I can't wait to hear the girls when they arrive home from school - the first thing they say will be "What smells in here, oh, Mom's been felting again!" While the green/pink purse awaits handles, I decided to felt a purse that has been languishing unfelted for a week or so. I must admit felting carries with it a distinctly "sheepish" aroma that I'm afraid is the closest I'll ever come to owning sheep - so I like it! Because of our change from a regular washing machine to a high efficiency machine, felting has become a little more of a "trial and error" pursuit. This time I started the felting in the sink and then moved to the washing machine (felting occurs when fibers like wool meet up with heat and agitation - think about the wool sweater that shrunk accidentally - this is the same process except on purpose). The purse will have handles (seen on the side) that will be attached as soon as everything is dry. The yarn felted a little bumpier (I'm sure that is a technically correct knitting term) than I expected and the jury is still out on whether I like the shape or not (it has a round flat bottom). The yarn is beautiful hand painted yarn that I picked up at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival last May from a great Maryland vendor Dancing Leaf Farm
