With a little “inbetween” time, I wanted to work on a more creative felting, using a favourite image of wildflowers in late summer, growing at the Northern farmland end of Point Abino Road. Comprising mostly bull thistles and cowthistles, and a little dogwood, the colours and textures have always enspired me. I also wanted to incorporate the remaining handspun and knitted shawl that I had cut and used a few years ago. The photo above shows the “halfway” point when fibres are laid in and felted, but nothing has been stabilized with stitching. This last part of the process also blends and integrates the work together.
So, very quickly, here’s a run through the process:
Above are images showing the laying in of the wool fibres that provide not only the overall composition, but also a grounding for the top layer that will comprise various silk and plant fibres. When laying in the ground layer, I observe the “gesture” of the subject and aim to place the fibres in the direction and movement that will best give a feeling of movement and “gesture.” For example: the sky area is basically horizontal but cloud formations laid on top later on might have diagonal and swirling motions. In contrast, the distant tree line has short vertical movement, as does the foreground growth.
Technically, I use a single spiral felting needle (small barbs cut in a spiral fashion that push the fibre through the first layer of felted backing). The fibre ends remain at the back of this ground layer while the top loops remain on the top where they can be seen. The more fibres that are pushed through, the denser and thicker this top felted layer becomes. I will later use a 5-in-one needle device that achieves this finish a lot quicker and better.
The images above show the development of the work: First I have laid in many shorter 2ply strands taken from the shawls fringe (that was the fashion back in the 1970s when I made the shawl) and used them as mid-ground grasses on top of the lighter layer. Handspun yarns of diameter, textures and colours are used for the stems. Little “clumps” of fibres are used for the thistle heads and various flowers. Silk noils make excellent Queen Anne’s lace flowers. Viscose works well for the foreground thistle fibres. Pre-felted samplers cut and used for leaves. Remember, all will be stitched down so that the whole work is stable and nol components will come loose.
