Chasing Felt

I'm thinking this could be the theme for this year. Well, this and another more crass term from the previous post. I just came back from a 4 day felting workshop at New England Felting Supply in Easthampton, Massachusetts. If you had told me a month and a half ago that I'd be on a plane to Massachusetts, I would've called you crazy. I'm thinking some of the women in my class thought this when they first met me ("You came from where??") but when you see a class being offered by someone with mad skills like Lisa Klakulak, you go a-running. And I did!

Lisa's one of the few artists out there (ok, in my opinion) doing things with wool and felting that are truly amazing. She's been studying felting for the past 13 years and has come up with techniques and designs that are so unique. They're just not done by anyone else. So the chance to take her class in Realism in Felted Imagery was something I couldn't pass up. The class alone made for an amazing week, but traveling alone, meeting the coolest people (one gal had a flock of sheep, another rode a huge motorcycle), hanging out in Northampton and exploring a part of the U.S. I'd never been to.... all of this made for one hell of a good time! The class had waaayyyyy more math than I thought was possible, and even she jokingly said that she was glad that she didn't put this in the class description because people may not have signed up! I'm grateful for her crazy formulaic mind, otherwise I wouldn't have a good foundation in which to start my own work. Thanks Lisa!

New England Felting Supply where I took the workshop. A fiber artist's dreamland!

More views of the shop.

 

This was my second time using hand carders and it took me a WHILE to get the hang of it. I butchered the pretty shades of blue that I made.

My little spool of thread!  

Carding wool to create the colors I need for my projects. I didn't finish the image on the left, but I did card all the wool and brought it home, so I'm hoping to finish it. It's me and my shadow on the beach in Gualala, Ca. 

  All of our felted spools before we did any free motion stitching.

Lisa giving us a free motion stitching demo. It was so much harder than it looked! Something I'll need to practice for sure.

Me and Lisa.  Check out more photos here on my facebook page!

My goal this year is to work more on my felting technique, honing my craft and spending more time on creating, discovering and seeing where I want to take my felt. I'm the worse at decision making.....I can hem and haw until even I'm so annoyed with myself, but after taking this class, I've decided (saying it out loud helps, right??) I'm going to take a leap this year, curtail my wholesaling and online sales and devote my time to exploration. This is where chasing felt comes in. You may recall, if you read this blog, that I took a felting workshop with Claudy Jongstra in 2010 (in Italy! Oh take me back!) and a 2 day class with Jorie Johnson, both women creating such beautiful work. I'm thinking this is going to have to be the way I get my felting education since there isn't a school or extended workshops that specialize in felt. So I'll be in search of classes this year! And possibly residencies too. I'm pretty excited :)

Hello 2013! Going Big

Ok 2013, I'm keeping this short and sweet.

I usually write up a list of my goals at the beginning of the year (looks like I missed 2012...it was a rough start) but I really don't feel like making a long-winded post about it. My theme for 2013 is "Go Big" or another vulgar one (my fave) "S*** or Get off the Pot". (And oh lord am I cringing at the amount of times I've written about pillow making and hiring help)

• Create everyday / aka get my hands dirty / more FELTING (and shut off that computer)
• Make a small line of pillows (I just ordered the wool and it's on the way!)
• Work with my most fave places to create something exclusively for them
• Hire some helping hands (anyone out there interested in a day or 2 a week??)
• Look into artist residencies

So that's the gist. Capisce?

And before I go, I've got some new and one-of-a-kind pincushions fresh in the Etsy shop! They're all made from scraps of my hand felted merino wool leftover from projects and pillows from years before. They're all a little wonky, different shaped with fabric backings. You can even have the option of getting your initials stitched on the back. I just love this idea just as much as I love the idea of pincushions being such a personal item in general.  I've met people who have had their pin cushions for a really long time. What about you?

Last HURRAH Holiday Sale!

I've updated my Etsy shop to show all the designs I have in stock so get your shopping on until Wednesday night and don't forget to use the coupon code HOLIDAY12SALE to get your discount!!

Please note, this sale is open to everyone but if you are international, you will not receive your item before the 25th.

I Swear I Listen

I've received requests in the past to carry smaller sets of coasters in my shop and I'm sorry that it took me this long to get a set up!

Available in pistachio, moss, acid green and a medium heather brown. They're IN STOCK and ready to ship. Get going on those holiday gifts or as a little something for a gracious host at the next housewarming party. People always love these cozy guys.

Blog Love and Upcoming Shows

I was so happy to be featured on the American Craft Council blog Heck Yes Craft! (the best blog name, btw)

My first ever real show for Papaver Vert was in 2008 at the ACC show at San Francisco's Fort Mason. I was juried into the first ever Alt Craft section with other emerging artists and I swear I was at craft camp. I had so much fun at that show and afterwards, I've never been so tired! It was my first look into how much work can go into having a booth at a show.

Speaking of shows, here are some save-the-dates for some Papaver Vert Holiday Shopping!

Rejuvenation on 4th St, Berkeley - Saturday, Nov 10th, 10am - 5pm
This new lighting studio just opened up on 4th Street in July and they specialize in period authentic lighting and house parts as well as some very great salvage pieces. 10% of sales from the event go to the Berkeley Food & Housing Project.

Renegade Craft Fair, San Francisco - Sat/Sun, Dec 15-16th, 11am - 6pm
It's been a while since I've been to Renegade, but I'm so excited to be back in December!

Hope to see y'all there.

Fall Designs in the Shop!

I updated the shop with my fall designs. Wahoo! Hang out and take a gander.

Pod Vase

The other side of the Pod Vase...just cause it's so cute....

Coaster set (includes a bowl, 6 coasters and a handy leather strap)

Nesting bowls in some new shades

Bubble cuffs

Wrist pods

Here are a couple of small new features that I'm digging in my fall line.....this mixed detail in my wrist pods. I love the painterly effect.

Same idea here with some hand stitching in my tall bud vases.

I *HEART* fall. 

New Designs

Some new necklaces I cooked up a few weeks ago and designs i've been thinking about making for a long time. Combining fabric with felting has been churning in my mind forever.

I've come to realize that it can take me a good 6 months or so of thinking about a design (somewhat passively) and then BOOM! I need to make them NOW. And then, voila, in 2 days. MADE!

I'll be putting these in my Etsy shop tomorrow the 19th! (and a few more on Friday as well)