Details can be found on Ravelry - Boiled Maine Mittens.
For Christmas, I knitted my son Boiled Fisherman's Mittens. I got them finished as we drove to the airport and sent him off with instructions how to shrink them (Boiled Wool A Felting Alternative). Apparently, from his recounting his adventures of boiling the mitts, that hardly dented them. So he recounts his efforts to shrink the mitts in Maine from boiling to freezing them outside, to finally resorting to a dryer...
Beginning-
To End...
"Well, first I boiled them and left them outside to cool (one source swore by boiling and cooling in the freezer), but they just froze, didn't shrink at all. Then I boiled them again and let them cool. Again, not much. I put off using the dryer for a while cause someone said it would remove the lanolin. (Whether or not that is true, I have since found out that you can buy lanolin to periodically treat and weatherize wool) so next I got them wet and worked in them, left them on a radiator, and trampled on them outside a bit. This actually started doing something, but it was slow, and I only had access to a radiator at work, not home. So I ran them under hot water (figured boiling didn't mean as much as hot water drying) and put them in the dryer for 45 minutes. Finally, big change. But the mitts weren't retaining much heat in the dryer, so I wet them again and put them back in the dryer for 60 min with a bunch of sheets. Now, HUGE change, so I did that once or twice more until they fit just right. They are pretty easy to shrink in the dryer, about 3 hours worth of drying and wetting though. It took them from big and floppy and knitted to being thick, felted, and super toasty warm! They are also water resistant. I use them every day! Seriously, the best mittens I've ever had, (and I have a fancy pair of axmen that are awesome)." Jonathan Harmor
My son did suggest some ways to make them fit better, suggesting the mitten be less broad and a longer in the cuff so he can shrink it a bit tighter. So I cast on another pair and I'm going to try and incorporate these suggestions. Also, I'm trying to create a smaller woman's size for his girlfriend.
On the reading front, I'm starting to read "Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House" by Michael Wolff. I wasn't certain if I wanted to read it at first, it's a tad pricey even for Kindle. I asked others in my Facebook Group "Resistance Knitters" and all agreed it was worth reading. Some suggesting at small doses (like we don't get enough of Trump news as it is). I eventually caved because it seems everyone is reading it (the New York Times Bestsellers Hardcover Non-fiction has it #1) and honestly it's hard to resist the allure of an insider's recounting of the White House right now. I have just started and so far I am not disappointed. I think I like getting a feel for things behind the scenes, so while nothing is horribly new, it brings it alive the news accounts and adds more dimension. Besides, it's just a bit of fun. I'm taking it slow though, easy to get overloaded with Trump news!
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