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Tuesday, 7 August 2018

The Ancient Art Of Felting by Ruth Mitchell


Felt is the oldest form of fabric known to humankind, predating weaving and knitting. According to Wikipedia felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers to form the structure of the fabric.
Artist Susan Kenna was introduced to needle felting in 2003 by her friend, Sue Young, a potter in the Adirondacks. She immediately fell in love with this ancient craft, eventually turning it into a business.

Research indicates that felt making probably originated with nomadic peoples in Central Asia and spread from there west toward Hungary, then north through Europe and into Scandinavia. The best fossil evidence indicates that wild sheep evolved between 10 and 20 million years ago in the mountains of Central Asia. These sheep had hairy outer coats and softer, woolly undercoats, which molted every spring. Their coats were black, brown, gray, or reddish, depending on what color best camouflaged them in a particular environment. Sheep were first domesticated around 12,000 years ago, and it could not have taken long for herders to discover wool's felting properties. But even before then, primitive people may have found that the wool from wild sheep could be felted, spun and woven.

The oldest evidence for the use of felt is in Turkey, and dates from the Neolithic period, around 8,000 years ago. There are also examples of well-preserved ancient felt from China and Siberia. In northwest China, 3,000-year-old Caucasian mummies wearing felt hats and boots have been found. In the first decades of the 20th century, on a high plateau in the Altai Mountains in Siberia, archeologists found graves from a group of nomadic people called the Pazyryk that contained a wealth of felt articles incorporating sophisticated animal motifs in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes.

Historically, felt making diminished in importance as societies became more industrialized and manufactured alternatives became available. Even in recent history the craft was lost in parts of Mongolia as the population moved from the steppes and plains, which supported their nomadic lifestyle, into towns and cities. Felt clothing may have gone out of style in the Middle Ages because woven cloth seemed more comfortable and fashionable. However, one felt article that never went out of style is the felt hat, which has always been very much in fashion in industrialized societies.

Felt making in North America has enjoyed a renaissance beginning in the mid-1980s with many more craftspeople and fiber artists discovering this ancient craft.

Kenna comments on her own methodology. "To make a necklace, I begin with a small tuft of wool and felt it on a foam pad with a wooden handled needle," she explains. "I poke the felt until a bead is formed. To make the bead dense takes about 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of the bead. When the bead is finished, a design is then felted into the bead with more wool. Each bead is individually made and then designed.

"My necklaces have as many as 11 beads, but I also make necklaces with a single wool bead. Sterling silver or leather is used to string the necklaces. I make earrings to match my necklaces. Purses and handbags are done the same way except with large amounts of wool layered 4/5 times to make the piece sturdy. Large felting punches are used for larger items. After the piece is finished, I then needle felt a design into the purse/handbag.

Kenna's creations may be purchased at: http://www.buyoutsidethebox.com

Seasoned journalist Ruth Mitchell of http://www.buyoutsidethebox.com turns her hand to blogging to bring information to the public concerning art and other relevant cultural topics, sharing beautiful things for people to enjoy.




Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/503567

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