Which is the best type of felt to use for making ornaments and dolls?
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Felt comes in a number of different fibre compositions and thicknesses, as well as (luckily for us) a huge range of lovely colours.
The type you should choose depends on what you plan to make, as well as your budget and how you feel about natural versus synthetic fibre content.
I’m often asked about the felt I use myself, and what’s the best kind to use for my doll and ornament patterns, so here are my thoughts on the different types available. Don’t worry though ~ most felt from a reliable supplier will be nice to work with and give you good results.
1mm or 2mm thick felts are best for ornaments and dollmaking. 3mm is sometimes available, but too thick for our purposes.
This has a bit more weight and solidity than the basic wool blend, and I use it for the base shapes of my ornaments, and for dolls’ shoes and bags.
The cut edge is more hardwearing than the softer felt, and the outer edge stays crisper and more defined after stitching, whether you use backstitch or blanket stitch.
It comes in a nice range of subtle, flecked colours as well as solids, and is made in the US by National Nonwovens.
I wouldn’t usually recommend this because the acrylic felt often sold in craft shops is not very nice to work with, being thin and stiff rather than soft, so it doesn’t make a smooth shape when stuffed. Also the colour range is usually quite basic.
However, I do use a white felt with a high synthetic content for the small details on my ornaments, like the puffins’ faces or the little cottages, because small shapes can get a bit fuzzy and undefined if cut from softer felt. It’s worth having a few small squares of this type to use for small details.
It’s no secret that pure wool felt is by far the nicest felt to work with, having a lovely soft, smooth finish, and nice crisp edges when cut.
The only downside to this option is that it tends to be very expensive compared to the blended felt. I have a few pieces in my stash which I ordered because I couldn’t resist the colours!
It really is lovely to work with, and worth investing in for your special projects.
Here are a few suggested suppliers, some of which I use or have used in the past few years (marked*), some of which I’ve come across during my periodic felt-Googling! If you can recommend a good supplier online or in your area, please add them in the comments below.
Ireland
Limerick Quilt Centre * – heavy wool blend and some 100% wool felt
https://www.limerickquiltcentre.ie/product-category/fabrics-woolfelts-wool/woolfelt/?v=fdfa
UK
Billow fabrics * – heavy wool blend
https://billowfabrics.co.uk/collections/wool-blend-felts
Paper and String * – lighter wool blend
https://www.paper-and-string.net/premium-wool-blend-felt
Woolfelt Company – big selection of blends and thicknesses
https://www.woolfeltcompany.co.uk/wool-felts
Cloud Craft * – 100% wool felt
https://www.cloudcraft.co.uk/collections/pure-wool-felt
United States
For more information, please visit extra thick felt.
Benzie Design – wool blend and 100% wool
https://www.benziedesign.com/collections/color-palettes
Weir Crafts – National Nonwovens range
https://www.weircrafts.com/wool-felt/100-wool-felt.html
The Felt Store – acrylic and wool blend
https://thefeltstore.com/
The Felt Pod – 100% wool felt
https://www.thefeltpod.com/merino_wool_felt_rolls_s/.htm
There’s also a huge selection of felt available on Etsy – just bear in mind that the term “wool felt” is often used to describe wool blend, so if you want 100% wool, check the description before ordering.
https://www.etsy.com/ie/search?q=wool%20felt
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Have you ever wondered what the difference is between 100% wool felt, wool blend felt and craft, other than price?! On first glance, you might not thing there's much of a difference but there is! Here’s the low down – find out the characteristics of these fabrics and which type is best for your crafts.
What is felt?
Felt is a non-woven material made by pressing and rolling fibres together. It’s thought to be one of the first fabrics made by man, with the earliest pieces dating back to 700 BC. Because it’s made without a loom it could be produced easily from wool. It’s strong and water repellant so was used to make clothing, saddles and tents. It’s still a very important fabric today, with many industrial uses in manufacturing and architecture, and it’s also hugely popular in crafting because it’s such a versatile, easy-to-use fabric.
