Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Felt shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Felt offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Felt at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Felt? Wrong! If the Felt is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Felt then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Felt? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Felt and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Felt wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Felt then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Felt site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Felt, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Felt, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. The fibers form the structure of the fabric. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any color, and made into any shape or size.
Felt is the oldest form of
fabric known to humankind. It predates weaving and knitting, although there is archaeological evidence from the British Museum that the first known
yarn was made by winding vegetable fibers on the thigh. In Turkey, the remains of felt have been found dating back at least to
6th millennium BC BC. Highly sophisticated felted Artifact (archaeology)s were found preserved in permafrost in a tomb in Siberia and dated to 600AD.
Many cultures have legends as to the origins of feltmaking.
Sumer legend claims that the secret of feltmaking was discovered by Urnamman of Lagash. The story of Saint Clement and Saint Christopher relates that while fleeing from persecution, the men packed their sandals with wool to prevent blisters. At the end of their journey, the movement and sweat had turned the wool into felt socks.
Feltmaking is still practiced by nomadic peoples in Central Asia, where rugs,
tents and clothing are regularly made. Some of these are traditional items, such as the classic
yurt, while others are designed for the tourist market, such as decorated slippers. In the Western world, felt is widely used as a medium for expression in textile art as well as design, where it has significance as an ecological textile.
Manufacture
Felt is made by a process called
wet felting, where the natural
wool fiber is stimulated by friction and lubricated by moisture (usually soapy water), and the fibers move at a 90 degree angle towards the friction source and then away again, in effect making little "tacking" stitches. Only 5% of the fibers are active at any one moment, but the process is continual, and so different 'sets' of fibers become activated and then deactivated in the continual process.
This "wet" process utilizes the inherent nature of wool and other animal hairs, because the hairs have scales on them which are directional. The hairs also have kinks in them, and this combination of scales (like the structure of a pine cone) is what reacts to the stimulation of friction and causes the phenomenon of felting. It tends to work well only with woolen fibers as their scales, when aggravated, bond together to form a cloth.
Felting is done by a chemical process in industry. It is also sometimes done with special felting needles, which grab individual fibers and drag them against their neighbors, thereby binding them. Felting may also be done in a domestic washing machine on a hot cycle.
From the mid-17th to the mid-20th centuries, a process called "carroting" was used in the manufacture of good quality felt for making men's hats. Rabbit or hare skins were treated with a dilute solution of the Mercury (element) compound mercuric nitrate. The skins were dried in an oven when the thin fur at the sides went orange - carrot color. Pelts were stretched over a bar in a cutting machine and the skin sliced off in thin shreds, the fleece coming away entirely. The fur was blown onto a cone-shaped colander, treated with hot water to consolidate it, the cone peeled off and passed through wet rollers to cause the fur to felt. These 'hoods' were then dyed and blocked to make hats. This toxic solution and the vapors it produced resulted in widespread cases of
mercury poisoning among hatters, which may have been the origin behind the phrase "mad as a hatter" and the character of the
Hatter (Alice's_Adventures_in_Wonderland) in
Alice in Wonderland. The
United States Public Health Service banned the use of mercury in the felt industry in December 1941.
Felting differs from fulling in the sense that fulling is done to fabric that is constructed before continuing with the felting process as noted above.
Knitted woolen garments which shrink in a hot machine wash can be said to have felted ( it is actually "fulled") — an example of how the fibers bond together when combined with the movement of the washing machine, the heat of the water, and the addition of soap. Therefore, woolen clothes should only be hand-washed or machine-washed in cold water.
Cheaper felt is usually artificial. Artificial felt, if made using the wet method, has a minimum of 30% of wool fibers combined with other artificial fibers. This is the minimum required to hold a fabric together with the fibers alone. It would be difficult to achieve a stable fabric by hand at this ratio. All other wholly artificial felts are actually needle-felts.
Loden is a type of felt originally worn in the
Alps regions, which has recently gained worldwide acceptance as a
textile for fine and durable clothing.
