WoolPets

Hot Days, Cool Felt

Yesterday was one of the hottest days in the Pacific Northwest region EVER! But my spirits were lifted when I received a package of warm, soft wool felt. 

My felt collection includes earthy reds and golds.

 

I soaked the felt in some warm water and a little wool wash to give it a little texture.

This is a close up of a dyed piece of felt called Butter Cream. I can imagine cutting out some shapes and sewing together a golden hen or maybe a palm-sized puppy dog. I'll post some photos as soon as I can get stitchin'! I haven't felt like crafting until after 8pm since it has been so hot here; cool-down is in the forecast, thank goodness!

On a side note, be sure to listen to the lastest episode of Craft Sanity. Jennifer has a great interview with the editor and publisher of Mixed Tape, Justine Telfer.

Hot Days, Cool Felt

Yesterday was one of the hottest days in the Pacific Northwest region EVER! But my spirits were lifted when I received a package of warm, soft wool felt. 

My felt collection includes earthy reds and golds.

 

I soaked the felt in some warm water and a little wool wash to give it a little texture.

This is a close up of a dyed piece of felt called Butter Cream. I can imagine cutting out some shapes and sewing together a golden hen or maybe a palm-sized puppy dog. I'll post some photos as soon as I can get stitchin'! I haven't felt like crafting until after 8pm since it has been so hot here; cool-down is in the forecast, thank goodness!

On a side note, be sure to listen to the lastest episode of Craft Sanity. Jennifer has a great interview with the editor and publisher of Mixed Tape, Justine Telfer.

This Little Piggy is Going to Market

This weekend Woolpets will be at the Northwest Needlearts Market. This is a wholesale show, open to retailers and manufacturers of all kinds of fiber, yarn, tools and other goodies. The atmosphere is friendly and warm and I especially appreciate connecting with other folks in the industry. Woolpets is still small potatoes compared to some of the big guys like Brown Sheep, Fiber Trends and Skacel; companies who will all have representatives at the show. Everyone seems very supportive of one another and willing to share their experience and knowledge.

We'll have fresh coffee brewing and plenty of needle felting goodies to be sure to come by the Woolpets suite if you're at the show! I have to admit that I'm looking forward to a weekend inside a cool hotel room, considering the temperatures outside are going to be in the 90's. That is a bit uncomfortable for us Northwesterners - we're used to upper 60's and cool, cloudy skies. 

If you are going to be out and about this weekend, may I suggest the Ballard SeafoodFest. I worked a few hours at Venue yesterday and there are tons of fun things happening in Ballard over the festival weekend, not to mention great the sidewalk sales!

You'll want to save a little cash for next weekend; The Urban Craft Uprising, Seattle's largest independent craft fair is having a summer show!

Happy Weekend!

The Nest of a Bushtit

There is a Bushtit's nest in our plum tree!

 

There is a very old plum tree in our backyard and it seems to be diseased. So I asked a friend who knows trees and plants, to come over and see if she could indentify the issue. And lo and behold, she found this nest. Thank you, Diana! Now if we could just figure out what's wrong with the tree?

Needle Felted Butterfly

Tonight, I'm teaching a needle felted butterfly and dragonfly class at Venue. I've spent some time this week fine-tuning a technique that I can teach to others. 

I used a combination of silk and wool to make this butterflies' wings and I needle felted black wool yarn in a design on top of the wings; a quintessential butterfly.

I look forward to experimenting with colors, textures and designs with the students and marveling at their finished projects.

Hike of the week!

This week, we visited the beautiful Salt Creek Recreation Area on the Olympic Peninsula. The park includes upland forests, rocky bluffs, rocky tide pools, and panoramic views of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Crescent Bay, and Vancouver Island, British Columbia.


Oscar hiking down to the beach.


Albert and I hiking along a wooded trail.


Romping and playing in the woods.


Home sweet campground!

Hike of the Week

This week, the featured hike includes a camping trip. We decided to go easy on ourselves and car-camp and on a Sunday night, we got our pick of the best sites. The Dungeness Forks Campground is a great place for a base camp as there are many hiking trails within a few miles. We chose the Gray Wolf Trail, in the Buckhorn Wilderness area of Olympic National Forest. It's an easy trail through an old growth cedar forest and at this time of year, there are plenty of wildflowers to admire. 

 

Besides hiking, I also found time for some crafting.

 

Camping and crafting - could life get any better?

 

 

Polar Bears, work in progress.

 

Elephant getting a shape-up.

 

Albert, the campsite guard dog.

 

Oscar, lounging by the fire in his camping chair.

 

Friendly Robin who came by to visit.