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5 Common Needle Felting Mistakes
Needle felting since 2006 and teaching needle felting classes has helped me to become aware of common needle felting mistakes that can easily be avoided when starting out on your needle felting adventure. I have narrowed it down to 5 things to hopefully give you an advantage and help you avoid frustration.
- Not Felting on a Cushion I provide felting cushions for my classes, but I often see my students hold the project in their hand as they felt. The cushion provides the most safety. Lay the project on the felting cushion to avoid getting stabbed by the felting needle. Try the Bear Creek Needle Felting Pillow for the best needle felting experience.
- Stabbing the Felting needle deep into the Wool Notice that the barbs on the felting needle are located mostly towards the tip. Short quick stabs with the felting needle will help you to felt faster. It is not necessary to stab the needle deep into the wool, this uses more time and energy than is required.
- Using the Wrong Size Felting Needle There are many different sizes of felting needles. The barbs are also in different patterns on needles such as star, swirl, triangle etc. Tools holding more than one needle are also available. Different breeds of wool require different sizes of needles so it can be quite frustrating when just starting out. I have tried several sizes and types of needles over the years and the one I use the most is Star 36. I recommend starting with a single star 36 and experiment with others on the side until you find the perfect needles for the type of wool you are using. I use mostly Romney wool and star 36 works great. Finer wools such as Merino require smaller sizes such as 38 or smaller. I use a single needle when felting.
4. Felting with the Wrong Wool I was lucky when starting out on my felting journey, I had a flock of sheep that grew the perfect wool for felting. I didn’t know it at the time but have found that Romney wool is my favorite for it’s feltability. There are 100’s of choices when picking out wool for your first felting project. The most important thing to remember is to stay away from Superwash wool. It has been specially processed so that it won’t felt. It was designed to be used for knit clothing that will not shrink when washed. There are many lovely types of wool you will want to try, but for starting out my favorites are; Romney and Icelandic. Stressed, unhealthy and old sheep grow wool that is course and not as fun to work with, so find someone who has a healthy, stress free flock. Read the Felting through the sheep breeds articles to learn more about how each wool felts.
5. Breaking Felting Needles. We all break needles when we needle felt, but there are ways to prevent it from happening too often. Make sure you purchase more than one needle when starting because it is extremely frustrating to break your only needle and have to wait to finish your project.
If you see the tip of your felting needle bow or bend as you are poking into your piece, this is an indicator that you are applying sideways pressure to your felting needle & it will snap. You can poke in & out at any angle as long as the tip of your felting needle stays straight. Do not use your felting needle to pick at or pry the fibers of your project as, this too, will cause your felting needle to snap.
If you work on a cushion your needle will have a soft surface to protect it, if it goes through your felting project and comes out the other side. Wait until you have some experience in needle felting before attempting to work around wire. It took some time, but I don’t break as many needles as I once did, so there is hope. 😉 Also, keep in mind that felting needles wear out, and need to be replaced if you are felting often.
If you are just starting out needle felting or looking to improve your skills you will want to check out my needle felting kits and Needle Felting Academy.
Other Articles you may enjoy:
Learn to Needle Felt the Easy Way!
Join the Bear Creek Needle Felting Academy today!
Teresa,
I have never needle felted but I am thinking of trying it. I have Rheumatoid Arthritis and I an wondering if the needle punching is hard on the hand?
Thank you.
Eileen
Hi Eileen, I also have RA. I use the needle holders that we sell on this website and that helps me. They make it easier to hold and there is less stress on your fingers. I sure hope it works for you, it’s so much fun. Teresa
I’m new to needle felting and love it! I just finished a hippo 🦛 that turned out pretty good IMO, but it’s top-heavy. It won’t stay on its feet, but falls forward and rests on its nose. Is there anything I can do now that I’m finished?
Hi
I am trying to do a needle felt kit where I have to make a ball. Did one and made a hard ball, but the second will not harden. Is it possible to over work it?
Did you use the same kind of wool for both balls? All wool felts differently. It is possible to overwork some kinds of wool. Romney wool felts very solidly and is my favorite for needle felting.
I am looking for a felting class near me, but can’t seem to find one. I live in Silverdale, WA. ANY IDEAS.