Felt can be made by hand (using wet felting and needle felting) but on a commercial scale it’s usually done with machinery. If you like the TV programme ‘Inside the Factory’ you might enjoy a read of this!
The fibres used to make felt can be natural like wool or bamboo, or synthetic like petroleum-based acrylic or wood-pulp based rayon. All of these fibres produce a felted fabric which won’t fray at the edges, so no hemming is required. However, the different fibres also give the felt fabric different properties and uses. Let’s look at these:
100% wool felt is made of pure wool only. Confusingly, wool blend felts are often called ‘wool felt’ but they usually have less than 40% wool in them (more on that below!). 100% wool felt usually contains merino wool, which is super soft and durable. Because it comes from a renewable source, wool is a sustainable product and will biodegrade. It’s important to check when buying this type felt that the wool is museling-free (a cruel practice sometimes used by sheep farmers). Ours is!
100% wool felt is evenly thick and smooth with a matt appearance. It cuts without leaving fuzzies and it doesn’t tend to pill (bobble) when rubbed so it’s hard wearing.
This felt is dense so holds stitches well without being stretched out of shape, unlike a wool blend or acrylic felts, which tend to be thinner and less dense.
100% wool felt is washable. Just like your favourite woolly jumper, it’s best to do this delicately with a cool hand wash. There can be around 5% shrinkage on washing so if you are making anything that will be washed it’s a good idea to pre-shrink the felt before crafting with it. 100% wool felt holds dyes really well but some colours are not fast so it’s best to wash them separately if you need to. 100% wool felt can be ironed on a wool setting.
Because of the natural oils present in 100% wool felt it is water repellant so seems to stay clean for longer. It’s also naturally fire-resistant (the best test for wool felt to set fire to it – if it only smolders and doesn’t catch fire it’s wool!). The natural oils in wool also give this felt antibacterial properties.
Because it’s lovely to cut, stitch and stays smooth over time, 100% wool felt is a favourite amongst stitchers and toy makers because it has an heirloom quality. It is however the most expensive option and not widely available.
This is often called wool felt but it usually has no more than 25-40% wool in it, with the rest of the fabric made up of man-made fibres such as rayon (viscose) or acrylic. This felt is thinner and less dense than 100% wool felt but is usually more durable than a craft felt. It has a tendency to go bobbly and stretch out of shape with use and, because of the synthetic fibres, some have a shine to them. This felt is smooth and holds stitches nicely. They do come in a huge range of colours and are less expensive than a 100% wool felt so are great when you are producing a large scale project, for making things that won’t get much wear or for children’s crafting. As it stretches easily, wool blend felt can be useful for felt flower making, if you want a leaf or petal to have a curled shape.
This is the cheapest felt, often found in craft shops and schools. It’s made of 100% man-made fibres – acrylic, polyester, rayon or viscose. There are some more environmentally conscious choices now too – you can get felt made from a fibre produced from recycled plastic bottles or bamboo (bamboo is fast growing an doesn’t need chemical fertilizers so it’s a more sustainable choice).
The one thing these felts have in common is that they are inexpensive however they tend to vary a lot depending on what type of fibre they are made from. It can be quite thin (sometimes you can see light coming through it) or very stiff. It usually has a plasticy shine to it and it’s easy to stretch out of shape. If you stitch onto it, the threads don’t ‘sink’ into the fabric so they look loose.
This type of felt is great for getting young kids into crafting – just expect their creations to stand the test of time! It can also be handy if you want to test out a design before upgrading to a better quality felt. If you do use this felt, choose carefully – don’t pick the stiff type of craft felt if you are planning to make a stuffed toy. However, if you need a fabric with a bit of structure, the stiffer felts can be a great option. It’s also perfect for vegans.
This image shows how seams look with different types of felt. You can see that because 100% wool felt is more dense than the other types of felt, the stiches don't pucker the seam. You can also see when you look closely that the wool blend felt and craft felt have a slight sheen to them.
There are so many types of felt to choose from these days - each works well depending on your aims and your budget. It's worth spending a little time when you start your next project to be sure that you are using the right type to give you the finished result you're looking for.
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