FELTING PATTERN

Looking for a felting pattern to use with your aplaca fleece but unable to find exactly what you want? Try using a commercial pattern for your hand felting.

Go to a material store with pattern books to find a felting project. Find a simple pattern and purchase the pattern. At home, clip out the pattern pieces that you will need to make your garment or accessory.

Wet Felting

Flat felt a large piece of felt using the wet felting instructions. Make sure you lay out the fleece larger than your pattern pieces. Alpaca shrinks about 35%. You want to be sure your pattern pieces will fit on the felt after you have felted the fiber.

Once you have enough felt, lay the pattern pieces on the felt and cut out as instructed. Follow the instructions for sewing your project together. This way you have the pattern you want in your size and a great finished item!

Don't want to do that much sewing? If your pattern is simple enough, you can tape the seams to create a larger pattern with fewer seams.

For instance, try a vest. These commercial patterns are simple to use for a felting project. Tape the side seams of the pattern to the back seams so your pattern looks like the picture below.

Finish the edges with binding. Decorate with beads embroidery, needle felting, or whatever other unique ways you can think up to embellish your finished vest.

You can make other hand felting patterns this way, too. Try taping pieces together for simple hat or purse patterns.

Or try using a template for a pattern. A template is made from material or plastic. You can make your own pattern. But don't forget to allow for shrinkage.

Make this simple drawstring purse using a template. The free purse instructions are in PDF from and include lots of photos.

Hope these ideas help you to find the perfect felting pattern to make great felt items with your alpaca fleece.

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