Many feltmakers make felted summer tops and dresses that are very thin. But for a long time I did not dare to make summer felt, because I did not believe that felt can be worn in summer. One day, I looked at my wool leftovers: there was silk chiffon and 16 micron merino wool, so I decided to try making summer felt.
First, I decided to make a sample. I took a small piece of silk chiffon and laid out a very thin layer of wool fiber on top of it. Next, I felted the sample and got a thin light fabric. I liked the quality of the fabric. I measured the sample before and after felting and got the shrinkage factor. The shrinkage factor is the number by which you need to increase the actual pattern to make a template. I found a pattern of a top I liked. I increased this pattern by shrinkage factor and made a template using underlayment for laminate flooring.
I moistened silk chiffon and stretched it over one side of the template. Then I cut off the excess silk chiffon along the side and shoulder cuts with an allowance of 2-3 cm. Around the neckline and sleeves I cut the chiffon exactly according to the pattern without any allowances. I lightly smeared the chiffon with a bar of solid soap to stick the chiffon to the template so the silk will not slide on the template, and it will be convenient to work with it.
Next, it was the wool’s turn. I spread the wool in a very thin layer in one direction with an allowance of 2-3 cm along sides and shoulders.
An additional horizontal layer of wool was laid along the neckline and around the sleeves. This additional wool layer will help to keep the size and shape and get a smooth edge.
On top of the wool I laid out a thin layer of silk fiber to add shine. At this point, the layout of one side of my top was ready. Next, it needed to be moistened with soapy water and rubbed. After that, I flipped the template with silk fabric and wool to the other side. I folded all the allowances of silk and wool over on top of the template. Next, I followed the same steps as before but, this time, I cut silk chiffon without any allowances. When I laid out the wool I made sure to cover the gap between 2 pieces of silk chiffon and connect the wool.
Next step was to felt it all together. The felting took about an hour. It happened so quickly because I was using very thin natural wool – such wool felts instantly. Fun fact, the whole top used up only about 25 g of wool. Finally, I rinsed my top, squeezed in a towel and put on myself to make it the right shape. Then I laid the top on a table to dry.
For this specific top, I used white silk chiffon, white silk fibers and natural wool so, as a result, I got a white top.
White color of the top seemed boring. So I decided to dye my top. I wet the top again. Next, I diluted some acid blue dye in water. Then, I rolled the top into a roll and applied dye with a brush similarly to tie-dye technique. Then my wonderful roll was wrapped in plastic and put into the pot with a steamer insert and a bit of cold water. After 40 minutes of steaming, the top was cooled down, removed from the plastic, washed and dried. As a result, I got a light and thin summer top.
I tried wearing my top during some warm summer days, and here is what I can tell: summer felt is comfortable to wear while the temperature is between 22-24 degrees Celsius. I would not recommend wearing this top at 30 degrees because it gets too hot.
