Thank you. Such helpful tips! I can get really obsessive about getting a smooth surface, so I would add one more thought here for myself and anyone else who just can't seem to get a smooth enough surface: This is WOOL, after all! It's not clay, or enamel, or a polymer glaze (yuk!). It's going to look like wool, not plastic or porcelain, so embrace that! The very things we all love about wool: its tactile quality, its realistic textures for needle felted animals, its dry hand vs. the gooeyness of clay, polymer, or some other messy medium, all this means that the surfact is going to look like fiber, not something else. I have to remind myself of this all the time.
Great tips! I was especially impressed with the flat iron and making feathers…I bet you could use that to shape leaves as well 🤔 good video…thanks for the help and I love your work! That donkey 🥰
Hi, I am making a mother polar bear with baby. I do all of the things you have suggested, I like my creations to be pretty hard because I try to avoid wire where I can. Two things I have done to smooth is I have used a sandwich press (sp) for flat objects. I place it between paper or foil and then after getting the SP hot I clamp the item in and turn the SP off. I leave it for a couple of minutes. I recently made some snowmen with scarves for some children. I needle felted the wool into the length and width I wanted and then wet felted it to further make it solid and shrink a little. Then pressed it and it came out perfectly. For some things that the SP or even an iron is not practical, I get a teaspoon, heat the bowl side with a flame, candles leave black so I use a BBQ lighter. Then I just pass the back of the warmed spoon over the spots that I want flatter. But I don’t often have to because stabbing away is therapeutic for me, I like the sound too. So I don’t mind just working on it til it ‘behaves’. I noticed you have a Koala…I have done one too in the past but yours looks far superior. I have also done a gorilla, a baby orangutan, a panda, donkeys, lots of birds. sheep, elephant, goose, teddy bears , mushrooms/toadstools. I have an on going project of a large toadstool house in a fairy garden. It will be a mix of wool, polymer clay and even some natural stuff like twigs and small stones. I must get on with it. I am not good with human faces so if I do them I usually choose something a bit different. Recently I did Freddy Mercury, The Grinch, Miss Piggy and an elf. I made a budgie a few years ago and the person who bought it found an ornamental cage to display it in. But she ended up needing to suspend it from the ceiling because her cat would not leave it alone. 😂😊 I have also done eggs with flowers for easter. Some I embroidered or used tiny buttons or beads and some I made flowers from wool. Enough about me…got carried away there. A question…do you use foam or a wool pad to rest the item on. I have tried both.
Wow you have made a lot of lovely things by the sounds of it. Thank you for all the ideas on smoothing too! Never tried humans I think I'd be scared to. Plus I love animals more haha. For my felting base I used foam for years but now use a wool pad. More comfortable, lasts longer and better for environment. I like the look of it more too. I have one that is flat in two layers by the Makerss and one that is filled with wool and looks like a pillow from Heidifeathers. Your toadstool house sounds amazing. Are you in my Facebook group to share your animals?
As it is my first time as a Felter, I discovered that finishing the article to a smoother finish, I used a small pilling machine that one uses to take pilling off wooly jumpers.
I'm felting for the first time and making a bison armature. Using core wool and bison roving and forelock for the body and uh...fluff? mane? I made a nice enough core for a first timer...but the roving I'm using still had the presence of very stiff guard hair that is driving me bonkers! I tried a 40T to smooth things over and eventually went back to my 36T because the guard hair simply wasn't getting picked up by the finer needle. I've since learned it's just way easier to pull the roving strips to separate the worst of the guard hair before pulling off a smaller workable piece of the finer, downy roving to felt on. The lack of these guard hairs has allowed me to go back down to a finer needle to continue my work.
Thanks for this. A really helpful tutorial! Just to add my two penneth to your rather comprehensive list, I've recently started using a battery-operated jumper de-bobbler on my critters, BUT I still have to use scissors to trim off those long stubborn strands of wayward fuzz first. 🙂
I love this I would like to learn how to do this I make gnomes and I want to make the hands but would love to learn how to make a deer 🦌 also how can I start making these I want to use it for my therapy I had a stroke and this is how I use my fingers to move more oh I love this ❤❤❤
so sorry to hear about your stroke. its wonderful to hear that needle felting can help and is helping you. ive not personally made a deer yet. id use a wire armature and build it from there. sorry im late in responding. maybe youve already made one by now?
@ Hi I haven’t made a deer yet but I made a hand making a wire shape but don’t have the necessary tools for it but wrapped tape and shaped it lol so still want to learn
I've just discovered This artwork and I absolutely love it. I'm thinking of getting into it, I think it's a wonderful hobby and could even become a job? Anyone makes money off of this by selling their products? I'm curious how much these pieces could be sold for 🤔
So great you are getting into it. Some of us sell our creations but also teach workshops or sell kits/pdfs etc. Or earn through affiliate marketing or ads or sponsorship eg on youtube. Needs a lot of time and planning to make profit and need to really get yourself out there to show your skills etc. Not for everyone but can earn part-time income. Some can sell their artwork for a lot too and make full time income.
