Wool Appliqué the Piece O’ Cake Way

Felted wool is thick and fuzzy; cotton is smooth and often patterned; linen is heavier than cotton and a little bit coarser. These three types of fabric look (and feel) different from each other and you can see that difference at a glance.

Quilts are built on the contrast between things that are different. It is the difference between the elements in the design that makes some areas more (or less) visible. It is contrast that marks the difference between one shape and another, between foreground and background, between smooth and fuzzy, between thick and thin fabrics.

It is the contrast between these three very different kinds of cloth that makes them perfect companions.

Felted wool is thick and fuzzy, which gives it a distinct physical and visual texture. These two attributes also affect the color of wool. The colors are more nuanced whether the felted wool is a solid, plaid, or stripe.

You can see the woven threads in the cloth, even after it has been felted. The horizontal and vertical threads catch the light differently. The threads are thick enough, and dense enough, to cast shadows in the cloth. This adds to the feeling of thickness and depth. Even a solid color appears to be a bit more than just “solid.”

The top, fuzzy layer of the cloth keeps felted wool from ever appearing to be shiny. It also acts like a fine layer of fog, adding to the soft visual texture.

Felted Knits

If you’ve ever washed and dried a 100% wool sweater, you know that knit fabric can also be felted or fulled. This type of felted wool feels different from felted wool that is made from a woven cloth. It can be thicker and denser, depending on the weight of the yarn that was used to make the cloth.

Felted knit is not the kind of felted wool that you would typically find in a quilt shop, and it is not one that we used in these quilts. But you could use it if you wanted to.

Felted wool begins with a woven cloth made from 100% wool. The cloth may come off the bolt, from old clothes, or from some other source. Simply stated, the cloth becomes felt when it is washed in hot water and dried in a hot dryer—a process called fulling. This causes the wool fibers to shrink, pulling them together to make a thicker, felted wool cloth.

Felted wool rarely frays at the edges during stitching. When it does, it is usually because the wool has not been felted enough.

Wool felt is made from loose wool fibers that are placed together in layers that run alternately lengthwise and crosswise. The bed of layers is wetted and a little soap is added. The fibers are then rubbed together—this process is called “felting.” The more the fibers are agitated, the tighter the felt will be.

At the end of the process the soap is rinsed away with cool water. The felt is pressed or squeezed to remove excess water, and then is it laid flat to dry.

Dense, tight wool felt has a flat appearance, and it can be a little stiff. Soft wool felt was more gently agitated, making it a looser cloth. The fibers can sometimes pull apart, and it has a softer edge. In both cases, we find that wool felt is not what we want to use in hand appliqué.

Wool felt is made from loose wool fibers that are compressed to form flat, dense cloth. We prefer felted wool.

You are a quilter. You know that cotton cloth is physically smooth and that it is thinner than felted wool. You also know that cotton comes in almost any color or pattern imaginable. However, because cotton is so different from felted wool, you might not have thought of using them together in appliqué.

Cotton appliqué shapes sparkle when combined with felted wool appliqué. This is especially true of printed cotton cloth. The patterns and colors on the cotton add excitement to mostly solid felted wools. Each kind of fabric enhances the other.

Cotton is lovely when used as a background underneath felted wool appliqué shapes. The thicker felted wool sits higher on it than do appliqué shapes cut from cotton, which adds real depth to the design.

Linen is a fabric that is not used as often to make quilts. Instead, linen has traditionally been used in the home: on the bed or as dish towels, napkins, tablecloths, and so on. Linen is also used to make garments, especially those that might be worn in hot, humid weather.

While there are very finely woven linen fabrics, the linen that works best with felted wool is somewhat heavier and coarser than quilting cottons.

Linen is prone to wrinkling. That’s more of a problem in a garment than it is in a quilt. Press linen fabric before you begin sewing with it. Press the blocks again before you quilt them.

To be honest, it can be hard to find linen on the bolt in a quilt shop. When we find an interesting piece of linen, we buy it because you never know when you might find more. We like linen/cotton blends. They are heavier than cotton and lighter than linen but still have a linenlike texture that is very nice with felted wool.

In all cases, prewash linen, because it will shrink. This will pull the fibers together, making the fabric easier to work with. Refer to Cotton and Linen Fabric Preparation.