Warm and fuzzy: sew some felt slippers

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Add a touch of warmth to your winter with these felt house slippers. Felt is traditionally a non-woven fabric, formed when wool or fur is subjected to heat, moisture and pressure or agitation. Soap helps the felting process, as heat and moisture cause the outer scales along the wool’s fibres to open, while soap allows them to slide easily over one another and become irreversibly entangled.

Felt is still an important fabric in many parts of the world, especially in areas with harsh climates. In Mongolia, nomads live in felt tents, while in Turkey, rugs, hats and other items are made of felt. Nomadic tribes in Asia use felt for tent coverings, rugs and blankets, and in Scandinavia and Russia, felt boots are produced and widely used.

You will need
Slipper template – download this below - then photocopy and adjust to fit your foot size, allowing for a 1.5cm seam allowance; industrial-grade felt (ours is a dark grey felt from Felt Distribution – call (02) 9666 3433); fabric scissors; fabric pencil; wool; upholstery needle (all from haberdashery stores such as Lincraft).

1. Place the template on to the felt and cut out pieces. Soak felt pieces overnight in water – this will loosen the fibres, and make it easier to sew the slippers together by hand.
2. Use your fabric pencil to make dots at 20mm intervals around each slipper’s sole piece, 10mm in from the edge (these points mark the places your needle should sew through).
3. Thread wool on to your needle and begin sewing sole and top of one slipper together, starting at the front and working towards the heel on both sides.
4. Once you have sewn to the heel, continue up the heel seam in a zig-zag pattern. Repeat with remaining slipper pieces. Stuff shoes with newspaper to help retain their shape then set aside to dry.

Step-by-step: Felt cushion covers

Follow Angela Haughton’s instructions for making the stylish felt cushion covers as featured in Notebook: July 2006 issue (see page 19).

Orange and white cushion cover
You will need
1m orange felt (we used Tango Wool Felt, $100/m, from Warwick Fabrics, phone 1300 787 888); 50cm white felt (we used felt, $8/m, from Spotlight); pins, white zipper or buttons, white cotton thread (from craft supply stores); scissors, ruler, set square, pencil and sewing machine.

1. Measure and cut two 45cm squares from the orange felt. 
2. Cut one 45cm square from the white felt, then measure, mark and cut 2.5cm strips from this square. These will become the twisted strips.  
3. On one orange square (this will be the cushion front), mark a 2.5cm seam around the edge. Mark three lines from the top to bottom of cushion front at 10cm intervals. These marks will be where you pin and twist the white strips.
4. Starting at the bottom left corner of the cushion front, place the first white strip. Pin at the seam allowance, then twist and pin at the 10cm interval, repeat for the remaining 10cm intervals until you reach the right side of the cushion front. Repeat this process with all the strips until you reach the top of the cushion front. Using a sewing machine, stitch over the pin marks. 
5. Insert zipper (if using). With right sides together, pin cushion front to cushion back. Stitch and turn right side out. If using buttons, when stitching leave an opening, turn right side out, then stitch buttonholes and buttons.

Grey cushion cover

You will need
1m white felt, 1.5m light grey felt, 1.5m dark grey felt (we used felt, $8/m from Spotlight); pins, white zipper or buttons, white cotton thread (from craft supply stores); scissors, ruler, set square, pencil, pins and sewing machine.

1. Cut two 45cm squares from the white felt.
2. Cut 25 5cm squares from the dark grey felt, and 25 6cm squares from the light grey felt. 
3. Mark a 2.5cm seam around the edge of one white square (this will be the cushion front). Place the grey squares on the cushion front (as pictured), allowing 5mm around each square. Pin in place.
4. Using a sewing machine with white thread, stitch through the squares in a crisscross pattern. Insert zipper (if using). With right sides together, pin cushion front to cushion back. Stitch and turn right side out. If using buttons, when stitching leave an opening, turn right side out, then stitch buttonholes and buttons.

Templates

Slippers - Base

Slippers - Upper

To make the cushions, just measure out the correct square of felt.

Styling: Angela Haughton.