Easter SALE at Fairyfolk

Fairyfolk is having an Easter SALE, exclusive for my precious readers. If you use the coupon code EasterOnions at Etsy checkout, your total will be recalculated to give you a 15% discount on your entire order. This weekend only, Friends, so don't leave it too long :-) And this discount isn't only for Easter goodies, so if you have been wanting a Fairyfolk treasure, now is the time to splash out and save!

Here is a small sampling of the EASTER GOODIES you will find at Fairyfolk...

Needle Felted Easter Bunnies in colorful woolen eggs.

 Easter Candy will be eaten up but this little guy will be a friend forever.

Birds in nests.

 Bunnies in nests.

Easter Eggs

Hollow Wool Eggs for a NO-Plastic Easter

Easter Garlands

Pretty Flower Fairy Necklaces

And Bunny Noses

 Spring Nests

 DIY Spring Nest Kits

Click on this link to see all that is available in Fairyfolk.

Remember to add the code EasterOnions in the coupon box at Etsy Checkout for your discount to take effect.

Happy Easter shopping!

Blessings and magic,
Donni

Tutorial :: Needle Felted Spring Wreath

I'm so excited to share this Spring Wreath Needle Felting tutorial with you. A wonderful woodland project for fun home decorating.

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Here's a little info on Needle felting - Needle felting requires three tools; wool roving, a felting needle and a protective foam board.

Wool roving looks like cotton candy. When the sheep is sheered, the fleece is washed and dried and then it is 'carded' - brushed so that all the knots and clumps are brushed out and the fibers of the wool all run the same way. It is then dyed... any wonderful color under the sun :-) This roving can then be spun into yarn (for knitting) or it can be felted.

The protective foam board is not absolutely necessary but it is definitely recommended when you are learning to needle felt. The needle is very sharp and if you don't have a board upon which to steady your work, you will find yourself painfully stabbed more than once.

The felting needle is about 3 inches long. As I said before, it is very sharp. The tip of the needle has a number of small barbs and it is these barbs that felt the wool. It works because the outer surface of each fiber of wool has tiny, microscopic scales on it. When the fiber is agitated, the scales hook into one another, forming a tighter and tighter mass. The needle works because the barbs of the needle 'grab' the fibers as you stab it into the wool, depositing the fibers deeper into the wool. The little scales on the fibers lock together, ensuring that the fibers stay in their new place. By stabbing the wool hundreds of times with your needle, you have control over the form of your wool and can shape it as you wish. You can see the barbs if you look closely at the tip of your needle. 

This tutorial will show how to make a gorgeous woodland Spring toadstool wreath... a simple and fast project for beginner needle felting.

These are the things you'll need:
(I have a kit including everything you'll need to make this wreath available in my shop Fairyfolk)

* a vine wreath (found at craft stores)
* red, white and mossy green wool roving
* a needle felting needle
* a needle felting board
 * glue (a hot glue gun works very well but any glue will do)

 To make the two cute little toadstools, please visit this previous needle felting tutorial I shared a little white ago: Tutorial :: Needle Felted Toadstools.

When you have made two toadstools, it's time to make the moss. Break off some of the green wool roving. The size depends on how much moss you want on your wreath... a dime sized bit for a little moss, a golf ball sized bit for a lot. Roll the wool in your hands to make a ball.

Then, gently pull the wool apart with your fingers... try to make a tufty, random shape as you want the moss to look as natural on the wreath as possible.

Place the green wool on your felting board and stab at it gently to flatten it and make it look like real moss. When it is looking like moss, pry it off the board and flatten it between your hands again.

 Next, we will stick the wool toadstools and moss onto the wreath. I used my hot glue gun but regular glue will work well also... you'll just have to hold it in place for longer until the glue dries a little and sticks your wool goodies in place.

Dab a blob of glue onto the bottom end of a toadstool and stick it in place on the wreath.

 Do the same with the second toadstool and then the moss.

