Felt boots are being made. Master class "making felt boots at home"

The question of what felt boots are made of is very interesting. But first, let's figure out what it is? Felt boots are made from felted sheep wool. The prototype for this was the felt boots of the nomads of the Great Steppe, which they began to wear one and a half thousand years ago. Only in the first half of the last century did this type of footwear gain popularity, and it was then that they began to be produced industrially. This type of shoe is still widely known to many Russians.

Very often, the very name “felt boots” causes a smile and tenderness in most people, as it is associated with something outdated and funny. However, modern manufacturers make them so comfortable that your feet will be warm even in the most severe frosts. Parents, concerned about the health of their children, buy them children's felt boots for the winter, which are not only very warm, but also beautiful, as they are decorated with interesting designs and ornaments. Understanding the question of what felt boots are made from, you can tell that they were once called cats or wire rods, which is why many are convinced that their roots are far from Russian. The thing is that felt boots were first invented by nomadic steppe peoples; they decided to roll wool, making shoes from this material. At that time, the purpose of creating felt boots was not only to keep feet warm, but also to save them from thorns, of which there were a lot in the steppe. In Rus', this idea spread from the steppe nomads.

What are felt boots made of? It was already said earlier that this type of shoe is made from animal wool, and most often sheep. The color of the finished product depends on the color of the raw materials. For example, to obtain white felt boots, you need to use sheep wool from Mongolia, and for gray boots, wool from the Caucasus or Central Asia is suitable. The production process begins with the preparation of raw materials. The wool is passed through a special apparatus, after which it is oiled and then placed in a container. In this form, the raw material enters the carding shop. The wool is placed in special units. The raw material is combed in a device using prickly rollers, and then wound onto a reel. Then they begin to make the base for the felt boots, rubbing the wool in with steam, and after that the head of the felt boot is shaped by hand. Steam grinding is carried out again. After this, all workpieces are sent to a specialized rolling machine.

So, you already understand what felt boots are made of, but now you need to figure out what they do with them next? After all these operations, the wool is stretched to obtain the required shape, however, it must be twice as large as the future product. After this, the blanks go to the fulling shop. And now they are all placed in a large wooden drum, which is filled with water, to make the first felting. It was the name of this process that became the basis for the name of the product itself. Then the blanks begin to be beaten with wooden devices, and then they are stretched again on the unit. Again, the felt boots are wetted, they are given the required shape and size using special lasts, and at the end the shoes are dried in a special oven. Modern felt boots are made this way. At the end they are tapped with a block, giving the final size and shape to the products. Next, the excess wool is ground off, a rubber sole is glued on, and tags are attached. Felt boots are ready.

It is important to note that this type of footwear is truly indispensable for residents of areas with very harsh climates; this is the only way to escape the cold. Modifications, for example, Finnish felt boots, make it possible to make this type of footwear more modern by gluing it on top of a variety of materials and equipping the product with a durable sole with a tractor pattern.

Grishchenko Love,

student of 3G class,
MBOU NOSH No. 21
Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk,
Sakhalin region

Stepson Yulia Yurievna,
Deputy Director,
primary school teacher,
highest qualification category,
MBOU NOSH No. 21 of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk,
Sakhalin region
2016

Making felt boots at home

Everyone knows that it is important to maintain health from childhood. And wet and frozen feet are often the cause of our illnesses. What can help us with this problem? Comfortable and useful shoes. In felt boots you are not afraid of the most severe frosts. Pure sheep wool, felted warm hands masters, gives a person strength and good mood. Modern fashionistas still wear felt boots with pleasure.

Target: familiarization with the technique of making felt boots from unspun wool by wet felting.

Tasks:
1. Expand knowledge about wet felting techniques.
2. Stimulate the development of fine motor skills.
3. Teach how to make felt boots from unspun wool yourself.

Materials and tools needed for work: wool for felting, template for felting felt boots, bubble wrap, mesh, cup with hot water and liquid soap, towel.

After studying all the theoretical material and several master classes from needlewomen on making felt boots, we decided to try to make felt boots ourselves.

