3.6.07

FELTED TEA COZY


FULLED/FELTED TEA COZY

MATERIALS: 2-100g balls of Lopi Wool for a fuzzy tea cozy or 2-100g of Classic Wool held together for a less furry finish.
9mm circular needle (80cm long)
1 spare straight needle (large, but exact size is not important)

DIRECTIONS:
Using 1 strand of Lopi or 2 strands of Classic Wool, cast on 90 sts. Knit 5 rows back and forth, without joining. (Garter Stitch)
First circle Row: Make sure that the knitting is not twisted around the needle, and join in a circle, placing a marker at the first stitch of the round. Knit every row (this will now look like stocking st) until the 2 balls have been almost all used, ending at the marker.

Finishing row: Knit the next 45 stitches onto the spare straight needle. Turn the cozy so that the purl side is facing out and the end of the straight needle is pointing to the right. Slide the circular needle so that its working point is at the 46th stitch and hold the 2 needles parallel in your left hand.
Using the free end of the circular needle, work a 3-needle cast off as follows:
Step 1: *Insert the free end of the circular needle through the first stitch on each of the needles in your left hand. Knit these 2 stitches together.*
Repeat from * to *. (2 sts now on right end of circ needle).
Step 2: Cast off the first of these 2 sts by lifting it over the second, making sure not to lose any of the stitches from the left hand needles.
Repeat these 2 steps casting off a stitch after each new K2tog until 1 st remains on right hand needle.
Break the yarn and pull through the last st. Work in all ends.
For a rounded shape at the corners of your tea cozy, working on the inside of the piece, fold the cozy so that the line that would be the side lies along the cast off edge. Sew through both layers to form a triangle 3 inches from the top corner. Repeat this on the other side.
Turn right side out.

Fulling instructions:
Place the cozy in a zippered pillow case and put it in the washing machine on a hot wash/ cold rinse setting, using a small amount of dish detergent. (You may wish to add a few towels to give more agitation and speed up the felting process) Repeat this process for as many cycles as are necessary to achieve the desired size. (usually 2 or 3 cycles are required). When the cozy is the right size, pat it into the desired shape and let air dry. Do not put it in the dryer.
Copyright 2006, WOOL-TYME Kingston, Anne Cormier Woodall

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