Working on new bracelet design and finished 3 old projects

Since I wasn't to pleased with the clasps I made, I decided to rethink my bracelet design and create something that could just be slipped over the hand...easier to put on, secure and no clasp to irritate the skin, for those sensitive to that sort of thing, (me) .

It probably would have been faster and more efficient to have wet felted thees, but I still don't know how to do this and so I needle felted them . I wouldn't recommend that for anyone who is limited in time as it takes forever to needle felt a "rope strand" with loose fibers. I don't know if anyone will like them but they feel really soft an comfortable and I like the organic appearance .









Well, I think these are finished but chances are, I will end up adding a few more accessories and a bit of bling to the girl . She still seems to be missing "something" . I added some fuzzy needle felted boots and a more colorful belt and bit of color to her scarf but she still just doesn't "sparkle" .

Strawberry fairy has earned her wings but the next berryfairy will be accented with some beads for seeds...adding those tiny felt seeds took forever . I also can't decide if I want to add a bit more fluff to the alpaca ..ie...before or after shearing look . The problem with adding loosely felted fur to the animals is....will it start to felt up when it is packaged and mailed ? I also need to figure out how to package them for the Shepherd's Harvest festival so they are easy to transport and wont get "fuzzy" being carried around in a box or bag ....delima . Perhaps some expert felters at the show will have some advice for me .

Berry fairies and bracelet for Shepherds Harvest

(Denise's waxs philosophical on economics and human desire to create things for sale.........)

It's hard to not be perfect . What should take 30 minutes often takes me an hour or more because I keep trying to get it perfect . When trying to design things that can be sold economically AND creating every design idea from scratch, that can be a challenge . It always comes back to economic reality....US economy is struggeling and people are watching their dollars carefully AND...US artists/crafters can not live on the same dollar that some one creating something in a factory in China can survive on . So, my current delima is how to find a balance between designing things that people can afford, that don't take hours to make and meet my personal standards of craftmanship?

I like the concept of the fairy berry girls and was happy with the cherry girl but the "grape girl" did not turn out as I had hoped. I will need to try one more layer of a different color to see if I can get a "grapier" look . The bracelet is still a "work in progress" . I made the closure out of some copper but am still not sure how I want it to look and want to make sure that it doesn't come off .This was easy to get on, (which is not always the case when putting a braclet on yourself with one hand), and I wore it for several hours with out it falling off, but am still not satisfied that it is secure "enough" and esthetically could use some refining . The funny thing is, it is something I would like wearing but I have a feeling that after seeing "perfect" machine made items, people will see the irregularity as a flaw .

Almost finished doll, Alpaca and Strawberry fairy for Shepherd's Harvest

Well, I probably should wait until these are finished to post them, but I didn't want my friend Jane to think I was being a bum and not crafting lately, (also have to take advantage of the few hours of natural light I get in the dungeon I call home)....so here are my three "almost" finished feltings from the past two nights . All items are "abandoned toys" that I hope to find new homes for because they do not deserve to spend the rest of their lives in a land fill !

The larger doll is felted into a rather sexy " but warm Merino outfit with arm and leg warmers . I still need to make her some boots and give her a bit more "interesting hair "...I'm thinking she would look stunning in a felted black top hat , (something I wish I had the nerve to wear...I love top hats.) Might add a few accessories as the mood strikes .

The "woolie...repurposed furbie is...well, I know he looks a wee bit like Scooby Doo or Wiley Coyote but is actually my first "alpaca head" . I just need to finish his ears and add some alpaca "fur" to his head to fluff him up a bit . Considering adding some false eyelashes as well because I love alpaca eyelashes !

The tiny girl is a Strawberry fairy still patiently awaiting her wings . I designed the wings using some flower petals and just need to felt them to her back .

Back to work tonight and more felting fun to follow .
I'll repost these when I get them finished

Krex creations - a set on Flickr

Krex creations - a set on Flickr

I am just testing this function...Beware....computer challenged coming through .

Lion for Shepherd's Harvest Festival

Well, this little guy started life as a Llama but when I made the legs a bit to thick to pass for a proper Llama....the lion just sort of sprung out of the ash's . He seems rather pleased with himself , which certainly is a liony thing to be . You can see a bit more of the detail that went into his transition in white Romney incarnation...pre alpaca fur . The detail is lost once the fur is added but I seem compelled to add it anyway .

Purple Polarbear for Shepherd's Harvest

Polar bears are one of my all time favorite animals . This one is has a firmly felted body of Romney and over laid with several layers of marino . I wanted to try and new technique to get a shaggy, furry look and did his fur by layering one inch pieces of fiber from the back and bottom up and forward so that each layer over laps but has some lose ends just anchored at the root . I like the look and the several different lavender shades . Down side....it take forever to do and loses some of the detailing that I spent hours adding to the body..upside...lots of ,shaggy goodness .

Shepherd's Harvest ....and my friend Jane

For any others who love animals and natural fibers, have a desire to promote small family business or just want a nice day of family fun...Shepherd's Harvest could be the answer to all your needs . You can find directions and other important info here...

http://www.shepherdsharvestfestival.org/index.shtml


It is held on Mother's day Weekend and would be a great event to bring your crafty mom's to.

This will be my first ever craft show and one I would not be doing at all if it weren't for the inspiration and constant support of my friend Jane of Tranquil Nook/Glorioushats found on Etsy.com . You can read her recently lovely and revamped blog here.....

http://glorioushats.blogspot.com/

She makes some amazing hats, pins and actually knows how to use a sewing machine AND run a small farm . She agreed to partner with me in sharing a booth at Shepherds Harvest and we plan on spending the whole weekend selling, taking pictures of all the cute alpaca, sheep and bunnies as well as bringing home some great new fiber to work with.

