Tiny Polar Bear (sold)
I recently updated my website and for the first time (ever) catalogued all my designs by year and month. Nine years of almost non-stop needle felting. It took many days of hunting on various camera cards and through this blog and Flickr, but eventually I got there.
Looking through it was a bit of a wake up call and I was able to look at my work and realise not only that I've done a phenomenal amount of work, but also that I've not really moved on, stylistically. Although, to be fair, the last few years haven't exactly been the time for creative navel gazing.
I think it has a lot to do with the last few years of creating commercial patterns, which have to be easy to make, and doing so many workshops, ditto. So I've not really stretched myself.
I think making myriad cute toys has almost run it's course for me, after all, I've been doing them for nine years. So I've been finishing off several bits and pieces, including this set of tiny animals and bird dolls, which despite being small, take around six hours plus to make
As usual, I've bunged them on dear old Etsy. I'll be starting a shiny new website soon, for my new work.
I started a new and very 'grown up' line of work this summer, but it is under wraps until I have several pieces. Suffice to say, I am stretching myself at last.
While I'm cheerfully shoving things for sale under your noses, I may as well add that I've got some fabulous new workshops in the UK, for later in the year. I have two winter workshops in Hampstead, London at the Village Haberdashery - my first time in London! It's going to be the red eye train at crack of dawn for those two.
In other news, I've finally started painting properly again. But I'll spare you that for the time being.
So many thanks for all the kind and lovely comments on my last post. Joe and I were incredibly touched that people were happy for us. Now that I have a real purpose, I've thrown myself back into work with a vengeance, starting the New Year with two little hare brooches in a newish style.
It's good to be making again.
2014 ended with a gorgeous feature in 'Filtz Fun', a popular German felting magazine - they made it all look beautiful, I think the prettiest magazine article of mine I've seen. I do need to update my publicity picture though. 2015 is starting to fill up with workshops - at the moment I have five definite dates, starting in March with a bang at the p-Lush alpaca show in Coventry, where I will be using alpaca wool for the first time ever. The next day I am in Oxfordshire at my regular venue of Folly Fabrics, Smith's Restaurant in Manchester in April and back to the Buckingham Summer School for two full days in August. (Summer, hooray!) More info and contact details can be found on my website. More to be added, with luck.
This month saw my return to the eternally wonderful Hope and Elvis studio, run by Louise Presley, to hold two all day workshops over one weekend. It barely seemed as if I'd been away, but it had been almost a year.
In the morning, and in keeping with the autumnal weather, acorns were made. I accidentally got my own measurements wrong, not for the first time, so instead of bijou acorns, we had egg sized ones. but everyone enjoyed themselves. As you can see from the big beam on Louise's face.
And amazingly, despite my error, we had a batch of acorns by lunchtime -
And a cluster of cheerful toadstools from the afternoon's work.
On day two, I did it all over again, with another group of lovely people. But this time we kept the acorns a little smaller...
This was a gorgeous colour combination, with faint gold beige stripes on a tomato red background.
There was one very special person who came, Charlotte of 'Chest of Delights' blogspot - we've been virtual blog chums for a few years now and it was lovely beyond lovely to meet her and finally get to hug this friend I'd not met before. She also brought along some of her own beautiful work. There is something very pleasing about a well made toadstool.
I also launched my fourth needle felt kit, which just happens to be a decorative acorn - they went very well, which is always nice and reassuring.
Decorative acorn kits are now available from my Etsy Shop, priced at $17.00/£10.60 plus shipping.
My next workshop is at the popular Toft Alpaca Farm, Rugby, on November the 1st - this time making Christmas trees. For more details and to book a place, please visit their website, but hurry as it is almost booked out!
Two Oxfordshire workshops this month, the first at a new venue in Bampton, Folly Fabrics - a vibrant, cleanly laid out shop in the heart of Bampton - which Downton Abbey fans may know is where many of the Downton village scenes are shot. (And yes, they were filming for a new show when I was there, but I was working!)
Folly Fabrics are my third supplies and kits stockists and it was lovely to walk in and see everything displayed beautifully alongside my book.
Sharon had made specially themed cakes and biscuits with pink bunnies adorning them. There is always cake at Folly Fabrics and Sharon is a fabulous baker. Too adorable to eat? They were scoffed, anyway!
Everyone seemed to have a good time.
The next day I was back in my old stamping ground at Fibreworks Oxford, with a smaller class - only three, but it was nice and cosy. Birds were made.
And here's a few things I managed to make inbetween everything. The cat is sold, the fox was a gift, but I still have a couple of the little stump hares in my Etsy shop. My next workshops are in July - at Chipping Norton Fibreworks on Friday the 18th making Candy Buns and back to Oxford Fibreworks on Saturday the 19th July, making this wee house on a hill, which can double up as a sweet pin cushion. Both shops are also stockists of my kits. I'm always on the look out for nice shops to stock my wools and kits, so if you know of any, please let me - or them - know. I aim for nothing less than world wide domination.
