Needle sculpted sounds better then needle felted...more critters

 I know my health issues have limited my blogging but it hasn't discouraged me from felting animals . Since last I blogged, I have created 4 more large critters and three small ones . I also worked on several old sculptures and made minor improvements though I doubt the changes would be noticeable to the casual observer .  The above critter is mostly merino blends with some corn fiber fluff on the tail, chest and ears .

 As usual, my cat Balhoo decided to get in on the photo shoot . He really is an attention hog .

 I also finally bought a white back ground  for taking pictures....to block out the distracting clutter of my apartment and hopefully make more professional pictures for listing on Etsy . It turned out to be to big for the table I used today but hopefully I can get a bigger table cleared off soon .

 Most of my animals this past month have had similar wool and coloring but each is a bit different in shape and have unique personalities and expressions . Unfortunately, my "facial expression vocabulary" is still a bit on the dark side . Some where between "homocidal lunatic" to "snarky know it all" and "oops, missed my Prozac" .  I have an uncomfortable theory that these may actually be the same expressions that people see on my own face...and probably why I repel people .

 Instead of using a chicken egg for size reference, I am using one of my own felted eggs .

 Although this guy is the "snarky" one, he is also my favorite .

 The last three are many little critters....about 3-4" .

 The new cat arm chair is still very popular . When they aren't fighting over who gets to use it. they occasionally manage to share . While having a black cat and a white cat may make picking a  clothing color that hides cat hair impossible, it does add a nice "yin and yang" balance to the decor .

I'm going for a sleep apnea test next week, to rule out (or in), one possible cause of my current narcoleptic existence . In the mean time....

Happy felting to all .

Zombie miraculously recovers from stupor and makes more needle felt and art scarves !

Above are my two latest felties posing in front of my first "winged beastie ". Because I was so tired this past week...I decided to work smaller then my usual 12-18 inch felties and these guys are only about 6 inches .

I also finished up several wet felt scarves and have been really trying hard to create more thin, drapey fabric with only two thin layers of merino with silk bells on either one side or both . I like to make each side of the scarf different so that it you can have two scarves for the price of one . Although I designed them originally with the idea that they would be a wrap around the neck winter type scarf......I think they actually look cooler just worn draped around the neck and hanging down . Like hanging an abstract painting on your boobs . Now when guys eyes end up on that area you can just assume it is in appreciation of your art scarf .

Sorry about some of the blurry pictures but I lost my light about half way through....

The above are only 4 scarves but with the different front and back it does look like more .  Now the real challenge for me will be seeing if I can get these listed on Etsy before spring .

I'm so tired I want to cry............

I have felt like I was swimming underwater for the past few months...under water with concrete weights on my arms and legs and a bag over my head . I have considered going to the DR but even if I could afford it....they seem to be trained to respond to all female complaints ..."it's probably depression or maybe stress" . If I smoked or was "over weight" they would probably say that was the cause . What happened to Dr actually running tests ?  So....I keep felting when I am actually able to stay awake and hope that what ever this is clears up or kills me because I am soooo tired of being tired .

I'm not sure why, but my animals have been showing a bit of teeth lately.  I think it is my attempt to get them to smile, and like me, forced smiles do tend to look like your ready to bite someone rather then an actual smile .

 Other news.....I made an attempt to sew up some bags with the wet felt fabric I made last year . The design couldn't be any simpler but is still a challenge for my limited sewing skill, especially adding a lining .

 I found this tiny arm chair on the curb with a "free" sign and decided to chance any possible infestations.....seems OK so far and the cats love it .

Wet felting with silk caps and hankies

The above are different shots of my latest nuno felt scarf/cape . Fall doesn't feel very far away now, so I wanted to work on wet felting again . The above has a hand dyed chiffon silk base with a layer of black merino and topped with some silk bell caps and hankies . Lots of color and texture going on ,hopefully not to much .

I also worked on three different pieces with black merino and silk caps . I had been wanting to do this since last spring when I went on wet felting break and with fall in the air, seemed like a good time to try it . I will defiantly be making more of these as I love the black roving coming through the random colors of silk hankies . All three are felted to different hardness, the softest will make a nice fluffy scarf and the other two will be sewn into small bags .

One side has the silk hankies and the other is some BFL roving in blue/green that I bought on Etsy .

The above is a nice thick fabric using merino sprinkled with blue alpaca "seconds" . Seconds are the thicker, less desirable cuts that feel a bit like mohair to me . I wouldn't personally wear them but they add a lot of texture for things like bags or table runners .

I also did 2 needle felt animals.....one is a small dog sitting in a new position for me ,leaning on a paw.

He is mostly merino with a mohair tuft of a tail .

My second feltie is in honor of the Felt United day which specified colors in red, blue and purple but allows for 3% "other" (which is the pink I used for the nose) . The blue is actually more teal, at least it seems to me that the purple brings out the green tones, I hope it's exceptable . 

So that was my week and my thoughts are with those on the east coast, hoping they are all safe from Irene ....Good night Irene !

needle felt in the wild....

Been 2 weeks of none stop headaches, so not much blogging or felting getting done . Did make it outside my apt to get these last two friends photoed and hope to get to the DR's soon to clear up the banging head . Still plan on finishing the needle felt tutorial, for what little it's worth .

I also had problems with blogger when I exceeded my photolimit and had to buy more space but before I could do it , had to scan and send my ID to prove it was me...(spoiler alert...it WAS me and I finally got more storage so will try and get last tutorial done this week.)

Happy felting