Kiki Mariko rug: FO!

And I'm done:

Pattern: Kiki Mariko Rug from the 2nd Mason-Dixon book
Yarn: 9 different colors of Lamb's Pride Bulky (honestly one of my all-time favorite yarns, exclusively for felting)
Needles: US size 15 circs (KnitPicks Options)
Mods: I decided that I actually didn't like the chart as it was and switched it up after only one repeat. I'm iconoclastic like that, I guess. Examine the photo and see if you can see what I did.
Raveled here

This was so fast to knit. There's nothing quite like knitting bulky at a gauge of 2 sts to 1 inch. Craziness.
The colors, although fun to choose, made me grit my teeth and wish for a real-life saturation slider--until I felted it, and then they somehow all made peace with each other. Now, next to the bed, I really like it, especially with the whip-stitched border in the "main" color (like you could somehow pick a main color out of that mess?).

Now, I brought this rug to school before it was felted, so that the kids could feel it and, as it were, climb inside it--the book is right, it does remind one of a fuzzy strapless dress--and then I brought it back after it had been felted, steeked, stretched and dried so they could shave it. Seriously, using disposable razors and a sweater de-piller kept several children engrossed and happily working for hours. Even the 5th graders whined over whose turn it was to "groom" Ms. Jessica's rug (parents, please don't walk in on that sentence). They just hacked away at the hairy halo that is felted Lamb's Pride and at the end we had a gigantic ball of multi-colored mohair, which Julian then "spun" by hand (I even taught him how to spit-splice, and what 3rd grade boy does NOT want to be told by a teacher to spit onto his own hand inside the classroom?). He did such diligent work that I promised to bring in my drop spindle and let him have a go. The only thing he didn't really grasp about that was that you have to draft up. He kept wanting to push the fibers down onto already-twisted yarn, and needless to say his resulting 1st yarn looked like a band of vagrant caterpillars came through and cocooned themselves. He eventually figured that out, but then relinquished the spindle to the waiting line of 1st grade girls. Anyway...

I had bits of left over Lamb's Pride, so I cranked out a little dumpling bag. The shape is something I had envisioned for a Xmas present long ago, and never got around to it because I didn't understand increases out from the middle of a circle. Then I made several versions of Kristen Kapur's One Day Beret pattern (Rav link) and all of a sudden wanted to knit all my hats from the top down and bags from the bottom up. Any chance I get to utilize k1fb, my favorite increase. Love it.

Here's the bag before and after felting.


I think I'll like it better one I slap a shoulder strap on there and put things in it so that it's curvy little bottom shows. I don't like it squashed down on the table, but hey, at least it sits up well.