into my own washing machine, hang to dry outdoors in the crisp air, and then cut into wonderful pieces.  Then I create….jewelry cases, laptop bags, tote bags, table runners, tea cozies, pillow tops.

I even try to find old purses with lucite and bamboo handles that I can reclaim and repurpose into handles for my tote bags.  If I line the bag with fabric, I’ll use old shirt fabric or remnants I find at the fabric store.

I’m all about re-claiming, recycling, repurposing old, cast-off fabric and wool to make something new, useful and beautiful.

Here are a few of those items I’ve worked on this Spring.

Little jewelry cases

Some have closures that are ribbons and buttons, while some have velcro.

A lovely tote bag from a felted sweater.

This was a beaded, Ralph Lauren sweater that is now a knitting bag with a recycled lucite handle.

The handle of this bag was formerly an Army belt.

The brown woven handle on this bag was formerly a man's belt.

Related Articles

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It’s difficult to see the rusching on the back side of the scarf once it’s nuno felted.  However, it makes a lovely texture that can be worn on the reverse.  A nuno felted silk scarf is warmer than silk alone but the lightweight scarf allows the wearer an accessory that still breathes but  captures warmth.

Silk scarf nuno felted with silk & merino roving

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Here are a few of the denim jackets and vests I took to sell at the Yellow Rose Fiber Producers’ Fiesta in Seguin, TX.

Gathering Wool Booth at the Yellow Rose Fiber Fiesta

Jacket for Texas Longhorn Fan

Perfect jacket for the Texas A&M "Aggie"

Here’s another table runner that was made from tan wool from a sweater and a red cashmere sweater.  Both were fulled and then I sewed the red cashmere to the back of the tan wool.  I sewed triangles, as you can see from the picture.  Then I cut away the tan wool so that the red cashmere showed through as a reverse applique.

This purse was made from a felted wool vest.  I used parts of a dark charcoal grey sweater to make the strap and the bottom section of the purse.  A large green, ceramic button from my button box was meant to be the closure for this little handbag.

View showing inside pocket of purse

I used a small piece of the grey wool to make a small inside pocket – perfect for a cell phone or to hold a credit card and driver’s license.

I have been fairly prolific lately in making items out of felted wool sweaters.  When I leave the sweaters in the wash for a short amount of time, they are felted but more pliable.  The off-white fisherman sweater was left in the washer too long and fulled so densely.  This caused me to think for quite a while about what item would be best made and used from a dense piece of wool.  The decorative cables and bumps in the sweater pattern fulled so nicely giving texture and definition to the bowl.  I have balls of yarn in it now – but it would be  a fine bowl for fruit or even for keeping rolls hot at dinner.

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These pillows are made from felted wool and cashmere sweaters.  I cut the pieces of sweater to fit the pillow forms that I had – and used colors that I thought would fit the soft, feathery feel of the cashmere.  The flying heart pattern is from Sharon’s book. I hope you’ll look for it in your local bookstore or library.

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It’s lovely to shop for yarn!  It’s fun, refreshing and inspiring to see the new Spring colors, feel the texture of the yarn and imagine the new and exciting projects one can complete.  BUT, there’s that nagging feeling that I don’t NEED more yarn….yes, you know the feeling.  The one that creeps up on you and niggles at your heart and says, “What about the stash you already have? When are you going to use all of THAT yarn?”

Well, if you are a serious knitter, crocheter or felter, you have a stash.  It may be little, or it may be larger than little!  I don’t know any knitter that doesn’t have SOME extra yarns sitting around waiting patiently for a project to begin.

It’s very difficult for me to remember all the yarn in my stash.  But recently I took out the storage boxes and carefully looked at what’s in there.  Oh, the luscious sock yarn, the sturdy wools, the dreamy Alpacas, the utilitarian acrylics, the sumptuous cashmere – all reminding me of the investment I have in my stash!

So, it’s time for me to peruse the pattern books, sit down with my dream book and write down the projects I hope to complete this Spring.  I already have requests for two more cowls and an afghan in primary colors.  But I need to finish Mr. B’s second sock (the first one is sitting in my basket as a constant reminder that I need to do sock #2).  And, of course, there’s that beautiful black and sparkly yarn I bought several years ago for the shrug I want to knit for myself!

All I need is more time – or to retire early!  So, what’s in your stash?  What stash, you say?  And I laugh knowing you probably have one too!

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I love a new beginning!  I haven’t blogged in a while due to various reasons.  I did have a productive Christmas knitting season and I’ll share pictures with you.  But now I’m working on other projects – for the NEW YEAR!

There are so many things I want to knit and felt – making it very difficult to prioritize my projects.   Right now it’s easy to prioritize according to birthdays or anniversaries.  But the REAL project I am anxious to begin is the black shrug I’ve intended to make for myself…for 3 years!  LOL!  The yarn is purchased, the pattern is waiting patiently in my book, and yet, I have all of these other “need to finish” projects that have taken first place in the queue.

