Felt slippers

Felt is a dense non-woven material. It can be either natural from 100% sheep wool or from synthetic fibers.

Felt can be made in factory conditions, and can be felled by hand using wet felting.

The most famous product made of felt in Russia are felt boots. According to the Dal dictionary, all felt shoes are called boots. A few centuries ago, valenki in villages were worn not only on the street, but also in the house and even in summer. Now this tradition revive felted slippers. What is the uniqueness of natural felt and shoes from it?

Modern researchers have concluded that shoes made of natural wool has a therapeutic and prophylactic effect on the human body. Felt shoes help improve blood circulation in the legs due to the fact that the prickly hairs of the wool massage the feet when walking. After a few days of use, the sweating of the feet is significantly reduced, and the feet always stay warm, because natural sheep wool can absorb up to 40% of water.

Natural fat, lanolin contained in wool, has an antiseptic effect. Thanks to him, felt slippers can protect feet from fungal diseases. Lanolin also helps to soften and respect the skin, has a beneficial effect on the joints. Felt slippers will help relieve leg fatigue, muscle pain and relieve stress. Proved the effectiveness of felt shoes in the fight against arthritis, heaviness in the legs and the onset of colds.

The advantages of felt slippers over other models of home shoes are obvious, so it is not surprising that they are chosen by adults and children, men and women. Felted wool slippers are plentiful. Hand-made solid-colored slippers are very popular. Such shoes are seamless.

• slippers-ballet flats. Sometimes this model is performed by the master with a strap on the button, giving the slippers even more femininity and tenderness.

• classic slippers, slippers. They come with an open or closed toe, with a back and without it. Slippers slippers are most often chosen by men. They are comfortable, practical, easily removed and worn.

• slippers boots or simply shortened boots. Such a model will suit lovers of warmth, comfort and coziness, for example, will be a wonderful gift for your beloved grandmothers. And it is also perfect for children, because they sit tight on their feet, do not interfere with outdoor games.

According to the method of manufacture, it is also possible to separately separate knitted, and then felted slippers. Most often in this way, shoes are made by craftswomen who have no experience in felting. First, a pair of woolen socks or sledky knit, and then fade by washing them in a washing machine at high temperature. Such slippers are very light, soft and thinner than samovolks, but at the same time they are rather strong and warm.

Also found in the sale of felt slippers factory production. The most common model is the shale slippers. They come from both natural wool felt, and from synthetic or blended materials.

Felt slippers can also be divided by the presence of the sole. Slippers completely without soles softer and more plastic. But they are less durable and can wipe from frequent friction on the floor. The sole at felt slippers is most often sewn to an already finished product. Make it out of leather and suede, or from synthetic materials. Slippers on the sole do not slip on the floor and will last longer, retaining their original appearance.Another modern way to protect slippers from wiping from rubbing is impregnating the sole with latex. This material can be applied to the entire area of ​​the sole, or point only in order to make the slippers more comfortable and less slippery, but at the same time leave the legs to breathe

Felt slippers are often richly and interestingly decorated. Works of masters are distinguished by a large variety of decorating elements and styles. Here you can also identify several of the most popular areas:

• décor with voluminous felted elements, for example, craftsmen often use motifs of the animal and plant world - flowers, leaves, berries, birds and butterflies.
• drawing full of dry felting technique. This pattern is durable, as in the process of felting it becomes an integral part of the slipper.
• drawing, painted on the fabric. This technique differs from the previous one with clearer contours, however, it is a crust on a wool surface, as a result of which, the drawing may turn out to be short-lived. The favorite plot of the designers is the traditional Khokhloma painting.
• slippers in ecostyle. Here, designers focus on the beauty of unpainted felt, inserts from genuine leather and knitted woolen elements.
• double-layer slippers made of felt in contrasting colors. In this case, the top layer has curly slots, thus forming an interesting pattern. For example, felt slippers stylized as well-recognized Crocs shoes.
• stylish slippers with elongated curved noses. This model is suitable for lovers of fairy tales about dwarves.

The main raw material for the production of felt is coarse and semi-coarse wool, the fiber length of which ranges from 40 to 90 mm. Such a wool is characterized by a wide variety of colors in a natural range: from pure white and cream, to gray and dark brown. Often felts are made from a mixture of different wool, which gives them a melange shade.

Masters-feltmakers for dyeing wool before felting can use natural dyes, such as onion peel, nettle leaves, birch, pomegranate peel, henna and Basma. Shades turn out soft natural tones of a beige-brown and gray-green scale.

If you are inclined to factory-made slippers, then the most important thing is to clarify with the seller that they are made of natural felt without synthetic additives. The production of slippers from acrylic or polypropylene sin many trademarks, although they do not hide this from buyers. Their products are chosen for a low price. In this matter, natural felt slippers cannot compete - their price is higher than synthetic counterparts.

And if your choice fell on samovka slippers, then the most common marriage here are undelivered products. Such slippers quickly lose their shape, will look untidy, they will quickly appear pellets and gaps.

How to distinguish poor-quality felt in handmade products?

Here are a few signs:

1. Slippers look loose, on their surface there are wrinkles that do not carry a decorative function. High-quality felt has a smooth or fine-grained structure, resembling the appearance of millet porridge. If the upper part of the slippers is decorated, feel free to consider the felt from the wrong side.
2. The surface of the slippers looks fluffy. This is definitely a sign of marriage.
3. If the felt cut resembles puff pastry, then such a product will definitely be short-lived.In high-quality felt slippers it is impossible to discern the direction of wool fibers, so tightly they are knit with each other.
4. In the case when you buy the product personally from the master, and not via the Internet, you need to check the elasticity of the felt. Well-knit slippers spring and perfectly retain their original shape.