Hi Jan, You might want to consider My Needle Felting Academy. Many have learned to needle felt with me online and I would love to have you join us! Learn more Here: https://bearcreekfelting.com/teresa-perlebergs-needle-felting-academy/
Teresa, Thank you for sharing. All great information and so helpful!
I am doing my first project and it is a dog with a rubber mold. Once I’ve felted into mold, how do I remove from mold? It seems to be stuck & I’m afraid to pull it out. Help!
Hi Karin,
All of my sculptures are solid wool all the way through. I have never felted with a mold of any kind. I would encourage you to try one of my kits and get started felting on the right foot.
I live part time in Pleasanton, Northern California. The rest of the time we travel in our motorhome. Classes in Northern, California would be great but, I could also visit other places. How can I get a list of your classes.
Hi Nancy,
I teach classes online in my Bear Creek Needle Felting Academy and through my needle felting kits. This keeps me busy along with homeschooling my children and taking care of the sheep. I don’t travel much for teaching engagements. Any shows or events I am planning for the year can be found by clicking on “where to find me” under the about tab.
OK, you are a goddess! I just started needle felting and I have learned so much already from your blog. Thank you.
My first course kit hasn’t arrived in the mail yet, but I have already learned so much from the articles and videos. I think I’m ready to begin the snowman kit my daughter gave me!
Perfect! The snowman kit is the perfect place to start.
This is one of the best sites I have found on the computer.
The pictures and descriptions of projects plus learning about you is special.
I am curious if you would be doing any classes in the area?
Do you have classes at your home?
Person giving classes where are you located.?
My name is Teresa Perleberg and I live in SouthEast, North Dakota.
I have a class coming up in August at the Fiber Festival in Fargo. I haven’t taught classes in my home, but if there was enough interest I would.
Thanks for asking.
Looking for someone from California
How do you tell which yarn/wool difference
Hi Lynne,
I would only buy wool that is labeled with the breed. It is important to know what wool you are using and where it came from, especially if you want to keep track of which type you like best. If wool is SuperWash it will be labeled that way and SuperWash does not work for felting. You can find many sources to purchase wool from on Etsy.com usually right from the shepherd that raises the sheep. Start out with some of my favorites and branch out from there.
Would anyone know of felting classes in Northern California ,I live in Walnut Creek about a hour east a San Francisco…..to get started I’d love to take a lessons and make something to get the feel for neddle feeling
I live in Benicia, CA which is just a few miles north of Lynne and I am also interested in lessons for needle felting. If anyone hears of anything, please reply.
I have a membership community called The Needle Felting Academy. In the community you have access to variety of needle felting courses that I am adding to all the time. The courses range from beginner to advanced. I also share all my tips, techniques and secrets as well as chat with you and answer questions in the forums. If you would like to find out more, here is a link that will give you more information:
https://bearcreekfelting.com/teresa-perlebergs-needle-felting-academy/
Thank you, great tips, as a newbie I broke a few needles at first. But as I got more experienced I’m not breaking as many. Plus you 5 tips have made me rethink how I’m going to felt.
Thanks.
Glad to hear you found my tips helpful. Thanks!
Thanks, for sharing your expertise. When being self taught means learning from everyone who’s willing to share. Thanks again!
Denise
Great advice! At first we think the deeper we felt, the better results…felt all the way through…yeah. Also, breaking needles. I still (after a year) find myself asking the needle to do something more than it was designed for. Thanks! I will read it again and share it too.
Thank you, those hints are really helpful ?, it’s really nice of you to share these!
how I determine which needle size is which please
If you purchase needles from me, the needles come on a card where their size is labeled. I encourage my students to return their needles to the card when finished using them so that they are able to tell which one is which. You can also mark the needles with fingernail polish to keep track of their sizes. If the needles get mixed up and you are not sure of their different sizes you will have to go by feel. The 36 will have more resistance poking into the wool than the 38.
I WONDER IF YOU SELL YOUR GIRAFFE IS FOR SALE – IF SO, WHAT IS THE COST.
THANK YOU, MICHAEL
The Giraffe is for sale you can find the giraffe here: https://bearcreekfelting.com/product/needle-felted-giraffe/