October 2022

Needle felting is basically the process of transforming wool into 3D objects using a barbed needle. When you felt wool, you’re agitating the fibers so they bond together, and create a solid fabric. Needle felting is pretty famous for its attractive look. Today we will be sharing how to do needle felting properly in 10 steps in 2024. Fiber/fabric lovers perform three types of felting.  1. First, by using heat, moisture, agitation, and a lot of pressure, you have to squeeze and matt the fiber. And then you need to join them together during the felting process, which people use to create non-woven fabrics. We call the resulting material as “felt” which is a dense fabric with an appealing texture that does not tear. And you can use it for a range of sewing and handicraft tasks. It is possible to join different pieces of felt without sewing them together. Making designs on felt artwork or working on felt toys usually requires this step. 2. The term also describes the process of turning a smooth fabric into a fuzzy mess using heat, moisture, and agitation. Felting is a good option if you like the fuzzy caterpillar-like appearance of the smooth look of your sweater or if you want to give an existing sweater a transformation.  They felt the yarns to give them a fuzzy appearance or to combine with other yarns to create a single yarn with the help of agitation, heat, and moisture. Felting makes lovely fabrics that you can use on both sides, have good bulk and fluff, and don’t tear. With felt making, you can complete this task entirely without sewing a single seam. For instance, you can make a fitting hat entirely without sewing a single seam. Due to the fabric’s density and the warmth-giving properties of the fibers, it is also particularly helpful for producing clothing and accessories that people can wear in extremely cold weather. A good felt fabric should also retain its shape no matter what you do to it once it has been produced and dried. Decide which fibers you are using in felting Wool, acrylic, and animal hair are examples of potentially fuzzy fabrics that you can felt, along with cotton and rayon. Both pure fibers and blends of wool and synthetic fibers are acceptable. A frequently used combination is wool and rayon. When it comes down to it, wool is still the best fiber for felting. You can felt various types of wool including sheep, merino, camels, alpacas, and angora, . All the types of wool fibers do not feel the same. Different weights of fiber feel differently – some become thick, and dense felt, and some don’t.  Although it is a little more expensive than other sheep’s wool fibers, merino is a fast felting one, incredibly soft, and a popular choice for beginners.  Most professionals use cleaned and carded wool roving, often known as clean, carded unspun. fibers with long, combed threads. Another option is to use wool batt, a flat, fluffy sheet of wool. Plant fibers and wool fibers shrink by at least 20% when wet. When compared to medium and coarse wool, fine wool produces a fabric that is thicker and denser. People use Belgian hare fur to create felt that is both soft and completely flexible. When compared to sheep, alpaca wool is finer.  Decide on the method of felting  Depending on the materials used and the agitation method, there are various ways of felting. Dry felting and wet felting are the two primary techniques.  Wet felting  This technique combines agitation with a water-and-soap felting solution. The most popular approach is this one. With some liquid soap, hot water, and fibers in a flat container, you can make wet felt.  Dry felting/needle felting  In this method, you do not need to use any water at all. This is the best method for working with small, dry details on felted toys, artwork, etc. It is the method to use if you are felting with acrylic fibers. In needle felting, the fabric is matted using specialized barbed needles of various diameters. On a particular padded surface, the needles poke and prick the fibers. Depending on the project, they use needles. The strands are continually poked and prodded by the needle until everything becomes knotted and knitted together.  Prepare the surface Any flat surface can be used to create a flat sheet of felt; just make sure to protect it from water and soap if you plan to get it. While dry felting, protect the surface from the sharp needles. For a flat piece of felt, mark out a section of the surface for the felt. For instance, if you want a square piece of felt, draw a square shape on the surface and cut the felt inside of it.  Arrange the fibers Depending on the desired thickness, divide the required quantity of wool fibers into equal sections. Some advice adding a top and bottom layer of the synthetic net or fine knit fabric over and below the fibers. But watch out that it doesn’t get stuck in your fibers so deeply that you can’t pull it out.  Wetting the fibers You should add a small amount of liquid soap to the boiling water. Carefully pour just enough of the mixture to soak the wool. You can dip the entire piece of felt or just periodically pour this hot, soapy water on it. Applying pressure & agitation If you’re using your hands, press down on the soap-covered fiber mass first. Then, gently massage the fibers in a circular motion from the center to the edges, moving your hands as you go.  However, if your hand cannot take the hot water and you want a lot more agitation, use a utensil with abrasive capabilities, such as a potato masher, washboard, or a duster. Press the wool firmly onto your surface, squeeze out all the air, and then roll it around. Fill the wool up with extra hot water. Press