When the toadstools and moss have dried in place, find a pretty ribbon and hang your gorgeous woodland wreath.

I guarantee, you'll smile with delight each time you see it :-)

Just a reminder that I have this kit available for purchase in my shop Fairyfolk, including everything you'll need to make a toadstool wreath just like this one.

I have other needle felting kits available in my shop too if you wish to try something else... felted pebbles for lovely home decor, felted pumpkins, felted hearts, felted Spring nests, felted balls as well as kits of lovely colored wool for you to make whatever your heart desires. Please visit my shop Fairyfolk to see them all and look under the 'Needle Felting Kits' section.

Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any felting questions.

Happy Spring crafting, 

Blessings and magic, 

Donni

Tutorial :: Neelde Felted Robin's Nest

I am so excited to share this Spring robin's nest needle felting tutorial with you. With Spring coming up, there is so much to inspire our creativity. For me, there's nothing quite as indicative of my favorite season as a robin's nest filled with sweet little blue eggs... just like this nest I've made. Even if you've never needle felted before, you'll be amazed at how quickly and easily you can make this little treasure too.

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Needle felting equipment - Needle felting requires three tools; wool roving, a felting needle and a protective foam board.

Wool roving looks like cotton candy. When the sheep is sheered, the fleece is washed and dried and then it is 'carded' - brushed so that all the knots and clumps are brushed out and the fibers of the wool all run the same way. It is then dyed... any wonderful color under the sun :-) This roving can then be spun into yarn (for knitting) or it can be felted.

The protective foam board is not absolutely necessary but it is definitely recommended when you are learning to needle felt. The needle is very sharp and if you don't have a board upon which to steady your work, you will find yourself painfully stabbed more than once.

The felting needle is about 3 inches long. As I said before, it is very sharp. The tip of the needle has a number of small barbs and it is these barbs that felt the wool. It works because the outer surface of each fiber of wool has tiny, microscopic scales on it. When the fiber is agitated, the scales hook into one another, forming a tighter and tighter mass. The needle works because the barbs of the needle 'grab' the fibers as you stab it into the wool, depositing the fibers deeper into the wool. The little scales on the fibers lock together, ensuring that the fibers stay in their new place. By stabbing the wool hundreds of times with your needle, you have control over the form of your wool and can shape it as you wish. You can see the barbs if you look closely at the tip of your needle. 

This tutorial will show how to make this sweet robins nest... a simple and fast project for beginner needle felting.

These are the things you'll need:
(I have a kit including everything you'll need to make this nest available in my shop Fairyfolk)

* a vine nest (found at craft stores)
* blue and mossy green wool roving
* a needle felting needle
* a needle felting board
* natural twine

Start by breaking the blue wool into three strips of roughly the same size... as you can see from the photo, the lengths should be about double the width of your hand.

Roll each strip between your hands as you would if you were rolling a ball of playdough into a snake.

With your forefinger and thumb, roll the wool 'snake' into a tight spiral. The tighter you can get it, the easier it will be to felt.

Tip: I find that rolling is key in many of my felting projects... if I can roll the wool tightly to begin with, I can greatly reduce the time my form takes to felt.

 When the  blue wool has been rolled into a tight spiral, I set it down on the felting board and stab it with the needle many times around the outside of the spiral. Be slow and deliberate with your stabbing in the beginning, and concentrate, please... it hurts when you stab yourself... it's definitely not the end of the world, but it is better avoided :-)

You will soon see that this stabbing holds the wool in place and the spiral will not unravel if you let it go.

To round the ends so that your creation starts to look like an egg, gently loosen the the outside layer of wool  around the spiral by pulling it with your thumb and forefinger. Fold this pulled layer over the spiral edge and needle felt it gently. Needle felt the edges until your shape becomes a smooth round ball.

