I have started using 100% wool felt for my soft toys and I&#;ve found it&#;s lovely to work with as it has such a nice luxurious feel of &#;quality&#; about it!

Acrylic Felt is so cheap and easy to find and 100% Pure Wool Felt is so much more expensive&#; MAYBE, like me, you have wondered

You can find more information on our web, so please take a look.

&#;Is it worth paying so much more
for 100% wool felt?&#;

So I decided it was time to do some research to find out 
the differences between Acrylic and wool felt,  and THIS is what I found out!

Well, as always, there are pros and cons! You have to weigh these up and decide what quality of felt to use, and if you feel it&#;s worth spending the extra dollars!!!

OK, so what&#;s so good about 100% Wool Felt anyway?

• It&#;s the most durable type of felt, (Great for making heirloom quality toys).
• It has less fuzz than other felts and it will not pill.
• It is thicker, more tightly woven and has stronger fibres so it holds up better to wear so seams won&#;t rip when stuffing your toys!
• It has slight elasticity so it can be manipulated and shaped.
• 100% natural wool is both stain and water resistant.
• Wool is naturally fire resistant.
• Wool has anti-bacterial properties that keep it from mildewing.
• Wool is hypoallergenic.
• It is both ecologically and animal friendly. (It is a natural and sustainable resource.)

I used 100% Wool Felt from Winterwood for this Kitty Kate.  Besides the fabulous colour of the felt that I LOVE, (and which I just couldn&#;t find in any craft store that stocked only Acrylic Felt)  I really liked the fact that the edges of the felt pieces didn&#;t disintergrate, as I cut them out and sewed them in place, like they do when I used Acrylic felt. The chunkiness of the wool felt also gives the toy a nice 3-D texture look which makes you just want to pick her up and cuddle her! (The gorgeous fabric is Girly Parade from Two Monkeys Fabric Store.)

Are there any disadvantages of 100% Wool Felt?

• It is much more expensive.
• Wool felts are thicker which can make sewing and shaping it more difficult.
• It shrinks a lot when washed.
• It can be hard to find in a large array of colors.

  *
  

* I&#;m NOT sure I quite believe this last point though when you look at Winterwood&#;s wool felt color chart!

NOW, what&#;s good about Acrylic Felt?

• It&#;s much cheaper. (Great for practicing or kiddies crafts)
• It&#;s easy to find at any craft store.
• It is stain resistant as long as it isn&#;t an oil based stain, like lipstick.
• Acrylic felts wash very nicely and won&#;t shrink.
• Colors do not fade (the plastic fibers themselves hold the color.)

I have used these pre cut Acrylic Felt spots which I got from Ifeltspritely. I use them  to test out color options when designing my toy sewing patterns. And when I know the toy will be only for display NOT play, I use them for the finished toy too! It can be hard to cut perfecly round, equal sized felt circles for soft toy eyes, so they make it really easy to add felt eyes to your toys. They also come in so many colours &#; I felt like a kid again playing with my felt pieces!!!

And what are the disadvantages of Acrylic Felt?

• It will pill and fuzz. (Not good for craft projects like toys that&#;ll be handled often!)
• It&#;s stiffer and harder to shape.
• It&#;s thinner &#; so may be more see through.
• It&#;s much weaker and seams are more likely to tear.
• It catches fire almost instantly when exposed to a flame.
• It&#;s durable because plastics degrade very slowly.(Not too eco friendly!)
• Also not environmently friendly as large quantities of chemical pollutants are created when it is manufactured.

  *

* Eco felt is called this because it is made from recycled plastic (mainly bottles) instead of plastic pellets, but it is still made from the same material, with the same disadvantages as standard Acrylic Felt.


I used Acrylic Felt for this Sammy Shark. I don&#;t know if you can see it but when I sewed the blue felt in place with a blanket stitch, the acrylic felt is not very firm so the stitches dig into the felt ans make it pucker. Not the best but hey, I got a great color match and this toy is for display ONLY, so it should look good for a while!!!

So what&#;s my verdict?

