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Felt is a type of matted fabric that consists of textile fibers condensed and pressed together. Traditionally made with wool or another type of animal fur, it’s now possible to make felt with acrylic and other forms of synthetic fibers.
Wool felt is highly flame retardant, and it extinguishes itself. This textile also has sound-dampening properties, and it is highly moisture-wicking and absorbent. Felt holds the distinction of being one of the only fabrics made without weaving or knitting.
Using heat, water, and pressure, felt manufacturers permanently interlock natural or synthetic fibers to create matted felt fabric. It’s then possible to cut or shape felt to produce apparel items as varied as hats and boot liners.
Felt is believed to be the world’s oldest fabric. The earliest archaeological evidence of felt dates back to 6500 BC, making this fabric older than any knitted or woven textile.
Various cultures have competing myths regarding the origins of felt. In the Western tradition, for instance, the invention of felt is attributed to either Saint Clement or Saint James, both of whom are said to have placed natural fibers in their sandals to prevent blisters only to have these fibers turn into felt due to heat, pressure, and sweat.
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According to Sumerian legend, felt was discovered by the warrior hero Urnamman. The felt origin stories of other cultures might not be as colorful, but felt-making has played an integral role in the societies of the Eurasian continent for millennia.
The mountain people of Tibet, for instance, ancestrally used felt due to its insulative properties. Even today, the holy men of Tibet, including the Dalai Lama, wear traditional felt hats.
Early cultures in India used felt for blankets and saddles, and the people of ancient Iran and Turkey commonly made felt floor mats. One of the most important uses of felt in the ancient world, however, was in the construction of circular Mongol houses called yurts, which remain the primary forms of dwellings on the Eurasian Steppe to this day.
While the oldest preserved samples of felt were found in Turkey, historical evidence seemingly identifies the Altai Mountains as the region where felt was first made into sophisticated products. Inhabitants of this region continue to make felt for yurts and tourist items as part of an unbroken tradition that stretches back thousands of years.
Starting in the 16th century, the economy of the area that now comprises southern Canada and the Great Lakes region in the United States was largely supported by the beaver felt hat trade. Between 1550 and 1850, hats made with beaver fur felt were among the most popular exports from the New World, and the beaver pelt trade alone made it possible for the British and French to establish rudimentary colonies throughout what is now the inland American-Canadian border region.
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Commonly called beaverkins, hatmakers produced beaver fur felt hats in a variety of distinct shapes including the immediately recognizable tophat. The beaver felt industry nearly drove North American beavers to extinction, and it was only a sudden change in style preferences that allowed their survival.
While some hatmakers still make beaver felt hats to this day, most accessory manufacturers have switched to more ethical fibers like wool. Felt is still a popular hat material, but this fabric’s uses have expanded into other types of accessories as well as homewares and crafting materials.
With the invention of acrylic fabric in the early 20th century, the international felt industry believed that it had found a cheaper alternative to natural fibers. While natural felt is renowned for its flame retardant qualities, however, acrylic is highly combustible, and other synthetic fibers used to make felt, such as rayon, aren’t much better.
As a result, high-quality felt remains made with natural fibers like wool, and consumers generally associate acrylic or rayon felt with lower-tier products. Felt never truly regained the popularity it lost in the West when beaver hats went out of style, but plenty of cultures around the world continue to use felt for ancestral purposes entirely unfazed by the aftereffects of this ultimately temporary style craze.
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The felt production process varies slightly depending on whether it contains wool, acrylic, or another textile fiber. In the case of wool, raw fibers are derived from the coats of wool-bearing animals, and in the case of acrylic, fibers are made by dissolving a polymer in various artificial chemicals and spinning the resulting substance.
Once textile manufacturers have acquired the desired fibers, they combine them into a mass using a cylindrical device studded with steel nails. Next, a carding machine cards these fibers into a loose web with standardized spaces between fibers.
A machine known as a cross-lapper or a vlamir then combines multiple webs together to make a roll, and four of these rolls are layered on top of each other to make a batt. To harden these batts of felted material, felt manufacturers expose the batts to heat and moisture, and then the final shrinking process is accomplished with a combination of heat, pressure, and moisture.
