NEEDLE FELTING TUTORIAL

This needle felting tutorial will show you how to make a simple head from alpaca fleece.
You will need:

• Carded fleece in a flesh color

• Carded fleece in white
• Carded fleece in a brown or black color
• Felting needle 36 triangle (I also use a 38 triangle and a 38 star but it can be done
with the 36T alone.)
• Foam pad
• Scissors

Here are the steps I take to make a simple head:

1. Roll a strip of flesh colored carded fleece into a ball.

Remember your head will grow as you add features so make it smaller than you want
the finished size to be.

Needle your roll so it holds together and has sort of an egg shape. Needle it firmly but
not too hard. You want it to still have some “give”.
2. Take a smaller strip of your fleece and roll a smaller ball, leaving the ends un-
felted. This is the nose.

Attach the un-felted end to the forehead area and needle it on. Don’t worry that it
looks big. You will be needling it into a nose shape. Needle all around the nose.
 3. Needle indentations for the eye sockets. Pull off 2 even amounts of fleece from
your batt. Roll them into balls leaving the end un-felted. These are the cheeks.
Place the ball next to the nose with the un-felted end towards the side of the head.

Needle the cheek in place.

Add the other cheek. You can make the cheeks large or small, higher or lower to give
your characters different looks.
4. Roll another small ball for the chin. Leave the end un-felted. Attach it to the chin
area with the un-felted edge towards the back of the head.

Needle it in place.

5. Take a strip of your fleece and fold it over your needle.

Carefully remove the needle and fold the fleece over the needle a second time.
Carefully remove the needle again.
Felt the folded edge. Split the unfolded edge in the center.

This is the upper lip. Attach it by putting it under the nose and needling it on.
 6. Roll fleece around the needle and carefully remove. Do not leave an open end.
You will have a tube shape. Attach this roll to the brow area.

Add loose fleece to cover the roll.

Finish needling.
 7. Add some dark fleece to the mouth area.

Needle it in place.

8. Add dark fleece to the eyes. Needle it in place. Use a small amount of white
fleece to the outer edge of one eye and the inner edge of the other.

Add eyebrows.
9. Roll fleece around the needle so you have a tube. Place tube on side of head and
shape into an ear. Make another one for the other side of the head.

10. Add two small pieces of dark fleece to the nose to indicate nostrils.

11. Add a fringe of hair. You can add color to the lips and cheeks if you want. Your
head is finished!