ABOUT
Lithuanian brand Vilte, has been experimenting with felting techniques since 2006, and specializing in innovative and modern felting realized through a wide variety of all natural materials. Vilte Kazlauskaite is the name of the artist, and Vilte the name of the line, which in a fateful linguistic turn of destiny, is also the Dutch word for felt, well almost, its “vilt” (without the e) actually.
Revealing the broad versatility of felt, Vilte creates air, light, sensual and sophisticated designs through nuno felting and a combination of various materials, from softest alpaca, fine Australian merino wool, hand-spun Indian silks, gauze and silk chiffon. Each one of the diaphanous and multi-textured wearable art pieces are unique and one of a kind. Natural plants and flowers form the base of the naturally dyed materials, adding another layer to the uniqueness of the work, with no two print, pattern or dyes exactly the same as another.
Styling ranges from thick, fiber rich cocooning kimonos, to sheer, revealing, diaphanous evening pieces, each one is completely handmade using only water, sustainable and renewable materials and green soap. Vilte’s designs have a sense of poetry and whimsy to them, communicated entirely through their subtle, complex, textured and layered use of fiber and fabric. Entirely seamless, pieces are formed and molded by hand without the need for seaming or darts. A master crafts person, Vilte designs are more than exquisite examples of artisanship, they are beautiful, timeless wearable pieces of art that are as contemporary as they are unique.
(By Sass Brown on Eco Fashion Talk)
poetry of fibers
Felt is one of the oldest textiles in the world. Felt is the result of entangled wool fibres, matted together, i.e. it is non woven textile.
Making felt requires only wool, water and soap, thus by exposing wool fibres to friction, the fibres are entangled and interlocked.
Felt has a high potential as an eco-friendly material as it is just one step away from the sheep’s back. It keeps the number of textile processing steps at a minimum. Wool is a renewable material , together with a craftsmen’s way of working making felt a sustainable textile.
vilte was chosen as a brand name not just for the name of the feltmaker, but for its linguistic similarity to the word “vilt” (in Old Dutch it means “felt”) from which the Old English “felt” was actually derived.
Vilte uses natural, preferably organic, sustainable materials in making felt. She uses wool from different breeds of sheep and other animals, combines it with silk, linen and other natural fabrics in nuno felting techniques, revealing the versatility of felt and variety of its character, making it thin, transparent and light or heavy and dense.
Wool is rich in its properties. It is durable, insulates against cold, its fibres have high elasticity and are hypoallergenic. Wool breathes and has self cleaning properties in moist air.
Vilte uses very fine merino wool as well as wool from various European breeds of sheep, some of them are the oldest breed of sheep in Europe. She also works with such soft and luxurious wools as camel, cashmere, yak, alpaca, and angora wool. Raw wool that she uses in her designs is sourced from small scale sheep and alpaca farms or hobbyists.
Wool is often combined with silk - raw silk or silk fabrics. As well as linen, ramie, soya, and such sustainable fibre as banana silk.
Her silk fabrics and raw material is usually carefully selected and very unique - Vilte uses wild silk, peace silk, unique golden muga silk from India and traditionally made silk from villages in the far East, thus supporting local crafts communities there.
Vilte is also practicing natural dyeing in eco-friendly way using plants without heavy metal mordants. The colors are derived from plants for a specific project she is working on which adds to the uniqueness of the piece.
Every process in felt design is made by Vilte alone - sourcing materials, washing raw fleeces or carding them, spinning the yarns, designing, laying out the felt, and felting it, dyeing materials with natural dyes or even collecting some of the plants locally that can be used for dyeing.
Vilte enjoys principles of slow and ethical fashion and art.
