New Fiber Art on my Table

The cold winds are blowing here in Colorado today, and I'm keeping my hands warm with one of my favorite things, hand embroidery. The working of many stitches on a soft mid-tone grey linen is a great way to keep my hands moving and warm. Each colorful wool felt circle is being stitched with a lovely Valdani pearl cotton in a softer shade of grey. Isn't it inspirational to have a wide variety of lovely threads spread in front of you as you create? I get a little rush of excitement when the colors and the textures are all within reach like this! I hope you have something as colorful to help you keep warm where you are today...Thanks for stopping by, Georgianne

Top Ten Tuesday -- June 26, 2012 -- Owls for All

The mysterious nature of owls is endearing to most everyone, and in my opinion, their eyes are a big part of this appeal. The pensive, yellow-eyed stare of a Great Gray Owl makes them appear to be thinking or perhaps even plotting a sinister next-move. This spine tingling reaction I have toward owls is one reason I've collected this week's top ten favorite owls. Most of the owls in this collection have big round eyes with goofy looks on their faces! Much more relaxing, don't you think? If you are an owl fan, this week's collection will give you all sorts of ideas about how you can add more owl-love to your life! Enjoy...

DIY Felt Owl  --  A fun sewing project for your household

This friendly owl can be easily hand stitched using the simple whip, running, and simple straight stitches. This would be a great project for you to introduce basic stitches to an owl-loving 10+ year old. Lupin on Etsy can provide you with this fun pattern and all the instructions you will need. Your young girls will be so proud to show off their creation!

Owl of Blodeuwedd -- Wool Felt Brooch

This handmade wool felt brooch is meticulously made using 7 layers of felt with an average of 400 tiny hand stitches. The brooch measures 3" x 2" and features a charming embroidered feather on her wing. Love that part! FoxOwlRoad on Etsy tells us the "Blodeuwedd" is the oldest of creatures and she calls this owl the Bird of Wisdom. This fiber jewelry would be perfect most every season of the year on a jacket, scarf, or coat. This is a treasure for the grown-up girls.

Owl Slippers Hand Crocheted in 100% Cotton

These fun house slippers will be great fun for folks of all ages. FrancescasToyChest on Etsy will hand crochet these Little Pea Shoppe pink/green/blue pair in any size or you can request a brown/orange/tan pair for a more realistic colorway! Machine wash and dry on low heat, these slippers will get softer and more beloved over time.

Beauty in Every Shadow by Dolan Geiman

I'm a big fan of Dolan Geiman who creates original mixed media works with wood, paint, printmaking and collage. This acrylic and found paper collage on wood features a majestic owl and a gorgeous tree trunk, which I also love! Dolan's art is appreciating in value and I highly recommend that you check out his many terrific art assemblages.

Needle Felted Owl Family

I am a fan of the charm that St. Paul's artist ScratchCraft has added to these 3-D wool felt owls. The four owls actually look like a bonded family unit to me, and I would have guessed they loved one another even without the red heart that tells me for sure that they do! Perched on a tree branch and measuring 4" wide and 2" tall, this hanging fiber art is a beauty.

 Pleased as Punch -- Recycled Chubby Owl

I like this owl's attitude! This lamb's wool-stuffed friend stands 7" tall and would add a fun, graceful note to your home decor. The body of this owl is made from up-cycled, felted wool and the eyes are hand sewn. This owl from ForMyDarling on Etsy has so much personality, I think you will want to give him a name!

Mid-Century Modern Hootie Owl Needlepoint

This 14"x15" needlepoint pillow certainly takes me back! If you were alive in the 60's and early 70's, you probably remember the Sunset Needlepoint Kits that helped us learn needlepoint on a printed canvas. This bright red and coral owl is a great example of a charming home made decorating style that is newly popular and still colorful! This fun vintage pillow is being made available by Call Me Anytime Vintage and will bring a pop of color to your mid-century decor.

Hand-Knit Felted Owl with Tufted Ear

The talented folks at Woolly Something have created this wool hand-knit sculptural owl that they then felted and stuffed for standing display. It stands about 7" tall and has poly-pellets in base for easy standing. It looks so soft and fluffy, and while it may not be a toy, I'm sure that the young people in your life will have trouble keeping their fingers off the soft ears and wings! The stitching around the eyes is simple and dramatic: I love it!

