Pursenalities: 20 Great Knitted And Felted Bags
First knit, then felt–and let your “pursenality” pack a fashionable punch! From small, sleek handbags to roomy totes, these quick knitted and felted designs rank high on style and simplicity. You won’t be able to make just one! • Go trendy or traditional with Vintage Bubble Bag, Summer in the City Tote, and pretty, petite purses • Choose from easy projects that are worked on big needles with 100% wool and a splash of dazzling novelty yarns • Get a unique look with felting–simple instructions make the technique a snap   List Price: $ 19.95 Price: $ 7.56 |
Fabulous Purses!,
This is a terrific book full of easy-to-knit, unique designs. Almost all of the patterns use the same size needle (#15 US) which is very convenient. The instructions for basic knitting stitches and for felting are at the front of the book and are clear and easy to understand.
The bags themselves are terrific-looking, with beautiful color combinations, a variety of different shapes, and different techniques used in each. Detailed instructions for making each bag are included next to the pictures (great for easy reference).
Many of the purses use novelty yarn, in addition to 100% wool, to add texture and interest to the bags. These would make great gifts for those who like to knit for others as well as themselves.
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|A Must Buy If You Love Felted Knits,
After making more than 20 felted bags, I consider myself a felting veteran, but I was blown away by the fantastic patterns found in Pursenalities. The patterns are clear, the results are amazing (I really wasn’t sure I could do that with yarn until I tried, but the finishing touches on the bags (the zipper pulls and grommets) is where these patterns stand out. I thought I was tired of making felted bags until I bought this book. Now I am ready to keep on knitting!
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|Fabulous! But not for the novice felter…,
Those knitters who love this book are inspired by the really creative yarn combinations – let’s face it there are only so many bag shapes and as for textures? In felting, they all tend to look alike once felted. So what makes a bag “creative” is the color changing, the novelty yarns, the closures and other doodads once the bag is finished. This book is loaded with creativity – I’ve made all the bags and all but one was great fun. All the bags look great, even those that didn’t turn out like the pictures. However, I don’t think it’s the best book for the new felter. The basic instructions are fine to get the bag felted (especially if you use Cascade 220 which is a ‘can’t miss’ felting yarn.) Even so, the felting process relies on so many factors – water temperature, whether you use a spin cycle, your own knitting tension and also the fact that real mistakes can happen unless you have some felting expertise under your belt. For example, some colors can bleed if you try and change the color palette, the felt can get permanently wrinkled on the bigger bags unless you do a lot of checking – and not all washers are good for felting, etc.
Those of us looking for inspiration and ways to expand our bag repertoire love this book as an addition to our library. The grommets, handles, and novelties are useful even if you expect never to felt a bag again.
That said, those looking for a first time felting bag book should start with a book such as “Knit One, Felt Too : Discover the magic of knitted felt with 25 easy patterns”
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