 Roll your ball in your hands as if you were rolling a marble in your hands... this will help shape your ball. Then needle felt it again into the egg shape you want.  Continue with the other strips of blue wool, following the same technique for each egg.

 Now that your eggs are ready, they need a mossy nest to nestle comfortably in. First, we need to tie our twine onto the edge of the nest so that it will hang nicely. Thread the twine through a strand of vine and fasten it with a knot. Do the same for the other side, making sure that your nest hangs straight before making the second knot.



Now we need to line the nest with moss. Take about a handful of mossy green wool and gently pull it so that it makes a rough circle. Gently flatten it between your hands.

Place this green wool over the nest and push it into the hollow of the nest.

 Needle felt the wool gently into the nest. Remember to keep your nest on the protective foam board as your needle will sometimes go all the way through the nest and you don't want the nest to be sitting on your lap when the needle pokes through the bottom! Ouch!

 You will see that as you gently needle felt the wool into the strands of the nest, the nest indent will become more and more pronounced, making a lovely hollow for the sweet little eggs to nestle in.

In go the three little robins eggs and Voila! What a sweet Spring nest you have made. Just perfect for hanging from your chandelier, twig tree on your nature table or anywhere else in your home that is ready to welcome in the Spring.

Just a reminder that I have this kit available for purchase in my shop Fairyfolk, including everything you'll need to make a robins nest just like this one.

I have other needle felting kits available in my shop too if you wish to try something else... felted pebbles for lovely home decor, felted pumpkins, felted hearts, felted wreaths, felted balls as well as kits of lovely colored wool for you to make whatever your heart desires. Please visit my shop Fairyfolk to see them all and look under the 'Needle Felting Kits' section.

Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any felting questions.

Happy Spring crafting, 

Blessings and magic, 

Donni

Tutorial : Felted Pebbles

Fairyfolk Felting Kits   www.fairyfolk.etsy.com

Tutorial : Felted Pebbles 

 I am so excited to share this felting tutorial. You have shown interest in giving it a go and I encourage you to dive right in. Others of you who are hooked will agree, it is such a fun hobby and you'll be amazed at the things you can make. When I picked up my first needle three years ago, I was surprised at how quickly I took to it. One of the things I love most about needle felting is that you can finish a project in one sitting. You can sit down with a basket of wool and be holding a delightful toadstool in your hands an hour later. Of course, you can make wonderfully elaborate creations that take hours and hours but you can also make something in twenty minutes too. I like that.

This tutorial (and others like it) is published on my blog, The Magic Onions, in color if you'd rather follow the color, online, directions... www.themagiconions.blogspot.com (search: needle felted pebbles).

There are two felting techniques... wet felting and needle felting. This is a super project for the beginner as it requires both techniques. Needle felting requires three tools; wool roving, a felting needle and a protective foam board. Wet felting requires hot water and soap... dishwashing detergent is preferred.

Wool roving looks like cotton candy. When the sheep is sheered, the fleece is washed and dried and then it is 'carded' - brushed so that all the knots and clumps are brushed out and the fibers of the wool all run the same way. It is then dyed... any wonderful color under the sun :-) This roving can then be spun into yarn (for knitting) or it can be felted.


The protective foam board is not absolutely necessary but it is definitely recommended when you are learning to needle felt. The needle is very sharp and if you don't have a board upon which to steady your work, you will find yourself painfully stabbed more than once.


The felting needle is about 3 inches long. As I said before, it is very sharp. The tip of the needle has a number of small barbs and it is these barbs that felt the wool. It works because the outer surface of each fiber of wool has tiny, microscopic scales on it. When the fiber is agitated, the scales hook into one another, forming a tighter and tighter mass. The needle works because the barbs of the needle 'grab' the fibers as you stab it into the wool, depositing the fibers deeper into the wool. The little scales on the fibers lock together, ensuring that the fibers stay in their new place. By stabbing the wool hundreds of times with your needle, you have control over the form of your wool and can shape it as you wish. You can see the barbs if you look closely at the tip of your needle. 

