/ Sewing Tips / By Madeleine

Can You Sew Felt With A Sewing Machine? [Beginner’s Guide]

Are you wondering if you can sew felt with a sewing machine? The answer is, yes, you can sew felt with a sewing machine. You can also hand-sew felt.

Machine sewing felt is pretty easy but you’ll want to get the basics right when learning how to sew felt with a sewing machine.

My lifelong love for sewing started when I was 11 and today, I’m part of a wonderful sewing community. I’ve learned how to sew felt on a sewing machine over the years, and I’m happy to share my tips with you!

I’ll guide you on how to sew felt together with a sewing machine. We’ll also discuss the best needle for sewing felt, the best felt for crafting, and more useful info you need to know to help you sew your felt projects.

Let’s get started!

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Can You Sew Felt With A Sewing Machine?

Yes, you can!

You’ll like machine sewing felt if you want to sew your projects together more quickly, make bigger felt projects or want a good way to learn how to use your sewing machine.

Using felt for sewing when you’re a beginner is a great idea! It’s stiff and doesn’t move around too much and it doesn’t fray. You’ll need some basic sewing knowledge to know how to sew felt using a machine (just like when you’re learning how to hand sew felt).

So how exactly can you use a sewing machine to sew felt? Let’s see what settings and stitches you can use.

Sewing Felt Fabric Machine Settings

Learning how to make felt crafts starts with getting your machine ready!

Best Stitches For Sewing Felt On A Sewing Machine

The best stitches for sewing felt on a sewing machine are straight stitch, zig zag or tricot stitch and blanket stitch (see images below).

You can use a straight stitch for most felt projects, including stitching felt together. For applique on felt and a more hand-crafted feel, you could use a blanket stitch.

You can use a zigzag, or tricot (three-step stitch) on felt edges. This is more a design feature though as felt doesn’t fray, so you don’t need to “seal the edges” as you do for woven fabric.

Straight stitch and zigzag stitch done on a sewing machine can be used on felt.

Tricot (3 step) stitch done on a sewing machine can be used on felt.

Straight stitch, zig zag stitch and the tricot (3 step) stitch done on a sewing machine can be used on felt.

What Stitch Length To Use On Felt?

Now, what about the right stitch length for sewing felt on a sewing machine?

A 2.0mm straight stitch generally works well for most felt sewing projects. For thicker felt or several layers of felt, you could even try up to a 3 or 3.5 length stitch.

Just remember, test the stitch length out on a scrap piece of felt first, to make sure it works for your project.

And if you’re project includes sewing two pieces of felt together, test out sewing two pieces of felt together! Otherwise you may get a not so pleasant surprise when you start sewing your “real” felt project :). Trust me, I know this pain from experience.

PS. A straight stitch is commonly used when learning how to hand stitch felt too!

Use a medium 70/10 or 80/12 needle for sewing felt if you’re working on standard felt. If you’re using thicker felt or sewing more than two layers of felt together at a time, use a 90/14 needle.

Sew with all-purpose polyester thread.

You can use a standard sewing foot for most felt projects.

How To Stitch Felt Together With A Machine

Once you have your machine settings ready, place your felt fabric on the machine and start sewing.

Straight lines are pretty straightforward but you might find sewing curves and small edges a little tough at first. That’s okay! Go slowly.

With curves, I find that it helps to sew one stitch at a time. To do this, don’t use the foot pedal. Instead, I turn the wheel on the sewing machine manually.

To sew a curve or turn a corner, you can lift the sewing foot off the fabric (make sure that the needle is in the fabric before you do this, otherwise your fabric might move and you’ll have loose threads!).

Then gently turn the felt to where you want it to be, put the foot back down and continue sewing. Go as slow as you need to :).

Want to give your crafts more details? Check out this post on felt machine embroidery.

Is It Easy To Sew With Felt?

Can you sew felt together easily? You bet!

