Global Heart - Hand Felted Art Piece

A couple of days ago I saw a beautiful painting of a swirly heart that was making the Facebook rounds. I decided I wanted to make one similar out of felt. Drumroll please... Ladies and gentlemen, I proudly introduce... Global Heart.

Global Heart

Detail of center

Detail of bottom

Hooded Woodland Pixie Festival vest!

I Love this vest!!!! So do my customers. It got a lot of attention and sold very quickly. Hand made out of super soft merino wool laid out in an open pattern that reminds me of vines. It has a long pointed hood and leaf shapes laid here and there. I also decorated it with some bright green vintage chenille. What do you think?

Special Order Vest & Nuno Felt Ain't Just for Girls!

Betsy's vest - front view

Betsy's vest - back view

Meet my lovely friend Betsy. She recently purchased two lovely floral print silk scarves and asked me to make her some garments. First up is the fun and functional vest.


I laid the felt in such a way as to create a great ruffle all the way around the outside edge. Because the scarf isn't very wide I didn't lay any fibers on the body of it - only along the edge. Basically I increased the dimensions of the finished garment by building it with wool. The result is the awesome vest.

I just finished the second garment and will get some photos posted after I give it to her this weekend. It's made with the same size scarf, but is seamless tunic. Stay tuned.

Workin' it!

This handsome dude is proudly modeling the nuno felt headband he just bought for his wife. Hmmmm, I think he might be wearing it more than her! Haha!! What a great guy - thanks for the pic. Hope to see you in my booth again soon.

Illuminated Felt; Done & off to Nancy!

I finally finished my part of the collaborative piece I am working on with Nancy Skakel of Washington. I think it looks fabulous all lit up. Now it is on it's way to the remarkable hands of Nancy to be transformed. I have to say, she is so wonderful with detail and is an embellisher extraordinaire! I can't wait to see what she does with it - very exciting! Below are some photos of the layout of side two and how it looks lit up. 

Dry layout - side 2

 

Wet down to see how it looks

 

Re-do of the tree on side 1 - I like it much better now!

Side 1 lit up

 

Side 2 lit up

Collaborative Illuminated Felt Fiber Art

I met an amazing fiber artist, Nancy Ruth, through an on-line felters e-mail group and we started talking about the different festivals and events we attend. She lives fairly close to me and we were discussing the nearby Black Sheep Festival that takes place in Eugene. Nancy has been wanting to work on a collaborative piece and enter it in this event.

We decided to work together on something. We each will start a piece then swap with each other and finish them. Our chosen theme is Inner Light. I am working on a seamless piece that will be a lampshade of sorts. Depending on how it finishes us it might be suspended with a bulb inside, or as a stand alone piece with a bulb. either way, it will be lit from within.

Tree still needs some work, but you get the idea

This is the first side with the moon, moonlight rays and a tree. More details and fine tuning will occur. I have a resist underneath and will turn it over and work the other side with a continuation of the moon and moonlight rays. Below you can get an idea of how it looks with light shining from behind. Once it is finished and a bulb is shining it will have a bit of yellowish tint from the incandescent bulb.

Seeing how it looks with light from behind

Nuno Felted Book Cover - Part 2

Where we left off: Felted, fulled, dry & somewhat misshapen

Looks like I am getting this post done this week by the skin of my teeth. But I made it, whew!!! If you are just now joining this pictorial lesson, be sure to read Part 1 first, and then follow along with part 2. Thanks for your patience everyone. And now, on with the show...

 When we left off last time the book covers had been felted, fulled, rinsed and left to dry. Now we get to cut the flaps that will hold the front and back covers. I start by laying the book on the felt piece to make sure it's still large enough. If you find yours has shrunk too much you can wet it again, stretch it, block it and then let it dry.

Checking the size

Now I make a cut on either side of the center hole, straight up and down. The wider it is, the more of the book cover will fit inside. Since the center hole of this one is rather large so all I really needed to do was cut so it straightened the edges of the pockets. I then cut all the way to the top edge and it leaves the extra material on the top and bottom to be removed.

Sides cut straight and extra material at the top & bottom

I cut straight across the top and bottom to remove the excess felt.

Extra felt cut off the top.

Pockets formed & raised up so they are easier to see

The book will be placed inside this area

 Repeat the process with the other book cover if you made two like I did.

Book cover before cutting

 

Pockets being cut with excess felt at the top

Excess felt at top and bottom with pockets cut straight

Excess felt removed

Now that the pockets have been formed and the excess felt has been removed we need to seal the edges of the fresh cuts.

Freshly cut edges need to be sealed

Head back to the sink and thoroughly wet the felt. Put a drop of soap on your finger and then rub the raw cut to seal it.

