Bringing Birds and other Creatures to Life with Needle Wool Felting

April 27th, 2013

Recently my dear friend Sharon, who lives in Kent England, came to visit.  She brought along her skills in felt puppet making, which she learned at a storytelling workshop at a nearby Steiner school.  One day before she came to visit,  we were Skyping and she showed me the puppets she had made.  I told her I would love to learn how to make them.  She said they were very easy to make and she would teach me how when she came.  As it turned out, I wasn’t the only one who wanted to learn, so a workshop was formed.  In a matter of a few hours, felt birds and other creatures came to life.

The creations shown here were made in a morning workshop by people who had never worked with felt.  These were made with needle felting, which involves a special kind of wool felt and needles that are stabbed into the felt to bind the wool together. There are no stitches of thread to hold parts together, the wool binds itself together when the needles are stabbed through the wool.

I made a finger puppet fairy with butterfly and flower qualities

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A little sweet human like creature was made also.

Sharon had us first make a small nest and eggs to get used to punching the felt with needles. Feathers can easily be added to the felt.

Here are some  photos that  show the process and materials.

The wool used is called Norwegian C1 wool felting, or the American version can be used.  We bought our supplies from a company called Felt Alive  in Oregon.  I have lots of wool left and can’t wait to  bring some more creations to life.

Thank you Sharon for sharing your talents and teaching.   Like most other Americans, I have the idea that listening to a beautiful British accent makes it easier to learn.