Have you ever felt the need for a clothing manufacturer’s broker? One of the most important choices a fashion company owner makes is a collaboration with a clothing manufacturer’s broker. When a fashion brand owner enters into a partnership with a manufacturer, the brand is entrusting the manufacturer with the duty of overseeing the brand’s manufacturing activities, which might vary from sourcing materials to maintaining labor compliance. Developing a successful brand-factory manufacturing partnership is no easy feat, especially given all the responsibilities and costs associated with designing and manufacturing. However, a successful partnership works on the problem-solving necessary to ensure a business’s stability and growth. On the other hand, a bad manufacturing partnership might damage a fashion brand. For instance, reality star Kylie Jenner recently experienced criticism after the launch of her new swimwear line, Kylie Swim. Customers expressed shock that, despite Kylie’s previous success, a line as low quality as her swimsuit collection could be created by a star like her. The Kylie Swim incident indicates that even well-known companies can experience problems during the production process. Generally, well-established brands are at greater risk because production and quality issues may threaten their namesake. Because of this, each and every fashion brand—especially those that are well-known—must make sure they have strategically collaborated with the correct producers. What is the best way for well-established brands to evaluate the fit and performance of their manufacturers?   Getting a clothing manufacturer’s broker is the solution rather than personally evaluating the manufacturer.  What Is a Clothing Manufacturers’ Broker?  A clothing manufacturer’s broker serves as a middleman between a manufacturer and a fashion brand. A clothing manufacturers’ broker is essential to the manufacturing process since they give access to crucial market data that is not generally available to the general public, not even those with strong connections in the fashion business. As a matter of fact, the top manufacturers’ brokers collaborate as a team, with each team member focusing on a distinct aspect during a series of assessments. These probably consist of:  Assessing pre-established values, goals, and roles  The finest clothing manufacturers’ brokers will follow their own set of strict rules and will only collaborate with producers and clothing companies who share their requirements. For instance, brokers may only collaborate with businesses that have a track record of sustainability and ethical hiring practices. In this situation, brokers would restrict manufacturing to specific geographical areas in order to protect migrant workers. Brokers would also make sure that the manufacturing owners and equipment were from the country of production. The verifications prevent exploitative treatment of workers by manufacturers as well as environmental damage caused by outsourced machinery.  Verifying proper manufacturing operations A clothing manufacturer’s broker makes sure they have all the paperwork required to engage with a fashion brand. For instance, brokers check export authorization documents from manufacturers, which can differ based on the country. Brokers may also take into consideration regional laws or trade agreements.  Evaluating quality standards Brokers evaluate a manufacturer’s craftsmanship by examining its production methods and manufacturing materials. Besides quality checks, brokers will evaluate craftsmanship that specifically claims a specific country (e.g., Made in Italy). Brokers will therefore evaluate whether the product of a manufacturer reflects the craftsmanship of a country.  This craftsmanship rating is more difficult than it appears since it requires a thorough understanding of the history of fashion and design. Working with a broker who is familiar with a country’s industrial history is crucial when dealing with countries like Italy, where manufacturing skills are developed from centuries-old traditions. Actually, a broker with deep links to the manufacturing sector is where this understanding comes from. Most likely, they either produced something at some point themselves or worked for that nation’s manufacturing industry for many years. Only brokers with close relationships to these family-owned businesses will be familiar with the ins and outs of Italian craftsmanship in the case of Italy, where the highest-quality manufacturers have been producing for decades.  How Do Manufacturers’ Brokers Find High-Quality Apparel Manufacturers?  Manufacturers’ brokers search for manufacturers at events like fashion or fabric trade shows. During this process, brokers gather manufacturers’ contact information and schedule discovery meetings, where they start evaluating manufacturers to see if they are potential prospects. Brokers will find potential manufacturers through artisan trade associations as well as fashion trade shows. According to MakersValley CEO, Alessio Iadicicco, artisan trade associations are particularly valuable partners for Italian apparel, footwear, and accessories manufacturers. Brokers find potential manufacturers beyond fashion and artisan trade associations through word-of-mouth. Those who have already partnered with those recommended manufacturers can provide direct feedback. Before forming a manufacturing partnership, it is important to know more nuanced information, such as deadlines, communication styles, product quality, etc. Emerging designers also use this word-of-mouth approach.  The drawback of the word-of-mouth strategy, however, is that other fashion designers are frequently unwilling to disclose crucial manufacturing contacts with their current or potential competitors. This is true whether you are a rising designer or an established owner of a fashion company. A manufacturers’ broker is essential because they are seen as mediators rather than competitors, which makes them less threatening. Furthermore, due to the highly specialized expertise required in the manufacturing industry, even if one designer decides to share their manufacturing contacts with another designer, they still need a manufacturing professional, such as a broker, to investigate and evaluate a possible manufacturer.  What About Well-Established Fashion Brands That Already Have a Manufacturing Partner?  What should motivate fashion businesses that already work with a manufacturer to collaborate with a broker to identify more manufacturers? It would seem that a successful brand that already works with a manufacturer wouldn’t need to change, especially if that manufacturer has produced for the brand throughout its career. Only a middleman, such as a manufacturer’s broker, can, however, effectively evaluate a manufacturer’s product quality, certify craftsmanship, verify their documentation, and assess their manufacturing operations due to the significant risks and high costs fashion brands face when partnering with manufacturers. Therefore, speaking with a