MY OOOPS Felted Wool Purse

So I went to a craft show & saw the cutest felted wool purse. But I had a cheap moment and said to myself, "I can do that!, There is no way I am paying $20 for that!" The original purse was not lined and was very flimsy. So I decided to line mine and add iron on stabilizer to the lining material. I also added denim from an old pair of jeans to the handle for stability.

Well, I am here to tell you that purse was probably well worth every penny!!! I tried to make my own. What a mess!!! I have read that all you do is wash the wool item, sweater in this case, in the hottest water possible & dry on high heat. Perhaps I bought the wrong kind of wool sweater? I had lint EVERYWHERE!!! Tons of it, what a mess!

Anyway , the "felting" part worked even though it was messy. The material was easy to cut, did not fray, & was easy to sew. I think the flower turned out cute. I'm not sure what I did wrong on the rest of the purse...the top is curling...it may because I top stitched around the opening of the bag to close the hole I left to turn the bag? Perhaps I should have hand stitched the opening? I have the bag lying under a stack of books for the evening, maybe it will look better in the morning?