Step 1
Let's choose a color for our first felt boots.
Currently, sheep wool is varied in color and texture (fine, semi-fine, coarse, semi-coarse), but as I already know, I need semi-coarse wool, so that’s what I chose.

Step 2
We take measurements and draw a template, increasing the dimensions by 40%, since the wool shrinks when felting.

Step 3
We begin to tear off the wool in small strands and lay it in one direction, the next layer in the opposite direction, and so on 3-4 layers so that the felt boots are dense and hold their shape well when finished.

Step 4
When we have finished laying the wool on the first side, we cover the workpiece with a net, pour it with hot soapy water and gently iron it, gradually increasing the pressure on the wool.

Step 5
After 5-10 minutes, turn the workpiece over to the other side, bend the protruding edges and again cover 3-4 layers of wool, alternating directions.

Step 6
Cover again with a net, pour hot soapy water over it and stroke it, increasing the pressure every 5-10 minutes.

Step 7
We remove the mesh, turn the workpiece over to the other side and bend the protruding edges.

After which our workpiece should look like this.

Step 8
We remove the mesh and cover it with bubble wrap, which, thanks to its bubbles, creates uniform pressure on the entire felt boot and speeds up the felting process. We begin to rub faster and harder; you can use a rolling pin, a rubber mat, various massagers, etc.

Step 9
We remove the film and try to separate a couple of hairs of wool from the felt boot; if this works, then we roll the felt boot into a roll and begin to rub and roll with greater force. I made sure that the felt boots were not too wet and cold; if necessary, we soaked them in excess water and poured them with hot soapy water.

Step 10
As soon as the felt boots began to decrease in size and the hidden workpiece became “crowded,” we cut the felt boots into 2 parts and take out the workpieces.

When the felt boots are dry, you can decorate them with a pattern using the dry felting method. This is done with a special needle with notches.
Felting is a complex and lengthy process, but very interesting. It’s amazing how a felt boot can be made from a strand of wool. We managed to make the “symbol of Russia” ourselves!

Valenki - shoes made of natural wool. Such shoes are considered the most practical, comfortable andabsolutely indispensable in extreme cold conditions. IN ancient Rus' felt boots were a luxury; only wealthy people with high status could purchase them, and poor peasants rarely had only one pair for the whole family.

To date, despite developed technologies, no more comfortable and warm shoes have been created than Russian felt boots. And if you have a desire to make them yourself, I suggest you read this article to the end. In this article we will talk about how to felt (not sew) these wonderful shoes with your own hands.

Instead of special tools you can use a rolling pin.

To make felt boots yourself, you do not need any special equipment.

The main thing is to have patience and time.

In addition to this, we will need:

• sheep wool (about 1 kg), not felt;
• polyethylene bubble cellophane;
• mosquito net;
• stencil for felt boots;
• wooden rolling pin;
• hot soapy solution.

How to felt felt boots at home?

Pattern

To begin, take a sheet of A4 paper and draw a stencil on it for future felt boots. You need to draw the size and height of the shin, taking into account 40% shrinkage of the wool.

The template can be made from ordinary compacted polyethylene. If you are making felt boots for a child, you can take a template with a combined bell to felt both felt boots at the same time. Later they will need to be cut in half at the shin.

Blank

One of the difficult and responsible tasks is laying out the wool on top of the pattern. To begin, we lay bubble wrap on the table and place the resulting template on it.

Attention! Before starting to lay out the wool, it is recommended to comb it well for further use.

The wool fiber needs to be pulled out by hand so that long strands are obtained. After which these strands need to be carefully laid out on top of the template, first across and then along the stencil.

The wool must be laid out carefully, evenly and uniformly. You can put a little more wool in the toe and heel area, since these places are the most vulnerable to frost. Lay out 3-4 layers. Each layer must be moistened with an aqueous solution.

After this procedure, the workpiece must be turned over, after which the protruding edges are folded onto the main side and the process of laying out the wool in perpendicular layers is repeated.

Felting and rolling

We take a solution with soap and wash the resulting workpiece, after which we roll it into a mesh and begin to knead and rub the surface with our hands. Then we take the iron and iron all the wrinkles, lumps and irregularities formed as a result of the workpiece. Now you can sculpt the shape of a felt boot, which will look like a huge sock.

