'We are Siamese'

One of this month's completed orders.

 

 Isobel and Phoebe  - best friends forever.

 

Pheebs and Izzy to their friends.

Sukey & fame

Another toy rolls off the production line - Sukey was ordered back in Spring. She is a near-copy of another blue cat, Selina, I made a while back. But a bit different.

Her nose is a little heart and her tail rises ever so gently in the air as if it is in mid-twitch. Or simply saying 'hello'.

And the fame? Well, the UK magazine 'Let's Get Crafting' did an introduction to needle felting this month - here is someone who's work I've known since my early felting days, Melanie of Felt Me Up Designs and her jolly little birds.

Oh, and me with a few of my thingys, answering a few questions about the craft. I think this magazine is available at the usual places such as WHSmith, but I've popped the questions in below as well. Not sure about the fame, but it's very nice to be picked out.

How did you start needle felting?

Two and a half years ago I received an anonymous needle felting kit in the post. I had been getting several comments on my blog that I should try needle felting actual models of the 'Imaginary Toys' artworks that I paint, (I am also a professional artist and illustrator) but I didn't know what it was then. Had I not been sent the kit, I might never have tried it! As soon as I picked up a needle and realised that I could sculpt the merino wool into anything I liked, I was hooked and haven't stopped since. Little did I know then that my collectible toys would be such an instant hit or that I would end up making them as my main career. That single mysterious gift changed my whole life.

What do you enjoy about it?

It is one of the simplest crafts I have ever tried; a few needles, a cushioned block and some wool and you are away! The only limit is your imagination and hand skills - it really is a form of sculpting and the better your visual spatial awareness, the better you will be at it. It is also cheap - small amounts of wool will only cost a few pounds and it is a portable craft which can be done tidily on your lap - no mess! I find it totally absorbing and therapeutic and so satisfying to create a real model from your imagination.

How long does it take you to make your larger toys?

A very long time - several days. I've never really timed myself, but a small, simple thing like my Camellia dog design will take at least twenty hours of solid work. I am often asked how I get the fine, smooth finish on my toys; there is no magic, instant technique, just hours of patient fine tuning; stabbing gently away with one fine needle, tucking the wispy hairs in, until I get the firm, smooth surface I prefer.

What's your favourite creation?

Oooh, difficult! My animals are tiny pieces of my soul and they seem to transform themselves into such funny little personalities. I love my goose birds and my elephants - but If I really had to pick just one it would be Oscar, as he was a real character, and such a happy chap.

Something wicked...

Something wicked this way comes...with cloven hooves and devilish little horns. The type nerds amongst you might like to know that her name tag uses the appropriate 'Alleycat' font.






Just in time for Hallowe'en, curling her tail in a lady-like manner - (held up entirely on its own; no pipe cleaner core, just hours of painstaking stabbing...)





But just to show she is really a sweet little pussy cat, she has a heart hidden right under that pointed tail...

MINXIE - ON SALE at ETSY

(I decided it was time to start re-stocking my poor little Etsy shop, and inbetween studio work and house work, I found time to split time in two, thus enabling me to get my orders cleared and do some 'me' stuff too. I don't expect the Noble science prize for the little time-splitting thing, but I am quite pleased with Minxie's tail...)

Mouse and friends

I started life as a mysterious cone...was I a toadstool?




Eyes - now I can see! What are those long ears? Am I a rabbit?




Oh dear...I really don't feel right in these ears. but I like my big green slippers. My eyes are too small though.




Oh that's much better! I am - a mouse!




And here I am with my good friend, the blue cat.




She is a rare Chocolate Point Turquoise Siamese.



And here we are with our other friends, Peggy Goose and Yellow Dog the Third.




Tomorrow we set off on our big, secret adventure...

Eloise and Heinz

The days seem to be passing in a blur of needle stabbing; taking old designs (the simple Siamese cat card, did I really paint that...oh dear...) and tweaking them -

- taking them one step further and creating a pink-pointed Siamese.




Finding that it is one thing to design a sausage dog on paper...




...and another to make it in 3D. The legs went horribly wrong and some major surgery was called for - not a sight for the squeamish!

But with some careful study of what the structure of a Dachshund really looks like, I rescued him. He was named Heinz in honour of the only tinned soup I allow in the house. Because there really isn't anything quite like it. Run for the ball, Heinz!

Sit up and beg!

Dig for that bone boy!

Eloise and Heinz are off to their new homes; Eloise is going far across the Atlantic to America, and Heinz is just popping over the county border. Now I have to think about my first custom order...and finish another goose.

Delighted this week - as always - to receive greetings from Adanaland. The King of Adanaland had seen my link to goblin-artist extraordinaire, Jean-Baptiste Monge, and along with a choice selection of letter-press goodies -

- was this decorative goblin type, are they not delicious?

I have found a company which actually makes tiny wooden wheels and axles. Despite my aspirations, I am not an all-encompassing craft goddess, and I am particularly lousy at any form of woodwork, so making my own was out of the question. But wheels I must have, for ducks, birds, horses and - oh, anything really. Needle felt wheely toys, I cannot wait!