Other uses of felt
Uses of felt in everyday lives:A knitted object can be wet felted and warn as clothing.
Felt is also used in the automotive industry to dampen vibrations between interior panels and also to stop ingress of dirt into some ball/cup joints (especially Citroen Xantia height correctors)
"Felt" cloth is commonly used to cover the slate surface of a
billiards table however, according to the wisegeek.com article on baize, a woven (not felted) fabric is the more commonly used and less expensive covering, although actual felt is still used, particularly on professional or tournament tables. The two types of fabric are similar in appearance, and are often confused.
Uses of felt in musical instruments:Felt is used in music on drum cymbal stands to protect the cymbal from cracking.
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. As the felt becomes grooved and "packed" with use and age, the tone will suffer.
Uses of felt in art:Needle felting is a popular fiber arts craft, conducted without water. Special barbed felting needles are used to push the top layer of wool into deeper layers. Wool's unique properties allow it to "stick" to itself and 'felt', without requiring soap and water.
Knitted wet felted objects can also be artistic.
See also
External links
- Read more about the history of feltmaking on 1-art-1.com - the website of UK textile artist and feltmaker Mary-Clare Buckle
- Home of Georgian Felt
- International Feltmakers Association
- Find out about traditional felt making in Kyrgyzstan.
- Learn about needle felting.
- Felt boots: rustic? No, a fashion statement!
- Needle Felting in 3 Easy Steps.
- The Truth About the Art of Needle Felting
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. The fibers form the structure of the fabric. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any color, and made into any shape or size.
Felt is the oldest form of
fabric known to humankind. It predates
weaving and knitting, although there is archaeological evidence from the British Museum that the first known
yarn was made by winding vegetable fibers on the thigh. In
Turkey, the remains of felt have been found dating back at least to 6th millennium BC BC. Highly sophisticated felted Artifact (archaeology)s were found preserved in
permafrost in a tomb in
Siberia and dated to
600AD.
Many cultures have legends as to the origins of feltmaking. Sumer legend claims that the secret of feltmaking was discovered by
Urnamman of
Lagash. The story of
Saint Clement and
Saint Christopher relates that while fleeing from persecution, the men packed their sandals with wool to prevent blisters. At the end of their journey, the movement and sweat had turned the wool into felt socks.
Feltmaking is still practiced by
nomadic peoples in Central Asia, where
rugs,
tents and
clothing are regularly made. Some of these are traditional items, such as the classic
yurt, while others are designed for the tourist market, such as decorated slippers. In the Western world, felt is widely used as a medium for expression in
textile art as well as design, where it has significance as an ecological textile.
Manufacture
Felt is made by a process called
wet felting, where the natural
wool fiber is stimulated by friction and lubricated by moisture (usually soapy water), and the fibers move at a 90 degree angle towards the friction source and then away again, in effect making little "tacking" stitches. Only 5% of the fibers are active at any one moment, but the process is continual, and so different 'sets' of fibers become activated and then deactivated in the continual process.
This "wet" process utilizes the inherent nature of wool and other animal hairs, because the hairs have scales on them which are directional. The hairs also have kinks in them, and this combination of scales (like the structure of a pine cone) is what reacts to the stimulation of friction and causes the phenomenon of felting. It tends to work well only with woolen fibers as their scales, when aggravated, bond together to form a cloth.
Felting is done by a chemical process in industry. It is also sometimes done with special felting needles, which grab individual fibers and drag them against their neighbors, thereby binding them. Felting may also be done in a domestic washing machine on a hot cycle.
From the mid-17th to the mid-20th centuries, a process called "carroting" was used in the manufacture of good quality felt for making men's hats. Rabbit or hare skins were treated with a dilute solution of the
Mercury (element) compound mercuric nitrate. The skins were dried in an oven when the thin fur at the sides went orange - carrot color. Pelts were stretched over a bar in a cutting machine and the skin sliced off in thin shreds, the fleece coming away entirely. The fur was blown onto a cone-shaped colander, treated with hot water to consolidate it, the cone peeled off and passed through wet rollers to cause the fur to felt. These 'hoods' were then dyed and blocked to make hats. This toxic solution and the vapors it produced resulted in widespread cases of mercury poisoning among
hatters, which may have been the origin behind the phrase "mad as a hatter" and the character of the
Hatter (Alice's_Adventures_in_Wonderland) in
Alice in Wonderland. The United States Public Health Service banned the use of mercury in the felt industry in December 1941.