Important! Be sure to ensure that the layers of wool do not shift and holes do not form. This can lead to deformation of future shoes.

From time to time it is necessary to water the workpiece with hot soapy water to ensure uniform shrinkage. After which you need to pull out the template and iron the felt boots from the inside.

You need to knead the prepared shoes for quite a long time until the felt boots acquire the required size and shape, and the wool is pulled out of the felt. We do the same with the second one. We check whether both felt boots are the same by placing them next to each other from time to time.

Inserting the pads into the blanks

The last stage is decor

Decorating is the most creative part. There are many options for how to decorate newly made felt boots.

For example, you can take a ball of thread and decorate it with beautiful embroidery. You can decorate such shoes with colorful ribbons, from which you can make bows.

Felt boots decorated with fur look harmonious and stylish. In order to decorate them in this way, both real fur and its substitutes are used. Fur cuffs look perfect with voluminous laces and large buttons for decoration, which are covered in leather.

Painted felt boots are the most popular. To make a high-quality and beautiful painting, you need to have talent and also purchase thick acrylic paints.

Reference! Floral designs are popular among adults. Felt boots for children can be decorated with paintings in the shape of anything: cars, fairies, favorite cartoon characters, and so on.

To decorate these shoes yourself, beads and beads are often used. It is recommended to sew on beads with a thick synthetic thread or fishing line, since when used, there is a high probability that the beads will get caught on other objects.

In general, making felt boots is not an easy task. But if you have a strong desire and desire, you can open your own business in this craft, which will not only bring a stable and good income, but will also be an activity for the soul.

Felt boots made from felted sheep's wool are called felt boots. The prototype of felt boots were the traditional felt boots of the nomads of the Great Steppe, whose history goes back more than 1,500 thousand years. Wide use Felt boots were acquired only in the first half of the 19th century, when they began to be produced industrially.

Before winter finally gives way to spring, we will tell you how felt boots are made in the city of Kalyazin Tver region.

Photos and text alkulikov_87

Felted shoes (felt boots) have been made in the Kalyazin region for 200 years. After the revolution, handicraft production was replaced by industrial production - the Red October factory was organized on the basis of the artel. In 2004, it merged with another Moscow factory, Bitsa. This is how the production that exists at the moment appears.

As we have already said, felt boots are made from sheep wool. True, Yaroslavl Romanov sheep are not suitable for industrial production, so white wool is brought from Mongolia, and gray wool from the Caucasus and Central Asia.

First, the wool is prepared for production. It is run through a special apparatus, oiled and stored in a large container.

Carding unit. Wool is manually placed at the back, combed with prickly rollers and wound at the front on special spools:

After combing the wool curls the basis of the future felt boots, which undergoes grinding on these machines with steam:

And this is a dog. In fact, one of the factory workers is resting in the background during her lunch break, but she refused to be photographed:

After grinding the workpiece, it is manually shaped felt boots head - toe, heel and sole. Then the fluffy wool is rubbed in again with steam:

Now the blanks need to be collected in batches and sent to rolling machine. Rolling, squeezing, press - the wool becomes inseparable:

Then the shape is stretched and given the appearance of a felt boot. Only she is still in 2 times more the size you end up with:

And then the blanks are stretched again on a machine, which in the factory is called "crocodile". The workers were simply amazed by the synchronicity of their actions:

Despite the fact that the production looks very primitive, no one complains about the work here. There are young people coming. The technologies are ancient, they come from grandmothers, and this is a plus.

The oven itself:

Giving the final form by tapping the block:

After giving the shape and size, the pads are no longer needed; they are stored until a new batch:

Atmospheric room:

Now there is little left. You need to sand off excess fur:

...measure:

...pair up:

...and attach the factory tag and size mark:

We often associate the word “felt felt boots” with something warm, funny and outdated. “Simple as a felt boot”, “Roll Vanka” - these sayings have forever entered the everyday life of the Russian people. But few people know that felting felt boots was considered one of the most profitable crafts in Rus', and felters were held in high esteem by every rank and class. Felt boots were considered a luxury, and only wealthy people could afford them. In peasant houses there was usually one couple for all family members.

