EARTH
GUILD
33 Haywood Street
Asheville NC 28801
1-800-327-8448
828-255-7818
fax: 828-255-8593
Needlefelting
FELTING
Introduction
NEEDLE-FELTING: The Basic Process
| Needle felting is a soap-and-water-free
way to make felt. It started as a commercial process, and has been
adapted to hand-use by contemporary fiber artists and feltmakers.
Using a single needle or a small cluster, it is possible to make elaborately
detailed, well controlled, three-dimensional pieces from loose wool
fiber. Felting needles are made from hardened steel, usually with a triangular profile, and are very sharp. They have tiny barbs or notches near the point. The gauge of the needle and the number of barbs vary, but they all work the same way. When one or more needles are repeatedly poked in and out of a mass of loose fiber, its "scales" tangle and interlock and eventually make felt. Needle felting doesn't require strength, but it does require patience and concentration. The needles are very sharp, please take good care not to hurt yourself or allow anyone else to be hurt. And they are brittle, they are likely to break if they are flexed. Needle felted pieces tend to be whimsical; it's a great way to let your fancies take physical form, requiring very little in the way of tools or materials. |
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