Felt Slippers Are Here For Your Kids

2. The felt slippers represent the strongest aspects of Scandinavian design. The form is economic, ergonomic, functional but above all comforting. The slippers have a timeless appeal and cultural endurance: for Scandinavians they evoke fond childhood memories and from this nostalgic root has grown a modern interpretation of a classic consumer product. Many famous designers have used flowers as a focal point for some of their works. When we are creating the Felt Forma Custom made to order felt slippers, Wool Shoes and Wool Boots we think about colors that you can usually found in woods, meadows and flower gardens. •Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as woolor animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as

3. petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood pulp-based rayon. Blended fibers are also common. •Simply and sturdily made, felt slippers have several natural advantages. Devised for use in arctic conditions they are biodegradable, breathable, warm and practically waterproof. It all adds up to footwear that is ecofriendly. Although our way of life has changed over time, these properties have helped this design classic survive into the 21st century. •Felt slippers made from felt wool is considered to be the oldest known textile. Many cultures have legends as to the origins of felt making. The making of felt from wool is an old Finnish skill, originally used solely to make hats. Slippers and the

4. skills needed to produce them came from Russia in the late 18th century. The Russian craftsmen had learnt in their turn from Turkish nomads and with the help of Russian technicians the first factory opened in Finland in 1897. Large and small factories have been manufacturing felt slippers and socks ever since, apart from during World War II, when production came to a temporary halt due to lack of materials. In the wet felting process, hot water is applied to layers of animal hairs, while repeated agitation and compression causes the fibers to hook together or weave together into a single piece of fabric. Wrapping the properly arranged fiber in a sturdy, textured material, such as a bamboo mat or burlap, will speed up the felting process. The felted material may be finished by fulling. Today, there are only a few dedicated family companies that still manufacture these felt slippers – most elements are still carried out by hand and the traditional range of colors prevails – red, dark blue, grey and white.