Learn how to glue felt and which adhesive is best for the job. We’ll point you to the top-rated glues for this strong and versatile fabric.
Felt is a thick fabric made from pressing wool and other natural textile fabrics together. It’s commonly used to make clothing, line furniture, decorations, and even as insulation in shoes, clothes, and bags.
As with other fabrics, felt can be tricky to glue. Many standard household adhesives aren’t able to effectively grab onto the dense fibers, and super glue can bleed through the material creating stains and leave the felt stiff.
The best adhesive choices for gluing felt together are contact and fabric adhesives. Contact adhesives like Pattex Contact Adhesive form a strong and flexible bond that’s resistant to temperatures of -5C to +80C. It’s toluene free and works on felt, leather, cork, wood, chipboard, ceramics, metals, and some plastics.
Contact adhesive works differently than other standard craft glues. This type of adhesive sticks to itself and needs to dry first before fixing the pieces together.
Here’s how to attach felt to felt with contact adhesive.
- Clean and dry all surfaces, the felt must be clear of any debris before applying the contact adhesive.
- Apply a thin layer of Pattex Contact Adhesive to both surfaces using a disposable spreader. If the adhesive soaks into the felt, apply two layers.
- Close the lid immediately after application.
- Leave the surfaces to dry for approximately 10 minutes. The duration may slightly vary depending on the temperature and humidity of the surroundings.
- Join the parts precisely. It’s important to not reposition the pieces once joined or it will reduce the strength of the bond.
- Press hard! The strength of the bond depends on how hard the two surfaces are pressed together, not for how long.
Clean spilled adhesive immediately with acetone or a cleaner.
While contact adhesive is the best way to glue felt, there are other options to choose from when you need to glue felt to felt.
Fabric or tacky glue are also good choices for felt. Designed to work on most fabrics, they provide the right kind of grip and dry clear for flawless results.
One of the strongest adhesives for felt is hot glue, forming a strong bond with many felt fibers. However, hot glue is not compatible with every type of felt. It also requires a hot glue gun for application that needs to be handled with care. Always check the manufacturer’s information.
If you find yourself without contact adhesive, fabric glue is the next best choice when gluing felt together.
Using fabric glue is a straightforward process. Here’s how to glue felt with standard fabric adhesive.
- Clean and dry all surfaces.
- Apply a small dab or line of adhesive onto your item.
- Press the fabric together.
- Leave to dry.
Less is more! When applying fabric adhesive, don’t use too much. When you press the fabric together it will push out. Take care to apply an appropriate amount of glue.
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