Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Wattwurm (Arenicola Marina) Throw- Pt. 1

Laying out layers of white merino roving.



Adding raw locks.



More Jacob Hoggett fleece in a meandering pattern.



The finished layout.



When I've visited the North Frisian Island of Foehr...

...I've been struck by the strange beauty of the mud flats (watt) at low tide.

The tideland on this lovely little island is rich in biodiversity...

...and the wattwurm (lugworms in English...sadly, not as lovely!) can make up nearly a third of the biomass of such beaches!

After these worms feed...

...they produce large castings which are easily seen on the surface of the flats.

The image of these odd casings is the inspiration for this throw...

...but I didn't have the heart to call it what it is...

..."The worm poo throw"!! Giggle.

I laid out perpendicular layers of white wool roving...

...folding in the edges to make a nice rectangular shape.

I then began to lay out sections of my lovely Jacob Hoggett fleece...

...dipping each piece in soapy water to help it adhere and felt properly.

As I added more and more locks...

...I allowed myself to dream of the sea...the gulls...and the breeze. Sighhhhh.

Next time: the finished throw.

10 comments:

Kelly said...

OOh I like this! What are the dimensions of it BEFORE you felted it? You know since you put it out there, it's all I will think about..... Worm Poo throw! hahahaha!!! Sometimes I can be so juvenile ;)
I cannot wait to see the finished throw!

WonderWhyGal said...

I do love Jacob! I can't wait to see how it turns out...I had a nuno felting failure this last weekend. I still have so much to learn but...at least I'm experimenting.

Worm poo...tehehe

Heather Woollove said...

Kelly...approx 40 X 60 inches.
I'm glad that both you and Andrea like the 'worm poo' !
Andrea--I've had a few nuno failures, myself. Remember that you have to start with COOL, soapy water and ROLL a lot first... otherwise, the wool will felt to itself before the fibers can go through the fabric!!

vilterietje said...

great piece of work! ieven more love the cause of inspiration:)

Anonymous said...

You have certainly had a lot of fun with that Jacob Hoggett fleece, and I have no doubt this will be another fine project when it's finished. Worm poo eh? Interesting. :)

Heather Woollove said...

Thanks, Riet and Sandie!

Hooked On Felt said...

Love what you are doing here Heather....looking forward to seeing it completed. Very interesting!

Heather Woollove said...

Thanks, Suzanne!

Anonymous said...

lovely ideas you have !! I immediately knew what you meant... the things are always on teh sadn and my kids always wonder what it is :)

Heather Woollove said...

Kim--When he was a little boy, my boyfriend's German mother told him that the worm castings were 'just sand' and that he should step on them because the soft sand was good for his feet! Ugh. :)