The show is only one week away! I am still busy getting last minute things done for the booth. In process now are carding my new SUNSET ART BATTS!
I needle felted the batt onto a pre-felt. Then I needled the image on. Final stitching in progress. Going to put this one in a shadow box.
These batts will be sold at the show and in my Etsy store soon!
HAPPY CREATING!
Anita
Good Morning!
If you are interested in learning to create your own wool painting using needle felting techniques, I have just the thing for you!
Go to my website and check out my Free “5 Easy Steps to Creating a Wool Painting” . It is a PFD download and is loaded with pictures and lots of how to’s!! You will also have access to my Wool Painting Facebook group. It is a place to post your work, ask questions, and make comments.
I look forward to seeing you soon!
Happy Creating!
Anita
I am so honored and excited to announce that 2 of my wool paintings have been accepted to the Nature Art Showcase and Sale! The show will be held at Barrow-Civic Theatre; 1223 Liberty Street, Franklin, PA and is is part of the “Franklin on Ice Festival” held in Franklin, PA.
Artwork was to be inspired by and represent the natural or outdoor recreational assets of Clarion, Crawford, Erie, Mercer, Venango, Forest, or Warren Counties.
The event is sponsored by the council on Greenways & Trails https://www.nwpagreenways.org/
Typically available are 2-D and 3-D items including paintings, sculpture, metal fabrication, fabric arts, jewelry, wearable art, photography, pottery, drawings, wood carving, watercolor, and more. Showcase hours open Friday, February 7 with a free public reception featuring the artists from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m.; and continue on Saturday, February 8 from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
One volunteer was quoted as:“It’s so refreshing on a winter day to enter the comfortable display area and view widely varied colorful art celebrating four seasons of outdoor recreational experiences and natural settings throughout northwestern Pennsylvania,” said Mrs. Marilyn Black
Artists Reception
The public is invited to attend the Friday evening, February 7 Artists Reception from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m., or the Saturday open hours from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
During the Friday evening reception, musicians will be strolling throughout the art display area. Juliet Hilburn of Hydetown (who is a member of the Franklin Silver Cornet Band) will play the flute. Violins and fiddles will be the instruments of choice for 9-year-old Danae Hansford of Knox, PA and 16-year-old Danika Stroup of Clarion County; both violinists are accomplished performers of classical as well as bluegrass/country music.
Also, the Friday reception will be catered by John Kluck with appetizers, desserts and family friendly drinks.
I will be there Friday night 5-7pm. I would love to chat with you about my wool paintings. I hope you can stop by for this wonderful event!
Happy Creating!
Anita
What’s the difference between wool felt & felted wool? Both are made from the same ingredients, wool roving, but they are created very different.
It starts with fiber that has been sheered from an animal…most often a sheep.
These fibers are then cleaned and carded (the process of breaking up unorganized clumps of fiber and realigning them). The result is what we call wool roving. Now here’s where each textile takes a different path.
WOOL FELT
Wool Felt is a non-woven textile. There is no thread or weaving involved in the making of it. It originates as wool roving and by adding heat, moisture and agitation, the roving compacts and matts together tightly to form what we refer to as pure wool felt.
Wool felt blends are also made using the process described above but with a combination of wool fibers and those from another material. The most common combination is wool and rayon, a non-synthetic man-made fiber derived from wood pulp. Rayon’s properties are similar to those of cotton and linen, making it an excellent choice for wool blends.
Nationalnonwovens is a company that I buy a lot of my wool felt from https://www.nationalnonwovens.com/Applications/Arts.html
FELTED WOOL
Felted Wool is a woven textile. There is thread and weaving involved. Like wool felt, it originates as wool roving, but the roving is spun into thread after being cleaned and carded. This thread is then woven into wool cloth, which is washed in hot water and dried on high heat to emulate the “add heat, moisture and agitation” process used to make wool felt. This process turns wool fabric into felted wool.
This felted wool then becomes a solid piece of fabric that you can cut without fraying. Some wool felts harder and more dense then others. So you would have to decide what type of project you are making. A fabric that is not tightly felted would not be good for cutting small applique shapes out of as it would have a tendency to fray.
Wool roving is also spun into yarn, which is used for knitting wool sweaters and accessories such as scarves and mittens. You can “felt” these knitted items as well but regardless of your wash/dry temperatures, they will not compact as tightly as wool fabric woven from thread. A good rule of thumb when looking for wool garments at the thrift store it that the item is made from 80% wool or more.
