# What does it mean when wool "felts"?



## kirei (Dec 2, 2004)

And is it bad? I'm so afraid of making my wool felt, but its not as though I'd know if it happened anyway... :LOL


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## 3 Little Monkeys (Mar 13, 2003)

nak

usually it means it shrinks, it's been in hot water, the fibers have gotten tighter together at least that's what I think it means :LOL


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## kirei (Dec 2, 2004)

Does felted wool LOOK any different (aside from shrinking)?


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## Ok (Feb 6, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *kirei*
Does felted wool LOOK any different (aside from shrinking)?

Well, yes... but you might need to know what it looked like before it got felted.

Ever have a favorite wool sweater in HS or college and it got thrown in the washer and suddenly it was 3 sizes too small? Like, now it fit a 7yo in stead of a grown woman? That was felting. And the wool would literally be thicker and mushed together. But you might not know it was thicker if you hadn't know what it felt like before that happened.

Some covers are pre-felted. I think, for instance, that fuzbombs are. And bumpy wool. And when I've made butt-sweater wool pants, I prefer to felt them so they'll be thicker (better for our lifestyle) and move "cover like." (I also like the idea of felting in case DH were accidentally throw them in the washer and/or drier







)

But a thinly knit wool that felts up might not feel so thick b/c it was so thin to start with. kwim?

Felted wool is usually less stretchy too. But if you're dealing with a wool fabric, they often are *that* stretchy to start with. So again, its mainly knowing size/feel before the shrinkage.


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