Realistic Animals Made From Wool

Terumi from True Style Lab about Needle Felting

If you missed my last newsletter, here is what fabulous

Terumi from True Style Lab

1. What are your favourite needles to use?

It depends on what size art works are but I mostly use fine needles.

2. What is your favourite type of wool to work with?

Mostly I use Merino wool.

3. What is the worst piece of  advice you keep hearing for needle felters?

mmm....?

4. What common mistakes do people make when they start out?

My students commonly struggle to make left right symmetry.

5. What is the one thing a beginner could learn today that would  make a difference to their work?

Observing objects.
Contact:

Facebook: TrueStyleLab
Twitter: truestylelab
Instagram: truestylelab

You can subscribe to The Felt box newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/dNw2jA

You can find previous Q & A here

Needle-felting Portrait (Alpaca)

Low Emission Sheep??

Low Emission Sheep??

Climate change is all over the news at the moment and will continue to be of huge importance to us for the rest of our lifetimes. We are all trying to do our bit to cut down our impact on the earth. Here at the Felt Box we are continually looking at ways we can reduce our environment footprint. But what about the sheep? 

Photo Credit: Fionn McArthur, BBC 

One of the biggest contributors to global warming is the livestock we breed and farm. Before we despair though, some wonderful new research is giving us hope. Substituting  just 2% of grazing animals' feed can reduce their methane production by up to 50%. But what is it being substituted with? Read this amazing (and encouraging) article to find out more about how sheep are being farmed on the North Ronaldsay in the Orkney Islands. 

Photo Credit: Fionn McArthur, BBC 

It's not just the Orkney Islands that are driving a new way of farming forward (although we admit it's nice that it's on home turf!) Over in New Zealand seaweed farming is now a big thing and other countries are following in their footsteps. New Zealand, Austria and the US (among others) are now researching seaweed as a viable option to reduce the methane produced by livestock. This article by Riverford Organic Farmers (who, we are proud to say, are almost on our doorstep) gives us a short overview on how research is developing and offers information on further natural sources of food that are being tried and tested as alternatives to the traditional sources of nutrition currently being used. 

Here's hoping 2020 paves the way forward for low emission sheep! 

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Sam Sinclair from Sams Softies about Needle Felting

If you missed my last newsletter, here is what fabulous

Sam Sinclair from Sams Softies

1. What are your favourite needles to use?

My favourite needle would be the 38 twisted. Perfect all rounder and a great needle for finishing off.

2. What is your favourite type of wool to work with?

My favorable wool is New Zealand carded. It's so easy and fast to felt. And can be used for both wet and dry felting.

3. What is the worst piece of advice you keep hearing for needle felters?

The worst advice for beginners is merino wool tops. Not only is it hard to felt, it's more expensive than traditional carded. (I certainly wish I'd had that advice when I started out)

4. What common mistakes do people make when they start out?

The common mistakes are expecting excellence immediately and getting disheartened in the craft. Practise makes perfect. Some of my early pieces are totally cringeworthy. But take photos anyway, helps you to see where you're improving.

5. What is the one thing a beginner could learn today that would make a difference to their work?

Best advice would be to sketch out your idea first. Break the object into shapes and assemble, practise makes perfect and most of all. Have fun.

Needle felting is so therapeutic, just go where the fibres take you.

Contact:

Facebook: Samssofties

You can subscribe to The Felt box newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/dNw2jA

You can find previous Q & A here

Elin Thomas - Fibre Artist

Introducing the one of a kind

Elin Thomas

with her delightful and very original fibre art!

Elin Thomas is the artist with a simple mission 'to make beautiful and unique items, using the best materials available'. With an attention to detail and love for texture Elin, makes petri dish sculptures and wearable art that put the fun into fungi!

Elin's art is a variety of mixed media compositions created using a range of different techniques such as crocheting, needle felting and sewing. The results are beautiful, breathtaking, garden-like petri dishes with a magical quality that is hard to resist, even for a true germaphobe! 

Elin is originally from Oxford in England and has exhibited around the world, recently being comissioned to create a Petri dish installation at  the Oxford Natural History Museum as part of 'Bacterial World' exhibition.

For more information about her and her work take a look at  https://www.elinthomas.com/ to visit her shop or catch her on Etsy shop elinart to see the range of beautiful items she has created that you can own. You can also visit her blog ELIN@Elintm.blogspot for an inside look into what makes Elin tick!

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