I'm a traditional feltmaker so have come around most things all backwards.
I started as a felter, had all this fiber so then learned to spin... had all
this yarn so then learned to knit and crochet a bit.... then FINALLY
discovered the tri-loom and that has worked into my creating fabrics
specifically for fulling in ways I hadn't expected. I can full down a weave and
there's no heaviness or stiffness like I get with crocheted or knit fulling.
Sometimes I want that heaviness of body but at other times I want the
softness and drape that I get when felting the fabric from the looms.
I like to weave a single strand of wool for a loose, light texture.
The resulting fabric is soft and flexible when you only use one strand. You can
full it down just enough to lock the weave in and you still have a beautiful
fabric with a soft hand and drape. It will retain the woven texture and you
can see the little "holes" in the weave if you don't over felt it. Of
course with such an open weave as you get with one strand there is a lot of
reduction in size after felting, but not really as much as you might expect
(or fear! LOL!) One of these days though I want to experiment and see just
how far it would go. On my 16 inch loom I get about a 20-30% size reduction
if I just full until the fibers are well integrated and stop before I get
much shrinkage... that's just a guesstimate, I haven't tried to really
measure and figure it out. Some time I'll just toss a piece in and leave
it without checking and see how small and dense it ends up.
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