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I am a writer,a mixed media artist and teacher. I am also a life Coach who loves animals I also have...
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Wool Felting For Everyone.
I adore Wool Felting. It is much easier than you would think. Once you have made a piece of Felt you will be addicted.
Felt doesn't have to be thick, there are many Feltmakers who make very fine almost cobwebby felt that is so delicate and fragile. It can be very beautiful made this way.
Come along with me and read this lens and I will show you how to make felt, how to felt an old wool sweater and make it into something wonderful and I will tell you all the tools you will need to make Felt.
The picture shows a sign In page in an Altered Book . I made a lovely piece of Felt and used that as the background.
Felting Instructions
Wet Felting
It's amazing to think you can gather some Wool roving, some towels and bubblewrap, some Liquid washing up soap and hot water and soon you will have a gorgeous piece of FeltYes thats all you need.
1: Lay down a few towels and put a layer of nylon mesh curtain fabric on top of it near the sink on your kitchen bench.
2: Take your coloured wool roving and pull a length from the long sausage shape. Lay that down on the nylon mesh piece by piece over lapping and all going the same direction.
3: Now start again with the roving pieces in the opposite direction.
4: If you want thick felt, then add another layer going in the opposite direction again.
5: Now its time to add another layer of the nylon mesh.
6: Take some liquid washing up soap and spray that all over the mesh into the wool. Soap it up by moving your fingers all over it.
7: Add some Very Hot water onto the Felt and mix it with the soap and use your fingers on it again.
Our Aim here is to get the wool roving to shrink with the heat and the soap and change into Felt.
8: Now roll the layers of nylon mesh and roving over a large piece of bubble wrap until it is all rolled up.
9: Roll the roll backwards and forwards 100 times.
10: Check to see if the fibers are all together. If they are not do some more rolling. If they are you can now ease the wool felt away from both layers of mesh.
11: Bang and throw the felt into the clean sink 10 times.
12: Rince it well in the hot water then lay it out flat to dry,
Well Done, you have made your first piece of felt.
Books About Wool Felting On Amazon
Felting Projects
Nicky Epstein's Beginner's Guide to Felting (Leisure Arts # 4171) by Nicky Epstein; Leisure Arts
Knitters of the World: The time has come to conque more...0 points
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Needle Felting
Needle felting is a process by which felt is created with barbed needles. The needles are used to force the fibers into each other, creating a web of interlocking fibers.Needle felting is simple, fast and easy. The wool fibers in a ball of yarn or wool roving will become entangled or blended with the fibers in the base fabric when a burred needle(s) are repeatedly inserted through the fibers.
Needle felting is simple to learn and has become extremely popular with a variety of crafters, from quilters to doll makers.
It requires minimal supplies, can be done almost anywhere, and with only a bit of practice yields beautiful, professional results.
The picture is of some Felting my friend Pearl Moon did using her felting machine.
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Felting Projects
Felting Sweaters
If you can buy some cheap woollen sweaters from a thrift shop you can felt them and make some wonderful things. I love felted bags for instance.To shrink and felt the sweaters, just put them into a washing machine with laundry soap and Hot Hot water.
Run them through the normal cycle then dry them in the dryer on Hot.
When you open the dryer you will have a shrunken sweater which has felted. You can now cut it out into any pattern you want and it won't fray or unravel at all
More About Felting With Wool.
Wool, alpaca and mohair in any combination are the usual choices. The yarn cannot be chemically altered so it is machine-washable and it cannot be bleached.
Wool is laid out in layers with each layer going in a different direction. Hot water and soap is added, gentle agitation begins.
Wool fibers have scales and are also crimped. When these fibers are wet and softened and then rubbed together they grab each other and are permanently bound together.
Wool fibers have scales which when rubbed against each other catch and lock into place to create this denser material called felt. Felting needles are used to entangle the fibers.
Wool shops and specialty shops such as Winter wood Steiner Inspired Toys(online store also available, see Winterwoodtoys.com.au also carry the needles.
There are two types available, a single needle in various sizes or a multiple needle holder
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Wet Felting Video
The New Embellishing Machine For Felting!
Janome Xpression 725 F Needle Punch Felting Machine
The Xpression is the first machine from Janome that allows you to do needle punch felting. It doesn't require thread, a bobbin, or any previous sewing experience.You can achieve amazing, one-of-a-kind fabric effects on your first try. And the Xpression is so easy to operate, even a child can use it right away.
