Finally making felt again

I have been finally getting round to making felt again and it is lovely!  I had forgotten how much I enjoy it.  It takes me two hours to make two pieces but I really enjoy creating the blends and deciding what colours I need to use.  I have reserved a table at a craft fair in November, so that has given me the push I need to start making again.  In the whole of last year, I think I made two pieces in total, so I am doing much better this year.  The stripy pieces are destined for the craft fair, but you'll have to wait until then to see what I make them into.  I am also going to make some other coloured pieces - pink and a pastel green and whatever else takes my fancy.
I now need to replenish my stock of white wool for the base pieces...it's a good job I have just been paid!

Gainsborough Old Hall

 There was a Christmas Craft Fair being held at Gainsborough Old Hall this weekend, so we decided to have a look. It is only the second time I have visited this wonderful building, so I was looking forward to seeing it again. My previous posts about my visit can be found here, here and here.
The craft fair admission was much less than the normal house admission, but of course, you didn't get an audio tour and some of the building was closed.  We are going back during the open season next year to have a proper look.  It was very busy, which was good for the stall holders, but it was quite cold in some of the rooms.  After we had looked round, we went for a walk around the building.

 We saw some beautifully worked stone, edging the grass.  I wonder where these pieces came from?

 It is a very photogenic place.

The mini avenue of trees gave a lovely vista.

Through the years, the owners added bits to the original building and I liked the higgledy-piggledy mix here.

 Stone, wood, brick - a variety of different building materials had been used over the years.

 Another lovely view through the trees.

 I seem to remember being surprised that the Hall is in the middle of the town, surrounded by Victorian terraces.  I imagined that a Hall like this would be in its own extensive grounds, which perhaps it once was.

 A row of five chimneys which advertised how wealthy the owners were.  I expect the stall holders would have liked all the fires to be lit today!

I didn't take photos inside, except these two because I was drawn to the bright jewel colours in these windows.

They may become the inspiration for some felt...or polymer clay work...

Craft Fairs and websites

I went to two little craft fairs last weekend and there was a lot of interest in my felt landscape images as well as the hears and stars. People wanted to know all about the inspiration and the felt making process and were extremely complimentary about the work.

However, encouraging people to buy something was a little more of a challenge! I did get one commission for a twilight felt piece and I sold a few of the hearts and stars, so more than covered my costs.
I shall have a think about next year - perhaps I should spread my wings and take part in larger craft fairs and set up a shop on folksy. I have also been rethinking the website and have come up with a layout I hope will work. Now I just need Chris to get it all up and running for me! No pressure there, Chris!

Scandinavian inspired felt

I have been busy making some more stock for the upcoming small craft fairs I'm going to. Last year, the white stars with red embroidery sold well, so I have made a few more, adding gingham ribbon instead of the satin one I usually use. I like the Scandinavian influence and am considering doing some plain red with white embroidery too. I hope they will prove popular!

Repeating pattern 2

This is the next stage to my repeating pattern where I repeated it four times to create a more complex image. I really like the shapes within the pattern and the way it has become more abstract. It has a feel of Art Nouveau with the flowing lines.

I have decided that I need to make at least one felt piece a week, which shouldn't be too onerous, and if I can make more, that's a bonus. I was making four pieces a day last summer so I can do it when I put my mind to it. I may try another craft fair this Spring/Summer, so need to make some more stock. I am also thinking about an exhibition in the future - maybe in a year or so, and at the moment, I don't have enough to fill one wall, let alone a whole gallery space!

Craft Fair!

Above are photos of the stall I had on Friday at the Craft Fair. It was very successful and people were genuinely interested in my felt work, especially the natural coloured items. The Merino pieces attracted people to the stall and they did like the little hearts in particular. I had lots of really positive feedback so I know I am on the right lines. I was really encouraged!
The Craft Fair on Saturday was also helpful although the weather was not conducive for people coming out. Again, I had loads of really positive comments about my felt and I did manage to sell some pieces.

I enjoyed talking to people about my felt and it was a really successful foray into the world of craft fairs!

Trios of hearts

I have started making the half-size hearts to group together in threes and I think they look really sweet. I am grouping them in the natural colours or in complementary merino colours. They are about 5cm in width and just a little more in height - about 5.4cm. Chris has been busy on my behalf again and has ordered some cellophane bags to put them in. It's great to have all this support! I'm going to continue and make more of the trios in pinks, reds, yellows etc. I just hope the craft fairs go ahead after putting all this work in!