Felting a Blanket- Question

[Mama Bee]

I am working on a project and need to felt a blanket. I bought a military surplus wool blanket. I think all I need to do to it now to get it usable for pee-pad type thing is to wash it and dry it. But do I wash it and dry it on hot/hot, warm/warm... the hotter the better? Also, do I need to do the wash/dry process more than once? I have a front-loading washer/dryer if that makes a difference. Oh, and I assume I use regular washing detergent for the felting process and then lanolize it once the product is made? Thanks!

[Kari_mom]

I felted my $2 thrift store find of heavy wool coating in a hot/cold wash cycle, followed by high dryer heat, because I have read over and over here that it is temperature changes that cause wool to felt, not just hot water. It is nice and thick now.

I haven't lanolized and it is working great. I think really thick wool does not need lanolized. There are felted wool diaper covers on the market, the brand name eludes me, that are machine washable and do not require lanolin, so I decided to try it without it. Much easier, of course!

So this is my experience, hopefully others will share!

[Nora_SEA]

Wow - I was just searching for a how-to on making a wool mattress cover from a blanket. We have a king sized bed--so if I get a thick king sized wool blanket and wash/dry it will it still cover a king sized mattress top? Or will there be too much shrinkage? Thanks. Alos, have you had to wash it since you felted it? Just on cold and line dry?

[Fia~n~Jax]

I gotta remember this.
Thanks

[Kari_mom]

Nora, it is hard to say how your blanket will fit after felting (which is really fulling, btw) because it depends on so many factors. The type of wool, how it was woven, whether it was treated to avoid shrinkage....all will change how it felts. Consider how big a piece you really need too. My baby usually sleeps in the middle third of the bed and only the top half near the headboard. So even though my wool pad covers the entire mattress, I could easily cut it in half and still protect my mattress just fine.

I did wash it, ds threw up in my bed, and it was fine with a cold water wash and air dry. It only took about a day to dry too, to my surprise. So far I really like my wool pad and it is more comfortable than the flannel encased vinyl pad we used before.

[Nora_SEA]

Thanks so much--I'd realized that it doesn't need to cover the whole bed. Now to find the right kind of blanket...