Felt - How Flammable ?

[23BeechHill]

Can anyone tell me if there is any difference in flammability between wool felt and acrylic felt ?

Because Safety Regs in soft toys are so stringent I need to know which poses the least risk.

Thank-you :)

[Poppy4lee]

Pure wool, like hair, won't burn - it just singes but, as soon as you add chemicals to it e.g. hairspray/gel to hair, it will go up like a torch. So, I suppose it depends what the wool felt has been treated with i.e. what's in the dyes that have been used. I would imagine you need to get in touch with the manufacturer, if you need guarantees etc.
Sorry I can't be more helpful!

[23BeechHill]

No, that's great thank-you !
:)

[BeautifulThings]

Just jumping in late and probably unwanted to say that if I was in the market to buy toys for littlies, I would want them to be as soft and lovely as possible, so I would say always use wool felt, in the best quality, for softness and to make the toys as appealing as you can. Acrylic felt is scritchy and horrid, and I think it would spoil your work - I do free motion machine embroidery, and I use felt sometimes, and then I melt it with a heat tool, and it goes plasticy and really nasty - which is generally what I want, but not what you will be after!
Kate xx

[Roseberry Crafts]

I agree Kate ('scuse me for jumping in), you cannot beat pure wool felt for making toys with. Not only does it feel nicer but it is stronger too. Take a small strip of wool felt and a strip of the cheaper stuff and pull it, you'll see what I mean!

[23BeechHill]

Thank you for the advice !

[lucykate crafts...]

hi tilly, now i know where you are, when you're not on mn!

as far as flammability goes, the best way to test it is get a sample of both and burn it. i remember we had to do this when i was at college, set fire to all the different threads we had to weave with, burning nylon was the most fun, it melts almost instantly and turns into little plastic balls!!

[sweet]

as far as flammability goes, the best way to test it is get a sample of both and burn it. i remember we had to do this when i was at college, set fire to all the different threads we had to weave with, burning nylon was the most fun, it melts almost instantly and turns into little plastic balls!!

I was going to suggest this too! lol

s.x

[23BeechHill]

He! He! ... Hi LucyKate ... lovely to see you on here too :)

I've set fire to some of the felt that I've bought in the past that states it's non toxic but flammable and guess what ?

It just melted, no flames, nothing.

Trading Standards is being quite pushy about me having test certificates for all fabrics and felts that I use. I've spoken to a new supplier and they are sending me a copy of the flammability test certificate so that's a relief.

One hurdle sorted. Yippee ...