These slippers are a new take on my Short-Row Felted Slipper pattern. I still love the old pattern, but this version is a little faster and easier to work. I have turned out a pair in less than 4 hours. So, if you have a Sunday morning, you could whip up a pair, too.

They are also more structured than my previous version. I think I solved the problem many people had of the sides and back of the slipper flattening out. If the sides still collapse, add a few tightly-sewn stitches at the join between the top and sides of the slipper. That should help shore it up. Blocking after felting will help, too.

All shoe sizes are given in the women’s American sizing system.

Gauge, before felting: 10 stitches/4 inches

Gauge, after felting: 13 stitches/4 inches

Size, before felting: 10 inches long, 5.5 inches wide at widest point

Size, after felting: 9.25 inches long, 4.25 inches wide at widest point. This fits a woman’s foot from about size 6 to size 9 (see notes below for more information about sizes).

Skills Needed: You only really need basic knitting skills to make these slippers. However, your result will be more elegant if you are comfortable grafting garter stitch and picking up stitches in purl. If you don’t want to graft, you can use a three-needle bind off, instead.
Feel free to watch my videos on picking up stitches in purl and grafting in garter stitch for this project.

Since the result will be felted, you don’t have to worry about wrapping any stitches when you turn for short-rows. So, this might be a great first short-row project.

Needles: I used #11 needles, but some of the testers got gauge with #13 needles. I think this is easiest with circular needles, but it only helps when you are picking up stitches and at the very end. If you prefer straight needles, this pattern should still work for you, but you might have to struggle a little around the toe and at the very beginning. For the last step, if you are using straight needles, you will need a spare double- pointed or circular needle, of any size that is not larger than your working needle. One test knitter noted that using double-pointed needles allowed her to pull more tightly when slipping stitches, which kept the sides of her slippers more vertical.

Yarn: These must be made in a yarn that will felt. Bulky yarn will work, if it is held double. Super-bulky yarn will work, held single.

Yarns that have been used as tests for this pattern:
I used about 82 yards of 100% wool handspun that had a yardage of 13.7 yards per oz. and was about 4 wraps per inch and #11 needles to fit a size 8.5 shoe.

CastAwayCreation used 2 skeins of Patons Classic Wool, 3 strands held together and #13 needles to fit a size 9.5 shoe.

Opaxia used less than 2 skeins of Cascade Yarns 128 Chunky, 2 strands held together and #11 needles to fit a size 6.5 shoe.

Angelapea used 3 skeins of Lion Brand Alpine Wool, 2 strands held together and #11 needles to fit a size 8 shoe.

“On the first read-through, I couldn’t picture how the heel and toe worked out; however, once I started knitting it was very easy to follow.” - Angelapea

MikilaV used 2 skeins of KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, 2 strands held together and #11 needles to fit a size 7 shoe.

Instructions include a note on where to change colors if you want to have the top of your slipper in a different color. This can make the pattern into a great stashbuster project.

There are also links in the pattern to videos showing how to pick up in purl and graft garter stitch.

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For much larger slippers, x3atthisvolume used 5 strands of Aran-weight yarn as one on a US 15 to make a men’s size 11 slipper. She said:

“They felted down to the perfect length for a men’s size 10 1/2 shoe, but they are a bit wide, and I can’t felt down the width anymore without losing a shoe size. Definitely wearable with a pair of socks, but if I did them over again I’d make the top portion shorter to compensate for the width/roominess.I’ll post a photo of them next to my husband’s Adidas for size comparison. I used three 4 ounce skeins of I Love This Wool! and divided it up into five 2.4 ounce balls and still had a good bit of yarn left at the end.”