Can white wool be felted?

#1

I’ve just read in a pattern regarding a specific wool that white or yellow may not felt! :shock: I’m about 1/4 way through knitting a WHITE booga bag for a friend using Paton’s Classic Merino Wool and I am panicking :expressionless: I didn’t do a felt swatch but am going to do one tomorrow before I go any further on the bag.

I just need to know if this is a common rule out there about white wool or if it is just this particular one for some reason. Pllleeeeeeeeease I need good news here! :pray:

#2

white sometimes doesnt felt since the manufaturer had to bleach it iwth harsh chemicals in order to make it white.

#3

Huh, that is funny… you usually think of white as being the most untouched! But yeah, I guess reall wool isn’t white! :doh:

#4

Could you knit up a small swatch, maybe 3x3, or 4x4, then attempt felting it, to see what happens? :thinking:

#5

That’s exactly what I intend to do. Man I’ll really feel stupid if I have to tell my friend that she can’t have her white bag. :doh:

#6

I pray it felts for you. :pray:

#7

I KNEW that I wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight if I didn’t do my test swatch today, so off I went… :x: :x: :x: :x: :x: :x: :x: … I did a teeny sample, only 10 stitches by about 10 rows.

I hand felted it for about 5 minutes under fairly hot water and I think it is going to work. It probably will work better too if I machine felt it. May take a bit longer but halleluia I think it will work!!

:cheering:

#8

That’s GREAT news…

I was worried, as my LYS owner was making felted white bunny slippers for her niece & teh white parts wouldnt felt! The pink inside the ears felted beautifully, but not the rest of the slippers…

#9

I purchased white yarn to kool aide dye … and use for a felting project. What should I buy instead of white???

#10

I would get natural or cream… I’ve heard the off white colors dye better (but I’ve never tried so I can’t say for sure!)

#11

I have some off-white or natural or cream colored alpaca (am not sure what color you’d classify it, I found it in a thrift store). Anyhoo, I felted a test swatch of it, and it felted wonderfully. In fact, I keep the little test swatch here at my desk and find myself stroking it throughout the day. It seems to relieve stress, kind of like one of those worry stones. :lol:

As someone here stated, it’s probably the bleach they use to “whiten” yarn which causes it to be unfeltable.

#12

Actually, the yarn I am using is an off-white. It is called Winter White. Phew!!

#13

Debbie, Here is a link to a picture from this site (not knitting related per se, click on the “non-piping link” ), which shows what the different kool aid/flavor aid flavors look like when used to dye a creamy yarn and a darker brow/greyish yarn. Might be helpful.

I wonder what would happen if we knitted/felted an off-white swatch, and then bleached it after it was felted? :?? It would probablly be different for each yarn…

#14

Thanks Hilde!