Design Explorations 02 & 03 2013 - Needle Felting

My 'play group' had a workshop in dry felting. Most had an 'embellisher' - a machines that looks like a sewing machine, but it does not use thread ... just needles with barbs that push the fibres into the backing.   I used a hand held needle felter.

Our Design Explorations theme for February was 'SKYFALL'

A few years ago, at nightfall, I looked up in the sky and from the west ... a shower of meteors crossed the sky. In Vancouver, we have meteor showers in the late summer. But, this was no ordinary event! Many meteors in different sizes streaked across the sky, over a couple of minutes. We all stood and watched with our mouths open. It was unreal! One man said, "If this is the end of the world, it sure is purdy". The meteors streaked to the east and evidence was found in the south-east of the province, hundreds of miles away. 

This piece is done on sheer with tiny silver dots that represent the stars. The sky had a light streaked overcast - the result of an earlier rain.

For March, the Design Exploration theme was 3D ... but, it is hard to fit an actual 3D project into my portfolio. So ... while felting, I worked to make the pear appear to be rounded  ... 3D.

I used an old wool sweater as a base to build the final  piece.

Below is my third piece ... just made for fun!

My sunset used a thin stabilizer as a backing.

The hand needle does not create a very stable felt in comparison to a wet felt or a felt made on an emellisher. It has a wispy look and texture. To make it a little more stable, I sprayed 'skyfall' and the sunset with liquid starch.

You can see the DESIGN EXPLORATIONS blog here:
http://quiltvive3.blogspot.ca/
There is just Carla and I. We completed our first year - 2012!