Felt Sewing Tips

You’ve gathered materials, colored felt, and matching threads. You have enough inspiration, and you’ve actually seen some breathtaking pieces. You know exactly how you want it to look.

You’ve finally started sewing, but your sewing machine is resisting and seems determined to fail your project from the very beginning. Your thread is constantly breaking, skipping stitches, and ultimately sewing felt doesn’t go as you planned.

See Also: 15 Amazing Tips for Working with Felt

To avoid all that stress, read on and learn essential tips for sewing felt.

Felt is a pretty good material for beginners and is great for sewing projects for kids. It doesn’t wear out, you can cut it quickly, and various colors and patterns are available to suit any DIY project.

See Also: Felt Crafts for Beginners – The Complete Guide

Felt is an excellent material for sewing beginners and is easy to use for kids’ craft projects. Its variety of colors and easy to sew construction make it the perfect material for many DIY projects.

Felt sewing tips are for beginners and anyone who wants to learn new sewing tips and tricks. The guide provides a brief description of felt as materials and types of felt.

See Also: 11 Questions Every Beginner in Felt Crafts Should Ask

You can find details on which thread and needles to embroider felt in my other felt basics articles. You can learn how to transfer, trace, and cut a felt shape in the how-to sections. You’ll discover both hand sewing tips and machine sewing tips for felt.

See Also: Everything You Want to Know About Felt

I hope that this felt sewing guide will be helpful to you as you plan your next felt project and will assist you in completing it effectively. 

What exactly is felt, and how may it be put to use?

Felt is a non-woven textile. It is made by compressing and matting the fibers until they merge to form a solid fabric. Felt is the earliest known fabric and has a long history. Felt has been utilized as clothes, shoes, rugs, and even tent material in numerous cultures.

See Also: What are the Felt Types

See Also: 4 Types of Craft Felt – Learn to Choose and Use

Felting is made by manipulating the fibers until they become dull and then shrinking the fabric to interlock the fibers. Handmade felt is typically caused by wet or needle felting, which involves soaking the fibers and churning them together until they lock together to form a strong fabric.

A specific needle or group of needles is used for matting the fibers together in needle felting. The needles are barbed, which tangle and dull the fibers, resulting in felt. Wet felting uses animal fibers like wool, whereas needle felting uses any fiber to create felt.

See Also: How to Choose a Quality Felt Fabric

Wet felting is the most effective method for creating huge sheets of felt at home. Needlework is ideal for adding embellishments to projects and is also an excellent way to make three-dimensional work such as figures or dolls.

Felt is used in many DIY and craft projects today. One of the reasons behind the popularity of felt for use in crafts is its versatility. Felt ranges from commercially produced felt pieces made from man-made fibers that are affordable to purchase to handmade felt using the best animal fibers.

Commercially produced felt pieces are ideal for use in children’s craft projects. Unlike woven fabric, felt does not fray or unravel. Therefore, it is an excellent fabric for children to learn to sew.

Regular craft scissors can be used to cut felt. Felt is also used to create homemade things such as purses, caps, and other accessories. Handmade felt is frequently used in these undertakings, resulting in results that are distinct from store-bought items.

Felt is also used by textile artists in their work. Felt is an excellent material for embroidering and embellishing. Acid dyes are also straightforward to use on wool felt.

Tips for Working with Felt

Here are some pointers to assist even complete beginners make great-looking felt items:

• Make a sewing feature. Because felt is a thick material, the seams can be bulky. Instead of turning the felt so that the seam is on the inside, show the stitching on the outside. This highlights the handmade nature of the project while providing an attractive decorative feature.
• Use simple shapes. Very complex or detailed forms are difficult to cut and machine. Thin strips of felt can go out of the body, so it’s best to work with simple shapes whenever possible.
• Add other decorations. Although felt is easy and cost-effective to work with, it doesn’t have to be tedious or utilitarian. Add other embellishments such as stitching, beads, or ribbon to add more interest.
• Do not wash the felts too much. There is no need to pre-wash before starting your project as the felt will not shrink very much. After you’ve completed your creation, hand wash it in cool water and air dry it.
• Do not dry the felts at high temperatures. Warm water should not be used, nor should it be washed or dried, since the heat will damage the felt and cause the fibers to split.
• Felt does not wear out after being cut. So you don’t have to worry about fluffing the edges to prevent fraying. You can easily shape felt with just a rotary cutter or sharp fabric scissors.
• Be careful when planting. Be careful when sewing with felt, as too much friction or pressure can distort the fabric. Because the fabric doesn’t heal very well, you have to be careful where you insert the needle to not accidentally poke tiny holes all over your project.

Felt is a versatile material that may be used in a variety of applications. Working with felt may be just what you’re looking for craftsmen looking for something new to get their hands on.

See Also: How to Sew Felt: Key Points

Easy Project Ideas to Make with Felt

Felt is a beneficial production material that can be used in a wide variety of ways. One of the most essential features of felt is that it does not wear out. Felt is an ideal material for beginners to use for quick craft projects as well as craft projects.

Felt may be used to make a variety of simple projects. While they are simple to make, the end effect often hides the project’s simplicity.

Felt Ornaments

Felt ornaments are simple to create and look great. Primary forms are simple to draw freehand, and biscuit cutters come with various stencil shapes to choose from. Felt ornaments are perfect as Christmas tree decorations. Also, felt ornaments can be a beautiful home accessory and small scented decorations when filled with lavender or other aromatic materials.

Felt Flowers

Felt flowers are pretty beautiful and decorative accessories. Felt flowers are easy to make from pieces of felt in different colors. Cut out flower shapes and add other embellishments like beads and stitches. Try combining different felt colors to add more interest. Make a simple brooch by attaching a safety pin to the back of the flower, or sew multiple flowers together to make a bouquet.

Home accessories

Felt can be used to manufacture coasters and table mats, for example. But felt can also be used to make many other home accessories or to decorate existing accessories. Give old cushions a makeover by adding felt shapes, or liven up a plain lampshade by adding some felt embellishment.

Felt is also great for making retro-inspired items like egg fudge. These are quick to make but easy to dress up with more sewing or embellishment. Sew or sketch faces on egg cones to make simple characters.

Cell phone cases

Most cell phones need cases to protect them from scratches or further damage if accidentally dropped. Using a mobile case made of wool felt can help protect your phone. Using eco-friendly felt cases instead of damaging plastic phone cases is also an excellent method to safeguard the earth.

Soft felt toys

Felt can be used to build simple soft toys. Soft felt toys are great for beginners and are quick to make. Choose simple shapes like two-piece monsters or bunnies before moving on to more complex forms.

Adding character to a felt soft toy is accessible by using single buttons for the eyes or adding other fun embellishments. Remember, toys with small and breakable materials such as buttons are not suitable for young children due to the risk of choking and swallowing.

Where to Buy Felt?

Even though producing felt at home is straightforward and requires minimal specific equipment, some individuals prefer the ease of buying felt. Craft stores sell felt manufactured from synthetic fibers that have been commercially created.

Wool felt is less commonly available, but many felt textile artists sell felt pieces or are happy to commission. A local textile group can provide more information.

Felt is a multi-purpose and easy-to-use material that may be used in a variety of crafts. Because of the diversity of felts available and the ease with which they can be created at home, felt is an excellent material for DIY projects.