What are the different ways to calculate how big your knitting needs to be to arrive at a certain size that your pattern calls for after you finish felting?
The basic calculations are approximately:
Knit Swatch
• 85% of the width and 75% of the length of the knitting
Crochet Swatch
• 80% of the width and 95% of the length
For example if the instructions call for US size 7 needle for 5 stitches per inch, you would do a size 10 needle for 3.75 inches prior to felting.
The fibers need ample room to work themselves together. Therefore, you will need to knit a garment that is about 1.5 times the size of the original result.
If you knit the piece to tightly, the fabric will only felt a very limited amount. You would likely end up with a garment that is too big and will appear half felted. This will look chunky and bumpy.
Most patterns recommend trying a swatch with the larger hook and looser stitching and then you can see about what the sizing difference will be.
Make sure you lay out the fleece larger than your pattern pieces. Different materials shrink different amounts. You will want to make sure the pattern will fit on the felt after you have created the felt from the knitting.
There are times that you would combine two yarns together to get a specific look. The extra yarn can have an impact on the final size of the felt. This would increase the size of the finished felt about 10%.
It would be a good idea to make the knitting for the felt larger than expected instead of smaller. You can always re-shrink the felt if it is too large, but you can rarely stretch the felt to become large enough for the pattern you are working.
The pieces of knitting stretch much more in the length than in the width. Therefore, if you were to knit a piece 5 inches by 5 inches, the piece would come out about 4 1/4 inches in length and 3 3/4 inches in width.
There are some fun and creative ways you can create test strips for your project to see how much it is going to shrink. This works with fibers you are not sure what they are or even with wooly fibers that have not been spun.
Start with a short piece of the yarn, around 6 inches to 12 inches long. Roll the yarn between the palms of your hand to form a loose round ball of the material. Add a small drop of your mild dish soap Palmolive would work.
Wet that ball of yard with soap under warm running water. Knead and roll the ball until it is all sudsy. Rinsing every so often under the warm water. Eventually the fibers will start to stick into a ball. This will probably take five minutes or less. You should then have a good idea of what your felted fabric will be like. You can use the balls you make for buttons or beads for your other arts and crafts. With some practice, you will get used to what you will need.
If you knit a 13-inch long slipper, you will get an 11-inch felt slipper. Keep this in mind while you are knitting. Make your patterns a little big. Plan a little extra and you should be just fine to match any pattern for felt from your knitted pattern. Knitting never felted so good.