Wool as shoes
A two-thousand-three-hundred year old toy was recently discovered made of felted wool stuffed with reindeer fur. That’s how amazing a material felt is. It remained intact all these many years after originally having even survived being a toddler’s toy! 🙂
I fell in love with felting when my children kept getting foot fungus and I was told they should wear pure wool socks, but at that time I simply couldn't afford to buy any. Fortunately there was a farm near us that sold affordable raw wool, both sheep and alpaca.
Felting for the first time felt like I was simply remembering how to do it rather than newly learning how (thank you youtube) and it has been a passion of mine ever since.
FYI - that foot fungus healed almost overnight once they all started wearing the wool shoes I made them.
Turning wool into wraps
A felted woolen wrap snuggled around aches and pains will drastically reduce pain. All the elderly members of my family have them now. Their flexible nature allows them to easily wrap around shoulders and hips and the wool holds in natural body heat to soothe away aches. (My Mum calls hers her Taco Wrap.)
Vikings of wool
The pure wool toys I make contain no chemical residues. I only use gentle soap in the felting process and natural colored wool just as it comes off the sheep. They are safe for any child to play with, even those little ones who thoroughly chew their toys the way mine did.
I use dyed wool, however, for detail in my gnomes and similar character figures. They can be played with by older children, but most people simply use them for their decorative aspects rather than role playing.
(Well, my mum does enjoy playing with her crowd of them, but then she’s like that.)
A dashing hat
Doctor Who fans will all remember Tom Baker's iconic hat. Because it seems silly to buy what I can make with a bit of effort, I decided to make one of my own using black shetland wool to give it a personal twist.
Modeling it for the camera is my very own Viking son, Devin!
Wool makes wonderful warm rugs
Being a huge fan of woolen rugs and throws, I used three Herdwick fleeces (Herdwick sheep are native to the Lake District UK) to felt them into a couple of shaggy rugs, long-wearing and beautiful. You won’t find anything like them anywhere but here. Each has its own beautiful and unique character.
Stretch cat!
Needle felting an item allows for an incredible level of detail in character art, toys, and in this case a travel pillow with a difference. Fur, fabric and wool are here combined to offer a sensory distraction from the stress of long distance travel, while also providing comfortable support for the neck and head to sleep away the miles.
Mine became my best friend ever when I traveled by bus from the north of England to Portugal!
