Are you new to this amazing form of art? Needle felt work is a fun and creative sculptural and design craft that has quickly gained in popularity.
What is needle felting?
Needle felting begins with unspun wool, also known as roving. The craft involves sculpting shapes or making designs using roving and special felting needles which are barbed.
With just a few supplies, this technique enables the artist to create amazing figures, such as 3D needle felt animals, and 2D designs.
Each of the wool fibers is covered in overlapping scales. The orientation and direction of the scales are random. When poked and prodded with the barbed felting needles, these scales connect the fibers together, forming a secure bond during this felting process.
What supplies are needed for needle felting?
There are very few supplies needed for needle felting:
- Wool: Needle felting is most often done with a kind of wool called roving, but other forms of wool can be used like batting or fibers from animals other than sheep.
- Felting needles: Felting needles are longer than sewing needles or tapestry needles and have sharp, barbs on them that are designed to push and pull the wool fibers together. Felting needles are quite delicate and break easily if used incorrectly.
- Felting surface: A special felting surface is necessary to avoid the poking of fingers. Both sponges and felt pads work well for needle felting. It is important that the surface be several inches thick. Special felting mats can be purchased for this purpose.
Check out our felting supplies and tools page for purchasing these items.
What can you make with needle felting?
Needle felting can be used to create both two dimensional and three dimensional works of art.
There are links below to two dimensional needle felt projects. One such project is making needle felted designs on mittens. Various colors of wool are felted onto woolen mittens to create leaves or a roller skate design.
3D needle felting involves the same principle as 2D felting, but the piece is built up as a sculpture, forming the main body and then strategically adding wool to other wool pieces that will then be added to the main form.
Wire is sometimes used for stability. Needle felted animals, characters, and plants are just some of the sculptures that can be made.
The articles below include tutorials on how to needle felt both 2D designs and 3D figures. There are also several beginner needle felting tutorials for easy projects in order to get started.
Learn basic needle felting techniques along with how to needle felt basic shapes that can be used to form 3D art.
You will become a needle felting artist in no time!
Once the technique is learned, please visit our free needle felting projects page for loads of inspiration!!
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If you are creating an animal and need to know how to make ears, head, feet, whiskers and other body parts this a great page to review.
Fit To Be Loved
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Recycle your felt scraps by needle felting them into colorful new sheets of felt.
My Poppet Makes
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Learning to needle felt a ball is one of the fundamentals of learning to needle felt. It is one of your basic shapes that is used in many needle felted pieces.
Acorn Felting
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In this post, you will find, from learning the basics of what needle felting is through to felting techniques such as attaching body appendages or wire armature.
Fit To Be Loved
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This article is a how-to use the Clover needle felting mat and tool.
Betz White
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Another basic shape a felter should learn is the cone shape. Here is a step-by-step photo tutorial.
Acorn Felting
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What is core wool for needle felting? And why is it used? Learn here.
Acorn Felting
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In this post learn how to felt an egg shape.
Acorn Felting
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What can you use for a felting mat? Felting mats are essential for needle felters. This post explores options with the pros and cons of each.
Acorn Felting
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Simple small design to use up-cycled fabrics to make needle felted designs on mittens. A good beginner lesson for needle felting craft.
Made By Barb
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Here is a technique on how to needle felt leaves using wet wipes.
Fit To Be Loved
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Learn how to create an easy needle felted shape with wool roving and a cookie cutter.
Fiber Artsy
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Learn how to get started the craft of needle felting and what supplies you’ll need.
Skill Share
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Here you will find full detailed tutorials for how to make a realistic Tabby Birman cat (head shape, adding fur, making ears, etc).
Fit To Be Loved
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Here you will find the Sheltie Feltie process, how to make curly spaniel dog ears, realistic dog eyes, and more.
Fit To Be Loved
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Learn how to make realistic eyes just from wool.
Fit To Be Loved
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Here is a very simple guide with the basic tools and instructions for learning needle felting.
My Poppet
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This post teaches you all things needle felting. A beginner's guide to needle felting that teaches you what needle felting supplies you need along with some basic needle felting techniques.
Gathered How
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Brief, basic instructions on how to needle felt.
wikiHow
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Here you’ll find guides, reviews and how-tos of different Needle Felting Tools.
Fit To Be Loved
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A guide to different types of wool and how to use them.
Fit To Be Loved
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Learn about felting needles.
Mielke's Fiber Art
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Easy to follow tutorial on needle felting wool into a pair of hands.
The Makerss
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Learn the fundamental building blocks of professional fun and easy needle.
You Tube
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A wire armature is sometimes necessary for making needle felted figures. Here is a post of tips, techniques and how to wrap wire into wire armatures.
Makerss
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