Rubbing the edges

  Work all the way around and seal all cut edges.

Keep rubbing all cut edges

After some time rubbing your edges may become uneven or a bit fuzzy. Carefully trim if necessary and then rub lightly to seal.

Uneven & fuzzy edge after sealing

Sometimes it helps to rub back and forth against the counter top to keep the edges from getting uneven.

Rubbing the edges against the counter

Once you have finished with all the cut edges, it's time to rinse again. No kneading or throwing this time, just gently rinsing.

Gently rinse the soap out

I like to make sure it has kept the proper shape so I cover the book in plastic and do a fitting on the book.

Book wrapped in plastic for a fitting

Close the cover to make sure it's fitting properly

Looking good!

Once you know it fits correctly remove it from the book and let it dry. In the meantime, pick out a pretty button and gather your needle and thread. When it's dry put it on the book, close the flap and decide where you want the button to be.

Here?

Or maybe here?

Ah yes, right here!

To make the button hole, cut the tiniest of slits in your chosen location. Wet your fingers - no soap this time - and rub the cut. The edges will seal and the hole will slowly get larger. Check it periodically against the button to make sure you don't make it too large.

Snip a tiny slit to start the button hole

 

It gets larger after rubbing it with wet fingers

 

Check the size using the button - don't make the hole too big

 After you have gotten the button hole to the correct size, mark the location on the body of the cover where the button will be and stitch it in place with a strong thread.

Marking location of button

 

 Guess what? That's it. You are done!! How does it feel? Examine your handiwork and congratulate yourself on a job well done. These two are off to their new homes and will be treasured for many years to come. If you make any please share the photos with me - I would love to see your work. I hope to do a nuno felted poncho or jacket soon and will get that posted here as well. It may be a while but it will get done. In the meantime I will be getting inventory made for the upcoming Spring Arts Festival next week and the Master Gardener Spring Fair next month - with our Artisan Market selling season beginning the following month. Wow, Spring has sprung!

Merino roving, silk fabric, firestar

Merino roving, merino tussah blend, cotton gauze, poly lace

Sorry for the Delay

For those of you that are waiting for Part 2 of the Nuno Felted Journal process, do not fear! I dear friend of mine passed away while staying with me and my heart has been heavy. I am now remembering the great times we shared and knowing that he is on a new and exciting journey. My heart is lighter and peace is being revealed once again. Part 2 will be posted this coming week, so be sure and watch for it.

Raise a glass and give a smile to "Chief" aka Terry Hook, the next time you tip a glass of wine, bottle of beer or cup of tea.

Nuno Felted Book Cover - Pictoral Journey - part 1

Example of a Nuno Felted journal cover

A friend of mine recently ordered two felted book covers - one for herself and one to give as a gift. I knew I wanted to photograph the process and post it here, but completely forgot until I had already started laying out the fiber. You didn't miss much - just the creation of the templates. These are seamless book covers, so a resist template is necessary.

To bring you up to speed I'll describe the process. If you have any questions, please let me know. Being an impatient artist has it's benefits and drawbacks. Many felt artists will tell you that it is necessary to work a test swatch of a particular wool before beginning the project. This is a great idea because it will totally tell you how much you can expect the wool to shrink. I've also heard that the weather from day to day will affect the wool shrinkage. It all makes sense, but there is no way that I am going to take the time to go all the way through the felting process for that.

Basically I feel that if it works, it works. If not, I will turn it into something else. I do not suggest that this approach is for everyone. It's just the way I roll :P. If you want to have more control over your creation, by all means - do a test swatch.

To begin, I measured the book. The height is self explanatory, but the width is the sum of the front, back AND spine. Take those measurements and increase for the percentage of your shrinkage. I increased 30%, added it together and came out with 10.5" tall and 14.75" wide. I have some heavy plastic that I cut to those dimensions. Be sure to round off the corners too, so they don't poke through the wool.

 With the resist in front of me I begin to lay out wisps of wool all going in the same direction. Choose a side where the flap will be and also lay your 3 layers there as you go. The flap will not need to be cut open so it's shape isn't included in the template. As you can see here I have rounded the edge for my flap. (If this is confusing, make sure to read further and look at the pictures I took after I flipped over.) There will be a total of 3 layers - one laid vertically, the next, horizontally and then vertically again. Extend your layers about an inch beyond the template of the top, bottom and side that doesn't have the flap. These will be folded over when we work the other side.

Laying out roving with flap on left

Extending beyond resist

After all 3 layers of wool are down, I laid a piece of hand dyed cotton gauze on top of it. I thought the color was kind of plain so I laid a piece of synthetic blue and purple lace on top of the cotton with a few wisps of wool in between to anchor them together.

