Handmade Felt Wool Slippers

Me – Inga Samusiene – design and production of felted shoes and slippers. I am a third-generation shoemaker, mostly I am working with handmade felted shoes and slippers, and I am a teacher of felting and shoes making.

My husband Kestutis Samusis – shearing sheep, wool carding, preparing wool for felting.

Felting in my life came 9 years ago. I was very curious to try felting as a unique ancient technology, and I simply fall in love with it. My first production was just for my family or as a gifts for my friends. But later on I got some attention as a producer of high-quality and original felted items. That inspired me to create new designs of models, combine different materials, invent new ways of felting technique. Now I live in our farmstead, making felting production from the wool from our farm.

My production is handmade only. All felted models are created by myself only. I use natural raw materials : natural wool, linen, hemp, silk fiber, recycled fabric. A large part of wool materials used for producing felted slippers is generated from our sheep farm, another part of wool and another material is purchased from abroad (One third part of wool materials is purchased mainly from Europe sheep breeders. A small part of wool is purchased from Australia and New Zealand. ). We are the only wool artisans in our small country using raw unwashed unpainted wool material produced in our own small sheep farm (Unwashed, natural wool inhibits fungus and bacteria). Sheep breed which we grow in our farm is an ancient sheep breed, belongs to our country’s heritage and attributed to rare and endangered species of animals.

My husband twice per year shearing sheep. The wool is carded in our farm using small carding equipment. Felt making process takes place in our farmstead, on my husband’s constructed special felting table, using no chemicals, just handwork, warm and hot water, natural olive soap. In the very beginning wool is laid on prepared template and moistened with warm water. Some decorations from another fabrics and fibres are added. The item begins felt using natural olive soap and adding hot water. After the felting item reaches desired shape and size, item is formed on a special shoetree and left to dry. According to the needs, the felted shoes or slippers soles can be covered with the layer of a natural rubber.
All items can be outsourced. The client can choose desired model, color, size, decorations.