Tutorial How to make a felted flower brooch

Galafilc creates amazing and unique hand felted items. Today she will share her know-how on how to create a felted flower brooch.

To create a flower we will need about 20 gr. of white felting wool, plastic bubble wrap, soap, water, dye for coloring and a wooden roller.

The first step is to lay out pieces of wool on a bubble wrap. We will make six circles slightly different in size.

The second step is to wet our wool with soapy water. We spray the water evenly all over the wool and cover it with another piece of bubble wrap. Our wool is now ready for felting. At the very beginning we roll our wooden stick over the wrap once to squeeze extra water out of our wet wool. After that we roll our wrap around the wooden stick and start actually rolling it on a flat surface. I usually roll it about 100 times in one direction and 100 times in another direction.


Our wool is semi-felted now. We take it out of the wrap and gently squeeze and rub it in our hands until it is ready. Our pieces of wool should be pretty homogeneous with fiber intact and not separating. If the wool has felted well the original size of the piece changes. Our wool circles should be much smaller in size than the original ones.

Now we are ready to start creating an actual flower. We cut out a flower from each of the circles and felt the flowers a little bit for the edges to felt and become even. We rinse our flowers well and flatten them. It's time to form a flower now. We put the biggest flower at the bottom and the rest five flowers on top of it.

To dye our flower we will need to soak it in a vinegar first. For the final color not to be super bright I usually add a few drops of black dye to my dye mix. To prepare my dye mix I just mix dye with water. I soak my felted pieces into the dye mix and warm in up either in a micorwave or on a stove. I usually let my felt stay in the dye mix for about an hour. Finally I put my felted pieces into a vinegar once more to fix the color and let them dry afterward.

My brooch flower is almost ready. I assemble all the pieces into a flower brooch and attach a pin at its back. Our beautiful and unique hand felted flower brooch is ready!


translated by TonyaUtkina

Easter felted egg cozies by YanArt

Get into an Easter spirit while making these colorful felted Eggs cozies! This tutorial is kindly offered to our readers by Yana (YanArt)

For this tutorial it is preferable you had some basic felting skills.

You will need a ruler, scissors, a marker, and a piece of PV film. For example you can use an old package. You will also need wool, water, soap and an egg.

Measure your egg's «waist» and add to the size 30% more (for example 14 cm + 30% = 18.2 cm). In the process of felting wool tends to shrink which is why you should add some size.

Divide this size in 2 (18.2/2 = 9.1cm) – this will be the size of the bottom of the triangular pattern for your hat.

You can choose the size of the top up to your liking but not less than the half of the egg's height. It can be a very tall or smaller hat, it's up to you (remember that wool shrinks).

1. Put the PV film triangular pattern on the bubble-wrap and spread several layers of wool (horizontally and vertically). Put a bit more on the edges – you will turn them over later.

2. Moist the wool with a light soap solution, cover with bubble-wrap and rub a little. Turn everything upside down. Remove the bubble-wrap and thoroughly turn the edges of the wool over the sides of the triangle.

3. Spread the wool on another side of the hat.

4. Repeat step 2. Turn the edges of the wool over the sides again horizontally. Lift and turn the wool at the bottom.

Do it in the upper direction (vertically) to make the bottom of the hat even.

5. Cover with a bubble-wrap and rub gently in circular movements.

6. Wrap everything up in a roll and roll it 50-80...100 times. Unwrap, shift a little the triangular pattern to avoid clotting and wrinkling.

7. Wrap up in a roll. Repeat step 6 several times.

8. Unwrap the roll. Remove the PV film pattern and felt with your hands.

Rub to achieve the shape of a pointy hat and to even the bottom of the hat.

9. Rinse the hat in warm water. Shape it up let it dry.

10. If needed you can use special needles for dry felting to make the bottom of the hat even.

Have fun felting and happy Easter!

Interview with a Star - Helen Dalmar

Hello! I am Helene Dalmar.

I have been doing all sorts of handicrafting for many years and with great enthusiasm and satisfaction. My major regret is that a day is only 24 hours long, and that a human has got only two arms :) Always in a never ending pursuit of new skills and techniques, I constantly look out for interesting solutions to implement my ideas. I have been practicing felting for eighteen months or so. And I feel that I'm in love affair with this activity forever.

I am fond of the material, and I like the process, and I adore the outcome, of course. And my clients are satisfied too, which is also very important. All this time I've been in constant search - I'd look for new deco materials that'd match merino wool, I'd invent new decorations and new work techniques. As a result, I feel my skills have been progressively improving all the time as well. This makes me rejoice, I shall confess. I only use finest quality merino, which is pretty thin. It allows producing elegant scarfs, airy and easy to drape, yet preserving all the traits of natural wool - the scarfs are always indigenously ecological, absorbing atmospheric moisture, and very warming.

Recently, I have begun to use non-colored merino, perfectly natural, and then I use permitted food colorants to acquire the desired shades. No industrial dyes! Home coloring expends limits for creativity and helps to accentuate my ideas and realize my fantasies. My works are full of charming expression, intelligence, and attraction. To add, they are full of positive cheer as well! They upkeep the owner’s mood and generate enthusiasm in other people around.

This activity is a kind of magic indeed. You approach a stretch of a fluffy and imponderable wool roll, you work a series of manual movements, mysterious as they appear, and – voila! – a miracle is born, all colorful, soft, and worm! The hard mental and physical toil and the intense work concentration vanish away - you just forget of them while you look at the outcome of your labor – an item tender and softish, with glittering threads of silk, all enthralling with cuteness!