Felt is a beginner-friendly material. It doesn’t fray and it’s easy to cut. The fabric is firm and doesn’t slide around too much compared to softer fabrics. Plus, you only need basic tools and stitches when sewing felt.

Felt is also versatile: it’s a good fit whether you like machine sewing or hand sewing felt.

Learning how to sew felt onto fabric by hand might seem easier than using a machine. But once you get the hang of using a sewing machine, it actually makes sewing quick and convenient.

Sewing mistakes can happen when you’re learning how to sew felt (and even when you’ve been sewing for years!). But don’t worry, a seam ripper, to unpick the thread, is your friend.

Just remember though, try not to unpick your threads too many times, as the holes could show on felt and not just “disappear” like on other types of fabric.

Also, pull the thread & fabric apart gently, as if you pull too hard it can warp the shape of the felt.

Tips For Sewing Felt With A Machine

Always test on a scrap piece first before starting. This way, you can test out the stitch length and tension to see if they work for your project.
If you’re learning how to sew craft felt, you might find that if it’s a bit of a thinner felt, it may move around when you sew. Add a backing fabric to make it more stable. You can also double the fabric. If you’re using 100% wool felt, the material is usually sturdy enough to support itself.
Use the right needle size. For most projects, you can use a medium 70/10 or 80/12 needle.
You can use universal sewing needles to sew felt. Alternatively, ballpoint needles work too.
When sewing curves, go slowly. Lift the sewing foot off the fabric (but make sure the needle is in the fabric), gently turn the felt, put the foot back down, and continue sewing.
If you find machine sewing smaller felt pieces a little tough, you can always hand-sew them!

Sewing Projects With Felt: What You’ll Need

Best Felt Cloth For Machine Sewing

You can choose between wool felt and craft felt.

Which material is better? That depends on what you need for your project.

In terms of quality, 100% wool felt is better compared to craft felt. It’s natural, and the soft texture makes learning how to sew wool felt easier. It will also last a lifetime.

You might notice 100% wool felt is used in a lot of felt toys tutorials. This is because it’s durable and works great for heirloom crafts.

Craft felt is made of synthetic materials like acrylic or polyester. It’s cheaper and comes in a wide range of colors. It’s good for beginner crafts.

For the best of both worlds, you could try wool blend. It’s a mix of natural wool with synthetic fibers like rayon and acrylic. This popular felt material for crafts has the softness of wool at a cheaper price. It also comes in cute colors like this felt cotton candy pink.

Learn more about the differences between wool felt and polyester felt to see which material works better for your felt sewing ideas.

Best Scissors For Cutting Felt

Fabric scissors are a great choice to cut felt. You get a cleaner cut and they’re easier to use for cutting fabric.

In my opinion though, a rotary cutter and a self-healing cutting mat are the way to go.

OLFA is my favorite brand – see my amazing pink mat and rotary cutter along with my cute niece and our sewing teacher <3 in the photos below. Just be sure to learn how to use the cutter safely and keep it out of reach of kids and pets. They’re sharp!

If you have a Cricut Maker, that works great too!

Check out my full breakdown on what scissors to use on felt for all the details.

My niece and our sewing teacher using my amazing pink OFLA self-healing mat

Using my Mondial fabric scissors and OFLA rotary cutter on the same project (also note the paper scissors for cutting out patterns on the far right).

Best Thread For Sewing Felt

Use a strong all-purpose polyester thread when you sew felt with a machine. This is the go-to choice for most sewists.

You can also machine sew felt with a durable cotton thread. This is an especially great idea if you’re working with 100% wool felt and want to go with all-natural materials.

For all the details on which thread to use for felt check out my full post.

Best Needle For Felt Sewing With A Machine

You can use medium-sized 70/10 or 80/12 needles for most machine sewing projects.

If you’re planning to sew more than two layers of felt at one time, you might need to get a larger 90/14 needle.

Check out my full breakdown on which needles I recommend for felt for more details, which also includes a guide on picking the right needle size for hand-sewing felt.

