Machine Embroidery on Felt: Needles, Backing and Felties

Yes, you can machine embroider on felt, and it is one of the easier materials to stitch because it does not fray or pucker. Use wool or wool-blend felt if you can, a sharp needle around size 75/11, a medium tear-away or cutaway stabilizer, and a design with modest stitch density. Test on a scrap first, because felt thickness and thread weight change how a design stitches.

You can machine embroider on felt, and it is a friendly fabric for it. Felt is made by matting fibers together, not by weaving, so cut edges do not fray. Hatch’s felt guide also notes it does not pucker. The catch is that felt is soft and thick, and cheap felt can stretch or fuzz, so the choices of felt, stabilizer and design matter more than the machine.

Hatch Embroidery and Sulky are named here because their pages were sources for this guide. This site is not affiliated with either of them.

Which felt to use

Felt	What to expect
100% wool	Hatch calls wool felt the most popular choice: it does not unravel, is sturdier and holds its shape. It costs more.
Wool blend	A middle option between price and quality, and a good pick for ornaments and felties.
Acrylic or polyester craft felt	Cheaper. It can stretch under hoop tension or dense stitching and tends to pill, so keep designs light. Hatch suggests mixing it with wool, for example wool for accents and acrylic for the main body.

Felted wool is a different thing. Sulky explains that it is woven wool fabric washed and dried hot so the fibers shrink together. It is softer than felt, and its cut edges can fray, so it behaves differently from craft felt. Our tips below cover both, and we flag where they differ.

Stabilizer choices

Felt is stable by itself, but a design still needs support under it. Match the stabilizer to what the project will do. Our stabilizer guide explains each type in more depth.

Tear-away. Hatch suggests a medium-weight tear-away for a regular felt design, since felt is strong enough to tolerate tearing. Sulky also uses a tear-away for wool felt.
Cutaway. Hatch recommends a medium-weight cutaway for large, stitch-heavy designs or lighter felt. Use it too for wearables such as a patch-style badge on a jacket, where the support has to last through wear and washing.
Water-soluble. Hatch suggests a water-soluble topping on denser or plusher felt so stitches do not sink in, and says it leaves little to no residue. Water-soluble stabilizer underneath is a common choice for felties and ornaments when you do not want anything left inside, though you will need to rinse it out. See the washing section before you do.
Soft mesh for felted wool. Sulky floats felted wool on Soft ’n Sheer, and says it can stay in place after stitching and be trimmed close to the design.

Needle and thread

A sharp needle around size 11 (75/11) is the usual starting point. Hatch says the sharp point gives cleaner, neater stitches and that felt is durable enough not to be damaged by it the way some fabrics can be. Our needle guide covers sizes and types.

Heavier materials may want more. Sulky used a 100/16 topstitch needle for wool felt with 30 wt cotton thread, and a 90/14 topstitch or embroidery needle for felted wool, dropping to 80/12 for delicate designs. If your needle leaves holes that look too large, or thread shreds, go up or down one size and test again.

Thread choice shows up in the fuzz. Sulky found that cotton thread on wool felt makes lint that collects on the presser foot and can get stitched into the design. Its fixes were to slow the machine right down and to clean the area regularly, including the bobbin case. Standard 40 wt polyester or rayon embroidery thread is the usual choice for most designs, and Sulky used 40 wt rayon on felted wool.

Floating or hooping

Hooping soft felt in a tight hoop can leave a ring or pull it out of shape. Many stitchers skip it. The method Hatch and Sulky both describe is a float:

Hoop the stabilizer only, with a hoop that suits the design size.
Lightly spray the stabilizer with temporary spray adhesive.
Smooth the felt on top, lining up centers.
Stitch a test, then the real piece.

If the felt is small or the design is dense, a few pins or tape outside the stitching area can add security. Keep them well away from the needle path. A magnetic hoop is another option for thicker felt, and our magnetic hoop guide explains how those work.

