Hi crafty friends! One of my favorite crafts by far is needle felting, if you are unfamiliar with needle felting it is simply using wool (natural or synthetic) to make something by poking the wool with a barbed needle.. over and over again! This process compacts the wool and allows the artist to sculpt. This craft definitely requires patience, it is a marathon, not a sprint, so you have to be prepared to devote some serious time to the craft if you would like hone your skills. Even though it requires time, it’s definitely something that everyone can try! It’s not a terribly expensive craft to get started with, and there are so many things you can create!
I am an amazon affiliate so I have posted my affiliate link to my favorite starter kit below.
The kit above has everything you will need to get started on making your first needle felting project. When I first started, I wanted to make people’s pets. I wanted to share with you how far you can come if you allow yourself to practice. The first image below was done September of 2022, and the second was done January of 2023. just 4 months apart! same dog, same needle felter… just lots of PRACTICE!
Let’s talk about getting started with some of the tips I find to be MOST important!
PROTECTION – First and foremost, please protect your beautiful fingers, these needles are so sharp and please trust me when I tell you, they HURT if you jab yourself. In your kit you will find two leather finger protectors, one for your thumb, and one for your pointer finger. Please use these.
FELTING PAD – You will see a gray pad in your kit, this is what you will work on, this allows you to felt without hitting a hard surface accidentally underneath, when needle felting, you don’t want to go all the way through, but you will inevitably do that, when you do, you want to make sure the needle is hitting something soft or you will break the needle!
NEEDLES – I will suggest at minimum 3 different gauge needles. 36, 38 and 40 would be my suggestion. 36 is a large needle and is what you will use to begin shaping your project. 38 is a medium sized needle and this will help to refine the look of your project. 40 is your small needle, this helps with details, and it gives a great finish. The kit above also provides you with a 42 gauge needle which is and extra fine needle and this can really help with your fine detail work and help your piece look fantastic. Think of each needle prick like a pixel in a photo. The more pixels in a square inch, the sharper the image! Needle felting works the same way! Start with your larger needle to get your shape and work up in needle size (so you can add more of those needle pricks per square inch). Remember the higher the number of the needle, the smaller the size of the needle is!
FELTING POSITION – Probably one of the most important things to remember, when you are felting, you do not have to felt super fast, and always put your needle in to the wool the same way you are going to take it out. do not shift position or you will break your needle! You don’t have to stab or jab with force, you don’t have to go all the way through!
Don’t forget to join our facebook group DIY Craft Network so you can watch live felting tutorials and felt along with us! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out on our facebook page! and happy felting!
