Artisans of Haanja Upland in South Estonia, whose lands were too infertile and steeply sloped for farming and not sufficiently forested to allow them to pursue any timber-based handicraft, became skilled in making felt hats and pipes. The heyday of pipe-making having passed in the middle of the 19th century, there were about 40 pipe-makers still around in Haanja by the end of it.

Today there is no longer any pipe-carving in Estonia, but thanks to the enthusiasts of the Viljandi Culture Academy, folk art centres and elsewhere the tradition of making felt hats and other felting work has been successfully revived.