Most felt manufacturers use sulfuric acid during the final stages of the felt production process, and they neutralize this acid with soda ash and warm water once the matt has reached its ideal size. Finally, an industrial machine uses rollers to smooth out any irregularities in the finished felt fabric.
Felt manufacturers are now free to dye, cut, or form the felt to complete consumer products. They may also choose to sell unaltered felt in bulk sheets.
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Today, textile manufacturers primarily use felt to produce hats and other insulative substances such as boot linings. Thicker and harder than woven or knitted wool, felt provides an excellent barrier against cold temperatures, and this woolen material is not scratchy against the skin.
Outside the realm of apparel, felt manufacturers sometimes use this substance to make decorative pillows, handbags, and other homewares or accessories that benefit from felt’s softness and additional useful properties without needing to be significantly flexible. As most children and parents know, felt is also a popular crafting material, and you can use your imagination to make practically anything with felt. Most felt designed for crafting, however, is acrylic, which is less comfortable against the skin and more harmful to the environment than woolen felt.
Despite a recent depletion of sheep livestock levels across the continent, Australia remains the world’s largest exporter of wool products, followed closely by China. Therefore, the majority of woolen felt was manufactured in Australia, though in some cases, Australian sheep farmers ship their raw wool to China for finishing. The world’s largest producer of synthetic textile products, on the other hand, is China, so the majority of acrylic and rayon felt is Chinese.
Genuine wool felt is reasonably expensive, but it is usually around the same price as other wool textiles. Felt made with acrylic or other synthetic fibers is less expensive, but it does not have the same beneficial attributes as wool felt.
Over the centuries, textile artisans have developed quite a few different types of woolen or fur felt. More recently, fabric manufacturers have deviated from the norm and started making felt with materials other than natural animal fibers. Make sure you’re familiar with all the different types of felt available on the market:
Still one of the most common types of felt, textile artisans made felt using wool from sheep or other wool-bearing animals for the majority of this fabric’s history. In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, wool felt shares the beneficial attributes of its base fiber, including absorbency, fire resistance, and impressive insulative properties.
To this day, some textile manufacturers use beaver pelts to make felt hats and other accessories. While not as in vogue in the era of animal rights, fur felt is useful due to its impressive durability and high malleability. It’s also possible to make fur felt with types of fur other than beaver, but in every case, fur felt production involves the killing of fur-bearing animals.
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Acrylic felt has become increasingly popular over the last century. Cheaper to produce than wool, acrylic felt offers some of the same benefits as conventional felt. Unlike wool or fur felt, however, acrylic felt is highly flammable, and it is uncomfortable when worn against the skin.
Commonly used in industrial and medical applications, rayon felt shares the hydrophilic properties of wool felt. One of the major benefits of rayon felt is the ability to shape this textile into various insulative products, but like all synthetic textile fibers, rayon is a non-biodegradable pollutant.
Pressed felt is the most common type of felt, and it is also the oldest. Produced by combining textile fibers into a mat using water, heat, and pressure, this type of felt is usually sold in sheets and shaped into various consumer, industrial, and medical items.
Artisans use specialized needles to make needled felt figurines and other three-dimensional products. This type of felt is not insulative or used for industrial purposes, and instead, most needled felt products are decorative in nature.
Woven felt is a type of felt fabric that textile manufacturers produce by applying heat, water, and pressure to pre-woven fabrics. The result is a matted, highly insulative fabric that can be much thinner than pressed felt.
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Wool and fur felt are among the world’s most biodegradable substances. The only potential environmental issues associated with these types of felt regard land use and proper animal stewardship. In the modern era, harvesting animals for fur is considered to be cruel and barbaric, and in some cases, wool production can involve animal cruelty and cause pollution or soil erosion.
Natural fibers are, however, invariably better for the environment than synthetic textiles. Both acrylic and rayon production involve the use of toxic, caustic chemicals that can harm textile workers. Only rarely do textile manufacturers dispose of these chemicals properly, and in most cases, they pollute surrounding ecosystems.
Acrylic and rayon felt are not washed as commonly as other synthetic textiles, but these synthetic felt fabrics can still contribute to microfiber pollution while in use. As non-biodegradable fabrics, acrylic and rayon felt fill up landfills or contribute to plastic pollution when discarded.