Wet felting - have you ever washed your favorite wool sweater on the hot cycle by mistake? If you have, you would have been utterly disappointed to find that the hot water and detergent had shrunk your sweater... that is, the hot water, detergent and agitation of the washing machine would have acted exactly like the felting needle, interlocking the little scales on each wool fiber into tighter and tighter felt. In essence, you would have wet felted your sweater.


Felted Pebbles

We start the project by wrapping the pebble in the wool. Make sure you have two pieces of the same colored wool for each rock. Lay one piece of wool flat and set the rock in the middle of it. Wrap the wool around the rock as if you were wrapping a baby in a blanket. Do not worry that the edges of the rock are still showing.

 Use your needle to secure the wool in place around the rock by gently poking your needle into the wool where the folds overlap. Poke gently, at an angle that allows the needle to slide over the stone underneath.

 Lay the other strip of wool flat. Place your partially wrapped stone on this strip, in the opposite direction to last time you wrapped it. Tightly fold the wool over the pebble, covering the ends of the stone that were exposed.

  

Secure the wool in place by needle felting it with your needle as before.

Needle felt all around your pebble, making sure that no part of your pebble is exposed. If it is, gently pull the wool over the exposed section and needle felt it into place.





Now for the 'vein' on you pebble. Using the white 'pencil roving' that is in your kit, gently pull the fibers apart so that you separate the the 'pencil' into two strips. Divide again so that you have 4 strips of white wool.

Roll a strip between your hands, so that you have one long thread of white... this will be the 'vein'.











Place the white wool thread you have just made onto your wool covered rock and secure it in place by needle felting in into the wool. Wrap it around the pebble and secure it all in place by roughly needle felting it all around.

Your pebble is now ready to be wet felted. For this stage of the project you will need dishwashing detergent and warm water.

Put a generous blog of detergent into the palm of your hand and spread it over the whole surface of both of your hands by rubbing them together. Now, gently roll the wool covered rock in your hands, thus covering it in the detergent too. Wet your hands in the warm water and gently roll the rock in your wet hands. It will start to foam up.

Tip: don't let your pebble get too wet at first... introduce the warm water slowly by wetting your hands and rolling the pebble in your wet hands. Once it has become nice and foamy, you will be able to wet your pebble completely. Keep rolling... gentle pressure at first but getting firmer and firmer as the wool felts.

After about 5 minutes of agitating your rock by rolling it in your hands, you will feel that the wool has tightened firmly around your rock. This usually takes about 5 minutes. Rinse the felted pebble in cool water.

Voila! What a beautifully felted rock you have made - Bravo!

I hope you have enjoyed this needle felting project.
I have other felting kits available in my shop if you wish to try something new... felted pumpkins, felted balls, felted soap, felted toadstools as well as kits of lovely colored wool for you to make whatever your heart desires. Please visit my shop Fairyfolk (www.fairyfolk.etsy.com) and look under the Kits section.

Happy felting and don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about needle felting.
Blessings and magic,
Donni

Blog: www.themagiconions.blogspot.com
Felting Shop: www.fairyfolk.etsy.com         Photography and Vintage Shop: www.doviemoon.etsy.com

Tutorial - Needle Felted Toadstool.

I am so excited to share a tutorial on needle felting. So many of you have shown interest in giving it a go and I encourage you to dive right in. Those others of you who are hooked will agree, it is such a fun hobby and you'll be amazed at the things you can make. When I picked up my first needle three years ago, I was surprised at how quickly I took to it. One of the things I love most about needle felting is that you can finish a project in one sitting. You can sit down with a basket of wool and be holding a delightful bunny in your hands an hour later. Of course, you can make wonderfully elaborate creations that take hours and hours but you can also make something in twenty minutes too. I like that.

This is a tutorial on how to make sweet, needle felted toadstools... a simple and fast project for beginner needle felting.