Recycle Wool Owl Tote Bag

This handsome owl is ready to give your fashion statement a fun boost! Handmade from brick red recycled wool and reinforced with pellon interfacing, this fun tote bag is ready to be a playful and practical addition to your wardrobe or a favorite gift for a young owl lover. I particularly like the use of the wool plaid fabric in this piece. You can find it at the popular Grannies Raggedy Bags on Etsy!

Funny Animal of the Week -- Good Morning Owl!

It is important to end my Top Ten Tuesday post with a funny animal, and this little guy gets my vote! He looks a lot like some of the other owls I've shared with you today, and he may even stand about 7" tall like some of the handmade versions of his brothers and sisters! I know he will grow up to have the yellow, piercing eyes that make my spine tingle, but for now anyway, he couldn't look more cute and friendly.

Thanks for stopping by,

Georgianne

What is Needle Felting? Tattooing Wool onto Fabric

Forest Walk ©2011, needle felt in process

Needle felting is a needlecraft regaining popularity. Many cultures for thousands of years have used needle felting to make rugs, clothing, and other useful items for the home. All cultures that use wool to create textiles have perfected their classic version of this decorative and useful art. 

Today, needle felting is all the rage to make decorative pillows, embellish scarves, and to create wardrobe accessories. Some people are making home décor items out of 100% wool, and others are using wool to decorate items made of many types of other fabrics. I like to say that needle felting onto fabric is like tattooing ink onto skin: both involve single sharp needles and a poking or punching motion to apply color to a smooth surface.

When people say they needle felt, they are likely talking about Dry Felting, or felting without water. There are sewing machine attachments that can be used to needle felt by machine. The kind of needle felting I do in at Nestle and Soar in Colorado is needle felting by hand. Using one barbed felting needle allows me to create intricate detail in wall art using needle felting. Let me explain the process to you!

The craft of dry needle felting bonds a foundational fabric and wool roving together without the use of thread, glue, or sewing needles. Felting needles are long, barbed, and very sharp. You do not hold a felting needle like a sewing needle: the motion required is more like a punching or stabbing than it is a sewing motion. When you punch the barbed needle up and down into the roving, which is loose animal fibers, it pushes the wool through the foundational fabric from top to bottom. The barbs on the needle agitate the wool fiber as it passes up and down through the roving, and this agitation opens the cuticle of the wool fiber, causing it to cling to itself. It also causes it to interlock itself on the underside of the foundational fabric, and that is how it stays put. I often create decorative pillows using linen as the foundational fabric and soft merino or mohair wool roving for the needle felting.

Raspberry and Orange Wool Roving for Felting

It is important to needle felt using a foam pad underneath your work. The felting needle should have something soft under the foundational fabric: the needle would be ruined without the pad by breaking its tip against the table top. It is easy to find felting pads made specifically for this craft, or you can also use polystyrene blocks, upholstery foam, or compressed foam. The foam pad I use is 12” x 15” and 2” thick. This size allows me to spread out a large project.

Wool roving provides all the color in needle felt projects. Picture a large pile of colorful cotton candy – that is what wool roving looks like! Roving is readily available in about 10 colors at big-box craft stores, neighborhood yarn shops, and many merchants on the Internet. My preference is to use mohair wool roving. I purchase roving in hundreds of different colors made by small manufacturers and enjoy working with the hand-dyed, environmentally friendly wools they create for this fiber art.

Example of a landscape needle felt by hand

Needle felting is a craft that is great for beginners of all ages. Because sharp, barbed needles are involved, I recommend close supervision of children. After many years of enjoying this fine craft as a fiber folk artist, I still prick my own fingertips on occasion. That being said, with care, good lighting, and a little patience, it is a lot of fun to learn to “paint with wool” using this age-old needle craft!

What kind of felting have you tried? 

Have you taken any felting classes?

I would love to hear from you!

