Needle felting

I picked up a set of felting needles at the bead show. I had so much fun with the small amount of felted embellishment that I had done on Innna that I wanted to have the right tools for the job. It is amazing to me what a difference it makes to use the correct tool.

I've started another doll. This one is for an exchange on the beaded art doll list that I'm on. The rules of the exchange are that each participant is assigned a swap partner and sends their partner a face. When you receive the face in the mail, you are supposed to design a doll around it. The doll is supposed to be about 4 inches tall.

The face that I received is large and I was briefly puzzled as to how I was going to design a doll which was even moderately proportional. What I've decided on is a seated doll. I used some of the same wool felt that I used for Innna and needle felted a wonderful spiral onto it with hand painted yarn that Heather had given me. I then cut the felt into a rough triangle shape and cut another piece the same shape. Next I added more felt to the front to suggest crossed legs. The needle felted spiral forms the belly of the doll and the center of the spiral is the navel.

I need to stuff the doll but first I need to glue on the face cab. Once it's stuffed, I'll start adding some beads. I want to add more wool to suggest a blanket draped over the doll, and some yarn for hair, maybe. The blanket will probably be made with wool from a bag of unspun wool that I got several years ago when I thought that I wanted to learn to spin.

I went to the thrift shop today, in part to look for more sweaters to felt for more doll stuff. Instead I ended up buying clothes for my family. I bought 12 "onesies" and similar garments, some for as little as $0.10 each. I got a handmade choli and skirt with embroidery and mirrors and beadwork on them for Sprout. I cannot believe how much baby clothes cost new, especially when you consider how little use they get... The thrift shops are filled with baby clothes that have never even been worn, and for a tiny fraction of what was paid for them in retail stores.

I should go show Sprout's daddy her new clothes. I'm anxious to hear what he thinks of the choli/skirt set. Heather loved it and said that if I hadn't gotten it and she'd found out about it, she'd have kicked my butt.