How To Wash Felt Fabric

Here’s a quick overview but if you want to know exactly how to do it, read my post on how to wash felt without shrinkage.

It’s best to hand wash felt – especially if you’re using wool felt as it shrinks if not washed properly.

Use cool water, soak the fabric, and gently squeeze it to get it clean. Avoid rubbing as this can cause fuzzing.

Avoid using the dryer as this can shrink felt. It’s best to lay the fabric flat and let it air dry (this also helps stop it from losing its shape).

Can I Iron Felt?

Yes, you can iron felt! It’s a great idea to smooth out any wrinkles or fabric bends before sewing on felt, as it gives your crafts a neater look.

Wondering how you can iron on felt?

Use the wool setting when ironing wool felt. Try a low or medium setting for craft felt.

You want to be really careful about the heat setting when ironing craft felt as it’s prone to melting at high temperatures.

If you’re unsure, place a towel on top of the piece of felt you’re ironing and iron on top of the towel instead of directly on the felt. This will ensure you won’t ruin your iron, ironing board or felt! (it’s a win-win-win)

Felt Fabric Craft Ideas: Easy Felt Sewing Projects To Try

There are so many things to sew with felt!

You can use felt to make felt toys, finger puppets, baby mobiles, and other kids’ items.

PS. My article on how to stitch felt animals has handmade felt craft patterns for you to learn how to make stuffed animals out of felt, how to make felt toys, how to sew felt toys for Christmas, and how to make no sew felt animals!

You can also use felt to sew cool felt projects around the house, from coasters to decorative flowers.

Still not sure what sewing with felt projects to start with? Get inspired with felt craft tutorial patterns on Amazon and Etsy!

Can You Sew Felt With A Sewing Machine FAQ

What Is The Best Way To Sew Felt?

Machine sewing is the best way to sew felt if you want something quick and convenient. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but it gets easier once you get the hang of it.

That being said, felt is a versatile material. You can also hand sew felt if that’s more your style, especially if you’re working on small felt projects or with fiddly bits of felt.

What Machine Stitch Is Best For Felt?

Straight stitch is best for machine sewing felt. I.e. to sew felt sheets together. For decoration when sewing felt to fabric or a shirt (i.e. applique) try blanket stitch.

Although you don’t need to hem felt as it doesn’t fray, you can use a zig zag stitch or tricot stitch if you like.

Should I Sew Or Glue Felt?

Sewing felt is a long-lasting and strong option, there are occasions when it is faster and better to glue felt. Glue is a good idea if you won’t need to wash your felt craft. It’s also useful if you haven’t picked up sewing skills just yet.

What Kind Of Thread Do You Use For Felt Sewing Projects?

Use durable options like all-purpose polyester thread and cotton thread for felt sewing projects. Cotton thread is especially great if you like all-natural felt fabric ideas for crafting.

Should I Wash Felt Before Sewing It?

You can wash felt before sewing it. To pre-shrink your felt fabric, the felt must first be washed. While you might be wondering, “Is felt machine washable?” (Yup, it is!) I would still recommend hand washing in cool water to make sure the felt doesn’t lose its shape or shrink!

Do I Need Fabric Scissors For Felt?

It’s important to use fabric scissors for felt. Using fabric scissors gives cleaner-looking shapes and neater edges. Fabric scissors usually have sharper blades, making it easier to quickly cut through fabric.

Can You Sew Felt With A Sewing Machine? Wrap Up

So, in summary, can you sew felt with a sewing machine? Yes, absolutely, but it’s important to know the right way to do it!

To make sewing felt with a sewing machine easier, just remember to use the right type of needle, stitch type & length and, always, always always test on a scrap piece of felt first!

If you’re new to felt sewing, it might take a few tries to get the sewing machine settings right for your felt cloth patterns. Hang in there! You’ll get used to it after a while.

And remember, you can always hand stitch your felt, if using a sewing machine seems overwhelming. For more details on how to sew with felt by hand vs with a sewing machine check out my beginner’s guide on sewing felt!

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