WHICH ONE SHOULD I USE?
I have used both. Wool felt is soft yet strong and comes in a variety of colors. It is also more economical to purchase then wool fabric. Felted wool comes in many colors and patterns. It is however, more expensive but the choices in patterns are more. I use both sometimes in a piece…whatever works with the project I am working on. There are some ladies who prefer their wool applique to be authentic; all done in felted wool all.
I hope this information helps clear the confusion!
Happy Creating!
Anita
What a fun idea! Making play mats from wool. While this website is not an actual tutorial it does explain the process used for creating this cute scene.
I spent some time on Pinterest and found an abundance of examples for felted play mats.
How about a seascape with lots of fun underwater creatures!
This is not a play mat but I had some fun making 3-dimensional Scenes. Snowman Scene for the holidays.
Well, I better get going as I am now fully inspired! What will you create? Let me know. I’d love to hear from you!!
Happy Creating!
Anita
I was on Pinterest this morning and came across this cool idea for a journal cover. It was from the blog post of Expression Fiber Arts. What a great way to use up small bits of wool, ribbons, and other scrap fibers and jewlery! I think this is my next project!
Off to do some Holiday visiting!
Happy Creating!
Anita
Greetings!
Another holiday season is upon us. We have not had much snow here but today everything is covered in white. It has been a busy and emotional year. Through it all the act of creating has kept me sane!
I had fun using some unusual fabric and pre-fusable Hawaiian applique cutouts. This piece was quilted using my Sashiko Machine. WOW! what a learning experience that was!!
I vended at two new shows this year that was for handmade finished products; Wildwind in Pittsfield, PA and Crary Art Gallery in Warren, PA. Both were alot of fun and got to talk to people from the community where I grew up. I also have a booth at the Titusville Market Square in Titusville, PA. It features my handmade goods. They are open seven days a week.
I stretched myself with my needlefelting and created some Wool Paintings. Yes! They are all made of wool fibers felted together in a dry needling process. One lady had to touch one to make sure it really was made of wool…LOL
I also went back to making gnomes and this year added the elf. What fun to see their individual personalities come to life.
The santa gnomes were a big hit!
I am taking a bit of a break right now. Doing research for new projects for next year. I have myself quite booked with a record number of shows to vend at….6!!! The first one is in March and I will also be teaching 2 classes and demonstrating. It will be an exciting year for sure!
Look for new updates on my etsy store with a brand new name in the new year. I am finally making a committed effort to getting things on the etsy store….YEAH!
I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas
Happy Creating!
Anita
New shop listing: March blessings Kit
I wanted to create something that would appeal to everyone not just the Irish lovers! It has the feel of St. Patrick’s day but can be put up anytime.
This banner is 6″ wide and 18″ long. Wool cut outs and wool felt background provided in kit.
Kit is $10.00 + 4.00 shipping. It can be found under Shop Anita’s Homespun–wool kits.
Happy Creating!
Anita 🙂
Over the past several months I have done multiple wool paintings. These were wet felted and are in need of being finished. Finishing means putting in some machine stitching, hand stitching, extra needle felting or other embellishments to add extra texture and depth to a painting.
One of my favorite artist in this media is Moy Mackay
Her work is absolutely stunning and so inspirational. 
These paintings have all been made using wool and other fibers. She creates such detail and texture in her pieces.
I just received her latest book The Art of Moy Mackay I have her previous 2 books and they were awesome but I am blown away by the detailed information in this book. I can’t wait to get into it and pick up ideas to finish my pieces and create some new ones! 🙂
Happy Creating!
Anita 🙂
Brrrrrrrrr…..it’s cold outside! Negative numbers the last two days 😦 But, I am turning my thoughts to spring. Currently I am working on a new wall hanging inspired by the picture above; featuring penny flowers 🙂
Background will be a dyed piece of wool with sky and ground. You fill in your garden with wool applique and stitching. It is a great way to explore new stitches or adding beads and other embellishments! I’ve got my pennies and threads ready to go!
If you are not sure what stitches to try, Creative Stitching by Sue Spargo
Now off to dye some wool background pieces and get stitching!
Happy Creating! Anita ❤
Anita's Fiber Art 