Mmmmmmmmm! If I was just testing a pattern out, or making something I didn&#;t need to last for a while (like dog toys!), I would use Acrylic Felt. If I just cannot find the right colour of Wool Felt, I would use Acrylic felt or a Wool Blend which is a combination of the two. As long as the toy wasn&#;t going to be handled to roughly, it would be OK!  BUT if I wanted to make a good quality toy to last and last and LAST, especially when I want to give the toy as a gift or if I wanted to sell the toy, I would use Wool Felt.

So if I had to offer any advice on choosing between Wool Felt or Acrylic, I&#;d say,
&#;Try both and THEN decide what Felt you&#;d like to use when!&#; : )

I&#;d love to know which Felt you prefer or have used for making YOUR Funky Friends?!

.
.

Till next time,

Happy Sewing,
Pauline

Jumping into needle felting can feel like starting a big adventure that&#;s exciting but a bit confusing too. There&#;s a lot to learn: different kinds of wool, needles, and so many new words. My guide, &#;Needle Felting 101: How to Easily Identify Different Types of Needle Felting Wool is here to help everyone who&#;s felt a bit lost with all these details. So let&#;s dive into, &#;What Needle Felting Wool Do I Need? For Complete Beginners!&#;

Needle felting is pretty amazing when you think about it. You start with just wool and end up with all sorts of cool things, from little animals to decorations. But before you get there, you need to know a bit about the wool you&#;re using. There are so many types out there&#;some are super soft, while others are more tough and strong. So, how do you know which one to use for your project?

No More Confusion

You might have heard of &#;roving/tops or carded wool and wondered if they&#;re just fancy names for the same thing. Well, they&#;re not. They tell you about how the wool is prepared and what it&#;s best for. But don&#;t worry, I am here to help clear up the confusion.

Let&#;s make this easy. Put the kettle on for a cup of tea (I&#;m partial to a good Yorkshire brew myself), and let&#;s break it down together. By the end, you&#;ll get the hang of the different wool types and know exactly what you need for your needle felting projects.

What is Needle felting

Felt is made using needles with notches on the end (often referred to as barbs even though they are not) and repeatedly and carefully stabbing into the wool fleece. You will tangle the fibres together until the wool becomes firm. You can make flat or 3D needle felted pictures, sculptures, jewellery&#; the list is endless and no sewing.

Take me to needle felting for beginners

What is Wet felting?

This more traditional method uses water, soap and friction to tangle the wool/fibres together and produces some really stunning results. Merino is perfect for wet felting because it is a very fine wool. I really enjoy wet felting but still have so much to learn. Keeping the water in just one room is one of those lessons and so, until I have mastered that, I will continue to wear my wellies.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Jiatong.

Wet Felted Buttonholes

Wool is measured in Microns

The measurement of wool thickness. The lower the number the finer the wool. One of my favourites is grey Jacob wool and at 33-35 microns thick this is perfect for needle felting and shows very few needle marks; I use this for many of my own projects.

Can I Use Merino Wool For Needle Felting?

I never use it for three dimensional needle felting unless I am blending colours or for contrast and detail. It is just too fine (around 23 microns) making it less suitable for needle felting (perfect for wet felting and some flat felting) as it takes so much longer to needle felt and shows a lot of unsightly needle marks. I don&#;t know why there are so many kits out there that use Merino but it can be really disheartening for a new needle felter who will not realise that it is the wool that is making it harder for them to learn.

*Choosing Ethically Sourced Merino Wool: A Guide to Humane and Sustainable Practices

When selecting Merino wool products, it&#;s essential to ensure they are ethically sourced from sheep raised in a humane manner. This means choosing wool from farms that do not engage in practices that could cause unnecessary discomfort or harm to the animals.

Many might not be familiar with some of the practices involved in wool production, which is why I&#;m highlighting the importance of making informed choices. Opting for non-mulesed wool is a step towards more ethical farming practices. It&#;s readily available and often at no significant additional cost. However, even if it were slightly more expensive, the benefit to animal welfare is well worth it.

