Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Felt Balls are such fun, versitile objects. You can make them into all kinds of cheerful projects, from garlands, to necklaces. We recently started carrying pre-made felt balls, in a bunch of useful sizes and beautiful colors. Having the felt balls pre-made opens up a whole new world of quick projects.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

We brainstormed and came up with these ultra-simple, ultra-cute trivets. They take absolutely no time to make and use only one package of twleve pre-made felt balls. Essentially they are just a ring of felt balls, strung together with lovely contrasting Trio silk and wool yarn. The yarn is tied into neat french knots in-between each ball, like a string of pearls, so that it’s contrasting color shows though just a bit. The technique could easily be adapted to make necklaces, bracelets or even garlands.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

The ring might seem a little floppy, like a necklace or bracelet rather than a traditional trivet, but it becomes a remarkably stable platform once a circular object, like a teapot, is placed on it. You can make these to fit any circular bottomed dishes you may have and they also work under a larger rectangular dish as well (although they won’t show as much.)

Designed by Purl Soho designer, Molly Schnick. Click here to see even more of Molly’s work!

Materials

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

To make one trivet with up to a 4-inch diameter. You can make these to fit any dish with a diameter up to 4-inches wide. Simply fit the trivet under the dish as you go to make sure you have sewn on the correct amount of felt balls :

Pattern

Stringing the Felt Balls

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

The felt balls are strung along the yarn with French knots in between them so that the pretty Trio yarn shows through in between them.

Cut a 40-inch length of yarn.

Make a knot by looping the end of the yarn around itself twice as shown above.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Pull this knot tight, leaving a 5-inch tail at the end of the yarn.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Thread non-tail end of the yarn through the felt needle. Pull the needle through the center of the first felt ball by twisting the needle side to side as you push through the ball.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Pull the ball to the end of the yarn, stopping at the knot.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

To tie the French knot after the first felt ball twist the working yarn (not the tail) around the needle three times just at the point that the yarn comes out of the felt ball as shown above. Pull these wraps tightly against the needle and the top of the felt ball.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

And then pull the needle through the wraps.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

To keep the knot laying tightly against the felt ball keep your thumb on top of the wraps as you pull the needle through.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Once you pull the knot tight it should lay neatly at the top of the felt ball. You may want to practice this step a few times before you go on.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Thread the second felt ball onto the yarn in the same manner, and tie a French knot in the same way at its top.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

String all the felt balls together in this manner until, when you form the string into a ring, you have your desired diameter. Do not tie a knot after the last felt ball.

Finishing the Trivet

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

To make the string of felt balls into a circle pull the needle through the first felt ball in the same direction that you originally pulled it though.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Pull the circle closed and tie a simple one loop knot with the working yarn around the very first knot.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Then thread the needle through the tail and push it through the last felt ball you strung. Tie a simple one loop knot around your last knot using the tail.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

Pull the tail and the working yarn through adjacent felt balls and snip the ends of the yarn to hide them.

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

You’re all done!

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho

You can do this for any size trivet, or even make them into necklaces or bracelets!

Felt Ball Trivets | Purl Soho