Felting Resources

 So you took one of my felting classes and are hooked, now what?  I wanted to share my favorite resources for felting supplies online and in the Madison, Wisconsin area. 

Wool Roving

Depending on what type of felting you would like to do, either wet or dry, you will need wool roving. 

Wool roving is clean and combed out (the technical term is carded) wool from usually an alpaca or sheep. If you are not planning on felting with the roving, it is spun and turned into yarn from this stage.

If you are local to Madison, my favorite source for wool roving is at the Sow’s Ear in Verona (125 S. Main Street). Not only is it a delicious cafe and coffee shop, but they have all sorts of beautiful yarn and inexpensive roving. A large ball of roving that would fill an entire adult’s hand is only $2. Tip, if you stop there, ask at the counter for the roving as it is not out on the sales floor.  The roving is of beautiful quality and you will have a hard time choosing just a few colors!  They also have needle felting needles and mats, making it a one stop beginner’s shop!

I also noticed that JoAnn Fabrics is beginning to carry felting supplies as well (January of 2023), located near the yarn section. 

You can also purchase roving on Amazon (hey, convenience is worth it some times!), just look closely at the amount you are getting.  Sometimes you only get a small amount of each color and it isn’t that great of a deal.

Needle Felting Supplies 

To needle felt, you ideally need needles, a handle for the needles, a foam pad to felt into, and leather finger protectors. There are a lot of different kits on Amazon that contain all of these things.  It is also a good idea to grab some extra needles because they do break occasionally and you will want a little backup supply. 

Here are the kits MSCR purchased for our class from Amazon: 

There are a ton of great kits, some of which include roving, and most come with a storage box (as a parent I know how key that is!), just search “Needle Felting Kits” on Amazon

Video Tutorials

There are a ton of great tutorials on YouTube for needle felting. If your student gets their own supplies and would like a refresher, this is a great video to help them remember the process:

Here is a fun, easy, rainbow garland:

Really, there is a felting tutorial for any kind of animal you are interested in making, just search it up!

Needle Felting Books

I love arts and craft books, something about holding them in your hand and paging through them is so enjoyable. I found these books at the local library, and would recommend them to students who want to learn and do more!

Cool Needle Felting for Kids : this one has a variety of wet and dry felting activities beyond making animals

Wool Buddies : every single one of these creations makes me laugh in this book!

Cute Needle Felted Animal Friends : need I say more?

Sweet & Simple Needle Felted Animals: this one is great because it gives you templates for each piece so you can make your creation to the same scale.