Fancy Feltwork
TRANSFORMING OLD WOOL SWEATERS INTO
NEW CREATIONS NEVER FELT SO GOOD.
BY TIFFAN Y THREADGOULD
Wash a wool sweater in the
washing machine and you’ll
see it shrink to child-sized. This, my
adult-sized friends, is called felting.

Photograph by Sam Murphy

Agitating wool in water causes the fibers to bind onto each other and shrink. The great news is that this binding action creates a dense, soft material whose raw edges won’t fray.

I’ll show you how to convert old sweaters into a scarf and potholder, Tiffany Threadgould is a design junkie who gives scrap materials _{a second life. Her business, RePlayGround ( replayground.com),} and you can use this same felted wool sells recycled goods and features DI Y projects.

for other crafty creations. (Felting
works best with 100% wool sweaters.)

The next time your favorite wool sweater accidentally slips into the wash and shrinks to oblivion, take another look. See it as raw material for your next craft project. You might even start shrinking sweaters on purpose.