Wild and crazy dryer balls made of felted wool scraps, an old sock and bright jersey fabric

 Dryer balls!!!!!!!!!  I love how these turned out!!  I was less than successful getting wool to felt in hot water and the dryer as so many online tutorials indicate it can be done.  In the end, I did find one place where the lady simply stuff an old sock with other old socks until it was the size and weight she wanted to make her dryer balls SO..... I just decided to make my own version.  I have a bag full of small felted wool scraps which my daughter gifted me so I used them to create a ball wrapping it with yarn as I went to keep all the pieces together.  When it was big enough I stuffed the ball into a piece of old sock and tied off both end using cording woven through the sock and tied off.  I have made a supply of these for my dryer and because they have sock wrappers they are boring brown and black but do the job. 

I decided to gift my daughter a set of six of these dryer balls for Christmas so I decided to give them a make over before wrapping them.  I dug through my fabric stash and found this really stretchy jersey top which was too large for me and I upcycled it into covers for the dryer balls.  I cut a 5" square of the jersey, I fold it in half and stitched up the side using zig zag first and then next to it a line of straight stitching using very short stitches.  You can see the seam on the right hand side of this ball.  I turned it inside out and stuffed a dryer ball into it - amazing how much that jersey stretches!!!  Then I used a large needle and cording to make a line of running stitch on one end about where the fabric meets if you stretch it into place.  Once all they way around I tightened ed only slightly the stitching and then tucked the extra fabric inside and under the edge of the line of running stitch.  As I pulled the ends of the cording tight I kept tucking the inner fabric inside so that once the two ends were as tight as they could be you no longer can see the sock dryer ball.  I tied a square knot and then pulled the ends into the ball to hide them.  I did the same thing on the other end. Dressed up those dryer balls pretty nicely!!!!   

 I wrapped them in one of the Bento Bags I made earlier this year and they fill it perfectly!!!

It will be a happy little surprise for her for Christmas!!!         Therese

Felted wool dryer balls - Part 2

Well, needless to say that the dryer balls did not felt as I expected.  I expect that I may have wound the wool sweater bands too tightly in a ball and there was not enough give to have them felt properly.  I wished I had sorted that out before I made so many.  So in order to save these and make them usable I have given them all sock covers which will keep them all intact even if they are not felted and they will work just as effectively in the dryer.  It is unfortunate that they did come out beautiful but sometimes that it the way it goes.  Therese

Felted wool dryer balls - part one

 I have been thinking about making dryer balls for a while using the scraps of wool I have stashed!! I found this tutorial on The Spruce which uses hot water in a pot on the stove instead of a hot water wash in my washing machine which seemed a better use of water.  So I got started and found some felted wool scraps for my center.

I wrapped some felted wool around it to start creating a ball and then wrapped a long scrap of felted wool around and it started looking more like a ball.  I dug through my unfelted wool stash and found this pale pink cashmere sweater which had already been cut up for another project and cut some half inch strips from two of the panels.  I started wrapping the unfelted wool strips around my ball and just kept adding strips until it was the size of a hard baseball.

 I decided to tie yarn around it to keep it all together until I could get a few more made.  I managed to make two more balls and they are ready for felting.  I will continue with the felting instructions when I get to them.  

Therese

Thank you cards featuring felted wool acorns with hand stitching, embossing and a laser printed greeting

Needing a few more thank you cards I dug through my kits to see if there was any that I could make up.  I found these two which were created for my May cardmaking class.  I changed them up though which often happens with me as I always have more inspiration of how it could be done.  I tore my papers and embossed the center space before adding the decorative papers to my layer.  I adhered these large layers to my coordinating card fronts and then adhered only one little acorn in the gap.  I trimmed and sponged some coordinating laser printed greetings from my stash and adhered them to my card fronts to finish off another two cards!!         Therese

May Cardmaking - felted wool acorns with hand stitching and some torn decorative paper

I had used this card sketch for my last All Occasion Class which these ladies did not attend.  You can check out the cards here.  I cut these little acorns from felted wool and added some handstitching to give them a bit of definition.  The kits included rectangles or squares which gave them several options for lay outs.  For this one I tore a square of decorative paper and mounted the two pieces for a coordinating piece of  cardstock. I glued that to a coordinating card front.  The little acorns were glued in the gap and one was added to the bottom section.  I provided little greetings but chose not to put one on this card.  I may add an appropriate one when I decide where it will be going!! 
This was a our last card - always a quick and easy one!! 
We will be taking the summer off and get back to cardmaking in September. 

