Felt is a special textile that is produced by knotting, condensing and pressing fibres together. There are three different types of felting methods: wet felting, needle felting and carroting.
Needle felting is a popular hobby where you create felt material without the use of water. Special needles are used as a sculpting tool, where you knot and matt the felt into spectacular shapes, designs and creations. The use of different colored felt helps you to produce detail and makes creatures and animal creations come to life. Although needle felting is the most popular amongst the arts and crafts community, a process called “carroting”, used to make men’s hats, was very popular. The fur was treated and dried in an oven until the sides of the fur turned orange like a carrot. It was then processed to remove the skin and wet rollers would cause the fur to felt. In wet felting, warm soapy water is applied to many layers of fur, which are placed at different angles to each other. Working the fibres together by compression and rubbing, the fibres then hook together to form a single piece of fabric. Felt making is still practiced by many cultures and in particular, the nomadic peoples in Central Asia, who still make tents, clothes and rugs out of the medium today.
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