Even despite everything modern technologies, they have not yet come up with warmer and more practical shoes for the harsh winter than Russian felt boots. They are still worn in villages and shown in the collections of Russian and Western fashion designers.

Do you want to know how to make felt boots?

Our master class will help you! Since felting felt boots is a long and labor-intensive process, you should not immediately make them in full size. We will try to felt mini felt boots that can be given to friends as New Year's souvenir or hang them on the Christmas tree as an unusual toy.

By and large, all you need to create mini felt boots is wool, hands and water. But how to make felt boots neat and aesthetically attractive?

For this we will need some additional materials:

• wool for felting (skein)
• a small piece of building insulation (can be replaced with any flexible waterproof material)
• soap solution (you can add dishwashing detergent to the water)
• Also prepare the following tools:
• film or oilcloth for work
• napkin for felting (you can use a mosquito net)
• spray
• scissors

1. Cut out a template from a piece of building insulation - as in the picture. The insulation is convenient because it can then be easily removed from the finished felt boots.

2. Spread film or oilcloth on the table. Now everything is ready to go.

3. Take in left hand skein of wool, right hand We pinch the ends, pressing the fur with our fingers into the palm of our hand, and pull it out. It is necessary to pull, and not tear off or tug, in order to get a translucent fluffy strand of wool. We will lay out the template with such strands.

4. We begin to lay the first layer, placing all the strands in one direction - across the template. Spread evenly, slightly going beyond the edges of the template.

5. Lay the second layer perpendicular to the first. If we placed the strands across, now we place them lengthwise. We make sure that there are no “holes” or gaps. The layers should not be too thin, but not too thick. You need to “feel” the wool.

6. Lay the third layer, placing the strips of wool at an angle of 45 degrees.

7. We make the fourth layer - we secure the previous third layer with very thin transparent hairs. Can be laid out in different directions.

8. We wet our workpiece with a soap solution. You need to wet it thoroughly so that the wool is well soaked. Cover the top with a napkin or mosquito net. Press on top several times with your hands. We do this carefully so that the wool does not move.

9. Remove the napkin, pick up the template along with the wool with your fingertips and turn it over.

10. Bend the wool that extends beyond the edges of the template. Smooth it out so that there are no wrinkles. Even if it was not possible to smooth out all the folds, do not be alarmed, they will smooth out during the felting process.

11. Now we lay out the same layers of wool on the other side. We try to fill empty spaces.

12. Wet with soapy water and cover with a napkin. Press on top several times with your palms.

13. Remove the napkin, turn the template over and bend the protruding strands of wool, as the first time.

14. Very important point: our workpiece should be symmetrical. If you notice any unevenness, place some wool there, cover with a napkin and press several times.

15. Now you can safely start felting. We wet the template with soapy water, cover it with a napkin and begin to rub. Scrub lightly at first, then when you feel the fur begin to fall off, work as hard as you can. Don't forget about the sides of the workpiece. Let it sit for about 15-20 minutes.

16. Remove the napkin and press it with your fingers, especially in the bends. The wool should fit tightly around the template. Gradually you will feel for yourself how hard it is necessary to felt the workpiece.

17. Take scissors and cut our workpiece into two equal parts.

18. Now you need to felt the edges. To do this, do not completely remove the template and rub the edges with your fingers.

19/. Delete the template. We put felt boots on our fingers and continue to feel. Excellent result can be achieved by rubbing the workpiece on oilcloth. Friction heats up the wool and makes it mat better. We constantly monitor the amount of soap solution. You can periodically dip your felt boots in a container of soapy water.

20. Make sure that the felt boots are the same and even. If something works out larger size- felt it separately, giving it the desired shape.

21. You can easily check whether the felt boots are ready or not by pinching them with your fingers: if a lot of hairs have separated, you need to felt them again.

22. Rinse our mini felt boots in clean water and leave to dry.

If you want to repeat this fascinating process, you can pile New Year’s gifts on all your friends, or try making life-size felt boots. Using exactly the same technology you can make mittens, slippers and many other wonderful souvenirs, items of clothing and shoes!

We express our gratitude to the Klubok studio for the master class.