The Dodo Blog

As I have been talking about for some time, I’m working on a masterclass about hats.

Deciding what hats to teach about was a hard task. It’s a topic that really allows you to explore your creativity. There’s no end to what you can do with felted hats. But I decided to go for the classics. I bet I’ll come back to the hats subject to explore it further, but the classics are a great way to start. They give you the basics that you can build upon later.

So, that means I’ve been working on the following hat types: the beret (of course), the cloche (also fundamental), the fedora (an imperative), the bowler and the floppy wide brim hat. I’m really excited about this masterclass and I’m having trouble keeping quiet about this

So, I wanted to show you some photos of the finished pieces.

One pattern, three hats

The Fedora

The Cloche

The Bowler

I’ve already filmed the part of the...

I’m not the kind of person that buys all types of equipment when I start a hobby. Even though I’ve been felting for 15 years, there’s still so much I haven’t bought, and I probably never will. And much of the equipment I have invested in, have been purchases I’ve made in the last 3 or 4 years.

I know it’s easy to get excited about all the products for felting offered online, but you really don’t need much to wet felt. When I started, I really only had the basics. First, I didn’t want to spend money on something I wasn’t sure I’d be doing for a long time. And also, because I think the magic of felting is exactly the fact that – unlike in so many other textile techniques – you nearly only need your bare hands and wool to create an object.

But, since it was quickly clear to me that I’d go on felting for a very long time, I’ve slowly started getting equipment that makes...

Are you going crazy with the ‘what is what’ in terms of the wool for felting?

I do my best to avoid insider lingo, but the truth is there’s no escaping. You’ll just have to learn a couple of new terms when it comes to this. Otherwise you risk not getting the right materials for your projects. So here is some of the terminology you’re bound to hear if you’re taking on felting:

Raw fleece is what you call the wool when it’s right off the animal and unwashed (that means dirty and greasy). This is not something you can normally get, unless you buy directly from a sheep farm.

Scoured fleece has been washed to remove lanolin and dirt, but it still has the lock structure. I use it to fill pillows or for doll’s hair, for example.

Wool batts, wool batting or carded wool is very similar to quilt batting. It’s the result of removing the debris from the wool with a machine that breaks up the lock structure, and then going...

Hi!

Hope you and your family are doing well.

We’re all being affected by COVID-19 in so many ways and feeling anxious about the situation (to say the least).

Now that so many of us are staying home and having a lot of free time on our hands, wet felting can be uplifting, fun and relaxing. If you’re starting out, I suggest you take a look around my site and check out all the available FREE resources. If you want to jump in and explore more complex projects, now is a great time to do that.

Because I’d like to offer you something special during this moment, I decided to have a 20% discount in all the items in my Etsy shop exclusively for subscribers. If you’re a subscriber, you’ll get the information via email.

The 20% discount will be applied at checkout and it’s valid until Easter Sunday, April 12^th.

There’s something else I’d like to talk to you about...

Hi!

It’s been such a long time since I last taught a live workshop. I’m a teacher at heart, so interacting directly with my students and having that immediate feedback you get at a live event is something I absolutely love!

I’ll never forget the reaction of a young girl who attended one of my courses on hats and had never touched wet felting before. I was a bit worried that it could become difficult for her, since felting hats can be challenging. Getting the right thickness all over the piece and shaping a more sophisticated form can be tough, especially for someone who has never tried felting. But she told me she was used to trying new materials and it wouldn’t be a problem for her if she, for any reason, wasn’t able to complete the project. So, I agreed that she’d sign up for the workshop.

If you’ve already made 3D pieces, you know there’s a moment in which you take the resist out of the flat piece and start giving it a...

Hi!

Here’s the third part of my answer to your question:

“What are resists and how do you use them?”

If you haven’t watched parts I and II, go and check them out. You can find the links below.

SO WHAT ELSE SHOULD YOU CONSIDER WHEN DESIGNING A RESIST?

You probably already know that wool can actually shrink a lot when wet felted, right?

Like even 30 or 40%, depending on the wool type and how thick your layers are or how you lay the fibers.

So, when designing a resist, you have to plan for this shrinkage.

If you’re making a bag or any other object where the size doesn’t have to be very precise, you can make your resist and start felting.

But if you want to make a hat or a pair of shoes, then you want to get the RIGHT size, right?

In that case, start by making a sample with the wool you’ll be working with and lay it in the way and with the thickness you’re planning for your piece.

From this sample you can see how much the wool shrinks, so...

Hi!

Today I’m here with the second part of my answer to your question:

“What are resists and how do you use them?”

If you haven’t watched part I, go and check it out. You can find the link below.

SO WHAT MATERIALS CAN WE USE FOR A RESIST?

One of the most important things when using a resist is the CHOICE OF MATERIALS.

It has to be something that doesn’t felt onto wool, otherwise it’ll remain stuck between the layers, instead of doing its job, which is to SEPARATE them.

It should also be flexible enough to work with.

The 3 main materials used are cardboard, thin plastic and floor underlayment.

CARDBOARD is not something I use, because we work with water, so you can only use it once. It’s also not very malleable, so it’s a bit hard to work with.

THIN PLASTIC is something I use sometimes. It’s malleable but it’s hard to feel through a thick piece of felt. So, I only use it when I’m felting thin pieces.

FLOOR UNDERLAYMENT...

Hi!

Today I’m answering another one of your questions.

Now, I’ve done a couple of videos about resists, but I keep getting questions about them. Because this is such a big and important topic, I keep answering them.

Speaking of which, here’s the question for today:

“What are resists and how do you use them?”

Now, this question is very likely from someone who’s starting with wet felting and wanting to improve the technique. And this is in fact, one of the most important things to understand.

As I’ve mentioned before, I do have a couple of videos about resists, but I don’t think I explain what they are in any of them.

So, that’s what I’m going to do today.

SO, WHAT IS A RESIST?

By definition, a RESIST is anything you use between two pieces of wool to avoid that they felt with each other.

A resist is only used DURING the felting process and it’s removed after the process is complete. Or rather, before you start fulling.