Needle Felting

[Kris10]

Does anyone have experience with needle felting? I picked up a needle felting tool and mat at Banner Crafts last night. It was hard to find, Michaels and JoAnne didn't have anything on needle felting in stock.

From what I've read, there's many types of felting. One type involves knitting or crocheting with wool yarn and washing it for a felted effect.

The type I'm working on uses the felting tool to punch pieces of fabric together. I've been experimenting with fleece and felt scraps.

Yet another type of felting uses wool yarns, hot water and soap to create 3-D figures.

I can't crochet or knit so the first type is out for me. I'm very interested in working with the felting tool and the hot water type of felting. Does anyone have experience with these crafts? I've read a lot online and looked at kits, I'm just looking for some real-world advice.

[jags]

Hello! I'm looking for directions and ideas for "felted" or "boiled" wool
wearable craft projects. Did you ever get helpful replies from your question? Thanks!

[Kris10]

I ended up experimenting on my own with the felting that uses the punch tool. I've worked on felt, polar fleece, canvas and knits. Most of what I did was embellishing totes or scarves with felt. I cut shapes out of those cheap felt squares and used the punch tool to adhere them to my project. I haven't washed any of my work... most of what I did could be spot-cleaned.

Have you tried Google for felt projects? It looks like a lot of wool retailers offer hints on their sites.