Tip number 4 is a big one.. Once I realized I just needed to Keep Going my needle felting improved. As for another tip.. Not an entirely serious one, sharing because it's kind of funny and does work a bit. You can take a lighter to your sculpture and singe off stray hairs... just be careful not to burn your sculpture too lol. This also might not be the safest thing to do if there's a lot of loose fibers on your self/crafting area. Use caution!! Children: Don't do this.
Thank you. Such helpful tips! I can get really obsessive about getting a smooth surface, so I would add one more thought here for myself and anyone else who just can't seem to get a smooth enough surface: This is WOOL, after all! It's not clay, or enamel, or a polymer glaze (yuk!). It's going to look like wool, not plastic or porcelain, so embrace that! The very things we all love about wool: its tactile quality, its realistic textures for needle felted animals, its dry hand vs. the gooeyness of clay, polymer, or some other messy medium, all this means that the surfact is going to look like fiber, not something else. I have to remind myself of this all the time.
I absolutely love this! Yes! A great reminder. 👍 🥰
Great tips! I was especially impressed with the flat iron and making feathers…I bet you could use that to shape leaves as well 🤔 good video…thanks for the help and I love your work! That donkey 🥰
Thank you for your lovely comments! I am so glad you found this useful. Yes I've made leaves and flattened them for a sleeping Hazel dormouse before 😊
Thank you for this video. ❤
You are so welcome!
I really love your videos. You have a very soothing voice. So easy to listen to. Thank you.
Glad you like it. Thanks for watching 😊
thank you so much, i had a hard time hearing you, you have such a soft voice
So sorry you struggled to hear me. 😔 I hope you managed to get what I said?
A wonderful video sharing your knowledge so clearly. Thank you so much.
so pleased you found it helpful. thank you for saying
Thank you. I really like how you get to the point. Your very easy to listen to. I have learned quite a bit from you. You are fantastic.
Thank you so much for the lovely feedback 😊
As a new felter thank you so much for your video!
It's a pleasure 😊
Thank you so much for your excellent tips and advice. I am new to needle felting and find your videos fascinating :)
That's great to hear, thank you 😊
Thank you for the great tips. Im making a daushund sculpture.
Aw how wonderful 😊
You were awesome thank you so much. Trying to get rid of fuzzies
Aw thank you! 😊
Very helpful. Thank you so much…i’m making my first frog based on an iron skeleton…so satisfying
Sounds great!
Knowledge tips superb extremely helpful good one x
Thank you Therese. I'm pleased to hear you liked it. 😊
Wow! Thank you so much. This is incredibly helpful. Your generosity is appreciated.
I am so glad you found it helpful. Always a pleasure to create new useful videos. :-)
Brilliant video!
Thanks so much Kathy 😊
As Always Super helpful xxxx Happy felting xxxxx
Thank you Beth 😊
Hi, I am making a mother polar bear with baby. I do all of the things you have suggested, I like my creations to be pretty hard because I try to avoid wire where I can. Two things I have done to smooth is I have used a sandwich press (sp) for flat objects. I place it between paper or foil and then after getting the SP hot I clamp the item in and turn the SP off. I leave it for a couple of minutes. I recently made some snowmen with scarves for some children. I needle felted the wool into the length and width I wanted and then wet felted it to further make it solid and shrink a little. Then pressed it and it came out perfectly.
For some things that the SP or even an iron is not practical, I get a teaspoon, heat the bowl side with a flame, candles leave black so I use a BBQ lighter. Then I just pass the back of the warmed spoon over the spots that I want flatter. But I don’t often have to because stabbing away is therapeutic for me, I like the sound too. So I don’t mind just working on it til it ‘behaves’.
I noticed you have a Koala…I have done one too in the past but yours looks far superior. I have also done a gorilla, a baby orangutan, a panda, donkeys, lots of birds. sheep, elephant, goose, teddy bears , mushrooms/toadstools. I have an on going project of a large toadstool house in a fairy garden. It will be a mix of wool, polymer clay and even some natural stuff like twigs and small stones. I must get on with it.
I am not good with human faces so if I do them I usually choose something a bit different. Recently I did Freddy Mercury, The Grinch, Miss Piggy and an elf. I made a budgie a few years ago and the person who bought it found an ornamental cage to display it in. But she ended up needing to suspend it from the ceiling because her cat would not leave it alone. 😂😊
I have also done eggs with flowers for easter. Some I embroidered or used tiny buttons or beads and some I made flowers from wool.