Felting differs from fulling in the sense that fulling is done to fabric that is constructed before continuing with the felting process as noted above.
Knitted woolen garments which shrink in a hot machine wash can be said to have felted ( it is actually "fulled") — an example of how the fibers bond together when combined with the movement of the washing machine, the heat of the water, and the addition of soap. Therefore, woolen clothes should only be hand-washed or machine-washed in cold water.
Cheaper felt is usually artificial. Artificial felt, if made using the wet method, has a minimum of 30% of wool fibers combined with other artificial fibers. This is the minimum required to hold a fabric together with the fibers alone. It would be difficult to achieve a stable fabric by hand at this ratio. All other wholly artificial felts are actually needle-felts.
Loden is a type of felt originally worn in the
Alps regions, which has recently gained worldwide acceptance as a
textile for fine and durable
clothing.
Other uses of felt
Uses of felt in everyday lives:A knitted object can be wet felted and warn as clothing.
Felt is also used in the automotive industry to dampen vibrations between interior panels and also to stop ingress of dirt into some ball/cup joints (especially Citroen Xantia height correctors)
"Felt" cloth is commonly used to cover the slate surface of a billiards table however, according to the wisegeek.com article on baize, a woven (not felted) fabric is the more commonly used and less expensive covering, although actual felt is still used, particularly on professional or tournament tables. The two types of fabric are similar in appearance, and are often confused.
Uses of felt in musical instruments:Felt is used in music on drum cymbal stands to protect the cymbal from cracking.
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. As the felt becomes grooved and "packed" with use and age, the tone will suffer.
Uses of felt in art:Needle felting is a popular fiber arts craft, conducted without water. Special barbed felting needles are used to push the top layer of wool into deeper layers. Wool's unique properties allow it to "stick" to itself and 'felt', without requiring soap and water.
Knitted wet felted objects can also be artistic.
See also
- Fuzzy felt
- Roofing felt
- Valenki
External links
- Read more about the history of feltmaking on 1-art-1.com - the website of UK textile artist and feltmaker Mary-Clare Buckle
- Home of Georgian Felt
- International Feltmakers Association
- Find out about traditional felt making in Kyrgyzstan.
- Learn about needle felting.
- Felt boots: rustic? No, a fashion statement!
- Needle Felting in 3 Easy Steps.
- The Truth About the Art of Needle Felting
Definition: felt from Online Medical Dictionary
The Online Medical Dictionary is a searchable dictionary of definitions from medicine, science and technology.
Felt World
We are based in the Midlands UK and run different types of educational courses and private workshops for adults and children. We also specialize in working with children and ...
BBC NEWS | England | Earthquake felt across much of UK
The biggest earthquake in the UK for nearly 25 years is felt across large parts of England and Wales.
Focus On Felt
Focus on Felt - Andrea Hunter is a felt artist based in the Yorkshire Dales. ... I was working as a professional artist for several years after graduating from Bretton Hall ...
Felt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials.
Felt Bicycles
design for life » felt
recently people started asking about our philosophy and why we do what we do the way we do. «what’s your motivation?» «how come you value working with local community groups ...
Welcome to British Felt ::
UK. Manufacturers and converters of pressed felts for a wide variety of industrial applications, from wool. Also, suppliers of adhesive tapes. Custom die cutting services ...
The History of Felt Hats and Hat Making
The history of felt hats and felt headwear and how felt has been used for producing headwear for many centuries.
Felt Bicycles News
Felt celebate 20 Years of Mountain Biking UK with Limited Edition model. To celebrate Mountain Biking UK magazines 20th Anniversary Felt and Saddleback have teamed up with the ...
