Use a meat thermometer to test the temperature. Pressing felt between paper towels or using a hand wringer works best. Do not dry without removing excess liquid, or a cloudy film will form on the surface of the felt.
Lay flat to dry, for a stiff-flat texture, or allow the felt to dry over forms or under compression to create dramatic shapes. Iron for a professional-looking flat, stiff surface. Read on to find out two ways I use this media to stiffen. Glazing media comes in several forms gel, liquid, etc and finishes gloss, semi-gloss, matte, etc but my go-to for stiffening felt is the Liquitex Matte Glazing Media.
There are two ways to use glazing medium to stiffen felt. Immersion or brush application:. Dip a stiff brush like a stencil brush into the glazing media and then apply to the felt in a blotting or stabbing motion. Applying a bit aggressively helps the stiffening media sink into the fibers of the felt instead of remaining on the surface and potentially adding an unnatural finish to the felt.
Repeat until a section is covered, then use a paper towel to blot away any excess. Dry in the position desired i. Add Tablespoons of glazing media more for a very stiff final product and whisk until the mixture is uniformly liquid and opaque. Add felt to the bowl one piece at a time, allowing the solution to fully saturate the fabric. Very gently squeeze out excess solution.
Roll felt between layers of an old towel and wring to speed drying NOTE: immediately machine wash any towels used to prevent permanent stiffening of towels used to absorb stiffening solution.
Felt is produced through a process of interlocking loose fibers together until they form a single matted unit, which is flattened and cut to size. The interlocking process is achieved through a combination of agitation and using heat to relax fibers that then lock more snugly together when cooled.
PRO: works best when you need to produce a stiffer felt that is still very soft and very flexible. This method holds up the best to being handled and machine washed. CON: requires real wool felt, this process may melt or deteriorate craft-felt. Do not overfill pot, work in batches from lightest-color to darkest color felt.
While gently stirring constantly, place the strips into the pot of boiling water and let boil for minutes. Mix 1 part glue to 3 parts warm water.
Make sure to mix well until smooth — you do not want chunks of glue stuck to your felt. Cut your piece of felt slightly larger than what you will need it to be for your project. The felt will shrink a bit and warp as it dries so keep this in mind. Submerge your felt piece into the glue mixture and make sure the whole piece gets nice and soaked.
If you are using multiple colors for your stiff felt project, start with the lightest color first as the dyes may bleed slightly. Remove the felt and gently wring out over the container.
Do not twist or pull on the felt. A nice squeeze to remove the excess moisture is all you need. It will still be a little wet, but you want to get out as much moisture as you can to speed up the drying process. Note: If you notice some glue chunks when taking your felt out of the glue mixture, gently rub them in to the felt. Lay your felt on wax paper and smooth it out flat. Do not worry about the wrinkles as we will fix this once the felt has completely dried.
The drying process will take approximately hours depending on the drying environment and the size of your felt. Once the felt has dried completely, it should be nice and stiff.
For this step we are using our wool ironing mat and an old pillow case to act as our buffer cloth. Place your felt on your ironing mat and cover with your buffer cloth or old pillow case. Now carefully iron your felt until it is nice and flat. Note: Alternatively, you can sandwich your felt between two pieces of cloth and use an ironing board to iron out your stiffened felt. Corn starch is a common food ingredient found in kitchens used to thicken sauces or soups. Using corn starch as a stiffener is the most Eco-friendly and accessible of the 3 different stiffening techniques.
We highly recommend this technique when working with young children or if you are looking to create an Eco-friendly craft.
Mix until the solution is smooth and milky. When your water has come to a boil, slowly pour in the cold corn starch solution stirring constantly. Continue stirring at a low boil for approximately 2 minutes. Lay your felt on wax paper and smooth it out flat. Let it dry completely. We have lovely degree weather right now, so I took mine outside to dry faster. At least the heat is good for something! Drying will take probably a day or two depending on how warm the environment is.
Once your felt has dried completely, it should be nice and stiff. Now is that part where we take care of the wrinkles. Just sandwich it between two cloths and iron. It will come out perfect and ready for your craft project! If you are using acrylic or polyester felt, just try not to leave the iron on there too long.
That stuff is made out of plastic. Stiffened felt will show every hole that you put in it with a pin. I recommend taping any patterns that you use instead of pinning. Hope you enjoyed learning how to stiffen felt! Click here to see what I made with it and check out all of my felt crafts for more inspiration.
Yes, add me to your mailing list.
0コメント