A Garage Full 'O Wool

The wild and the wooly.

 

What an inviting chair!

 

Fleece strung on orange snow fencing.

 

A close up of very dirty fleece.

 

I managed to get my hands on a lot of raw fleece lately...

...from an area farm that raises sheep for its meat, not its wool.

This fleece is a combination of Dorset, Suffolk and Romney...

...and when clean, the colors of the wool are strikingly different!

Because these animals were not coated, nor was the fleece well-skirted during shearing...

...there's quite an aromatic scent that wafts from my garage whenever the door is opened! :)

(I can just imagine what my neighbors think when they catch a quick peek!)

I've made two quite disparate projects from it so far...

...and I'm hoping to use more of it, soon.

After all, I'm afraid that if I leave it in the garage too long...

...I may find that it's become a home for all manner of living creatures!! Shudder.

Barnacle Pillow Tutorial- Part 4 (of 4)

The pillow covered in netting and wetted out.

 

After felting and spinning dry.

 

The finished pillow...stuffed a little less firmly than the earlier two.

 

Barnacle pillows in all their glory!

 

Well, I hope by now you can see why I call these barnacle pillows...

...since they're covered with the kind of stuff sailors spend a lot of time scraping off!! Giggle.

You can see the differences that come about when working inside-out and
right-side-out...

...and how the schlumpy placement of raw locks in the smaller ones...

...resulted in a completely different 'look'.

I think they'll lead to some interesting conversations when my daughter displays them on the sofa in her new apartment...

...or maybe she'll keep them sequestered in her own room...

...as sort of an 'eyes-only' kind of thing! :)

Barnacle Pillow Tutorial- Part 3 (of 4)

Laying out white roving for the inside of the large pillow.

 

The back side of the pillow...wetted out.

 

Adding raw locks to the pillow front.

 

The pillow just prior to felting.

 

I made this pillow a little differently than the earlier two...

...since I wanted a bit more control over the placement of my raw locks.

Instead of working from the outside-in, I made it right side out...

...and quite a bit larger, too.

For the back side of the pillow, I laid out orange and yellow roving...

...in a bullseye pattern.

For the front, I added individual locks of raw wool...

...from Jacobs, Black Romney and Icelandic sheep.

Before attaching the locks to the roving...

I dipped each one into a diluted soap solution, to help with the attachment.

Next time: the end of the wild pillows!

Raw Fleece Guest Room Rug- Part 2

The rug with tulle covering during felting.



The finished rug.



I think it looks a little like apricots and nuts in nougat! :)



The finished rug in situ.



Compared to my own raw fleece rug...

...this one came out a bit thinner and larger.

And without the addition of Icelandic locks...

...it's definitely less hairy and boingy!

I'm excited about the little bursts of color that the orange and red roving provide, though...

...and because it's multi-colored, I think it will coordinate with lots of different color schemes.

The best surprise was how well the grotty grey roving felted in...

...reminding me that there's nearly always a way to salvage less than stellar supplies. :)

So there you have it; the rug and room are here, just waiting for you...

...for when you come to visit me someday!

Raw Fleece Guest Room Rug- Part 1

Starting the layout.

 

Adding Black Romney and Jacobs fleece, white roving and bright bits.

 

With a mountain of raw fleece left to add! :)

 

The finished layout.

 

After making my own raw fleece bedroom rug...

...I wanted to try another one for my guest room ...for when all of you fiber artist friends of mine come to visit!! :)

This was also a clean up my stash kind of project...

...since I was able to use what was left of my first Jacob Hoggett fleece...

...some wonky white and grey roving that I normally only use for stuffing...

...and some of the red and orange 'felted while dyeing' commercial roving that you last saw here and here.

I wanted to make a larger rug this time...

...and one with a more oval shape (for more cold feet coverage when you get out of bed in the morning!).

As I added the concentric rings of roving...

...I tucked in colored bits of 'ribbon roving' here and there.

And I used lengths of wonky white and grey roving...

...to wrap around and corral my raw fleece into place.

Next time: the finished rug.

Raw Locks Bedroom Rug- Part 2

Wetted out and partially felted rug.



'Boingy' Jacob Hoggett locks.



The finished piece...hanging to dry.



My new bedroom rug 'in situ'.



Working with raw fleece takes a bit of stamina...

...and it's also a pretty dirty undertaking.

I make a point of washing my hands carefully and often while I work...

...and I keep the dirty waste water well away from food preparation areas.

When I'm finished with each project, I clean my sink and equipment with bleach...

...and I've made sure that my tetanus booster shot is up to date, just in case!

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But, all that being said...

...I just love the beautiful, earthy smell of raw wool while I work!

And nothing beats the sensual pleasure of stepping out of bed each morning...

...and sinking my toes into this wonderfully-textured, soft, thick, cloud of wool!!

Raw Locks Bedroom Rug- Part 1

Laying out raw wool in concentric circles...
...with the tips that were outermost on the sheep facing down.



Covering the locks with orange wool/silk roving.



Filling the center with white wool roving.



Topping the layout with a layer of cheesecloth.



As I think you may already know...

...I've been having a bit of a love affair with raw locks, lately!!

I wanted to make a piece using wool from my dwindling stash...

...of Black Romney, Jacob Hoggett and Icelandic fleeces.

I thought a new bedroom rug would be a nice project...

...fun to make (not too large) and super cozy on my toesies! :)

I laid out raw locks in circles...

...making each ring from a different breed of fleece.

Black Romney wool looks the most grey and tan...

...Jacob Hoggett locks show up as 'poufs' of black, brown and white...

...and the black and white Icelandic wool is 'doing the wild thing' and sticking out everywhere!!

I covered the surface of the locks with a layer of blended silk and wool roving in my favorite color (plus white for the middle)...

...and wrapped the whole shebang with a layer of cheesecloth.

Next time...

...how the project looked during felting...

...and the finished rug!

A "Tote Tale"- Bag Number Two

Laying out the raw locks.

 

Fulling the bag after felting.

 

The finished tote.

 

A peek inside.

 

After making a quite feminine and demure tote bag for my friend, Dawn...

...it was time to let my 'freak flag fly', and make one for me!! Giggle.

I don't know about you...

...but, lately, nothing seems wilder, or more fun than using raw locks!

(Love them!!!!)

And, of course, the bag had to be orange...

...good guess, Kelly!! Har.

Working with raw wool locks can be a bit challenging...

...but I've found that a quick dip in concentrated soap solution helps them to attach a bit more firmly to the roving.

I love the way the Black Romney fleece knotted up during felting...

...and you might notice that the bag came out a bit smaller than tote #1

(I think I must have used fewer layers of wool this time).

Next time, I'll show you a tote that I made the other day that was a huge failure...

...and how I re-purposed it for functional use!! :)

P.S. Even though it looks like I didn't cover the entire circular resist this time, I assure you that I did...

...there is white roving alongside the 'orange handle' section...

...it's just difficult to see in the photograph! :)