Wool felt fabrics may be eligible for Woolmark certification, which is a certifying agency that ensures wool products were produced using safe, sustainable, and cruelty-free processes. Certain fur felt fabrics produced in the European Union may be eligible for WelFur certification, which ensures that fur products were produced responsibly.
Many types of sustainable fabric may be eligible for OEKO TEX certification. These organizations certify natural fabrics that were produced using organic, sustainable processes, and they even certify certain types of recycled synthetic textiles. Recycled synthetic textiles may also be eligible for Global Recycle Standard (GRS) certification, and synthetic textiles of all types may be eligible for International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certification.
Felt is a textile that is produced by matting, condensing, and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood pulp–based rayon. Blended fibers are also common.[1][2][3] Natural fiber felt has special properties that allow it to be used for a wide variety of purposes. It is "fire-retardant and self-extinguishing; it dampens vibration and absorbs sound; and it can hold large amounts of fluid without feeling wet..."[4]: 10
History
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Faranji is a Kurdish vest worn by men in winter and early springFelt from wool is one of the oldest known textiles.[5] Many cultures have legends as to the origins of felt making. Sumerian legend claims that the secret of feltmaking was discovered by Urnamman of Lagash.[6] The story of Saint Clement and Saint Christopher relates that the men packed their sandals with wool to prevent blisters while fleeing from persecution. At the end of their journey, the movement and sweat had turned the wool into felt socks.[7][8]
Most likely felt's origins can be found in central Asia, where there is evidence of feltmaking in Siberia (Altai mountains) in Northern Mongolia and more recently evidence dating back to the first century CE in Mongolia. Siberian tombs (7th to 2nd century BCE) show the broad uses of felt in that culture, including clothing, jewelry, wall hangings, and elaborate horse blankets.[9] Employing careful color use, stitching, and other techniques, these feltmakers were able to use felt as an illustrative and decorative medium on which they could depict abstract designs and realistic scenes with great skill. Over time these makers became known for the beautiful abstract patterns they used that were derived from plant, animal, and other symbolic designs.[4]: 21
From Siberia and Mongolia, feltmaking spread across the areas held by the Turkic-Mongolian tribes. Sheep and camel herds were central to the wealth and lifestyle of these tribes, both of which animals were critical to producing the fibers needed for felting. As nomads traveling frequently and living on fairly treeless plains, felt provided housing (yurts, tents, etc.), insulation, floor coverings, and inside walling, as well as many household necessities from bedding and coverings to clothing. In nomadic peoples, an area where feltmaking was particularly visible was in trappings for their animals and for travel. Felt was often featured in the blankets that went under saddles.[4]
Dyes provided rich coloring, and colored slices of pre-felts (semi-felted sheets that could be cut in decorative ways), along with dyed yarns and threads were combined to create beautiful designs on the wool backgrounds. Felt was even used to create totems and amulets with protective functions. In traditional societies, the patterns embedded in the felt were also imbued with significant religious and symbolic meaning.[4]: 21–23
Feltmaking is still practised by nomadic peoples (such as Mongols and Turkic people) in Central Asia, where rugs, tents and clothing are regularly made.[10] Some of these are traditional items, such as the classic yurt, or ger,[11] while others are designed for the tourist market, such as decorated slippers.[12] In the Western world, felt is widely used as a medium for expression in both textile art and contemporary art[7] and design, where it has significance as an ecologically responsible textile and building material.[13]
In addition to Central Asian traditions of felting, Scandinavian countries have also supported feltmaking, particularly for clothing.[14]
Manufacturing methods
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Wet felting
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Wooden rolling pin used during the wet felting processIn the wet felting process, hot water is applied to layers of animal hairs, while repeated agitation and compression causes the fibers to hook together or weave together into a single piece of fabric.[15][9] Wrapping the properly arranged fiber in a sturdy, textured material, such as a bamboo mat or burlap, will speed up the felting process. The felted material may be finished by fulling.