Hand dyed cotton gauze on top of roving

Wisps of roving on top of gauze to hold next fabric

Lace fabric on top

Cotton gauze on flap trimmed in merino & Tussah silk roving

Now I wet it down, cover with screen, tulle in this case, and rub to create a skin. You know it's time to move on when it passes the pinch test.

Cover with screen

Gently with your fingers, pinch a small amount of the very surface and pull upwards. If the fibers separate, you need to keep rubbing. Once the fibers stay together when you pinch & pull, you are ready to move on to the next step.

Pinch test - it's holding together!!

Keep in mind that your piece is still quite fragile. Very carefully, lift the entire piece and flip it over. It's now time to work on the other side. This pic shows the other side and the darker area is the resist. See on the left where the flap is? Notice how the flap was formed beyond the edge of the resist. Where the resist is covered on both sides a pocket or space will be created that does not felt together. There won't be a pocket on the flap. Does that make sense? I hope so!

The resist is now on top & I will be forming the pockets that hold the book.

Using the roving again, I need to shape the pockets that the front and back covers of the book will slide into. First, take the wool that is extending beyond the template, including any fabric, and smooth it over on top of the template. Do Not bring the flap over - only the stuff that is extending on the top, bottom and side Without the flap! Lay it flat as you bring it over so it will create nice smooth edges.

Bring wool & fabric smoothly over the resist

Bringing the wool from the bottom up and over the resist

You may need to pay extra attention to the corners as they can get a bit bulky. In this case I trimmed some of the excess wool and fabric so they would lay smoother.

A bit too bulky on the corners

Trimmed corners are smooth

Now each of these edges already has 3 layers of roving, so I won't lay too much more there or it will get bulky.  But I do have to lay some there so the roving on this side felts to it nicely. I lay 3 layers but keep the center open. It makes it much easier to pull the template out when it's done and it saves roving - since I don't need any felt right there anyway. As I lay my 3 layers down I also need to go over the edge of the template where the flap is. Again, not too much so it doesn't get bulky, but 3 layers of nice thin wisps so the edge will be nice and secure with no holes.

Laying roving over resist and a bit onto flap

Laying roving onto folded over edges - but not too thick!

Oh - don't lay wool in the center - leave it open. All that's needed is wool laid on the areas that will be the pockets. Look at this next photo and you will see what I mean...

Keep the center open

OK - all 3 layers are done, so again with the wetting and rubbing. Ooooooh, don't forget to smooth out any overlap of roving on this side before you rub. I want to have nice smooth edges so I push the wisps up wool back onto the main area. Once it passes the pinch test it's time to felt it all together.

Push the wisps over to get a smooth edge

Rubbing, rubbing...

I grab my favorite tool - The Sander! This step isn't necessary - felting can be done with rolling, rolling, and more rolling. I however, have an old shoulder injury and prefer to keep it pain free by using the sander. I place the sander on the wool for about 5 seconds, pick it up and move it to the next section. Making sure that every part of the item gets the sander, while holding it in the same direction is similar to rolling in the same direction for a time. Now I turn the sander 90 degrees and do the entire surface again. When done flip the book cover over and repeat on the other side.

Sanding - wheeeee!

I think they still need to shrink a bit more so I've opted for a little bit of rolling. I use a piece of foam pipe insulation, roll it up in the bamboo shade and then roll it in a towel. I give it 50 rolls, then I unroll it, turn the book covers over and repeat. Unroll it and now turn the book covers 90 degrees and give another 50 rolls. Finally unroll, flip the book covers over and give it the last 50. So, I've given them a total of 200 rolls and I can tell that it's done since the edges are starting to curl up.

Rolling up in the bamboo blind with foam pipe insulation

Roll back and forth 50 times

Turn them 90 degrees then roll again

 

Piece begins to curl up as the felts shrinks

Now I remove the resist and head over to the sink for rinsing, kneading and pounding a bit. When all the soap has been removed I give them several throws on my work table. I rinse and repeat until I have shrunk down to the dimensions of the book and I like the texture.

Remove the resist

Rinse, knead, repeat

Throwing (Can you tell I got this pic when they were in mid air?)

Let them dry - next step trimming, shaping & fitting to book...

Let dry, pour yourself a nice glass of wine and contemplate just how awesome and talented you are! Tomorrow will be filled with trimming, fitting and choosing a button. Ahhhh, I feel so accomplished :D Thanks for tagging along with me - it's been a blast! I will post the remainder of this process in a few days so stay tuned. See you then...