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Apr 9, 2013

FO | Touch Me Again

If you’ve been following the Touch Me saga, you know this project has been fraught with challenges and frustrations. It’s time to bring that saga to a close, at least for the moment.

Last week, the Touch Me scarf looked like this, before I took the plunge and felted it.


I don’t have pictures of the felted blob that emerged, so you’ll have to trust me when I say it seemed clear I’d taken a problematic project and turned it into a full blown disaster.

Gradually, however, the sodden mass dried. Ever so slowly it began to change into this.

In spite of my poor photographic skills, you can see the wobbly stitches have tightened and the fabric has acquired the look of crushed velvet.

The scarf is now soft, sumptuous and much, much longer. To achieve that length, I took the only reasonable course of action. I looped the wet scarf over the shower curtain rod and clamped the ends in a pants hanger. Then I suspended two heavy sweaters from the hanger hook to persuade the scarf to grow.

And grow it did. It’s much narrower than before, but it’s nearly 20 inches longer, which for me makes it far more wearable. The ends also developed an interesting shape reminiscent of a mermaid’s tail, a look that I find weirdly appealing.
Highlights
Pattern: Improvised
Yarn: Touch Me (Muench)
Needles: US 8 (5 mm)
Ravelry notes: Here
Dimensions:  5.5 x 43 inches (pre-felting); 3.5 x 62 inches (post-felting)

The scarf is velvety and fluid, a transformation that is remarkable. The small cables were completely lost in the felting process, which is something worth noting for the future. I think it will be awhile, however, before I'm ready to wrestle with Touch Me again.


Don't forget to visit Small Things and Tami's Amis to see lots of work in progress.

13 comments:

  1. Whew! After all that, looks like it turned out well in the end.

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    1. Yep, like you, I was relieved that after all that angst, it did turn out nicely.

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  2. Your scarf is beautiful! It was totally worth all the worry.

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    1. Thank you, Karen, I'm glad you like the scarf. Sometimes knitting is a bit like childbirth, isn't it?

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  3. Huh. I don't think I've ever seen this type of yarn before. I'm curious to feel it now, based on your description of the velvety texture. For all the difficulty it gave you during the process of knitting it, I think it turned out beautifully.

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    1. Do check out the yarn, Michelle, it's well worth tracking down just to feel it. Very lush. And thank you, I'm so glad you like way this project turned out.

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  4. it looks lovely.Alls well that ends well although i can understand the frustration

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    1. Thank you, Pearlin, for your sweet remarks and for empathizing with me through these struggles.

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  5. Felting always has the element of the unknown...I spent ages on a bag cabling it and they disappeared in the wash!! My little dog sleeps in a hand spun bag that failed to felt so even disasters can be useful!

    I think your scarf looks lovely and the beauty of felting is the ability to reshape a project whilst wet!

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    1. So true, Cayte. On projects like these, felting is a great unknown. Sounds like you're very resourceful, even when a project turns out to be less than you hoped. Good for you!

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  6. I do like a story with a happy ending.
    Your finished scarf looks beautiful.

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    1. Thanks so much, Mistea. Yes, all's well that ends well ... until the next knitting dilemma arises!

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-b