Only certain types of fiber can be wet felted successfully. Most types of fleece, such as those taken from the alpaca or the Merino sheep,[16] can be put through the wet felting process. One may also use mohair (goat), angora (rabbit),[17] or hair from rodents such as beavers and muskrats.[18] These types of fiber are covered in tiny scales, similar to the scales found on a strand of human hair.[19] Heat, motion, and moisture of the fleece causes the scales to open, while agitating them causes them to latch onto each other, creating felt.[20][21] There is an alternative theory that the fibers wind around each other during felting.[22] Plant fibers and synthetic fibers will not wet felt.[23]
In order to make multi-colored designs, felters conduct a two-step process in which they create pre-felts of specialized colors—these semi-completed sheets of colored felt can then be cut with a sharp implement (knife or scissors) and the distinctive colors placed next to each other as in making a mosaic. The felting process is then resumed and the edges of the fabric attach to each other as the felting process is completed. Shyrdak carpets (Turkmenistan) use a form of this method wherein two pieces of contrasting color are cut out with the same pattern, the cut-outs are then switched, fitting one into the other, which makes a sharply defined and colorful patterned piece. In order to strengthen the joints of a mosaic style felt, feltmakers often add a backing layer of fleece that is felted along with the other components. Feltmakers can differ in their orientation to this added layer—where some will lay it on top of the design before felting and others will place the design on top of the strengthening layer.[4]: 29
The process of felting was adapted to the lifestyles of the different cultures in which it flourished. In Central Asia, it is common to conduct the rolling/friction process with the aid of a horse, donkey, or camel, which will pull the rolled felt until the process is complete. Alternately, a group of people in a line might roll the felt along, kicking it regularly with their feet. Further fulling can include throwing or slamming and working the edges with careful rolling.[4]: 26 In Turkey, some baths had areas dedicated to feltmaking, making use of the steam and hot water that were already present for bathing.[4]: 37
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Development of felting as a profession
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As felting grew in importance to a society, so, too, did the knowledge about techniques and approaches. Amateur or community felting obviously continued in many communities at the same time that felting specialists and felting centers began to develop. However, the importance of felting to community life can be seen in the fact that, in many Central Asian communities, felt production is directed by a leader who oversees the process as a ritual that includes prayers—words and actions to bring good luck to the process. Successfully completing the creation of felt (certainly large felt pieces) is reason for celebration, feasting, and the sharing of traditional stories.[4]: 38–40
In Turkey, craft guilds called "ahi" came into being, and these groups were responsible for registering members and protecting the knowledge of felting. In Istanbul at one time, there were 1,000 felters working in 400 workshops registered in this ahi.: 33 [4]
Needle felting
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Needle felting process to create small animal figurinesNeedle felting is a method of creating felt that uses specially designed needles instead of water. Felting needles have angled notches along the shaft that catch fibers and tangle them together to produce felt. These notches are sometimes erroneously called "barbs", but barbs are protrusions (like barbed wire) and would be too difficult to thrust into the wool and nearly impossible to pull out. Felting needles are thin and sharp, with shafts of a variety of different gauges and shapes. Needle felting is used in industrial felt making as well as for individual art and craft applications.
Felting needles are sometimes fitted in holders that allow the use of 2 or more needles at one time to sculpt wool objects and shapes. Individual needles are often used for detail while multiple needles that are paired together are used for larger areas or to form the base of the project. At any point in time a variety of fibers and fiber colors may be added, using needles to incorporate them into the project.
Needle felting can be used to create both 2 dimensional and 3 dimensional artwork, including soft sculpture, dolls, figurines, jewelry, and 2 dimensional wool paintings. Needle felting is popular with artists and craftspeople worldwide. One example is Ikuyo Fujita(藤田育代 Fujita Ikuyo), a Japanese artist who works primarily in needle felt painting and mogol (pipe cleaner) art.
Recently, needle-felting machines have become popular for art or craft felters. Similar to a sewing machine, these tools have several needles that punch fibers together. These machines can be used to create felted products more efficiently.[24] The embellishment machine allows the user to create unique combinations of fibers and designs.[25]
Carroting
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Invented in the mid 17th century[26][27] and used until the mid-20th centuries, a process called "carroting" was used in the manufacture of good quality felt for making men's hats. Beaver, rabbit or hare skins were treated with a dilute solution of the mercury compound mercuric nitrate.[27] The skins were dried in an oven where the thin fur at the sides turned orange, the color of carrots.[26] Pelts were stretched over a bar in a cutting machine, and the skin was sliced off in thin shreds, with the fleece coming away entirely.[28] The fur was blown onto a cone-shaped colander and then treated with hot water to consolidate it.[29] The cone then peeled off and passed through wet rollers to cause the fur to felt. These 'hoods' were then dyed and blocked to make hats. The toxic solutions from the carrot and the vapours it produced resulted in widespread cases of mercury poisoning among hatters.[26] This may be the origin of the phrase "mad as a hatter" which was used to humorous effect by Lewis Carroll in the chapter "A Mad Tea Party" of the novel Alice in Wonderland.