Thanks for stopping by, 
Georgianne

Green Luxury Items created by Fiber Artist, Georgianne Holland

Near Boulder, Colorado, at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in her Nestle and Soar Studio, fiber folk artist Georgianne Holland helps birds and trees come to life from a deep pile of soft merino wool. Fuzzy piles of wool roving cover every horizontal surface, and are the material used by this folk artist to depict the natural beauty of birds and trees. In this color-saturated fiber arts studio, she creates original handmade home décor items, green luxury items, for sale on her newly launched website, www.nestleandsoar.com.

Nestle and Soar appeals to consumers because the energy of nesting at home and gliding above the fray is a long-held dream for many. Folk art has always been an avenue for self-taught creative types to make useful objects that are decorative, and Nestle and Soar is certainly part of that long tradition. If you speak to Georgianne for any length of time, you will hear her say that everyone deserves the chance to nestle and soar. That has certainly happened for this passionate entrepreneur.

The fiber art created by Holland is also rooted in thousands of years of tradition: creating useful items from the fleece of animals has helped humankind survive harsh weather as well as make home more special. Georgianne said, “I have always felt the energy of homemakers and other creative women. I truly believe that the needle arts are a valuable skill that should still be celebrated in American culture. I believe there is great power in the home arts. As with this art form, the work of women’s hands will always be important. However, needle arts like the craft of needle felting have never been just for women.” These historic needle art skills are newly popular with many, and fiber artists around the world celebrate the decorative nature of this heritage fine craft.

The Nestle and Soar website features the designer pillows and folk art for the wall created by Georgianne Holland, and also features bird and tree-themed green luxury items by other folk artists and fine craftspeople. “I am proud to make this website a venue for bird- and tree-themed fine crafts.” Hand-thrown pottery, hand-pulled woodblock prints, and hand-embroidered winter-weight scarves, are among some of the treasured items featured on this new website.

Georgianne has also joined forces with the Arbor Day Foundation so that she and her customers can have a tree planted in a National Forest in honor of their purchase. “This joint effort celebrates the many friends I have made through my work as a fiber artist—friends who also adore the beauty of the natural world and help create the loving energy that is part of every transaction from Nestle and Soar.”

Georgianne Holland, fiber folk artist and writer, began her career as a family member in the profoundly popular Leman Publications, the kitchen-table creation of her parents, George and Bonnie Leman. Beginning in 1969, the Lemans published the world-renowned Quilter’s Newsletter Magazine in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Perhaps one of this family’s greatest contributions in their 30+ years in the quilt industry was their mentoring of female entrepreneurs who went on to breathe new life into what became a thriving industry and economic opportunity for thousands around the world. Georgianne believes in the personal connection between herself and her Nestle and Soar customers, a lesson she learned from her parent’s example. This creation of community fuels her work with featured artists as well as her support of the Arbor Day Foundation today. 

Nestle and Soar Studio Scene



Long's Peak 100% Wool Landscape

It has been a busy week in my fiber folk art studio! There is something special about hunkering down to artwork when it is consistently rainy and cool outside. My space feels like a cocoon.

I have been looking at my landscape of Long's Peak for a couple of months now as my progress seemed to stop after I accomplished the background layers. I now need to hand embroider and dry felt the mid-range and fine detail work, and I am stumped. I just keep looking at it, waiting for inspiration to strike. I think I should take a drive and sit with my sketch pad for awhile as I look over that scene again. I was inspired while on the gym's treadmill to begin this piece...my view from the west-facing window at my gym is just spectacular. Not sure why some folks stare at the television when they could be looking at this mountain view instead...to each their own.

Coexist Tree in Blue Sky Series, 10"x10"

The last photo shows how messy my work table gets during a busy week. I have been using all these colors of wool -- Delicious. I like having everything close at hand, and at the same time, I long to have everything neatly tucked away. The creative process is not a tidy thing--Don't you agree? I am almost finished with my 10"x10" sky series that depicts a tree with birds; I like to call this design Coexist. Birds in many colors, shapes, types, and all personalities are welcome...Coexist. I plan to make 12 of this design, each slightly different. The trees are becoming more and more plump as I go. Never trust a skinny tree, that's what I say!

My work table right now...

