The magic of felt

Materials and Tools:   Merino Wool Tops, Hot Water, Soap

Pick a piece of the merino wool. Taking a piece of the merino wool is like pulling at candy floss, this thin fibers string out like a web. Starting at one end of the piece fold or roll the end into a ball and work the fibres around this ball until all of the piece is in a loose ball shape. 

Merino wool tops

Dip the ball of wool into a container of the hot water and soap. Remove the wool and squeeze out the excess water, taking care not to scald yourself with the water. 

Place the wool between the hands and roll gently to form a ball. As the fibres knit together to ball becomes smaller and dense. 

If there are any cracks or folds appearing add some more fibres around the original ball. Repeat the dip in the water and rolling and hopefully the crease should be removed. 

Once happy with the resulting ball dip in cold water to rinse. Then allow to dry. Thorough drying may take several days. If using as a bead then introducing a hole with a needle is best done before the bead dries.

Finished beads