tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post1221219439045561948..comments2024-03-05T03:19:54.491-05:00Comments on Lovely Yarn Escapes : Wednesday's Yarns - Boiled Fisherman's MittensElise Andersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08657785234869089663noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-61692439305340063692022-12-29T22:50:34.077-05:002022-12-29T22:50:34.077-05:00I do appreciate your comments on my blog post on s...I do appreciate your comments on my blog post on shrinking Boiled Wool Mittens! Thank you.Elise Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08657785234869089663noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-41375133966874531092021-04-17T12:25:20.350-04:002021-04-17T12:25:20.350-04:00Ladies (and gentlemen)! This is what I know about ...Ladies (and gentlemen)! This is what I know about shrinking fisherman’s mittens. <br />1. It is agitation and the shock of going from hot to cold that shrinks them. <br />2. Drier shrinking works but is pretty uncontrollable. You wouldn’t want your mittens to wind up fitting your puppy. <br />3. They are never boiled. “New England Boiled Mittens” was a cute title Yankee Magazine put on my article about fishermen’s mittens, à la “New England boiled dinner.” <br />4. Fishermen do indeed wear them wet down and wrung out, but you don’t have to. 5. Lacking a fishing boat with an engine manifold, you can shrink them at home as follows: <br />You will need: <br />2 good-sized dishpans<br />a largish pot of boiling water<br />cold water from the tap<br />a washboard, or similar rough surface<br />soap: real soap. I use Murphy’s Oil Soap, available in the cleaning section of the supermarket or the hardware store.<br />a tough bristled scrub brush<br />Newspaper or paper bag and a sharpie<br />Process: <br />a. Lay one mitten on the newsprint and trace around it with the sharpie, being really careful not to get sharpie on your mitten. Show the thumb outline as well. Lay your hand on the tracing, matching the base of your hand to the base of the mitten hand and trace around your hand. It should be a lot shorter than the mitten by about 20%. <br />b. Work on a table outdoors or in your kitchen sink. <br />c. Fill one dishpan with water as hot as you can comfortably tolerate. Fill the other with cold water as cold as you can stand. Put ice cubes in it. Add salt if you want, to give the impression of seawater. (Neither are necessary but will make everything seem more authentic.) <br />d. Wet the mittens thoroughly in the hot water. Pour or rub soap onto them lavishly, squeeze the soap through them, and rub them energetically on the washboard, all sides of both hand and thumb. They will feel all mushy in the hot water. <br />e. When you’re tired of scrubbing, plunge them into the cold water, rinse and squeeze cold water through them. Let them get really cold. They will feel stiff and unhappy. Then <br />f. Repeat d. and e. over and over, adding soap each time and water from the boiling water as needed to keep the water hot. Ditto, from the tap, the cold water. Keep it up until the mittens no longer go mushy in the hot water. This should take a max of 30 to 45 minutes. <br />Lay them out on the newspaper tracing. They should be just a tad longer than your hand. Try them on to be sure they just fit. They should lose altogether about 20 percent of their length. <br />g. Rinse them thoroughly in the cold water, adding a tad bit of ammonia to whiten and soften them if you wish. Squeeze water out without twisting the mittens. <br />h. Put the mittens, optionally with other things, in the spin cycle of the washing machine, or roll them into towels to get rid of excess water. <br />i. Lay them on a counter and brush up the nap toward the tip, starting at the tip and working toward the cuff. Lay them to dry somewhere warmish and dry. <br />That’s it. It should be do-able within an hour. For more about fishermen’s and other traditional New England mittens or to find any of my books on same, check out my website, robinormhansen.com. <br />Robin Hansenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12391003809060693193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-48806518951907469112020-03-16T07:13:55.569-04:002020-03-16T07:13:55.569-04:00I learn new information from your article, you are...I learn new information from your article, you are doing a great job. Keep it up..!! I also share some relevant article <a href="https://bestheatedgloveslab.com/best-heated-mittens/" rel="nofollow">choicest heated ski mittens 2020</a>. Must Read.<br /><br />Aidan Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03223705049026545081noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-29173381199866554272018-02-05T17:23:28.593-05:002018-02-05T17:23:28.593-05:00I have a hat I need to felt. I made it last year a...I have a hat I need to felt. I made it last year and it's never been used because I really had no idea how to felt it and I never think to Google it! I hope to remember this when I am home and ready to do the felting. :)Josettahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07808228982105022453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-10643144628570984732018-02-05T17:22:05.389-05:002018-02-05T17:22:05.389-05:00You'll laugh at some of the outrage, though.You'll laugh at some of the outrage, though.Josettahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07808228982105022453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-45955488174335299982018-02-03T12:43:29.703-05:002018-02-03T12:43:29.703-05:00Thanks for sharing your son's mitten journey! ...Thanks for sharing your son's mitten journey! Because I have a front-load dryer, I have avoided felting projects.<br />I'm afraid to read Fire and Fury -- I'm not sure how much more outrage I want to feel!Caffeine Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10073716022646773106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3169278596535638200.post-6376414409664302272018-02-01T11:35:50.792-05:002018-02-01T11:35:50.792-05:00I always dryer felt. NEver knew there was another...I always dryer felt. NEver knew there was another way!!! Thanks for the tutorial and info. <br />Fireman is reading FIRE AND FURY Too. He's actually sticking with a book! <br />kathy bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17534431969086721507noreply@blogger.com