The only problem with this felt is it sheds a lot. With the dog hair being so short, the really short straight dog hair sheds out very easily. Fortunately she will not be using it as a pillow but putting it a way to remember him.
This is a throw back post I thought you might enjoy because there have been a few people asking on Facebook about felting with dog hair. Just like sheep there are different kinds of dog hair and even the top coat and undercoat on every dog so you need to do a test piece for every new breed.
Here is one corner as I started to add the dog hair. You can see the blob of hair I am working from.
Recently I was asked to make something out of dog hair in memory of the dog it came from. Originally the woman asked a friend of mine to spin the dog hair so it could be woven into something. The hair was to short for that so she suggested talking to me. I wasn’t sure about doing it but she was so emotional I said I would give it a try. She had a large bag of hair that was quite short. The problem was she wanted me to use as little wool as possible and not to blend it. From My dog grooming days I knew this kind of curly coated small mixed breed dog felted their hair while wearing it so I was hoping it would do it here too. I laid out a base of wool and then add a thick layer of dog curls to the top. I made a sample that turned out quite well, I showed her and she agreed to me making a pillow and stuffing it with the remaining hair.
Introduction: Felted Hair of the Dog Coat
Every winter we have a dilemma with our indoor Cocker Spaniel: if we leave him hairy, hes too hot for indoor life and walks around panting and drinking water incessantly. If we shave him, hes too cold when he goes outside. This winter I solved the dilemma: I shaved the hair off his back and belly and part of his legs, then used his own hair to make a coat for him. His hair was needle-felted into a tailored wool coat that he can wear outdoors and be toasty warm, then take off when he comes back inside. Problem solved!How to felt a dog hair coat. You will need: Water and soap Grooming shears A piece of wool or craft felting fabric Hook and loop fastening tape Scissors Straight pins Needle and thread A felting brush A felting needle (preferably a multi-needle gadget)
This article from TactileHobby.com gives you some great advice and know how to get you comfortable around working with this less utilised fibre. I’ll pop some examples here too of animals made from pet hair, you might be able to see the difference that this hair makes.
Myself I have used Persian cat hair and possum, both were easiest to use over a felted base, so I just did the top coat in these fibres. You can also blend the hair into the fibre before use, which works well if the colours and finish will enhance the project.
You may be surprised to know that this is a question that comes up fairly often. Can you felt with pet hair? For pet lovers around the world the idea of using their beloved pets excess hair seems like a great way to make a little tribute to them, or even just use something that often goes to waste.
So check out the article over at Tactile Hobby, you can find the link to the article here.
For others, if their pet has passed away, it’s an amazing keepsake or memento which some will often get an artist to make for them. So you may be approached by a customer wanting you to make something with their pet hair!