Apart from wool work, I do some other things. I produce beautiful decorations made of polymeric clay, which are altogether radiant and indigenously unique, and they can fit any garment you select, be it casual gear, a business suit, or an evening dress. Polymeric clay is an omnipotent material that permits realization of most brave fantasizing.

From time to time, I also make festive cakes; I decorate them with floral elements, etc. made of sugar. For that, I use the skills and techniques learned from clay work.

Very recently, I have fulfilled my long standing dream – I assembled a doll house! I have been constructing it all by myself from scratch. It’s almost complete now. I’m presently decorating the tiny rooms in there. I derive joy and satisfaction from this work aplenty, although working with miniatures is not easy. Never mind, we aren’t here to aspire for easy ways, are we? :)

And another new hobby - flowers of the Thai clay, "cold porcelain"
Dandelions - the first flowers of this series, but it sure did not last :)

I very much want in a day was 24 hours. Or 48 - all have time :)

With love -

Helene

Fun coat scarf

When a felt artist wants to rest they make something simple and colorful.

If you'd like to make a new felt scarf for yourself or as a gift I will show you how to do it. Best of all, it can be any color you like. You can let your fantasy go wild!



For a scarf measuring about 100x20 cm* you will need:
a piece of bubble wrap, 100x40 cm
white or undyed roving wool, about 100 gram
dye for wool
microwave safe bowl
vinegar
mild shampoo or foamy soap

* Finished size will depend on fiber you used and layout

Tear long thin strips of roving wool and position them on the bubble wrap as in picture.


Fill all the space of the scarf with such strips. Since we want to achieve the effect of holes in the scarf, fix the layout of wool as you position it and form holes with your fingers. It can also be done after the wool has been dampened.
Having placed all the wool, spray it with soapy liquid, cover with another piece of bubble wrap and massage the scarf through the wrap in order for the entire scarf to become damp.


You can use a rolling pin or a sander, however, this can be done by hand too. Roll the scarf as it is in the bubble wrap and start rolling it with your hands or feet, which ever you prefer. As first press the roll lightly, but as wool starts felting you can press it harder and harder. From time to time unroll it and roll from another side of the scarf in order for it to felt smoothly.



When you unroll it, you can also lift the bubble wrap and correct the positioning of the scarf as well as the holes in it with your fingers.

Keep felting until you see that separate wool threads cannot be separated from the scarf and when you lift it, the scarf holds it shape well. Gather the scarf into a pile and start rubbing it, making grating movements as if hand washing it


You can also delicately throw it around and rub it with bubble wrap. Continue doing this until the wool is completely felted – the scarf has to shrink both in its length and width, it has to hold its shape as a single item and it should not be possible to separate any threads or pieces.

Rinse the scarf first in hot, then in cold water, changing its temperature several times.

The next stage is to dye the scarf. First soak it in vinegar water for a couple of minutes, then press water out of it without applying to much strength.

Lay cling film on a table and put the scarf on it.


Dye can be applied either by pouring it on the scarf or by spreading it with a brush. Cover the scarf with another piece of cling film, fold it and put into a microwave safe dish with some cold water. Put the dish into the microwave and heat on medium 3 times for 3-5 minutes each. Wait till it cools down and take the scarf from cling film. Rinse it in vinegar water until water becomes clear.
Iron and dry your new scarf and it is ready!


Tutorial by Gala (Galafilc)
Translation by Anastasia (Lightkeeping)

Felted heart brooch tutorial

This great heart shaped brooch is fun to make with easy to follow instructions and colorful photographs by Tanya (soroka)

To make a heart like this you'll need:
natural undyed wool batt
red wool batt
felt needle #46, #48
foam sponge or a special brush for felting
Pin back

Make a middle part of your heart:

Take a fist size amount of natural undyed wool and form a triangle. Poke through the wool evenly with needle #46. The special notches on the tip of the needle will engage the fibers and push them deep into the product. Make sure that needle passed through the whole piece of wool. Use the foam sponge as a working surface to protect your fingers from the wounds.

Make a top of your heart:

Take 2 small pieces of undyed wool, about 1/4 of initial volume and roll them into beads. Leave the end of each bead unfelted:

Attach one bead with unfelted end to the left side of your triangle. Gently needle bead to the base to connect them. Repeat with the right side.

When the whole piece is holding together well and resembling a heart needle all over the piece to secure the fibers on the surface.

Continue working all over the heart shaped base until it will reduced in size and become firm. At this point you will not be able to stick a needle in it anymore.

Take a look at your heart. It should be firm with smooth surface. If you see some small unperfections simply add some more wool to the spot and needle it to the base.

Cover the base evenly with thick layer (about 1/2") of red wool and slightly needle it with needle #48.

When all fiber is attached start needle felt it all over until the surface of the heart is evenly coated and very smooth. Do not needle through your piece. Add some more of red wool fiber if needed. Continue needle felt until you are happy with the results.

Your heart is ready. If you like it like it is it's time to attach pin back and enjoy your new brooch.

If you'd like to proceed and try a wet felting technique you can wet your heart with warm water and soap and gently rub with your fingers. At this point you can also shape it some more. Rinse it with clean water, gently squeeze the excess of liquid and let it dry overnight or until dry.

If you like you can embellish your new heart with embroidery, beads or bows. Sew the brooch pin on the back and enjoy your new brooch!

If you like this brooch but not into felting you can purchase the one like this from Tanya's shop! Please visit her shop today to see the wonderful selection of her felted items!

Tutorial by Tanya (soroka)

Translated by Tanya (Socksandmittens)