Bag With 'Resist-Dyed' Accent- Part 2 of 2

Sewing the floral pocket lining to the inner bag flap.

The finished inside pocket.

Sewing on the resist-dyed accent piece.

The finished bag from the back...

...and in close-up (I think you can really see the purple/blue color blend here).

The bag front with tagua nut button...

...and up close.

When I returned home from the Creative Felt Gathering this year...

...with several lovely but modestly-sized resist-dyed felt pieces...

...I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with them!

Certainly, they would be delightful as framed art pieces...

...and some might even be large enough to use in fashioning a zippered change purse or two.

So far, however, this is the only one that I've used...

...because it seemed clear to me that this bag (in these colors)...

...was just meant for this particular piece of patterned felt! :)

I machine stitched it to the flap of the bag...

...sewing very close to the edges of the resist-dyed piece...

...and placing it in such a way as to allow for a centered button closure.

CFG Raw Fleece Purse #2- Part 2 of 2

After attaching the strap...back side.

 

The purse front.

 

With the addition of a button closure.

 

A close up of the tagua nut (corozo) button...

 

...notice how the brown Icelandic fleece has migrated through the layers of white wool roving to the inside of the bag?



This bag is delightfully wild...

 

...and I especially love the different shades of color in the locks...

...(could it be that this sheep visited her hairdresser regularly for highlights?!?!?!) Giggle.

 

I debated the color of the leather strap on this bag for some time...

...since I had pieces of both brown leather and natural deer-hide.

In the end, though, I decided that the brown was not exactly the right shade...

...and that the lighter strap echoed the paler color of the sunburnt fleece tips.

After machine stitching the strap to the purse...

...I used a pair of sharp scissors to cut a hole for the button closure.

Using waxed beading thread...

...I stitched all around the buttonhole opening for strength.

Then, keeping in mind the placement of the buttonhole...

...I hand-stitched a tagua nut button to the inside of the purse.

CFG Raw Fleece Bag #2- Part 1 of 2

Laying out raw Icelandic locks onto a wool roving-covered resist.

 

Wetting them down and beginning to felt.

 

During felting...

 

...and here.

 

Making a leather strap from deer hide.

 

This is the second (of three) raw fleece purses...

...that I made at the Creative Felt Gathering this year.

I cut a template for the resist...

...and covered it with three thin layers of white wool roving.

Next, I added sections of raw Icelandic fleece...

...placing the cut ends 'down' onto the surface of the roving.

After wetting down and rubbing the piece on both sides for a loooooong time...

...I rolled it for a bit and finished felting it...

...taking care to keep the tips of the locks as loose and free as possible.

After returning home, I trimmed deer hide into a strip, stitched it lengthwise...

...and attached it to the bag for a shoulder strap.

Next time: the finished purse...

...with a tagua nut button closure.