OUR STORY

The creating of a felted item begins with the conception of an idea. Olena envisions the final product and determines the techniques and materials required in order to create it. Preparatory work follows the design phase. Typically, it consists of manually arranging the material fibers on individual sheets of paper. The density of the fiber spacing determines the final weight of the fabric; the density measurements are the result of individual fiber counts. During this phase all of the color and texture combinations are created through the layering of various materials. For example, an item with exterior wool lock details has the following layers starting from the outer layer: wool locks, viscose, wool layers and a silk base layer. Once the materials have been laid out in the desired arrangement they are transferred to the felting table. Individual sheets of material are arranged together as a mosaic. The material is then moistened with hot, soapy water and processed into a fabric through the use of manual labor. Each item begins its life twice or thrice the size of its intended final size. Through the repetition of the wetting and felting processes the individual components amalgamate in a single item while simultaneously shrinking to its final dimensions.