WoolPets

The Making of the "Chickens" Kit

Kevin and I have made our first Woolpets video - a time-lapse of us photographing the steps for the new "Chickens" kit we hope to have done by the end of February. This is the first of many videos we hope to create so don't touch that dial. Enjoy!

New Colors/Sets of Wool Roving

Now available in my shop .

This is the Spring Set of wool roving. The new colors are -

Sweet Pea -  Nice soft purplish/pink color.

Apricot - Bright and peachy.

Cupcake - A very good pink. Not as bright as Candy.

Mint - Fresh, spring green.

Ice - Very light, soft blue.

Honey - More like the color of butter.

This is the "Earth Tones" set and includes some new colors -

Toffee - Nice reddish brown.

Butterscotch - Good color for a Golden Retriever dog or giraffe.

Lima Bean - Softest of all the green colored roving I carry.

Have fun with these new colors and share what you make in the Woolpets Flickr Group .

Vintage Books

From "Dolls in Miniature" by Valerie Janitch -

I especially like these little fairies -

And this one, by one of my favorite illustrators, Tasha Tudor -

 

 

V - Day Weekend

I spent this past weekend working - not just working at home on Woolpets, which is what I always do, but working at a gallery in Seattle called Venue. Now this was quite a challenge for me, since I've been my own boss and I've worked at home for the past 8 years! And, to make matters more challenging, my first day of work at Venue was on a Saturday and Valentines Day! Oh my gosh - the gallery was so busy and I had no idea what to do! Cash registers scare the living heck out of me! Luckly, there were a few other artists working that day to help coach me through. Sunday was much better - I got the hang of the cash register, felt more comfortable talking with customers - it was fun!

I'm very honored to be an artist at Venue. Owner Diane Macrae has created a beautiful environment combining a modern, diverse art gallery with working artists studios located right in the store. How great to spend the day working in your own studio with artsy neighbors right there with you to chat and create with. In addition, the artists working at the gallery help to run the shop.

So for part of Valentines Day I worked, and then Kevin (my valentine) picked me up and we ate dinner at the cutest little restaurant called The Root Table . The tables and chairs reminided me of a gnomes' home. The chairs were wooden 'stumps' and the tables were made from giant slabs of wood. The food was awesome - mainly pan asian.

Both Venue and The Root Table are located in a Seattle neighborhood called Ballard. If you''ve been to Seattle and not visited Ballard lately, go check it out! This neighborhood has a lot to offer!

And while some women like candy and flowers for V-Day, my hubby, who knows me well, bought me these very thoughtful gifts-

A book about coffee - my favorite beverage and

 
a little notebook with a cool design on the cover.

Happy V-Day Everyone!

Bunny Needle Felting Class

Eight bunnies, all in a row.

Spring is Just Around the Corner

It seems like forever since I've found an egg in the hen house. But today, one of the chickens laid the first egg of the year! A nice brown one.

 

This wool felt hen and chick are made from a kit by De Witte Engel. The hen has a hidden pocket sewn under her body where you can hide an egg  or a few little felt chicks. The pattern was only available in Dutch or German, but it was really easy to follow the illustrations that when along with the text.  

Most of the kits are easy, some recommend previous doll making experience. There is a good variety available at Seasons Natural Toys and if you live near Seattle, Clover Toys in Ballard also has a nice selection.

These are from my collection of wooden animals made in Germany by Kinderkram.

Treasure Hunting

Oh boy did I have fun yesterday! A whole expo hall filled with vintage treasures and antiques. I'm not so interested in the furniture, glass and jewelry (which there is plenty of). But I really dig the old toys and vintage textiles. One booth in particular had some beautiful old sewing supplies; vintage pincushions, buttons, lace, patterns and thread. I bought a tiny needle case and this beautiful spool of silk thread.

(The doll on the top is a finger puppet that I made).

I bought a wooden doll made in Poland-she has a nice expression.

and these two sock monkeys caught my eye-
 
I scanned the isles looking for inspiration. I can hardly look at anything without thinking "now that would make a good Woolpet".

I really liked the face on this guy-

Here is a link to the show's website if you are interested in treasure hunting at the next show. I've heard that the Portland show in July is great!

On another note, I'd like to start offering video tutorials on needle felting. If you have anything in particular that you would like me to explain in more detail, please let me know. I'd like to start out with basic techniques such as rolling and needling and then have other video tutorials on things like making hands, doing eyes, etc. So let me know what you'd like to see! I appreciate all the enthusiasm and support you've been sharing with me and I hope the keep the needle felting craze rolling!