Regions like South America and South Africa are known for their ethical wool production standards, avoiding harmful practices altogether. Meanwhile, New Zealand is moving towards legal measures to ensure better treatment of sheep, aiming to set a precedent in animal welfare. Despite ongoing discussions, Australia has yet to implement substantial changes in this area.

By choosing ethically sourced wool, we support not only superior quality but also the wellbeing of the animals and the integrity of our products.

What is Fibre?

Wool or whatever material you are using to felt with.

Materials Required for a Needle Felted Pumpkin

Raw Fleece

Straight off the sheep&#;s back. And so begins the long and not altogether pleasant process of washing, washing, washing some more, processing then dyeing (if desired). Been there, done that, never again! I saw things in that fleece I can never un-see so I shall just leave it to the experts&#;

Wool Tops/Roving 

This is probably what many of you are using for your projects but it is often referred to as roving as the two are commonly and, not surprisingly, confused but don&#;t worry because everyone will know what you&#;re talking about and, those that don&#;t will just think how knowledgeable you are on the subject of wool types. Win, win&#; Wool tops and carded wool are what I use in my needle felting creations.

The type of needle felting wool I use typically depends on the specific project I&#;m working on, and it often involves a mix of different kinds. When I talk about wool tops, I&#;m referring to wool that has been washed and combed to align all the fibers in the same direction. These tops are usually presented in long lengths that are rolled up into a ball, and they&#;re about as thick as your wrist. You can pick from a wide variety of natural and dyed colors, as well as different breeds of wool, which gives you a lot of flexibility when choosing the right material for your project. Coarse wool top is user-friendly; if you pull on it gently, it will separate easily, but if you pull hard, the fibers will lock together. This is because wool fibers have tiny scales that interlock, which is why wool is such a great choice for both wet and dry felting techniques. Whether you&#;re planning a small project or something larger, understanding these properties can help you make the best use of your materials and achieve great results in your felting.

Coarse British wool tops are ideal for needle felted animals

Take me to needle felting patterns

Roving

Is a slightly &#;scruffier&#; version of wool tops but is often referred to as wool tops . Although it comes in long lengths it is thinner, more  loosely carded (see below), tends not to follow the same direction, gives a rougher finish and will most likely have small pieces of vegetable matter within the wool. This is still a great needle felting wool which gives a rougher finish and is great for working around a wire armature.

Carded Batts And Carded Slivers

Wool that has been washed and then carded on a machine or hand carder (like a giant round hairbrush) which blends the fiber so that it is running in different directions and creates much shorter fibres.  Batts come out in thick, springy sheets and slivers are in long lengths; perfect for lots of needle felting projects and wrapping around a wire armature.

Mushroom caps made using carded slivers

                                                                           

Carded slivers in natural animal shades Perfect for wrapping around a wire armature

Curly Wool Locks

Love these and fabulous for adding texture and details to pictures, brooches, for beards and hair on gnomes and fairies etc. They are usually cleaned and left natural, or dyed.

Wool locks are perfect for creating the top coats for your needle felted sheep

Staple Length

The length of the wool which depends on the sheep it has come from and can be long or short. As I live in Lincolnshire it seemed only fitting that the photo at the top of the page should be the Lincoln Longwool.

Core Wool

This is a cheaper wool  used by some for the core/middle of larger 3D needle felting projects. You then felt the top layers with your &#;best&#; wool. Some people use polyester toy filling as their core but I can&#;t comment on it as I have never tried it&#;For my average size needle felting project I just roll up the wool I am going to use and felt that way. It really is personal preference but life size pieces can become quite expensive if you decide not to use core wool.

Pre-felted Sheets

The wool fibres are only felted until they are matted but not yet shrunk. It is then rinsed, allowed to dry and can be used as the base for a design, usually pictures. Pre-felt can be bought or you can make it yourself. I always use Shetland-pre felt.

Shetland pre felt makes the perfect base for needle felted pictures

Take me to picture tutorial

How to Start Needle Felting

Est.
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