Instead of one needle, the Xpression has five needles joined into a single unit, so they move up and down in unison. On the sides of each needle are tiny barbs.
As the needles pierce the top layer of material, these barbs catch the individual fibers and push them down into the bottom layer.
Five round holes in the needle plate correspond to the five needle points. These holes are slightly larger than those found on other felting machines, allowing penetration through even multiple layers to occur easily, quickly and cleanly, allowing for a better blending of fibers.
The fibers mingle to create new color and texture combinations that simply cannot be achieved with embroidery, appliqué, or any other kind of needlework.
In needle felting there is no "right side" or "wrong side." Whether you push the fibers through from the front or back depends on the effect you're trying to achieve. Experimentation is part of the fun.
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This picture is of a Vessel that my friend Pearl Moon made with the help of her felting machine!
Needle Felting By Machine
Needle-Felting Magic: Easy Machine Techniques and Projects (That Patchwork Place)
Amazon Price: $11.86 (as of 05/11/2008)
I've lost track of how many new needle-felting books have come out in the last year but this one really stands out among them. The first thing that tipped me off that there was some new and fun things inside its pages was the cover. A beautiful mix of textures and color and I hadn't even opened the book yet! Margo does a nice job of walking the beginner needle felter through the basics but even an experienced felter will find plenty to be inspired by in these pages. The book opens with a review of materials and includes a needle felting machine comparison chart. There are five projects to get you started ranging from a bag, journal cover and scarf to a very new and unique way to display photographs. My personal favorite is the fluff and fancy pin. I can see making a lot of these to embellish everything from bags and hats to scarves and sweaters. All of the projects are easy to understand with clearly written instructions and diagrams. Although this book is only 32 pages there's plenty in here to be inspired by.
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Vote For Your Favorite Books About Felting Sweaters
Felting Old Sweaters
Twelve Bags Fulled by Terry L. Ross
A collection of knitted and felted handbag pattern more...0 points
Felting Fever (Leisure Arts #4059) by Lion Brand Yarn; Leisure Arts
Wool plus Hot Water equals Beautiful Knitting: Har more...0 points
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Felt Information From Wikipedia
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any color, and made into any shape or size.
Felt is the oldest form of fabric known to humankind. It predates weaving and knitting, although there is archaeological evidence from the British Museum that the first known thread was made by winding vegetable fibers on the thigh. In Turkey, the remains of felt have been found dating back at least to 6,500 BCE. Highly sophisticated felted artifacts were found preserved in permafrost in a tomb in Siberia and dated to 600 CE.
Many cultures have legends as to the origins of feltmaking. Sumerian legend claims that the secret of feltmaking was discovered by Urnamman of Lagash. The story of Saint Clement and Saint Christopher relates that while fleeing from persecution, the men packed their sandals with wool to prevent blisters. At the end of their journey, the movement and sweat had turned the wool into felt socks.
For a long time, the economy of what is now Canada was based on the fur trade, the hunting of beaver (and, to a lesser extent, other animals) for the felt industry in Europe. This led to a very basic colonization, organized by fur trade companies, until governmental measures were taken to ensure a real economic and demographic development.
Feltmaking is still practiced by nomadic peoples in Central Asia, where rugs, tents and clothing are regularly made. Some of these are traditional items, such as the classic yurt, while others are designed for the tourist market, such as decorated slippers. In the Western world, felt is widely used as a medium for expression in textile art as well as design, where it has significance as an ecological textile.
Now Its Your Turn To Squidoo!!
Now it's your turn....Make your own Squidoo lens
Squidoo is a fantastic place to create a web site (called a lens). You can share your ideas on gadgets, crafting, arts, food or what ever's on your mind and maybe even make a few $$ along the way....oh and did I tell you it's FREE!
Click here to start your Lens
Thanks for visiting my lens! Please vote for my lens (click the stars at the top of the page), or leave a message.
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MerryM
Fun lens. I've done knitted felting and needle felting. The soap thing looks really interesting. Hmm... Posted May 10, 2008 |
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beeobrien
This looks like so much fun. I'm looking forward to checking out your other lenses. 5* Posted April 26, 2008 |
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Margaret_Schaut
I LOVE felting and using used wool for various projects. This is a lovely page! Favorite and 5 stars- be sure to add these to my groups! Posted March 29, 2008 |
