I finished the icord forever during a card game on Saturday night. Which meant that I could enjoy felting my bag (finally!) yesterday. I just want to say, for the record, that I could have knit an entire sweater with the amount of yarn that went into this bag. There, I said it.

The first time through the washer, I had a bag that I liked, but the handle didn’t quite felt up the way I would have liked. I believe this is because the handle wrapped around all my jeans, and prevented it from felting. I pulled it out, blocked it, realized the bag itself was bigger than expected, let it rest, then decided it wasn’t good enough. Into the washer it went again, this time in a laundry bag so that the handle would have to felt. And felt it did! The bag got a lot smaller, basically it became the size I had anticipated. And the handle really felted down! More than I would have liked, as the handle is no longer messenger bag sized, but purse sized. Ah well, live and learn! This being my first official felting experience, I am going to call it good.

I blocked it with a 9×13 pan and once it seemed dry enough added the buttons I had purchased for it. Funky buttons with color tones that match the bag. Technically I am not finished with this, as I would like to add a liner, and it does need a zipper. But it is at this point useable.

I loved this knit! Everything about it was fun, even the icord edging. I can actually see myself doing another. And, I’ve gotten over my felting fear, I could happily try felting again at some point.