It's A Baby Boom! Wet-Felted Play Mats- Part 5 of 5

My three completed baby gifts.

 

A close-up of one of the cones...

...telescoped down.

 

Mat one with the cones flattened...

 

...and popped up for play.

 

Mat two with the cones down...

 

...and up...

...doesn't the purple one look like an elephant's trunk?

 

Mat three with its single cone down...

 

...and up.

 

As you can see...

...each of the play mats has convertible 'appendages'...

...for a baby to manipulate or hold onto.

The tubes can be pushed through to the back...

...or craftily 'peered through' for fun.

Since the cones were dried in the collapsed position...

...they easily fold back down when you want them flat again.

It's A Baby Boom! Wet-Felted Play Mats- Part 4 of 5

Carefully trimming holes in the felt behind the 'extensions'.

 

Notice the nylon stitches, holding the pre-felt tube or cone in place.

 

Never fear...the knots in the yarn that I placed at the project back...

 

...will be trimmed a bit shorter after felting.



Adding plastic and foam resists within the 'extensions'... 

 

...to keep them from felting together, flat...

...or felting into the white mat.



The piece begins to shrink and thicken during felting...

 

...and now the fulling begins!

(Looks a bit like a jellyfish, here, doesn't it?) :)

 

After stitching the cones and tubes to the mat surface...

...I trimmed circles of felt from the project back.

To keep the 'extensions' patent during the final felting...

...I filled each hole with pieces of thin plastic or foam.

Next time: the finished play mats...

...in all of their convertible glory! :)

It's A Baby Boom! Wet-Felted Play Mats- Part 3 of 5

Using foam resists to make cylindrical...

 

...and cone-shaped pre-felts in bright colors.

 

Centering each pre-felt shape within a 'yarn circle'...



...and stitching them to the mat with nylon thread...

 

...for a 3-D effect.

 

Play mat number two with 'extensions' in different colors.

 

A view of the mats from the top...

 

...and from the side.

 

Using wool roving in bright colors...

...I fashioned various pre-felt shapes using foam resists.

I hand-stitched these 'extensions'...

...to the center of each 'yarn-defined' circle or diamond...

...with sturdy nylon thread.

Next time: I prepare the mats for final felting.

It's A Baby Boom! Wet-Felted Play Mats- Part 2 of 5

Stitching around the perimeter...

 

...and adding circles (and a diamond!)...

 

...with multi-colored synthetic yarn.

 

Stitching into pre-felt is a lovely thing...

..."like buttah"!

 

Here's a second one...

 

...with just circles this time.

 

I placed all of the knots at the back for a more finished look.



I love the way that this yarn magically changes color as you stitch! :)

 

Reprising the use of some variegated yarn...

...last seen in this post...

...I happily stitched away on my lovely, soft pre-felt pieces.

I outlined the perimeter of each mat...

...and added central shapes for a later (secret) purpose. :)

Next time: those secrets are revealed!

"My Life" Sculpture/Cowl- Part 3 of 3

Twisted upon itself as a sculpture...



...or opened up into a cowl... 

...there is very nearly every color of the rainbow here... 

 

...depending on where you look!

 

Because I have one daughter who is particularly fond of handmade felt..

...this piece has now been appropriated for use as a cowl.

 

It can be twisted around to suit the color of her jacket...

 

...or to highlight a new section of the piece when she gets bored.

 

Good-bye sculpture!! :)

 

Now that you have a better idea of the scale of this project...

...you can imagine how large it was in the pre-felt stage.

I'm delighted that "My Life" has now found new purpose(!) as a cowl...

...instead of sitting around on a shelf, collecting dust. :)

"My Life" Sculpture/Cowl- Part 2 of 3

Making more cuts into the partially felted piece.



The stitched and snipped project...

...prior to... 

...and during the final felting. 

The finished and dried piece after more 'scissors surgery'...

 

...can be twisted one way into a sculpture...

 

...or another...

 

...revealing shocking sections of color...

 

...like a geode or a millefiori bead!

 

As you can see...

...'my life' is not exactly as it may have first appeared! :)

By taking a pair of sharp scissors to the finished felt...

...we get a peek inside the dense, multi-layered layout...

...and into my colorful life, as well! ;)

Next time: more photos of the finished project as sculpture...

...and also, worn as a cowl!!