FELT A PAIR OF SLIPPERS OR BOOTS AT THE SAME TIME!

Pat Spark © 1995

Felting a boot without any sewn seams can be a long job. It often takes beginners several hours to get the job done and then they are too tired to make the second one. This is OK for those of you who are felting for people with only one foot, but if you really need a pair of foot coverings you are faced with the prospect of making another boot. I know many people who have turned their one boot into some interesting sculpture to hold dried flowers just because the idea of starting all over again was too daunting. Well, this boot pattern adaptation may be the answer to this problem. Basically, what you do is to make two boot patterns, lay them so that the top edges touch and cut your resist template from this modified pattern. Proceed to felt both boots at the same time and then cut them apart when they're done. Ta Dah! Two boots for the work of one! While these instructions are for a foot covering pattern, the idea works for other paired objects such as mittens as well.

Make the template out of your favorite material. Some people prefer smooth cotton cloth while others like heavy plastic or vinyl. I like to use heavy fiberboard, flexible linoleum, or flexible plastic place mats. I think the thickness of these materials makes it easier to locate your side seams when you are making the 3-D felt.  The template can be used with any of the commonly used methods for making 3-D seamless felt objects.  Or see the instructions on 3-D felting with a cardboard resist.

MAKING THE SLIPPER/BOOT PATTERN: (The accompanying diagrams are adapted from those done for my book, Scandinavian-Style Feltmaking. )

1. Trace around the foot on a piece of paper. Draw a line down the center of the foot drawing, from toe to heel.

2. Fold the paper pattern in half, with the instep side facing you. Draw a line approximately 2.5 cm (1 in.) away from the foot contour, smoothing the irregular shape to an oval.

3. Cut along the drawn line through both halves of the paper to get a symmetrical pattern.

Foot Base Pattern After Steps 1,2,3.

4. Fold the pattern in half, matching the toe and heel ends and draw a line along this fold.

5. Lay this base pattern on another piece of paper and draw around it. Draw a line up from the base pattern, following the center fold line. Connect this line and the toe of the slipper/boot with a curved line as shown. Draw another line up from the heel end of the pattern. These lines are as tall as you would like the top to be, plus 2.5 cm (1 in.) for shrinkage.  A slipper has a shorter shank (just about reaching the ankle height) while a boot has a taller one.

Single Boot Pattern After Steps 4, 5.

6. You now have one half of the slipper/boot pattern. Cut it out and draw around it on your template cloth. Flip it over and draw the second half of the pattern on the cloth.

Completed Boot Pair Pattern

After you make your pattern, you can use the following chart to determine the amount of fleece you will need for the slippers/boots.

CHART OF FLEECE AMOUNTS NEEDED FOR SLIPPERS/BOOTS

The following are approximate fleece amounts needed for a pair of foot coverings. If your measurement falls between sizes, use the fleece amount allocated for the size closest to yours. If your size does not appear on the chart, you will need to experiment with the fleece amounts. I normally work with a metric scale because I find it to be more accurate. In order to get the ounce measurements, the gram measurements were converted by multiplying by .035 and then rounding off the answer.

Spark © 1995

SIZES American

SLIPPERS Fine Fleece

BOOTS Medium-Coarse Fleece

Child Small

2 - 6

30 grams

1 ounce

40 - 50 grams

1.5-1.75 ounces

Child Medium

7 - 11

40 grams

1.5 ounces

60 - 70 grams

2-2.5 ounces

Child Large

12 - 2

50 grams

1.75 ounces

80 - 90 grams

2.75-3.5 ounces

Adult Small

3 - 5

70 grams

2.5 ounces

140 -160 grams

5-5.5 ounces

Adult Medium

6 - 9

80 grams

2.75 ounces

180 -200 grams

6.25-7 ounces

Adult Large

10 - 13

100 grams

3.5 ounces

240 - 280 grams

8.5-9.75 ounces

BOOKS WITH 3-D FELTING INFORMATION

Spark, Patricia; FUNDAMENTALS OF FELTMAKING, Shuttle Craft Books; c/o Unicorn Books; 1338 Ross Street; Petaluma, CA 94954-6502,  1992  1-800-289-9276 (Or available from author 1032 SW Washington St., Albany, OR 97321)

SCANDINAVIAN-STYLE FELTMAKING, A Three-Dimensional Approach to Hats, Boots, Mittens, and other Useful Objects; Shuttle Craft Books; (See address above.)

Vickrey, Anne Einset; FELTING BY HAND, FeltCrafts/Craft Works Publishing; PO Box 426; Geneva, NY 14456 1-800-450-2723 (Available from author at this address.)