Design choices that work on felt

Felt is thick and has a nap, so fine detail disappears. Pick designs that suit it:

Lower density. Heavy fills can cut through or distort felt. Sulky notes that heavier thread effectively increases density, and some stitches may need to be lengthened. Reducing density slightly in your software is a common fix.
Bold shapes. Satin stitching, thick outlines and simple fills hold up better than tiny text.
Check small lettering. Stitches can sink into the nap. A water-soluble topping helps, as above.
Always test. Stitch a scrap of the same felt with the same stabilizer before the real piece. Sulky’s advice is the same.

If you want to change a design, our resizing guide shows how far it is safe to go.

Felties and ornaments in the hoop

Felt is a favorite material for in-the-hoop projects, so many felties and holiday ornaments are built that way: front and back felt, a ribbon loop, stuffing. The stitching order and tape points belong to the design, and our in-the-hoop guide explains how the process works. A few felt-specific notes:

Cut the pieces to the design’s template so the felt sits inside the placement line.
Keep the stabilizer type the design names. Some projects use tear-away, while water-soluble is used when you want the inside soft.
Use matching bobbin thread if the seam will show on both sides.

For a flat, sew-on badge instead of a stuffed piece, felt also makes a good base for appliqué and patches. See machine embroidery appliqué and how to make embroidered patches.

Cutting and finishing

Because felt does not fray, you can cut close to the outline. Use sharp, small scissors, and trim tight to the stitching without cutting the thread. If the felt is the finished edge of a stuffed piece, trim about the same distance all the way round for a neat shape.

Tear away tear-away stabilizer from the back, holding the stitches with one hand, then trim leftovers. Trim jump threads, but leave the lock stitches at starts and stops alone, as Sulky advises.

Felted wool, which can fray, needs its edges finished depending on use, and Sulky suggests a decorative stitch that bites into the felt on both sides of a seam.

Washing and care

Felt crafts are often decorative, so washing is rarely needed. When it is, be cautious:

Wool felt can shrink or distort in water. A pre-shrink step before stitching helps when you will rinse out water-soluble stabilizer.
Test a scrap through the same rinse before you use it on a finished piece.
Acrylic felt may tolerate water better but can pill with rubbing.
If you are making something that will be worn and washed, such as a patch for a jacket, our washing guide covers general care.

When in doubt, spot clean felt and skip the machine.

Common problems

Puckering or ripples. Usually density is too high or the felt was pulled in a tight hoop. Float it and reduce density. Our puckering guide covers more causes.
Stitches sinking. Add a water-soluble topping or a larger stitch length.
Lint build-up. Slow down and clean the bobbin area, especially with cotton thread.
Felt shifting. More adhesive, or tape outside the stitching area.

Frequently asked questions

Can you machine embroider on felt?

Yes. Felt does not fray when cut and does not pucker the way woven fabric can, so many stitchers find it forgiving. Choose a design that is not too dense and stitch a test piece first.

What is the best machine embroidery needle for felt?

A sharp needle around size 11 (75/11) is a common starting point. Thicker wool felt or heavier thread may call for a larger needle such as 80/12 or 90/14, so check what your test stitch-out tells you.

Do I have to hoop felt?

No. Hooping can leave marks or distort soft felt, so many stitchers hoop only the stabilizer and float the felt on top with light temporary spray adhesive. Pins or tape outside the stitch area can also help hold it.

Can you wash machine-embroidered felt?

It depends on the felt. Wool felt can shrink or distort in water, and water-soluble stabilizer needs rinsing, so pre-shrink the felt and test a scrap before you wash a finished piece. Many felt crafts such as ornaments are simply never washed.

What stabilizer do I use for felties and ornaments?

Follow the design's instructions. Many in-the-hoop felt projects use tear-away, while water-soluble stabilizer is a common choice when you want no stabilizer left inside a stuffed piece.