Portuguese Pencil-Roving Tote- Part 2 of 2

Using masking tape...

...to accurately position the handles prior to stitching.



I zigzag stitched along the exposed seams...

...for a neater interior appearance.

 

The front of the finished tote...



...which, thanks to the box bottom...

...easily stands on its own for 'filling'! :)

 

The back of the finished tote.

 

Despite the color disparity (green and tan)...

...I really like the way this lining coordinates with the felt. :)

 

Portuguese Pencil-Roving Tote- Part 1 of 2

A large piece of flat felt made with pencil roving...

...and wool roving from Bordeleria sheep.

(Shown here, along with my nuno felted beret and a classmate's raw fleece project. )

 

Quirky wax-resist batik fabric...

...that I purchased at an outdoor market in Rotterdam.

 

Stitching the lining fabric to the felt sheet...

...to create an open-top envelope.



Making a box bottom...

 

...then turning the project right-side out.

 

Fashioning long leather straps.

 

This was a summer project that I somehow neglected to show you...

...so I guess now is finally the time! :)

With felt made from light brown Bordeleria roving...

...and hairy pencil roving (from Portuguese sheep)...

...plus wonderful batik fabric that I purchased in Rotterdam...

...I constructed this light, roomy tote.

I stacked the felt and lining, wrong sides together...

...and stitched them up into an envelope...

...then re-folded the project to stitch-in box corners.

I then fashioned long leather straps...

...from a large piece of black leather...

...and machine stitched them to the bag.

Next time: the finished tote.

A Plethora of Peculiar Projects- Part 7 of ? (Polka Dot Bag)

Crafting a resist with multiple parts...

 

...and covering each section with brown wool roving...

 

...and white pre-felt circles.



The fully felted purse on display...

...at our 'end of the week sharing party' in Portugal.

 

I made the white pre-felt with flax, tussah silk...

 

...milk protein and bamboo inclusions.

 

Side one of the finished bag...

 

...and side two.

 

This is another of my 'not quite finished' projects...

...that I intend for my end-of-the-month giveaway.

I think it would greatly benefit from a bit of hand-stitching at the mouth of the bag...

...and the insertion of a length of cording or tubing in each handle...

...for structural support.

A Plethora of Peculiar Projects- Part 6 of ? (Eco-Dyed Helmet)

Felting white wool roving with tussah silk, bamboo and milk protein fibers...

...over an egg-shaped resist...

 

...then trimming out a small section...



...in order to create ear-flaps! 

 

I altered this 'oh-so-plain' white hat in Portugal...

 

...with the ever-helpful ministrations...



...of my dear friend and natural dyeing guru...

 

...Terriea!

 

We tied both fresh and iron-water mordanted eucalyptus leaves...

...inside the inside-out hat...

...then heated it in a vinegar and eucalyptus dye bath...

...in order to achieve this lovely result!

 

This was an experimental hat...

...as I endeavored to find a new way to use an asymmetrical beret resist...

...and it was a lot of fun to make and dye!

To my eye, however, it has several 'design flaws'...

...and I believe that it would greatly benefit from a little judicious trimming.

Stay tuned for my end-of-the-month giveaway...

...if you have 'designs' on it! Giggle.

Portuguese Pencil Roving Purse

Taupe-colored, wool "un-spun" (AKA pencil roving)...

...from a Portuguese fiber mill...



...provides the design element for this bag.

 

It's covered with several layers of wool roving...

...then felted, cut open, and flipped right-side out.

 

The finished felt piece...

...on display at our class 'open house'.

(Shown here with a classmate's plant- and rust-dyed scarf.)

 

The finished bag (back)...

 

...and front...

 

...with ceramic button...

...and 'suede-side-out' leather buttonhole and strap.

 

The finished purse.

 

While in Portugal, I fiddled around with some wool pencil roving...

...that I found in a local fiber mill.

After placing it on the surface of the resist...

...I covered it with layers of white wool roving and felted it inside-out.

The suede side of a piece of black leather was used to fashion the strap and buttonhole...

...and a ceramic button completes the project.

"Wiggly Dreads" Bowl- Part 2 of 2

Mid-way through felting...

 

...lengths of roving are threaded through the bowl edge, making 'dreads'.

(Pliers are used to help to pull the thick, slippery needle through the wet felt.)

 

The piece is gathered into a bowl-like shape...

...by hand-basting with strong nylon thread...

...and then the final felting and fulling takes place.

 

The finished bowl.

 

A close-up of the felted-in wool nepps and dyed tussah silk.

 

The rather 'sedate' bowl bottom. :)

 

The finished bowl...

...with nylon basting stitches removed.

 

With this project...

...I took advantage to the propensity of felt...

...to hold a 'shape memory' once dry.

Basting the piece prior to final felting and drying...

...allowed me to remove the nylon thread...

...while retaining the desired shape.

"Wiggly Dreads" Bowl- Part 1 of 2

Laying out dyed wool nepps and tussah silk circles...

 

...in the warm company of our instructor, Nicola and my other lovely classmates.

 

Adding design elements to side two...

 

...and covering them with layers of bright roving.

 

Since this was an 'open resist' project...

...the wool rays were folded in during the layout...

...to create a finished looking open edge.

 

Covering the entire piece with dark grey roving.

 

Mid-way through felting...

 

...orange 'dreads' are added.

 

My intention was to create a wide, cylindrical bowl...

...using the 'open-resist' method.

Unfortunately, either the lay-out or the felting went a bit awry...

...and at the mid-way point, it was more of a pancake than any kind of bowl!

Next time: how a little judicious stitching with strong thread (thanks, Nicola!)...

...rescues the project from utter failure.