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To start to knit the fibers together a lower number or coarser needle is used. This gets things moving quite quickly, especially if you are using an uncarded core wool for your central shape. If you are using templates, core wool is not normally used and the dyed and carded wool is used from the start. By inserting small amounts of wool into your template and using a medium needle, the wool soon starts to take the form of the template as you add more wool.
Needle Felting
A
little while ago our Facebook social media community ‘chatty prompt’ was ‘crafting’ and I submitted a post about needle felting. I only actually started needle felting last year, I think it was a lockdown and furlough thing, and was soon hooked. I started with simple template and pretty quickly got the bug for the craft. I’m now moving into making 3D sculptures which is pushing my skill set and my patience somewhat. Now that the Christmas period is well and truly over, there is that lull between January resolutions (crashing) and the much longed for spring evenings. What can you do to pass the time and keep your fingers out of the biscuit tin? If you are looking for a new hobby to fill the winter evenings, needle felting may just be what you’re looking for. It’s a hobby that doesn’t take a lot of money to get started and can be done pretty much anywhere. Quite a few companies have beginner packs with some essentials to get you started for a very small outlay. If you haven’t come across needle felting, I’ll explain what it’s all about: Taking carded and dyed natural fiber wool; you mold and shape the wool fibers by piecing them with a single barbed needle. Needles vary in strength and the higher the number needle the thinner the needle is. My advice is buy a few needles *36 *38 *40, decent wool, a set of scales that will weigh small amounts down to 0.01g and a good needle felting surface.
The wool will always go in the direction you push the needle so you can see results quite quickly. This is great for a beginner because who wants to wait for hours to see how their make is progressing? You don’t need pressure on your needle; just light taps onto your needle-felting surface. If the fibers are poking through the other side of your work, you are pushing too hard and you may break your needle. Templates are great for things like petals, and felting petals together can create a flower head. My first flower make in 2021 was the snowdrop.
You make a small inner set and a slightly larger outer set of petals then felt them together. To make the stems you pass florist wire through the petals before forming the dome shape. You can then either cover the florist wire with florist tape or wrap wool around the wire in a few layers to make a thicker stem. As a beginner I would suggest using the florist tape. It’s quicker and in the first few tries, it’s important not to be put off by fiddly and time consuming practices. Time enough for that once you’re a little more confident. Leaves can be added by felting from the template then wrapping them around the covered florist wire and then securing them
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