Enough about me…got carried away there.
A question…do you use foam or a wool pad to rest the item on. I have tried both.
Wow you have made a lot of lovely things by the sounds of it. Thank you for all the ideas on smoothing too! Never tried humans I think I'd be scared to. Plus I love animals more haha. For my felting base I used foam for years but now use a wool pad. More comfortable, lasts longer and better for environment. I like the look of it more too. I have one that is flat in two layers by the Makerss and one that is filled with wool and looks like a pillow from Heidifeathers.
Your toadstool house sounds amazing. Are you in my Facebook group to share your animals?
What useful tips you give here, thank you!
As it is my first time as a Felter, I discovered that finishing the article to a smoother finish, I used a small pilling machine that one uses to take pilling off wooly jumpers.
That's a great idea too. Thank so much for sharing 😊
I'm felting for the first time and making a bison armature. Using core wool and bison roving and forelock for the body and uh...fluff? mane? I made a nice enough core for a first timer...but the roving I'm using still had the presence of very stiff guard hair that is driving me bonkers! I tried a 40T to smooth things over and eventually went back to my 36T because the guard hair simply wasn't getting picked up by the finer needle. I've since learned it's just way easier to pull the roving strips to separate the worst of the guard hair before pulling off a smaller workable piece of the finer, downy roving to felt on. The lack of these guard hairs has allowed me to go back down to a finer needle to continue my work.
Interesting and helpful. Thanks for sharing that. It can really depend on the fibres most definitely. Glad you got there in the end!
Thank you for this video. I am attempting felting for the first time. I am making a penguin.
That's great. Hope your penguin turns out well 😀
Thanks very useful
You are welcome
I’m so excited to start my needle felting journey this was suuuuuper helpful! I will start a new project right away! Tysm x💞
That's wonderful to hear! Happy Felting! 😊
Thank you so much. I think I haven't gotten some firm enough then when I planted the fur, the shape changed
Glad it was helpful. Yes with long fur I've learnt the hard way. It's worth going firmer for sure. 😊
Thanksss sooooooi much❤❤❤
You're welcome 😊
Thanks for this. A really helpful tutorial!
Just to add my two penneth to your rather comprehensive list, I've recently started using a battery-operated jumper de-bobbler on my critters, BUT I still have to use scissors to trim off those long stubborn strands of wayward fuzz first. 🙂
That's wonderful. Yes I've heard the debobblers can be a good tool too. Thank you for sharing your tip with me. Together we can de-fuzz our animals 😂😊
I have a weird ?, could you use those tools that get little balls off your sweaters a fabric shaver would those work for the little fuzz?
Fab idea! 👌 😊
I love this I would like to learn how to do this I make gnomes and I want to make the hands but would love to learn how to make a deer 🦌 also how can I start making these I want to use it for my therapy I had a stroke and this is how I use my fingers to move more oh I love this ❤❤❤
so sorry to hear about your stroke. its wonderful to hear that needle felting can help and is helping you. ive not personally made a deer yet. id use a wire armature and build it from there. sorry im late in responding. maybe youve already made one by now?
@ Hi I haven’t made a deer yet but I made a hand making a wire shape but don’t have the necessary tools for it but wrapped tape and shaped it lol so still want to learn
@@mariagonzales9992 I hope you are managing OK and enjoying the learning journey as you go. 😊
Is it possible to burn the edges or would that be too risky?
im not sure. dont think id try.
I've just discovered This artwork and I absolutely love it. I'm thinking of getting into it, I think it's a wonderful hobby and could even become a job? Anyone makes money off of this by selling their products? I'm curious how much these pieces could be sold for 🤔
So great you are getting into it. Some of us sell our creations but also teach workshops or sell kits/pdfs etc. Or earn through affiliate marketing or ads or sponsorship eg on youtube. Needs a lot of time and planning to make profit and need to really get yourself out there to show your skills etc. Not for everyone but can earn part-time income. Some can sell their artwork for a lot too and make full time income.
Thank you for this! Instead of animals, I want to make fun anime figures and charms but I've been making mascot characters and gifts for family!
Sounds great! Enjoy! 😊
Flying squirrel :)
That'll be lovely to make 😊
Tip number 4 is a big one.. Once I realized I just needed to Keep Going my needle felting improved.
As for another tip.. Not an entirely serious one, sharing because it's kind of funny and does work a bit. You can take a lighter to your sculpture and singe off stray hairs... just be careful not to burn your sculpture too lol. This also might not be the safest thing to do if there's a lot of loose fibers on your self/crafting area. Use caution!! Children: Don't do this.
Wow thanks for sharing that one! Knowing me I'd definitely set my actual felted animal alight 😄 🤣