Workshop

MAKING FELT - THE BASICS

EQUIPMENT

You will need a reasonably sized area for working on a table or worktop

• Bath towel
• Bamboo mat / blind
• Bubble wrap 60cm x 90cm (Bubbles exposed on one side only)
  
• Piece of net curtain 2’ x 3’
• Wooden dowel 1” diameter same width as your mat
• Bowl / container for soapy water
• Sponge
• Bar of Olive Oil soap
• Light weight plastic bag (large enough for your hand)
• Old plastic carrier bag
• Thick rubber gloves
• Sting / twine

Old towels are placed on the work surface, make sure the edges of these do not hang over the edge of the work surface, otherwise surplus water may drip to the floor.

Bamboo mats if used adds a textured surface onto which you can lay the wool fibres if you prefer not to use bubble wrap.

The net lightweight, open mesh is best, it needs to be larger than the piece of felt being made, this hold the fibres in place during the `wetting out’ process.

The dowel is used to add rigidity to the rolled up parcel, it needs to be wider than the piece of felt being made.

String may be used to secure the rolled up mat and stop it working loose in the rolling stage.

Soap flakes dissolve these in a bowl or container you can use to sprinkle with i.e. a fabric conditioner bottle with holes pierced in the top, otherwise you can use bar soap. (Soap helps the wool fibres to open up and move around more easily)

Apron and strong rubber gloves protect you from splashes and the hot water.

LAY OUT THE BATT

1. Pull out small sections of fibre from the tops 8 - 10cm and place in a line along one edge of the mat to the width you want. 2. Place a second line of fibres on the matt overlapping the first by half, like roof tiles, to the same width as the first.

3. Continue laying down overlapping rows to the desired size (I would suggest not too big for a first attempt)

4. Place a second layer of fibres on top of the first layer at right angles to it, overlapping the rows in the same way as on the first layer.

5. Place a third layer of fibres over the second, this can be laid at right angles to the second or may be laid randomly depending on your design; you may be laying out an abstract design or a picture. It is worth experimenting to see what effects you can get.

6. Further layers can be added, depending on the purpose of the felt, however each layer lies at right angles to the preceding one. A decorative layer can be added on the surface, this can incorporate fibres laid randomly as well as decorative threads fibres scraps of fabric etc.

Before commencing the next stage tidy your working area of unwanted fibres, it is always best to put away fibres not to be used to avoid them getting wet unintentionally.

WETTING OUT THE FIBRES

1. Cover the fibres with the net.
2. If using soap solution (a small quantity of liquid soap or soap flakes dissolved in 1 pint of very hot water, add cold to fill up bottle and cool it down you do not want it hot at this stage), sprinkle it over the net. If using bar soap, sprinkle water over the fibres then gently move the bar of soap over the top, (try not to disturb the fibres below the net). Apply water sparingly; you can add more if needed, you do not want too much.
3. Using the plastic bag scrunched loosely into a pad, (or just use your hands some people prefer this as they can judge better whether the fibres are wet enough). Gently press down to push the water through the layers of fibres, start at the centre firmly working outwards until the fibres are wet through and there are no dry patches, the pattern of the bubble wrap may show through depending on the thickness of the layers. Rub over the surface in a circular movement for a while.
4. Carefully remove the net as the fibres may still move around and if you have a put a design on the top layer this may disturb it.
5. It can save a lot of physical effort if you roll the felt up in the bubble wrap, firmly massaging and squeezing along the length of the rolled up package, do this for 10 - 15minutes or so checking periodically what is happening to the fibres and straightening the felt out.

HARDENING

1. Roll the felt and the bubble wrap and the bamboo mat around the dowel. You may wish to secure this package with string to keep it secure during the rolling process.
2. Roll the package back and forth 100 times pressing down firmly as you roll. Open up and pull the felt gently into shape and turn it 90 degrees before rolling it up again in the mat and giving a further 100 rolls. *Open up and turn the felt over to the reverse side and turn again 90 degrees, roll it up again in the mat and without the dowel and give it 50 rolls*. Repeat from * to *. This is not prescriptive so long as the rolling is evenly balanced over each direction and on both sides; you need to remember what you have done.
3. When felting is complete you will not be able to separate the fibres test this by pinching fibres between your fingers and thumb. If you have used coloured fibres on top of white they will have started to show through to the reverse of the fabric.

MILLING / FULLING

This stage involves the use of very hot water; it is safer to wear strong rubber gloves and apron. At this stage the fibres will compress and shrink in the direction in which it is being rolled, this means you have some degree of control over the shape of the finished article.

If using a mat, roll the felt up in the matt and pour hot water over the mat and roll adding pressure as you roll; open up turn the felt round and repeat until the felt is fit for it’s intended use, e.g. slippers will need more milling than a picture for example. If you are using bubble wrap it is just as easy to immerse the felt in a bowl of hot water and roll up in the bubble wrap before rolling again adding pressure as you roll.

More later.....Tessa Mendez (April 2005)