New Version of Yellow Poppies…..

June 26, 2016August 31, 2016 / Karen Lane / 22 Comments

A couple of weeks ago, at a workshop with Mandy Nash, I was introduced to Bergschaf wool. Since taking up felting I’ve been used to working with Merino and wasn’t too sure if I would take to the coarser, hairier Bergschaf but I love it! Not only does it felt very quickly but, being supplied as carded batts, it makes laying out a lot quicker too. Having previously made a vessel with it, this weekend I thought I would try using Bergschaf to make a felted wall hanging. I’ve revamped a design I did a couple of years ago, making it larger and adding grasses. The new version of Yellow Poppies is approximately 20″ x 15″.

My original Yellow Poppies felted picture

Laying out the new design

Wet felted Bergschaf and Merino wool picture entitled Yellow Poppies.

New version of Yellow Poppies.

The poppies and smaller flowers were made with Merino, the stalks are knitting wool and the detail was added with free machine stitching. The black backing fabric is garden membrane which is great to use as it doesn’t tear or fray.

Reverse side of Yellow Poppies

Felting Demo for U3A members…..

June 14, 2016June 14, 2016 / Karen Lane / 5 Comments

It’s funny how one thing can lead to another. A few weeks ago I was out having a coffee when I got chatting to a lady who told me she was keen on various crafts and a member of the Wellingore U3A. I happened to mention that my passion was felting and as a result, this afternoon I held a felting demo for U3A members, Sue included, at home in Horncastle.

Non of the ladies had tried felting previously so I began by demonstrating needle felting and showing some of the different applications I had used it for. They were all keen to have a go but, as time was limited and we had to cover wet felting too, the ladies just did a few minutes with a cookie cutter and some Merino to get a feel for it.

Lincoln U3A ladies trying out needle felting

U3A ladies Celia, Myra & Chris trying out needle felting

Sue and Velma getting to grips with needle felting.

Unfortunately, as I was demonstrating, I didn’t get any other photos this afternoon but, suffice to say, the ladies were very enthusiastic regarding both the needle and wet felting so I’m hoping I’ve encouraged their creativity and they have gone away enthused about their new found hobby!

Skendelby Ladies Guild…..

September 8, 2015September 9, 2015 / Karen Lane / 2 Comments

This evening I held a needle felting workshop for a group of members from the Skendelby Ladies Guild. Not one of the group had tried needle felting before but, by the end of the hour and a half session, everyone had achieved a piece of work to take home with them.

Skendelby Ladies Guild members

Most of the ladies chose to make a brooch and used cookie cutters to form the basic shapes.

Thanks to Sandy for inviting me along this evening, it was a pleasure to spend time with the group and I hope to see you all again sometime.

Flower Meadow…

January 25, 2014January 27, 2014 / Karen Lane / Leave a comment

Back in November I mentioned the needle felting workshop I held at the Joseph Banks Centre where we looked at the basics of creating a needle felted picture. Since then Sheila has gone on to finish her ‘Autumn Leaf’ picture and this week I received a photo from another of the ladies showing her finished ‘Flower Meadow’. Eileen chose to mount her work to make a greetings card and the finished effect is beautiful. Watch out for Eileen’s next picture as she rises to the challenge and try’s her hand at wet felting – the background is done and looking fab so can’t wait to see it finished!

Work in progress….time is running out so this will be continued at home.

The finished picture looks great mounted as a greetings card.

Needle felted landscape…

January 11, 2014January 9, 2014 / Karen Lane / 2 Comments

Sheila’s Needle felted landscape.

I have recently been helping my friend Sheila with a project she has been working on, a needle felted landscape, using one of my pictures (see banner heading) as her inspiration. It was really nice to work on this together, trying out different materials and bouncing ideas around. The hills are a mixture of merino top, knitting wool, fine netting and free machine quilted fabric. Rather than being 2D, we made the tree 3 dimensional which gives added interest to the piece. The trunk was needle felted as a separate element, and then placed over a sausage shape of wadding before being anchored to the background. Tapestry wool was used for the branches and also to depict vines growing up the tree trunk. I have to say I love Sheila’s version – it’s very colourful and vibrant and looks great in its frame.

