The World of Felt

I can hardly believe it's been over a year since I've posted anything! 2010 was a full year... my mother passed away in May after a courageous battle with cancer ~ I miss her tremendously; in June, my beloved Romeo also passed away and went where all dogs go to keep watch over us; and in July, my grandaughter, Sophie, was born. From December of 2009 until now, my time has been full with family events and much travel.

Well, I am back on board and am inspired! My mother's life and death has reconnected me with my love for texture and creating things whether it is with fabric or yarn! Each piece I make I feel her presence over my shoulder and I find myself smiling alot and remembering my childhood with her.

Now that the holidays are over and all my gift projects are finished I am planning next years gifts. My latest passion in the world of texture has been using my bags & bags of wool to explore and make felt!

Of course, some of my prompting to use wool has been a result of a moth infestation over the summer in some of the bags of wool that had been left unused. Now that the moth problem is solved, I've been focused on putting an enormous amount of wool to use. There are only so many hours in a day to devote to spinning ~ which I do dearly love!

I came across some felting books during a visit to one of my favorite yarn stores and returned home to give it a go. After my first piece, I was hooked. After the second piece, I find I am spending more and more thought time planning the next piece. My first few pieces have been wet felting. And now, I am exploring dry needle felting. I am hooked!

I can't believe I have never done felting before! It is so rewarding, creative and full of endless possibilities!

Even more importantly is the life metaphor that felt gives me with each piece. Life is so much like the process of felting. First, there is the raw wool... the texture of the wool excites me! It is like an empty canvas ~ full of potential. The felting process takes time and involves all my senses as well as the elements of fire, water & air with the wool being the earth element. Felting involves taking the wool after being cleaned and carded and laying in layers with fibers crossing in each layer, arranging colors & shapes with an underlying sheath for support and thickness. Then apply hot soapy water with pressure and slight agitation to loosen the fibers, letting them mingle over time. The finished product? Something that is somewhat planned and the rest a result of the creativity of the elements at play on the fibers.

The exciting and interesting part of the felting is pulling back the cloth wrapping to see what has emerged!

I'm focused on exploring and perfecting the process. I'm enjoying using the wet felting process to make sheets or canvases of felt. Then I use dry needle felting to add even more refined design and texture to the sheet. Next?

Well, my mind is running wild with ideas of things to make with the felt sheets. I'm thinking... warm booties for Sophie?

Stay tuned for what's created next.