Sunday, March 6, 2011

March Means Crochet!

Since March is National Crochet Month (designated by the Crochet Guild of America) I thought I'd make my first post in March crochet related. And it really is perfect timing. My mother-in-law's birthday falls in March and last year I let Adam be in charge of choosing a gift for her. Needless to say, he waited until the last minute then asked if I could make her something. So this year I thought we'd just avoid all the commotion and I just went ahead and said, "I'm making your mom slippers for her birthday."  I did have him help pick the yarn out of my stash so he could at least be somewhat participatory. 

The pattern I decided to use is the Felted Crochet Slippers. These seem to be a crochet version of the French Press Felted Slippers and while I almost chose that pattern, I figured I could probably work up the crochet version much faster. And I did. 


These took a total of about two and a half hours to crochet. I did the first slipper last Monday, crocheting a row at random moments throughout the day, and the second slipper and straps last night in a little over an hour. Not bad. One of my main concerns with the crocheted version of the slippers was how well they would felt. I saw a few versions on Ravelry where there was still a lot of stitch definition and they didn't look very felted. 

My other concern was the sizing. My mother-in-law wears a size 7 and the pattern comes in small (size 5/6), medium (size 7/8), and large (9/10). I went with the small because I know that the felting will ultimately stretch some. 


I tried these on, all damp and steamy, post-felting and they are just a smidge big on me (I wear a 6 1/2) so I think they'll be fine for her. 

I'm also pretty pleased with how well they felted! I used Fisherman's Wool (Adam wanted "something neutral" and liked the color) and felted the slippers for about 17 minutes, and the straps for 5 minutes more.


While you can still see through some of the stitches, it's pretty dense. Now just to find some buttons while I'm waiting for the slippers to dry. Then a wee bit of assembly and they'll be done. I can't wait!

10 comments:

  1. Those slippers are so cute! Makes me want to crochet again.

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  2. Those are so awesome! From your photo, I can't tell the difference between knit or crochet felting and as you said crochet IS much faster. Thanks for the tip!

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  3. I think these are fantastic. What a great color and a lucky MIL to have you. I actuall like to see a tiny bit of stitch definition in a felted project. Great job.
    Have a great day,
    Meredith

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  4. This is an awesome gift ~ she will be thrilled! I've heard that crochet is faster than knitting ~ I wonder why.

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  5. The slippers are really nice! I think having a few holes is good cause it will allow her feet to get some air.

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  6. Oh my gosh, these are so great! They look like the perfect warm and cozy slippers for drinking tea on the couch.

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  7. these are so great! your MIL is lucky.

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  8. They're great! They look really comfy. 2 1/2hrs?! Wow, how long have you been crocheting? I started not long ago and I'm still pretty slow!

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  9. Wow, your mother-in-law is lucky!
    And you've done 2 things I've never done: crocheting and felting!

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