I started wet felting on May 28, 2023. I know that because I took pictures of my first project - a scarf.
Being a newbie to wet felting, I bought way too much of the wool roving for the scarf above. And because I thought I would love wet felting (because I was already needle felting) I had a bunch more wool roving in similar colors.
I thought about what to make with all the extra roving. Because I'm a big fan of Halloween, I settled on my second project, which was an ambitious one for a new wet felter - I decided to make a custom Witch Hat - the Cursed Tree Witch Hat.
After several YouTube videos researching how to wet felt a handmade witch hat, I chose to start with a resist. I used packaging material I had at home. I always keep packaging material from boxed deliveries "just in case" I need it for something, and luckily, I had a large piece.
Because I had only been wet felting for a month by the time I made this decision, I learned a lot from making this unique witch hat that benefits other hats.
But for my first ever handmade witch hat, I'm very happy with the results!
I prepared and laid the wool according to the instructions in my blog post: What is Wet Felting? A Comprehensive Guide to Crafting with Wool Fiber.
Unfortunately, I made this Witch hat prior to starting this blog, so I don't have any photos of the process. But there should be plenty of information here for you should you decide to make your own hat. And you can always reach out if you have questions - contacttextiletilly@gmail.com
Or you can purchase this Custom Witch Hat for SALE!
The Cursed Tree Witch Hat - an Enchanted Witch Hat
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This is the only image I have of the witch hat in process.
I used 6 layers of wool on the brim, and 5 layers of wool on the body. I did that before I decided to add gnarled looking bark to the body - so it does not have to be this thick.
I made the ferns before making the bark.
The bark was made by the wet felting process. The gnarled look (highs, lows, and valleys in the bark) was created by needle feting the bark fabric onto the body of the hat. This gave the hat a lot of character.
Everything on this hat is wool except:
- twig running around the brim
- wire for armatures, vines, and bees
- beads used for bee eyes and tail horsehair used for bee antennae
- resin and cheesecloth for bee wings
The Cursed Tree is a depiction of good vs evil - the good witch versus the bad witch. The front shows the tree eye, the dying ferns, gnarled branches that became tree roots, and a worker bee.
The tree eye was needle felted onto the wet felted tree body, the bee is needle feted, and the ferns were made of wet felted fabric in fall colors, and needle felted onto the body of the hat.
Turning the hat counterclockwise, you see the depth of damage the tree succumbed to at the curse of the wicked witch.
Two dying ferns lay by the tree roots. On the body of the tree, you see the once abandoned beehive being revived by a worker bee.
The backside of the hat shows more of the gnarled bark and air roots growing from the twisted, bent over, and once lifeless branches.
The root branches are wet felted to the shape of the resist and do not have any needle felting on them except for tacking down the top bee.
The twisted tree root to the left of the top bee and the green branch to the right of the top bee were the most difficult for me. They are both needle feted with armature.
This side shows the new growth appearing on the tree. Needle felted mushrooms are growing from the crevices in the tree bark, a fresh green fern is laying up against the tree, a new branch is emerging from the top of the tree, and flowers have started to grow.
I finished the larger flower just last night!
If you're wondering if it's taken me a year to finish this hat, well, ... yes, it has. Life gets in the way at times and projects get pushed to the back burner.
A commissioned hat takes approximately 2 to 3 months from start to finish, and up to 6 months for more elaborate hats. Commissioned hats are made with finer wools.
Should you have any questions, please reach out: contacttextiletilly@gmail.com