Here are the projects I finished for Christmas:

Josh’s cap – a pattern I took out of the  Holiday 2010 Knit Simple magazine.  This is one of my most favorite knitting magazines…lots of fun and easy patterns. This cap is shown on page 28 and is actually very easy to make.  I used Paton’s Classic Wool in Moss Heather with Size 7 circular needles ( of course, I used my Knit Picks Wood Harmony needles THAT I LOVE!).

Josh's Cap

Top of Josh's Cap

Sandy’s Felted Denim Jacket – This denim was very thick.  Sandy wanted roses – so I searched for some type of pattern and couldn’t find one.  Finally, I made a pattern myself and since this denim jacket had no yoke – it was easier to “free style” the needle felting making a pattern.

Sandy's Jacket

Easy Cowls – These cowls were knitted with Paton’s Classic Wool Merino in the color Harvest.  I used my Harmony circular needles in sz 8.  This pattern is one of Sandy’s originals and is so easy.  I cast on 150 and joined the stitches knitting 6 rows and purling 5 rows, repeating until the cowl was approx. 8 inches in width, then I cast off.

So far I’ve knitted two of these in various colors and I’m working on my third.

Laptop Bag for Richard – This was a felted sweater that I made into a laptop bag.  I re-purposed a used woven belt for the shoulder strap and a bone button I had for the closure.  I didn’t take a picture of the inside of the bag, but there is a large pocket that will hold papers, a smaller pocket for a calendar and cell phone and another small pocket for pens and pencils.

Nine Pairs of Fingerless Gloves / Wrist Warmers- Yes, I was quite prolific with this project.  I took the sleeves of felted sweaters and cut them off.  Then I cut a notch in the sleeve to make a place for the thumb, sewed it up, and did a zig-zag stitch all the way around to keep the edges clean.  Then I  single crocheted around the openings and VOILA’….fingerless gloves/mittens – or whatever you want to call them.

These are perfect for the teenager/student who wants to text or wear them while riding their bikes across campus.  I used various colors of yarn to crochet around the edges, and also needle felted over the holes that were in the sweater arms.  Here are two pairs that haven’t yet found a home!

Fingerless Gloves from a Sweater Sleeve

So yes, I was busy during the evenings of November and December.  I also baked A LOT and managed to have the stomach virus twice.

I’m so very grateful to have seen in a NEW YEAR!  I hope yours will be blessed with good health, prosperity and lots of love.

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The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is on fire!.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 2,300 times in 2010. That’s about 6 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 37 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 59 posts. There were 125 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 66mb. That’s about 2 pictures per week.

The busiest day of the year was July 28th with 204 views. The most popular post that day was Gathering Wool – It’s SO much FUN!.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were ravelry.com, recovergirl.wordpress.com, en.wordpress.com, bibmomma.wordpress.com, and woolfeltshop.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for nuno felting, betz white, troy blanket mills, purses made from recycled wool, and felted wool projects.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Gathering Wool – It’s SO much FUN! July 2010

Another Use For Felted Wool Sweaters January 2010
1 comment

NUNO FELTING February 2010
1 comment

Using Felted Wool Sweater Pieces September 2010

How to Felt Wool September 2009

WWI Red Cross Knitting

During World War I and World War II the American Red Cross encouraged citizens to knit socks and hats for our soldiers serving in those wars.  They even furnished patterns and suggested needle sizes to use so that the items would be uniform when sent to soldiers.  If you’d like to see some of the original patterns, go to the American Red Cross Museum.

Today we have young men and women serving in the United States military forces in cold weather countries.  There are numerous ways to help, by knitting and crocheting helmet warmers, socks, and blocks to be made into afghans for wounded soldiers.  As we approach the holidays, we also have the opportunity to send holiday cards and greetings to those serving in the military for our country.  These holiday mailings brighten the day for our young men and women who may not receive very much mail from home.

Below you will find links to sites that sponsor projects, give patterns and addresses to mail your contributions.  I encourage you to dedicate some time, energy and your crafting talent to become an encouragement to one of our hard-working soldiers serving for our country.

If you are having a gathering of family and friends at Thanksgiving, why not buy an extra box of Christmas or holiday cards?  Have every person write a personal greeting and send it on to the “Holiday Mail for Heroes”.  This is a simple way to use your Thanksgiving to really give thanks to someone who is making a sacrifice for you! The American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes collect, scan and sort the cards to send to our soldiers, veterans and families of those serving in our military.

• The SHIPS Project – Knitted or crocheted hats, slippers, socks and “cool ties” in VERY specific colors and yarn for our active-duty troops. SHIPS Project
• The Handmade Afghans Project – Knit or crochet 6 x 9 inch square to be made into an afghan for a wounded soldier in a medical facility.  Handmade Afghans Project
• Citizen S.A.M. – Make a quilt for a wounded soldier to stay warm as he is transported on a military cargo plane to a hospital.  Citizen S.A.M.

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