Thanks for stopping by my studio,
Georgianne











Raspberry Walls, and Floor, and Counter, and Shirt...

Raspberry wool roving in my studio this morning

Two raspberry moments to pass along today, which is just what you were wishing for but didn't know it!

First raspberry experience involves the new operating rule for blenders here at Nestle and Soar Studios... and yes ...raspberry walls are involved. Here's the tip: when making a raspberry protein shake in your blender, take the canister off of the base while you fill it with yummy goodness. Only place the filled canister on the base AFTER you've firmly attached the lid to said canister. I learned this important rule/tip the hard way when I accidentally touched the start button in the process of adding my frozen raspberries. Yes, my face was covered in raspberry sweetness and so was most of the rest of the vicinity. I'm glad I was able to laugh! Laughing is as important as nutritious beverages!

Examples of my Nestle and Soar Studio note cards.

The second and more tidy raspberry moment happened for me today with wool roving in my studio. I am preparing to make a line of Spring-themed wall felts and decided it would be inspirational to pull out a few gentle colors. What do you think would be the ideal subject matter for this pink/red/orange combination of wool with a Spring theme? Reply with your comment and all respondents will receive one Nestle and Soar Studio note card to use and enjoy! Freebie good while supplies last...tell your friends...I want lots of opinions!

Happy Blending and enjoy thinking about Spring with me today. I will get a variety of my wonderful note cards ready to mail; one card of my choice for each published comment :)

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

Bright Orange and Pink Sunsets...

What's on my studio table today...

Today I am thinking about those orange and pink and yellow sunsets that just blow your socks off! This is the kind of sunset that makes you want to pull the car over and just look at it for 5 minutes. This is the kind of sunset that should you be lucky enough to share it with your significant other, fireworks might well happen!

As I think about bright sunsets, I decided to start making a wool version of my own. I am far from finished, but I couldn't resist sharing my progress today. Here is the wool-on-wool-on-wool stage of my needle felting. It will be a week or so before I am ready to add other elements to what I hope is a landscape view of a sunset in the distance. Wish me luck!

Laura Johnston's photo on Etsy

I also have been looking at what other artists do to express the awe-inspiring sunset, and thought I'd share my favorite find. A fellow Etsy.com artist named Laura Johnston took this amazing photo and is selling archival prints of it. I think it is remarkable, and not just because there are birds involved! As I continue to enjoy my reminiscing about sunsets this week in the studio, I think I'll try to capture the vibrant energy in Laura's photo. you can see Laura's etsy shop here.

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

Practicing Patience: Forest Walk Wool Wall Felt

What's on my studio table today...

Wool needle felt landscapes are taking a lot of my mental and physical energy these days! I can't seem to finish them fast enough...I just want to begin the next design that has been in my mind and in my sketchbook. The process of making a 16" x 20" wall hanging out of 100% wool is not something that should be rushed, so I am practicing patience ... that reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

"I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end." Margaret Thatcher, 1989.

Don't you love it!

Detail photo of leaves being placed for felting....

My latest in-progress wall felt is wanting to be named Forest Walk. I hope you can see from the mid-point photo above the perspective of the terrain as you walk through the woods! The detail photo to the left shows some of the fluffy wool roving that has not yet been needle-felted onto the wool foundation. I use a single barbed needle-felting needle to hand place the elements of my design. (There is much more control that way.) After I have the wool where I want it, I switch to a multi-needle tool, like the Clover brand hand tool pictured above, as that lets me make some quick progress in this dry felting technique. I estimate that a wall felt of this size likely has over 5,000 stabs from barbed needles!

I don't use a machine for this...it is all hand done. It sounds kind of crazy, I know, but I truly enjoy the creative handmade process. Which is why, as I enjoyed the soft streaming light in my studio this morning, I reminded myself that rushing the process would be a shame...I want to enjoy every minute of my Forest Walk!

I am revamping my website (http://www.georgianneholland.com/) to include a Special Commissions function. I am really excited about it because people will be able to send me a photo of one of their favorite landscapes, and I will create a wall felt or a special pillow using that image as my inspiration. Does that sound like something you'd enjoy? I'd love to hear your input...