Fixes for the things that go wrong: fuzzy surfaces, broken needles, wool that will not felt, and shapes that refuse to hold.
What makes a felt bowler a bowler: a hard, shellac-stiffened dome and a short brim curled at the sides. Where it came from in 1849, wool felt against fur felt, how a bowler should fit, how to care for one without ruining the stiffening, and how it differs from a fedora and a homburg.
9 min read
Mohair felts slowly and loosely on its own, which is exactly why its locks keep their curl on a felted surface. Kid, yearling and adult grades, blending with merino, attaching locks for doll hair and Santa beards, mohair yarn in wet and nuno felting, and washing locks safely.
8 min read Intermediate
Seven felt hat shapes women actually wear, with brim widths in inches, how to pick one for your coat, your hair and your day rather than a face-shape chart, sizing over long or thick hair, and keeping a wool felt hat in shape.
8 min read
How to choose a felt cowboy hat and keep it in shape: wool felt against rabbit and beaver blends, what the X on the label does and does not tell you, crown creases and brim widths, sizing in inches, and what to do after rain.
9 min read
A felt beret and a knitted one behave nothing alike. What blocked wool felt does that knitting cannot, how to judge a good one, and how to get the shape back when it goes soft.
8 min read Intermediate
Wool is the only common fibre that permanently tangles itself into cloth. What actually happens to the fibre, and the four different crafts that all get called felting.
7 min read Beginner
Three words for wool that has been prepared three different ways, used almost interchangeably by shops. What each really is, and which felts faster.
6 min read Beginner
Moths eat keratin, and a fibre stash is a buffet. What actually kills eggs, why cedar and lavender are not enough, and how to store wool so it survives.
4 min read Beginner
A thrift-store sweater, shrunk on purpose, is the cheapest thick wool fabric there is. Which sweaters will felt, how to do it in a machine or by hand, and how to get a whole sweater used.
9 min read Beginner
Wool felt, craft felt and needle felted sculpture behave completely differently in water. How to wash each without destroying it.
6 min read Beginner
Soap does two jobs in wet felting — it lubricates and it raises the pH so the scales open. Which soaps do both, and why washing-up liquid is a compromise.
4 min read Beginner
A fedora, a trilby and a homburg are three different hats, and the difference is measurable in centimetres of brim. What each shape does for a face, and how to size one properly.
6 min read
Sculpt wool into animals, figures and decorations with barbed needles. Start with the basics, then work up to armatures, faces and fine detail.
Warm water, soap and friction turn loose fibre into solid fabric. Learn layouts, shrinkage and resists for scarves, soaps, vessels and flat felt.
Felt merino through open-weave fabric to create light, drapey textiles. Fabric choice, fibre weight and migration, explained clearly.
Complete makes with photos at every stage — animals, flowers, ornaments and home decorations, sorted by how much experience they need.
Printable templates, measurements and shaping guides you can follow exactly, or adapt once you know what the shapes are doing.
The core techniques, one skill at a time — each written as a sequence you can follow at the table with wool in your hands.
Which needles, wool and mats are actually worth buying — what the gauges mean, what to skip, and what a starter kit really needs.
The knitting side of working with wool — leaf patterns, casting on, needle sizes and knitting faster — including the pieces that go on to be felted.
Why leaves fall when they do, what a cobweb actually is, and the seasonal makes that follow from both.
What to do with the pumpkin once it is carved — cooking from fresh, including the parts most people throw away.