Most of the items I am working on will be on this blog in the next few months but...the above doll will not be there because she is making a trip North to visit Jane. Long over due promise of a doll coming your way Jane : ) She is smaller then most of the dolls I repurpose and a bit more conservative as I decided to use more spring colors . Her arms are slightly posable but she is so well bundled that she can't sit down and does need to be propped up to stand . All her clothing is actually needle felted on except for the boots and purse which are sewn of some wet felted Alpaca . I felted down a spiral on her coat that was made of some beautiful thick yarn from Copperpot@Etsy.com
I love the yarn and plan on using it for several necklaces because it is so soft, thick and such a beautiful blend of colors .

SO come see me as Shepherds Harvest and treat your mom and yourself to a day of cute animals and lovely fiber .

I can't draw worth a dang but am not to bad at copying what's in front of me...these were just a few imgages I thought about using for designs for a business card or for needle felting .

sheep, octopus, Nessy, comit and flowers...oh my !

Still practicing my needle work and some OK and some just funny . The top and bottom are going to be berets, just a few silly pictures on a wet felted backing .

The 2nd and 3rd are my rather lame attempt at sheep. I thought the back ground turned out rather nice and then just "had" to throw some sheep into the mix . Wasn't my best idea, given that I was doing them from memory and my memory on the best of days is a bit flawed ....I still need to add some tails and ears but could not recall what they looked like . Another problem was that I was trying to make a wee sheep family...kid laying down for a rest, and mom standing next to dad . However, trying to fit them all in was a bit more challenging then I realized....mom and dad's legs are tangled and it looks a bit like an octopus sheep...also, didn't plan out how big they would be and several of their legs are cut off at the knees .

Next time, I will bring a picture with me .

I should be getting ready for work but a few quick pics of some of my felting from last night...beads to string, hair clips and a new "design"...padded pens . I wrap the pens in these little foam pads and then felt the fiber over it. I think they are pretty comfortable but the colors didn't show up very well here .

Items for Shepherd's Harvest..pins, berets and neck collars

The top picture is of some of the hair pins I needle felted and beaded . I tired a pair yesterday and they work great . The next pic is some pins I actually made a few weeks ago and lost amongst my crafting stuff, (that's one advantage of cleaning up, you never know what you might find .) The third pics are off some pins and berets I made last night...two abstract little necklace focal pieces, a larger "over flowing bath tub" beret and smaller "flying eye at sunset" beret. The bottom pic is of one of my "odder creations" ...neck collars, I plan on adding some "earthy" beads to these and button connectors . The fiber is wet felted alpaca sweater in the center and Romney needle felted around the edge . I was going to needle felt the whole thing but I really liked the curly alpaca fiber in the middle which doesn't really show up in the pictures but looks cool in real life .

Felted turtle

"I've fallen and I can't get up"...certainly had a few days like this . First free standing needle felting..about 4" and almost as many hours and I still didn't get his shell finished . I was trying to do a turtle from "memory" but can't quit visualize the shell color . I used to have an empty turtle shell that I think I found at Girl Scout camp and brought home as a "pet" . A very quit but slightly odoriferous pet . I glued googly eyes to it and it was one of my "prized posessions" . Well, it was fun to make but I can see why people charge so much for these little felted critters...they take forever to make and felt doesn't actually shape as easily as clay but the upside is no muddy fingers . As always, upside and downside to everything, including this little guy .

Arctic "furmaiden" furbie/ Smoky Mountain Fibers Etsy.com

This little Arctic mermaid...(not to be confused with her thinner Southern mermaid sisters) , loves to spend her days throwing snowballs at penguins and sliding on the ice with the Polar Bear cubs .

Her fur is a wonderfully soft Marino and I keep a bit of the the originally furbie "fur" to frame her face because it reminded me of ice crystals . Her base was shaped with Romney, which I still think makes the best underfiber for the Marino because it sculpts so firmly. I wet felted her dreadlocks and attached them to the "ear posts" that move so that they can still be functional but with hair instead of ears. I just couldn't recall ever seeing mermaids with ears . Of course, I will also be making her a "furbie" polar bear cub to play with as well as a penguin . One project just seems to lead to another and I'm having a great time with these little guys/girls .

Another kudos to an Etsy seller of beautifuly dyed Marino on Etsy...Smokey Mountain Fibers .
I loved the color of this and it was a major inspiration for deciding to try a mermaid....the color is just perfect for "water" and makes you want to dive into the soft pile . I searched and searched but could not find one piece of VM in this...simply perfect !

Cat Toy or necklace ?

Just a simple little experiment that turned out as planned....(I love when that happens ). I found a great deal on some scrap leather from Axeman and decided that they would make perfect cat toys after my cat attacked them as soon as I opened the bag . I had already made them several needle felted wool balls that they loved, so it was a natural to just needle felt the balls directly to the leather thongs . Unlike 90% of the toys I've bought at the store for them...they actually played with these new toys . Amazing, maybe it's the sheep smell or just wanting whatever that thing is that mom spends all her time doing now but they sure seem to enjoy their new toys .

I also decided that these might make some fun and inexpensive necklaces, but was not sure about "durability", so I have been wearing mine all week, even sleeping in it but taking it off for showers and it looks as new as when I put it on...these things actually are really strong . They have survived cat abuse and Denise use and only take 20 minutes to felt .