jana gottfried

Shelby Tote  $150.00

FELTED KNITTING

The process of creating felt from animal fibers is an ancient technique, and there are numerous methods in which to achieve it. I’ve heard it called “boiled wool,” and “fulled wool” and also “felted wool.” It doesn’t necessarily matter what it’s called because the end result is always the same: Single fine stands of fibers bind, and transform into a dense and thick fabric.

The term, “Felted Knitting” best defines the result of my efforts at creating felted products because I hand knit each item about 2 ½ to 3 times larger than it should be and then shrink it in the washing machine. Shrinking wool is definitely not a science I’ve heard others mention that the day of the week, the position of the moon and what one happens to be wearing at the time also contribute. These comments can be considered purely superstition but I know they hold some basis in fact because regardless of the preparation, I never really know exactly what is going to happen. I guess you could say that wool has a mind of its own. It’s interesting to mention it’s not just the material that changes during the felting process, but also the color. And just to make it even more interesting, as I’ve learned through trial and error, not all yarn likes to felt at the same pace, and even yarn from the same manufacturer seems to want to do its own distinctive thing. In other words, even though I may have attempted it, I have never been able to duplicate anything. Each item I create is “one of a kind” and truly unique. But then again, I may have been wearing jeans on the first attempt and khakis on the second………….hmmmmm.

CARE AND CLEANING

I remember I was about 8 or 9 years old when my mother sat me down on a rainy, Oregon winter day and taught me to knit. I don’t remember exactly what it was that I was knitting, but I do know it wasn’t something particularly interesting. I think it was washrags. I didn’t pick up the knitting needles again for another 15 years. By that time I was living in Southern California, but I was knitting the same thing: Washrags. I didn’t have much money but I thought the “Los Angelinas” would be impressed with my domestic handiwork. They were. Those washrags were a big hit at Christmas.

One can only have so many washrags, so once again my knitting came to a halt, and remained dormant for 20 years.Contrary to popular belief, Los Angeles is cold! I lived near the beach, so that had something to do with it, but I never went out at night without a jacket, and I wore scarves everyday during the so-called “winter.”  Now, cute scarves are hard to find, especially in LA. I couldn’t find anything fun or colorful enough, so I decided to start knitting again. This is where my obsession officially started. Once I started, I found I couldn’t stop. Scarves replaced washrags under the tree for every female friend and relative I could think of. Scarves led to hats, and hats led to sweaters, but I knew that there was something more out there. I knew there was a process of shrinking the wool to create felt, but I didn’t know anyone that was doing it, so I hit the library and read everything I could get my hands on, and finally felt confident enough to try it. Viola! Like they say, felting is not a science, it is definitely an art form, and one has to allow the yarn to have its own way. I have an idea of the result I’m shooting for whenever I am felting, but I know it can never be set into stone. It is always somewhat of a surprise, yet consistently delightful.

I recently sold my house in Los Angeles , packed my bags and moved myself and my cat back to Oregon . I feel that I have returned to my roots, but I don’t think I will ever return to knitting washrags.

Brianna Bag  $65.00 

Riley Hat  $40.00