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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 6:21:43 GMT
Hello. I’ve just discovered your wonderful forum. Taking a break from felting while on holiday I’ve been enjoying creating a notebook full of new ideas & getting my felt fix by surfing the net. I’m a feltmaker based on the north Kent coast with a tiny rented studio. My felt pictures are inspired by the beautiful coastline & in particular the local birds. I also make bowls, vases (with a glass interior), scarves (which I can’t wear as I find wool too prickly!), coasters, book marks.....and lots more. I am particularly interested in using the book resist technique to make seed pods next so many thanks for this really helpful tutorial. I’m hoping when I post this you’ll see one of my latest pictures “Turstone at the Royal Native Oyster Stores - Whitstable”. It’s mosstly wet felted with needle felt detail. Not entirely sure I’ve got the link creation right but here goes. Lindsay
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Post by tracey on Feb 23, 2018 6:44:13 GMT
Hi Lindsay and welcome to the forum. I can only imagine the inspiration you get from being close to the coastline. Your Turstone creation is wonderful. I looked them up as it is a new one on me. We would love to see more of your work. Have a great holiday!
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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 7:44:23 GMT
Thank you for the welcome Tracey - it’s lovely to join an exchange with like-minded people. I don’t know many other wet felt makers so I’m looking forward to learning & sharing. So here is another recent work and i’ll add some more if it works. This one is “Sanderlings, Minnis Bay”. My work can be viewed on my public Facebook page where I also post albums showing the making process for individual pieces. NB I don’t sell my work through Facebook so it’s not a commercial plug! Lindsay
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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 7:51:58 GMT
Ok, seem to be getting the hang of embedding the links - sorry they’re of posts not just photos - I don’t seem able to separate the two
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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 7:53:47 GMT
“Little Egret - Minnis Bay”
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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 8:16:04 GMT
And finally for now a few bowls & vases Bowl made over an inflatable/ deflatable ball with a semi-felted recycled silk collar & recycled mother of pearl beads Merino, angora & mohair incorporating a piece of recycled silk scarf - I was experimenting with partially felting silk into bowls 3 layer small vessel felted around an inflatable ball using cling film (food wrap) as a resist between the layers & cutting through when completed A vase using the same cling film & cutting technique but made with a flat resist. Shaped & shrunk around a glass vase so it can hold water
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Post by lyn on Feb 23, 2018 10:33:51 GMT
Hello Lindsay and welcome to the forum. Thank you for sharing the photos of your wonderful work - the birds are amazing! How lovely to have a coastal studio - are you a full-time felt-maker?
(I'm glad you posted the photos here as I don't take part in 'facebook' anymore.)
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Post by tracey on Feb 23, 2018 11:38:13 GMT
I really like the water reflection with the Little Egret Lindsay. I'm with Lyn - no facebook for me either!
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Post by lindsay on Feb 23, 2018 15:50:24 GMT
Thank you Lyn & Tracey. I started felting about 5 or 6 years ago as a hobby. Then I was made redundant early last year and since then the felting has taken off. I also work as an executive coach & mentor & train people in mental health first aid but in truth the felting is dominant at the moment. I sell work through local exhibitions & via a beach hut jointly rented by an artists & makers collective in Whitstable Harbour as well as a little shop attached to the studio I rent which is part of a cafe / Gallery / studios in Faversham. I’m hoping to do some tuition there later in the year (when I have time). I have quite a few exhibitions coming up so I’ve been keeping my nose firmly pressed to the woolly grindstone which is why I’ve so enjoyed some thinking and exploring time while on holiday, even though I don’t have any actual wool with me!
Many thanks for the kind comments. I’m happy to post more photos if you’re interested to see them.
Lindsay
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Post by lyn on Feb 23, 2018 16:13:43 GMT
It sounds great Lindsay! Good luck with the workshops - it's a very inviting location for felt students.
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Post by Shepherdess on Feb 23, 2018 17:52:41 GMT
Welcome, what lovely pictures you made. Did you have any art training before you started in with felt?
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Post by MTRuth on Feb 23, 2018 21:31:20 GMT
Welcome Lindsay! Glad you joined us and it's great to see your work. I love the bird and seashore pictures. The pods and bowls are great too. I am looking forward to seeing the results from the book resist method.
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Post by Pandagirl on Feb 24, 2018 2:15:54 GMT
Welcome Lindsay! Your work is wonderful. I love water inspired works. I look forward to seeing more.
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Post by lindsay on Feb 24, 2018 4:48:58 GMT
Thanks all for the friendly welcome & kind comments. No, I don’t have any art training. I just took a one day introduction to wet felting course & was amazed at the magic of turning wool into fabric and the seemingly endless possibilities of how to do it and what to create. As others have said, it’s also remarkably forgiving so if I find I’ve got a bird’s legs a little in the wrong place I just take them off and start again! I do spend a lot of time looking at and trying to represent water. The sea around this area is rarely your tropical azure type - the merino wool colours I use most are called pewter, ash & seal which I think says a lot! This one (Ringed Plover, the Oaze, Seasalter) uses a lightly felted silk scarf from a charity shop to add texture In this picture (Oyster Catcher, Plumpudding Island) I cobweb felted the section of water in front of the wave first to try to capture the wet area while still seeing the pebbles. This also shows how great silk hankies are for helping create foam - I love this technique & use it a lot now. I find if you layer them up they don’t completely felt down so you can tease them up once the work is dry for a really 3D effect ( you can see this better in some of the pictures I posted earlier). You can also see what I mean about the colour of the water - not exactly turquoise. Hope you find them interesting. I’m really enjoying surfing around the forum to see what other people have been up to. Such great creativity. Lindsay
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Post by lindsay on Feb 24, 2018 4:58:05 GMT
Oops, the oystercatcher picture I copied didn’t really show what I was describing. Don’t you love it when technology puts you in your place! This is should be better
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