How can I make yarn really really tangly and matted up?

Question

Don't ask questions just answer ; D

My yarn is acrylic red heart, and I need it to get as matted as possible. I want it to stick together and be super tangled and fuzzy, like big strands of dreadlocks.

Answer 1

While acryllic yarn (acryllic is NOT wool in any way shape or form) can be tangled by cutting lengths of it and tying together at one end then comb them with a dog slicker  Then wind individual locks around a dowel, put this on a foil lined cookie sheets and put this in a 250 oven for 10 to 12 minutes.  Let it cool and then unwind them.

Answer 2

Acrylic wool isn't your best material for this effect (natural wool is much better because it matts and felts well,) because the fibres are very smooth and plastic. Natural wool, being made of hair has microscopic cuticles on the surface which can be opened by hot water and roughened up to catch and stick together.Also I don't know what ply it is - obviously the thicker the better.

The best I can suggest is bunching strands together, separating out the ply into strands and using a fine metal wire brush or similar to fuzz them up by brushing over them both up and down and side to side. It will take some work though.

Edit: Thanks Sue, a thumbs up from me, in the UK we do call all sorts of yarn 'wool' - well 'home knitters' do anyway.

I love the tip on using cats too - why didn't I think of that?!

Mind you I never would have thought of putting it in the oven either.

Answer 3

You need a bunch of different sort s of looks of fibers. the eyelash stuff, a little of the redheart, and some wool all pulled out of the skeins and tumbled together??

Have you got a cat?? Cats can be a huge help doing this. Then wash it in a mesh bag where it won't get tangled in the washer parts.

For some people any yarn is called "wool" whether it is made of wool, mohair, acrilyc or whatever! Get global people!! Do you always forget that on here we are all one world community?? We must learn what the rest of the world calls things and go with the flow.