Uses
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Felt in Maymand, Kerman Province, IranFelt is used in a wide range of industries and manufacturing processes, from the automotive industry and casinos to musical instruments and home construction, as well as in gun wadding, either inside cartridges or pushed down the barrel of a muzzleloader. Felt had many uses in ancient times and continues to be widely used today.
Industrial uses
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Felt is frequently used in industry as a sound or vibration damper,[30] as a non-woven fabric for air filtration, and in machinery for cushioning and padding moving parts.[31]
Home Decor
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Felt can be used in home furnishings like table runners, placemats, coasters, and even as backing for area rugs. It can add a touch of warmth and texture to a space.[32]
Clothing
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Russian valenki with attached waterproof soleDuring the 18th and 19th centuries gentlemen's headwear made from beaver felt were popular.[28][33][34] In the early part of the 20th century, cloth felt hats, such as fedoras, trilbies[35] and homburgs,[36] were worn by many men in the western world. Felt is often used in footwear as boot liners, with the Russian valenki being an example.[37][38]
Musical instruments
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Many musical instruments use felt. It is often used as a damper.[39] On drum cymbal stands, it protects the cymbal from cracking and ensures a clean sound. It is used to wrap bass drum strikers and timpani mallets.[40] Felt is used extensively in pianos; for example, piano hammers are made of wool felt around a wooden core. The density and springiness of the felt is a major part of what creates a piano's tone.[41][42] As the felt becomes grooved and "packed" with use and age, the tone suffers.[43] Felt is placed under the piano keys on accordions to control touch and key noise; it is also used on the pallets to silence notes not sounded by preventing air flow.[44][45][46] Felt is used with other instruments, particularly stringed instruments, as a damper to reduce volume or eliminate unwanted sounds.
Arts and crafts
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Felt is used for framing paintings. It is laid between the slip mount and picture as a protective measure to avoid damage from rubbing to the edge of the painting. This is commonly found as a preventive measure on paintings which have already been restored or professionally framed. It is widely used to protect paintings executed on various surfaces including canvas, wood panel and copper plate.[citation needed]
A felt-covered board can be used in storytelling to small children. Small felt cutouts or figures of animals, people, or other objects will adhere to a felt board, and in the process of telling the story, the storyteller also acts it out on the board with the animals or people. Puppets can also be made with felt. The best known example of felt puppets are Jim Henson's Muppets. Felt pressed dolls, such as Lenci dolls, were very popular in the nineteenth century and just after World War I.[citation needed]
As part of the overall renewal of interest in textile and fiber arts, beginning in the 1970s and continuing through today, felt has experienced a strong revival in interest, including its historical roots.[4][47][48] Polly Stirling, a fiber artist from New South Wales, Australia, is commonly associated with the development of nuno felting, a key technique for contemporary art felting.[14] German artist Joseph Beuys prominently integrates felt within his works.[7][49] English artist Jenny Cowern shifted from traditional drawing and painting media into using felt as her primary media.[50]
Modern day felters with access to a broad range of sheep and other animal fibers have exploited knowledge of these different breeds to produce special effects in their felt. Fleece locks are classified by the Bradford or Micron count, both which designate the fineness to coarseness of the material. Fine wools range from 64 to 80 (Bradford); medium 40–60 (Bradford); and coarse 36–60 (Bradford).[14] Merino, the finest and most delicate sheep fleece, will be employed for clothing that goes next to the body.[4]: 51 Claudy Jongstra raises traditional and rare breeds of sheep with much hardier coats (Drenthe, Heath, Gotland, Schoonbeek, and Wensleydale) on her property in Friesland and these are used in her interior design projects.[4]: 53 Exploitation of these characteristics of the fleece in tandem with the use of other techniques, such as stitching and incorporation of other fibers, provides felters with a broad range of possibilities[51]
See also
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References
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General bibliography
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