I've been down with the flu for over a week. It's nasty and lingering. It makes you wish you were dead. However, I did manage to catch up on some needle felting that had to be done. It's been awhile since I've made anything needle felted and I find my style has changed a bit. I seem to be much more into detail than before. Well that's a good thing. Since I was pretty much confined for several days, I used the time to get started on my list of things to be done by Christmas. I finished the little beaded ring in no time, and then made the sea horse brooch. These are both orders to go to the city.
That left a couple of larger sculptures to be done. I tackled the trout commission and it turned out rather well, but took a couple of days. I'm sure it will find a nice home.
The next project was a pair of earrings I had started. When I realized the pattern was a bit more time consuming than I had thought when I started them, I had put them aside for an occasion such as being laid up for a few days.
That nearly caught me up and I only have one more commission lined up right now, which I will begin working on today. I've taken on the chore of cooking something nice for supper as well, since I'm feeling better now. I have a project ready to start with the wet felting too, but that will have to wait until this awful cough subsides and I have the energy to work the wool.
It really feels good to be all caught up this early in the process.
This is the second pair of slippers made in the wet felted technique using a resist. I love the way the colors worked out. I made the inside with violet and mulberry, then put two light layers of yellow over top. Lots of ultraviolet Angelina and a wisp of yellow to lock it in. A bit of embroidery, a suede sole and presto ... my new slippers. They're nice and warm too.
Using this technique, you can make several different styles. It's just adjusting the length between the feet. You could make boots if you wanted to, but would have to enlarge the instep so you could get your feet inside. After separating the feet, you can change the style by how you shape the opening.
It's been ages since I wrote here. Much time has passed and really, very little has happened. My husband has come home from the wilds of the Yukon, so my routine has been totally disrupted, and I'm just now trying to get back to work. We endured a solid week of extreme heat and humidity, which was followed by hurricane Earl. There was a small amount of cleanup to be done after that. It's been an exercise in self discipline, but I'm semi back into the swing of creativity now.
The first project is this pair of rather large slippers. They're all Corridale roving. I made them for my husband, so he had some input. The inside is beige and the outside is olive green, with a couple strips of prefelt across the instep and some white and grey curly locks hanging from under the folded over flaps. Hubby loves them. The fit worked out well and they're both the same! That's quite a feat for the first pair, I think. For soles, I cut up an old heavy suede vest and cemented two layers together, then punched holes around the outsides with and awl, so that I could sew them to the slippers with ease. I contact cemented the soles on before the sewing, taking care to keep the glue away from the sewing area. They stuck on good and solid. I was rather surprised at how well the cement worked. The picture above shows them drying outside. They look a bit wooly but I've since given them a haircut and installed the soles. I haven't been able to get them off hubby's feet long enough to take another photo.
The next project is a pair of these for myself. They will be a lot wilder in design and color and I plan on making the soles only one layer of leather. I'm pleased with my first effort so I'll strive to make mine even better.
