Felt Art

Anyone who has read my profile or knows me well, is aware that my background is in visual art. For many years I worked in and exhibited my paintings and pottery, but I haven't exhibited my art pieces since discovering feltmaking.

So now I am working on a number of small pieces to exhibit in an online exhibition. They are explorations in the extraordinary beauty and endless possibilities of the felting process. I use the colours and textures of the regional setting in which I live as inspiration, a place to start. Then as the layers, selection and placement of different threads of wool, or silk, or cotton takes shape, the piece takes on its own life.

This is one of my "Threads" series. It is difficult to capture the way mood of the piece changes as shifting light picks out different threads and relects back to the viewer.

The work is small(approximately 12cm high by 19.5cm wide). A number of these images are closeups and details too.

I would love to hear what you think. Leave a comment here or on my FB page
Beljays Felt

Pretty packaging

A lot of people like to have the lovely selections they purchase off Etsy gift wrapped at this time of year. And I think it's a nice idea too. But you don't want to add to their postage costs by making the wrapping bulky or heavy.

So I've designed a new gift card to use as packaging for some of my items this holiday season. Why a card? Well my butterflys, fish and flowers are quite flat. They post nicely inside a card, which gives them a little extra protection on the journey too.

I can print them as I need them. I can make them in different colors if I choose. Add extra decoration to them, like glitter for example. On the front is enough space for someone to write a message, if they are giving it to someone else. Or, if the buyer has asked me to send it directly to someone else, I can print a message to the recipient, if the buyer wants. And it doesn't add to the postage costs at all.

Making Felt Butterfly Brooches

I thought you might be interested in getting a bit of an idea of how I make my felt butterflys.

First have to make the felt. I begin with unspun, dyed merino wool and lay it out with the colors and patterns I want. And then I go through the laborious task of making that into felt.

Here's one I made earlier...

Or if you want more info on felt making, have a look at this earlier blog post for how that happens http://beljaysfeltnart.blogspot.com/2010/02/chooks-tail-or-how-to-make-felt.html

I cut the pieces out of the felt. One sheet will give me a few sets of wings.

I might want to use different colors for upper and lower wings so I cut them all out first.

Now I'm ready to play around a bit, finding the right mix of color and texture. Then I sew them together, matching the wings with buttons or silk paper and beads. And...viola! A butterfly!

Beautiful Felt Beret

I've been a bit busy trying new things today. Some have worked and some have not. And some I'm just not sure about.

The first new thing I tried is a new series of small textile artworks. I am happy with the results I'm getting and am now plotting to have an online exhibition on my Beljays Felt site. But that's a little further down the track.

I also started a business page on facebook
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Beljays-Felt/114781401961865

I'm not quite sure what I am doing with it yet but if you have any encouraging thoughts, please let me know.

And, in an effort to catch-up on all things connected, I have also started a twitter account
http://twitter.com/#!/BeljaysFelt
Still getting that sorted too.

And finally, a new item listed on etsy. A beret with a long tail.

Clowning Around with Felt

Every now and then, you have to explore new things. Different techniques. New materials. Alternative methods of construction.

And sometimes when you do all these things, what you end up with is a bit of a surprise.

This ensemble was designed for a craft show using the circus as the theme. But in doing so, I created some little challenges for myself.

Drafting a pattern for the puffy sleeves from segments of a circle. Multiple layers of shibori dyeing to create the striped silk. And the button holes are constucted from silk paper. I've never made this before so it was fun to research and learn a completely new technique.

I'm kind of happy with the outcome. The added bonus is that I have some new skills to use with the other things I make.

Nuno Felt Ruffle Scarves

It may be hot in the northern hemisphere at the moment, but down here on the southern side it's pretty cold. So I've been working on these lovely, long ruffle scarves.I've used a nuno felt technique with either hand-dyed silk or hand-dyed cotton as the base fabric. It makes a soft, flowing textile and I like the contrast between wool and the fabric.These are lovely, long scarves that can be worn in a number of different ways depending on how you feel.I have some of these listed on my Beljays Felt online store http://beljaysfelt.bigcartel.com But if you happen to be on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland on the 1st or 3rd Sunday of the month, you'll probably find me at Peregian Markets.

Felt River Walk

I've been meaning to put this up for some time, but as usual, time escapes me. This is one of the pieces I entered in the Sydney Royal Show 2011. I started the designs in January, when the Brisbane river flooded. Every day on TV or when I logged onto my homepage, I'd see this meandering line. The Brisbane River. So it became the centre of the composition. It forms the line between the blue and brown elements, cutting diagonally top right to bottom left. I also experimented with making pre-felt sheets, then dyeing them. I have cut these and relaid them into the composition to get these lovely subtle shade changes. I have tried to give the impression of an orderly landscape being broken-up, shattered, by the rising and them receding waters. I'm happy with the way it turned out.