Thread: Talk to me about felt!

I noticed that one of my costumes is in dire need of a new lining. Some of you line your bras and belts with felt. Why?

Mainly because it's easy and cheap. I used to do all my linings with felt because you don't have to tuck the edges under to avoid fraying. Just pin in place, trim off the excess and sew.

In the past year or two, I've switched to using plain cotton for lining. It's a little trickier, but not alot. I also like the feel of the cotton against my skin better than the felt.

The felt is still a good option on the belt as it can also help to keep your belt from slipping or spinning/sliding.

I also use felt. I also sew very large heavy duty snaps (approx 1" large) onto the felt and on the top of my skirts. They never move. I got the idea from a vintage costume I purchased on Ebay. Neat trick.

like felt for lining my belts - but not the bra tops... it's not always absorbent enough for when the girls get sweaty.

I like to line bras and belts with felt for the comfort factor, but then add another lining on top of it that's smoother on the skin. I have a stash of beloved silk blouses that have been worn to death, and that's what I cut up to use as lining. Makes the costumes look so pretty on the inside.

doesn't slip around, doesn't fray, cheap, easy to tack in & rip out when the lining needs to be replaced. I use either that or a coarse cotton broadcloth (slippage really annoys me!) for the belts, muslin to line bras (more comfy)

Off topic but felt is an excellent fabric for laying on the table for beading projects. Beads don't roll around and needles don't get caught up on it.

I used to use felt for lining costumes but found it too bulky and not absorbent enough. I didn't like when I removed a sweaty costume and could still feel moisture on the felt lining. I started using nylon liner fabric (often used for suits and dresses).

All of the above. It's a practical material to use.

I've been using cotton to line my costumes. I actually like using old t-shirts to line my tops.

I used to use felt but have switched to T-shirt jersey. Felt is easy to tack into costumes (as others have said, no need to turn the edges under), but I found that it pilled quite badly, especially on one of my belts from friction against a velvet skirt.

Ok, so stupid question, but is there a particular type of felt one should buy for costuming?

Craft felt? Wool felt? Poly felt? Which kind is best?

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

Ok, so stupid question, but is there a particular type of felt one should buy for costuming?

Craft felt? Wool felt? Poly felt? Which kind is best?

I was wondering about this too - because the only felt I think of is that stuff used on HeadStart bulletin boards and I couldn't imagine wearing that! ..l;, Otherwise, I'm allergic to wool, so that is completely unappealing to me.

I have always used felt to line bras, straps and belts mainly because it stops the "slippage" better than anything else especially the bras. I can't stand the feel of a slippery acetate lining.

Also, felt is comfy, cushions against interior knotted threads and/or hooks and stitches. It definitely extends "life" of costuming by preventing sweat damage to beads, coins, sequins, metal hooks, AND all the thread used to anchor eveything to bra and belt. Once the threads break from sweat corrosion (and it doesn't take much, even if thread is waxed first) the decorative trims come off, even if glue is also used.

Felt is cheap, easy to find and easy to sew into a costume because the edges don't fray. I also have used a rolled up piece of felt as a bra pad; just sewed it into bra cup and then lined the whole cup with felt.

And, when I sell one of my costumes, I reline it with felt to give it a fresh start with the next owner!..g.:

One word of caution; cotton felt is nice and cheap - maybe $5-$6 per yard, but wool felt is expensive - $39.00 a yard. I found that out the hard way at Britex when I assumed what sales person was cutting was the $6 felt and I'd asked for 3 yards....

Hmmm...interesting food for thought! Thank you for all the great info. I loved the idea of reusing old silk shirts too... What I might do is use it as an "inter-lining" and then line over it with something else.

I don't like felt for lining. I have received a couple of costumes with felt lining and it itched and just seemed to hold in bacteria. I also noticed that it took longer to dry out than my tee shirt lining, which I prefer. It is also stiff and adds bulk.

I also like the fact that tee shirt jersey is easy to get a hold of, cheap and can be gotten in a variety of colours. And no itching. (and no, I am not allergic to wool.)

{{{HUGS}}}

I have to agree w/ Tahira. Felt is now made of plastic so it never really dries out. Wool absorbs moisture and retains it as well. I have ALWAYS lined with Cotton fabric. It is cheap, It absorbs sweat, it is easy to replace. And best of all it DOES NOT ITCH!. I have received felt lined bedlahs and I just remove it.
Andrea

This will be really nerdy but,
silk that is exposed to frequent acidic fluids like sweat break down faster. It is the "seviche" effect. You can cook fish in lemon juice and it is delicious but the same thing happens to silk over time, and causes it to disintegrate. Hence the degraded condition of many beaded flapper dresses from the 20's. They were worn, danced in and enjoyed, and sweated in.

Also silk is used as Sails on ships to catch air effectively and Parachutes. Silk has VERY limited breathe-ability and is not the "coolest" fabric as is advertised. The veils that we know and love have a flight that is unrivaled because they don't "breath". It retains moisture and does not have dry-able ventilation. As a liner it is not a good choice.
Yes nerdy but true.
Eeek I have been revealed!!!!!. I am a nerd!!!!!

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

Ok, so stupid question, but is there a particular type of felt one should buy for costuming?

Craft felt? Wool felt? Poly felt? Which kind is best?

I use the white poly felt sold by the yard at Joann's- It doesn't pill like craft felt & is a bit thinner too. don't want to risk colors bleeding, so I've never tried anything else, except a black felt on my black belt (hasn't bled, but who knows from batch to batch of any material!)

I don't use it on bras & honestly I am confused by some of the sweat issues mentioned- I sweat up a storm, but my belts aren't next to my skin & I've never had an issue there. I guess the edges are touching skin, but apparently not enough to absorb much sweat? part of the reason I like the felt is bc it doesn't slide around on my poly-chiffon skirts, and for the belts I am making, I like having the added stiffness- reduces the amount of interfacing I have to use when making the belt in the first place.

I use poly felt, so since I don't perform weekly or for long sets, the sweat absorption factor doesn't bother me. I also line the inside of arm cuff and headbands with felt to give them more grip. My hair is super straight and slick and most headbands slide right off.

A friend who had sensitive skin and was allergic to the all the felts used soft cotton fleece. She said it gripped her skin but didn't cause any reaction.

If you aren't allergic to synthetics and you want a little bulk to your lining, you could also try polyester fleece. It's less scratchy than comparable felt and also won't fray when cut. You wouldn't want to buy the cheapest you can get, though. Lower quality fleece is more likely to pill up.