The Tooth Fairy Jar…

January 10, 2014October 12, 2015 / Karen Lane / 1 Comment

Tooth Fairy Jars

O.K…I know… they are taking over my life…. I am in danger of becoming ‘Fairy’ obsessed but quite honestly I don’t care, I am in my element! My latest idea is the needle felted Tooth Fairy Jar and I would love to have your feedback on this one. It combines the fairy and the toadstool and results in a unique (as far as I am aware) gift that the Joseph Banks Centre are keen to put in their shop. Fortunately Kate, one of the ladies who helps run the shop, is also a fairy fan so we are currently planning a ‘fairy grotto’ area to spread a bit of magic to the shoppers in Horncastle! Obviously these will not be marketed as toys, and the jar would need to sit on a bedside cabinet rather than being placed under the childs pillow, but I have several friends who are ‘Fairy’ fans so am hoping this is a goer! The plan is to make several toadstools in various different colours of Merino wool, each one will have a tiny ladybird inside which will be made in the same colourway as the toadstool top. I have used two different methods for the wings, one is Angelina Fibres, the other is simply Merino top, I like both but the Angelina is nice as it gives that bit of fairy sparkle so this will be the preffered material.

Kate suggested the jars would also make cute little trinket boxes, they are small but could hold a favourite ring, earings, etc.

Tooth Fairy Jars can also be used as tiny trinket boxes.

Pink version of the Tooth Fairy Jar.

Breaking news….

December 6, 2013March 3, 2015 / Karen Lane / 1 Comment

More exciting news on the felting front….my brooches and key rings are going on sale at the Sir Joseph Banks Centre in Horncastle from tomorrow. There will be a mixture of large wet felted brooches and smaller dry felted gifts to choose from. The Sir Joseph Banks Centre is the home of the Sir Joseph Banks Society where visitors will find information on the life and the amazing work of one of our most famous and respected explorers. The Society is very proud to have Sir David Attenborough as its president and the building it occupies houses a growing reference library and is working towards establishing a research centre.

The building also boasts a thriving gift shop, run by volunteers, and crammed with all sorts of beautiful gifts. There are a mixture of “bought in” and hand crafted items, with a lot of the stock being created on the doorstep by talented, local artists/crafters. From pictures, jewelry, ornaments, clothing, accessories, etc., you name it and they probably have it! So if you are in the Horncastle area and looking for unique gift ideas be sure to give this shop visit!

A selection of my handmade wet and dry felted brooches and keyrings.

Beautiful gifts for the home on sale at the Joseph Banks shop.

The shop is crammed with great gift ideas for Christmas!

Brooches now on sale….

December 4, 2013 / Karen Lane / Leave a comment

It’s been brooches, brooches and more brooches over the past week or so! Originally I began making these for myself but, after getting such a lot of interest, I now find myself making them to order. This week I am particularly excited as Joanne from Graces Boutique in Horncastle has offered to display some of them for sale in her shop.

Joanne recently moved Graces a couple of doors down the road into larger premises and this has allowed her to create a fabulous stylish setting for her beautiful clothing – if you are looking for something different to the run of the mill High Street styles this is a great place to visit.

Stylish Autumn/Winter Coats on display in Graces Boutique.

Fabulous Autumn/Winter clothes and accessories on sale in Graces Boutique.

Graces Boutique on North Street in Horncastle.

3D Needle Felting

December 3, 2013 / Karen Lane / 5 Comments

Last Saturday I attended a 3D needle felting workshop in Heighington run by Robyn Smith of Feltybits. Robyn began by showing us various peices of her fabulous 3D work and she explained the different techniques of producing the shapes. We were then asked to chose what we would like to work on and Robyn supplied us with the Merino wool and all the help and advice we needed. One of the peices we were shown was a tiny toadstool which immediately took me right back to my childhood and the many hours I spent drawing toadstools and elves! The workshop lasted four hours and it took me all that time to do the basic toadstool and elves body but I loved every minute of it. Sunday afternoon I was in my element – adding the details including the tiny flowers and the ladybird and putting features and clothes onto the elf. I was so pleased with the result….I am now even more hooked on felting, if that’s possible.!!

3D Toadstool and Elf created using Merino wool.

“Hair of the dog” 3D modelling…

November 6, 2013November 20, 2013 / Karen Lane / 3 Comments

Sometimes we find inspiration when we are really not looking for it…. On Monday I watched in amusement as a friend of mine sheared “Lady”, a little terrier, giving her coat a close-cut number “2”. I couldnt help thinking of the Specsavers advert and that poor sheepdog! Thinking of sheep led me to wonder if I could use the curly dog hair, that was now covering the floor, for felting….and if so, wouldnt it be cool to make a needle felt 3D model of the dog and cover it with its own hair? A quick look on youtube to get some tips on how to form the body and I discovered DIY Puppy Plushie….a couple of hours later we have “Lady” in miniature. Rather than waste my Merino I used polyester wadding for the core but have since been advised by a very helpful lady at Adelaide Walker that Cheviot wool makes a good base. The Cheviot’s on order so I am now looking for inspiration for my next project.