Welcome to the first in a series of three articles about 'Felting'. In this, the first article we look at the history of the craft.

Felting is not a new process and is one of the most traditional textile techniques known to man. It is not known exactly when the process was discovered, however there are records and remains of felt products found in many different cultures. For instance, felt products have been found in pre-historic burial mounds in Denmark and throughout central Asia. Famously felt artifacts were found in the tombs in the Altai Mountains in Siberia. These felts were dated from 300 / 400bc and interestingly included decorative items as well as functional items such as rugs. There is much myth and folklore surrounding felt and its discovery, an example of which is a story about felt being made in Noahs Ark. The story goes that the Ark was lined with wool and the heat and friction from the animals along with damp and urine felted the wool into a strong and sturdy fabric.

The process that we are referring to when talking about felting crocheted fabric is in fact 'fulling'. The difference between felting and fulling is that felting is the process by which unspun wool is turned into felt, and fulling describes the process of felting woven, knitted or crocheted fabric - which results in a sturdy and hard wearing fabric, more water and windproof than the unfulled version.

In the middle ages throughout Europe fabrics were fulled - often in fulling mills which were operated by religious orders. There are references to fulling mills in Don Quixote. During this time the woven fabric would have been beaten in water to make it shrink, or even walked over by bear feet to full the fabric.

Fulled or felted fabrics went on to be commercially produced and in the term 'mad as a hatter' - which was in common usage since 1837 and also features in 'Alice in Wonderland' probably refers to the process of making felted top hats which involved the use of mercury which did unfortunately turn the makers mad through breathing in mercury vapor in ill ventilated premises. The process of using mercury to make felt was not banned in the United States until 1955.

During the process of felting or fulling the wool fibers shrink and 'lock' into each other. The process of felting is irreversible and once the fibers have shrunk and locked it is neigh on impossible to unlock or loosen them - hence the fact that felted or fulled fabrics are so hard wearing. Try pouring a cup of water onto fulled or felted fabric and it will stay on top - its waterproof qualities and strength make it a highly versatile and useful fabric with many applications.

The second article in the 'Felting' series can be found here Felting - Technique

The third article in the �Felting� series can be found here Felting - Tips for felting Crochet