Equipment - Needle felting requires three tools; wool roving, a felting needle and a protective foam board.

Wool roving looks like cotton candy. When the sheep is sheered, the fleece is washed and dried and then it is 'carded' - brushed so that all the knots and clumps are brushed out and the fibers of the wool all run the same way. It is then dyed... any wonderful color under the sun :-)
This roving can then be spun into yarn (for knitting) or it can be felted.


The protective foam board is not absolutely necessary but it is definitely recommended when you are learning to needle felt. The needle is very sharp and if you don't have a board upon which to steady your work, you will find yourself painfully stabbed more than once.


The felting needle is about 3 inches long. As I said before, it is very sharp. The tip of the needle has a number of small barbs and it is these barbs that felt the wool. It works because the outer surface of each fiber of wool has tiny, microscopic scales on it. When the fiber is agitated, the scales hook into one another, forming a tighter and tighter mass. The needle works because the barbs of the needle 'grab' the fibers as you stab it into the wool, depositing the fibers deeper into the wool. The little scales on the fibers lock together, ensuring that the fibers stay in their new place. By stabbing the wool hundreds of times with your needle, you have control over the form of your wool and can shape it as you wish. You can see the barbs clearly in this next photo...


To make a toadstool, break off a length of red wool roving about the length of your hand.


Roll it between your hands as you would roll a ball of playdough into a snake.


Roll the wool 'snake' into a tight spiral. The tighter you can get it, the easier it will be to felt.


I find that rolling is key in many of my felting projects... if I can roll the wool tightly to begin with, I can greatly reduce the time my form takes to felt.


When my red wool has been rolled into a tight spiral, I set it down on the felting board and stab it with the needle many times around the outside of the spiral. Be slow and deliberate with your stabbing in the beginning, and concentrate, please... it hurts like getting an injection when you stab yourself... it's definitely not the end of the world, but it is better avoided :-)


You will soon see that this stabbing holds the wool in place and your spiral will not unravel if you let it go.


Now for the underside of the toadstool. Set your spiral upright and stab the top gently many times so that it becomes a nice flat surface.


When your underside is nice and flat, turn your spiral over to what will be the top side of your toadstool. With your thumb and forefinger, gently pull the outside layer of wool a loose, just a little.


Fold this pulled layer over the spiral shape and needle felt it gently.


Continue needle felting it until it is a smooth round dome.


Now for the white spots. Get a small tuft of white wool roving about the size of your fingernail.


Roll it in the palms of your hands until it becomes a nice firm ball.


Place the white ball onto the red toadstool and needle felt it into the red wool.


Needle felt as many dots as you'd like onto your toadstool.


Now for the toadstool's stalk. Take a piece of white wool as long as your finger and roll it in your hands until it becomes a 'snake' (as before).


Roll it tightly into a spiral (just like you did with your red wool to start your toadstool).


Put the stalk onto the felting board and felt it around the outside until it is firmly felted and holds its shape.


Leave one end of the stalk fluffy. Gently needle felt the other end of the stalk until it is round.


Place the fluffy end of the stalk onto the underside of your toadstool (the flat side) and attach it by needle felting it into the red wool of the toadstool.


Gently felt around and around the stalk until it if firmly and neatly secured.


Voila! You have made a darling little toadstool!!


For those of you who want to give this a try, I've put together a needle felting toadstool kit and listed it in my shop. In the kit you will get two needle felting needles, a protective foam board and all the red and white wool you will need to make 10 little toadstools (or 4 bigger ones).
I also have beginner's needle felting kits with lots of gorgeously colored wool if you'd prefer to try your hand at something different now that you know how easy it is. And, I have felted rock kits and felted soap kits available too. And, and, I have also put together a kit for making your child a felted playscape which is a fantastic project. So, no excuse not to try needle felting if you aren't already hooked :-) C'mon... it'll be fun!

Happy felting,
Blessings and magic,
Donni