Learning to Felt

1. June 2009 by Eve Peach.

So summer time for me means back to work in Barbara Yontz’s studio.  For the past four years I have had the privilege of being her studio assistant.  Barbara lives in New York in the fall, winter, and spring but comes back to Nashville to make her art during the summers.

This summer’s project: FELTING!

So the other day we taught ourselves how to felt loose wool fibers together.  It was not as hard as we thought.  Felting is one of those activities like knitting that Barbara and I have decided we could do for hours it is that much fun for us!

Here is documentation of our process:

First we pulled the wool into the desired length of pieces and made a sheet of loose wool with the fibers going in the same direction.  Then we layered these sheets on top of each other with each layer going in the opposite direction from previous layer.  You need at least two thick layers.  

Then we took hot water mixed with dish soap and poured it over the fibers.

Next we agitated the fibers by hand.

Once the fibers start to hook together you can take the sheet and roll the sheet up in bubble wrap and agitate the fibers this way for a while.

And then…Tada!

FELT!

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