Silk Nuno Felt Scarves

Nuno felt is a textile combining roving wool and gauze-like silk, achieved through the method of rolling and wetting, until the wool fibers felt into the silk fabric, creating a flexible textile with a luxurious surface. 

I order my supplies online with Living Felt Supply
Roving wool, silk scarves, silk hankies, and a water sprayer.
 

Over the last couple of years, I have been intrigued by the qualities of wool, not just for knitting, but to take it to the next level through the process of felting. The type of wool used is called roving, which is fluffy balls of 100% wool. 

The 'roving' wool is a versatile fiber that is creatively used in various methods and purposes. Wet felted roving wool can be made into useful textiles for warm clothing, and shoes, and was historically invented to make Mongolian fabric for dwellings, etc. 

Roving wool can be used to decorate surfaces, similar to 'wool paint', with either wet felting or needle felting techniques. I also have enjoyed the process of using roving wool-like clay to be molded into  3D sculptures & vessels. 

Read more about how I have used various felting methods.
Knit fingerless gloves & hat with felting applique.
Felted Chandelier.
Folk Art Pillows
Folk Art Pillows Collection #3

My kitchen counter is a perfect size for Nuno felting scarves.

These two scarves were my first experience with Nuno Felt. The Nuno felting technique was invented in 1992 by Polly Stirling from South Wales, Australia. Watch the video below to hear Polly speak of the beginnings of Nuno felting. Nuno is a Japanese word meaning cloth.  The technique uses roving wool, hot and cold water, and the method of wet rolling to mesh the wool fibers into the loose weave of silk to combine as one textile. 

I watched a lot of Nuno felting artists before I jumped on board to try this technique. Below is a video of Joan Cornell, a felting artist, demonstrating how to Nuno felt a huge wrap. To make felt is to start much larger than the intended final-sized project.

Getting ready, I had to clear away my kitchen counter and dig out some big towels from the closet to soak up the excess water spillage. It was an adventure into the wet, woolly abyss! Uncertain about what I was doing, the first scarf took me many hours, and I didn't finish it until late in the evening.  

I had purchased specialized roving wool that has fine silk fibers embedded into the bundles. It brings an exciting texture and shines in the design. I also added some lines of navy blue wool scraps leftover from ripping out a sweater. The squiggly wool resembles rick-rack, adding rhythm to the floral design. 

To ensure the rick-rack-like blue yarn stays in place on the silk surface, I layered roving wool underneath and added bits of roving yarn on top to hold the blue yarn in place. Some small blue bits did come off the ruffle edges, but that is OK for the design to be random. To get the ruffled edges of the scarf, I laid out roving wool past the silk fabric, rubbing with my soapy hands to feel it to itself and to the silk.

After half a day of work and a lot of water, I finally finished my first Nuno Scarf. The next day, I turned on the iron to low to smooth out the design.  Voila, my first Nuno felting project was complete, and I was filled with a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction, ready to embark on the next project!

Looking at the youthful pink silk scarf, I was inspired by the springtime in Vancouver, BC, and the abundance of cherry tree blossoms that I miss out on since moving to Nova Scotia.  I decided that this scarf was going to have the felted design only along the lower edges, reminiscent of the cherry blossoms in full bloom. 

For the large blossom, I preshaped the petals in my hand and then laid them onto the silk. Additionally, I wanted to experiment with black sari scraps to add detail to the center of the flowers and the leaf-like edging. I had to add a little bit of embroidery detail to the edge of the blossoms. This was a gift for my sister, and time was running out, so I had to wrap it up with the hope she would like it!

Creating a Nuno Felted gift for my sister was a joyous experience. The Cherry Blossom Nuno felted scarf, with its delicate design and vibrant colors, was a perfect gift for her. I hope she enjoys wearing it as much as I enjoyed making it.

The Cherry Blossom Nuno felted scarf drapes easily around the neck and can be worn casually with a basic T-shirt or dressed up for a going-out outfit.

Looking forward to the next Nuno Felting project!
Minaz