How is felt material made

Today, some felts are made wholly from synthetic fibers, in a dry needle-punch process. Pre-dyed synthetic fibers are used, and tiny , harpoon shaped needles are used to press the fibers into a tight construction.

If you look closely, you may see some of the miniature holes, which are mostly invisible to the casual viewer. Using synthetic fibers in a dry process, lets us make washable and colorfast felt in our Durafelt lines. A web or batts of fibre are transported by a feeding device between upper and lower hole-plates. The bearded needles periodically penetrate through the holes in the plates and through the batts. In every stroke, the barbs of the needle seized fibres and pull the fibres through the web creating fibre bundle.

As the needle withdraws, the batt is released and moves a small step towards take-off rolls. The level of web densification is among others a function of the number of punches per unit area of the web, the number of needles in the needle board. Attainable frequency of the needle board determines the performance of the machine.

Kent Page Felted Fabric www. NancyEvBryk production of felt fabric - madehow. Joseph, M. Essentials of Textiles. California State University, Northridge. Image Courtesy:. This article was originally published in Textile learner blog run by Mazharul Islam Kiron. The information provided on this website is for educational or information purposes only.

Anyone using the information on Fibre2fashion. The views and opinions of the authors who have submitted articles to Fibre2fashion. If you wish to reuse this content on web, print or any other form, please seek for an official permission by writing to us on editorial fibre2fashion.

We use cookies for better user experience. By continuing to browse this site you agree to its Cookie Policy or can decide to change your browser settings anytime. Got it.

Toggle navigation Fibre2Fashion. Make to Order. Wed, November 24th, Featured Fairs. Get your copy. By: Yusuf Maigari.

History: Felt may be the oldest fabric known to man; it predates both weaving and knitting. Manufacturing methods of felt: Basically, there are two methods of manufacturing felt fabrics: Wet felting traditional felting Needle-felting Dry felting Wet felting: This process uses the inherent nature of wool and other animal hairs, because the fibres have scale on them which are directional and the hairs have kinks in them.

Wool also matts very easily, making it ideal for this fuzzy fabric. However, adding synthetic fibres into the mix such as polyester or acrylic can improve the product depending on its intended use. Adding a percentage of synthetic fibres can increase felts durability for certain crafts or industrial use.

It can also increase pliability. A common fibre sometimes added to wool is rayon. Rayon removes the prickly feeling that pure wool can often have against the skin. Meaning that a synthetic mix is the best of both worlds! As mentioned, the process of creating felt can be pretty labour intensive.

It involves various steps of blending the fibres, matting the material, shrinking and steam-pressing. However, the most straightforward method is simply to apply heat and moisture. This causes the mix of fibres to merge and blend together.

Felt may vary in width, length, color, or thickness depending on its intended application. This matted material is particularly useful for padding and lining as it is dense and can be very thick. Furthermore, since the fabric is not woven the edges may be cut without fear of threads becoming loose and the fiber unraveling.

Felted fibers generally take dye well and craft felt is available in a multitude of colors while industrial-grade felt is generally left in its natural state.

In fact, felt is used in a wide variety of applications both within the residential and industrial contexts. Felt is used in air fresheners, children's bulletin boards, craft kits, holiday costumes and decorations, stamp pads, within appliances, gaskets, as a clothing stiffener or liner, and it can be used as a cushion, to provide pads for polishing apparatus, or as a sealant in industrial machinery.

Felt may be the oldest fabric known to man, and there are many references to felt in ancient writings. Since felt is not woven and does not require a loom for its production, ancient man made it rather easily. Some of the earliest felt remains were found in the frozen tombs of nomadic horsemen in the Siberian Tlai mountains and date to around B.

These tribes made clothing, saddles, and tents from felt because it was strong and resistant to wet and snowy weather. Legend has it that during the Middle Ages St. Clement, who was to become the fourth bishop of Rome, was a wandering monk who happened upon the process of making felt by accident. It is said he stuffed his sandals with tow short flax or linen fibers in order to make them more comfortable.

Clement discovered that the combination of moisture from perspiration and ground dampness coupled with pressure from his feet matted these tow fibers together and produced a cloth.

After becoming bishop he set up groups of workers to develop felting operations. Clement became the patron saint for hatmakers, who extensively utilize felt to this day. Today, hats are associated with felt, but it is generally presumed that all felt is made of wool. Originally, early hat-making felt was produced using animal fur generally beaver fur.

The fur was matted with other fibers—including wool—using heat, pressure, and moisture. The finest hats were of beaver, and men's fine hats were often referred to as beavers. Beaver felt hats were made in the late Middle Ages and were much coveted. However, by the end of the fourteenth century many hatmakers produced them in the Low Countries thus driving down the price.

The North American continent was home to many of the beaver skins used in European hatmakers' creations in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. North American Indians' second-hand skins, replete with perspiration, felted most successfully and were in extraordinary demand for hatmaking in both the New and Old Worlds.