Therese

Felted Wool coasters

 My grand daughter is raising money for a trip and I have made up a few felted wool coasters to be sold at her next event. 
The felted wool comes from her Mom who enjoys felting wool and creating wonderful items from it.  This was felted wool from a reversible coat which was ivory one one side and beige on the other.  I cut the panels into four inch squares with a rotary cutter and mat.  I rounded the corners by fussy cutting them with scissors.  I machine stitched around the edges to create a bit of a border using thread in coordinating colours - beige on the ivory side and ivory on the beige side.   Next, I used tapestry wool to embroider designs onto the coasters.  I found a few ideas on line and then made up a few others after I got a bit of feel for the process and what I could do with it.  I am really happy with how they turned out!!  Every dollar counts so I hope they sell out!!                 Therese

Felted wool garland

I have been playing with felted wool this Christmas season in order to get a few gifts made.  I made these felted wool coasters last week.  I have been investigating what can be done with small scraps and found this idea on line - a garland made with felted wool circles!!  This was very fun to make though it did take a while to cut all the little circles using a die (SX) and my Big Shot.  I used 6 colours - light blue, green, yellow, dark blue, purple and red.  I cut about 60 ( 1" ) of each colour and then stitched them together in the same sequence using strong green thread in my sewing machine.  The actual sewing took much less time than the cutting but I am very happy with the way it turned out.  I did add a red ribbon tie on each end just to finish it off nicely.  It does allow it to be tied to the holder and will prevent tangling.  It is about 10 yards long so will certainly make a reasonable garland for a tree or a birthday party or any sort of celebration!!      Therese

Christmas gifts - felted wool coasters

I usually send my friends little gifts in their Christmas cards and in the past I have sent handmade ornaments.  This year I made felted wool coasters.  My daughter has gifted me with bags full of wool - some felted, some not and a few weeks ago I started going through the bags to see if I could make use of any of it for gifts for this year.  I did a bit of internet research and found a few small projects that would be conducive to the supplies available and the time I had.  So with a few pieces of this duplex ivory/tan felted wool I decided to make some coasters.  I cut the felted wool into 4" x 4" squares using my rotary cutter, clear ruler and my cutting mat.  Makes the job pretty quick.

 I used wool fiber from kits which I have purchased here and there when I found them at thrift stores or yard sales.  I chose a simple floral design and embroidered it on my coasters.  I was careful not to go too deep into the wool so that the threads did not show on the back side.   I used the back stitch for the stems and then just running stitch for the branches.  The flowers are french knots.

I made five for this time around but have fabric for making more.  On the first four in used different greens for the stems and branches and used lavender, blue, pink and red for the flowers.  On the last one I used brown for the stem and branches and orange for the flowers.  I added decorative machine stitching to the edges though it is not necessary.  I used contrasting thread - darker on the front and lighter on the back.  I used a three stitch zigzag which worked out really well.  I was careful to line up the stitching when I connected back to where I started.  I tied off the ends and used a needle to hide them into the felted wool of the coaster.  I am super happy with how they turned out!!!!  Looking forward to inventing a few more flower patterns to go on the next batch.    Therese

Felted wool roses for my twig wreath!

It has been a long time coming but I finally finished my twig wreath with the felted wool roses my daughter gave me three years ago for Christmas!!!!  I love how it turned out!!!
The felted wool was cut with a spiral blossom die and I stitched them up individually.  I arranged them the way I wanted them and then stitched them to an extra piece of wool felt.  I added a few silk leaves left over from my flowers for cardmaking.  I attached cording to the felt and then tied the whole piece to the wreath!!  There are navy blue and three colours of dark pink and some light pink flowers.

Therese

Art Quiltie - make it a great day!

I created this quiltie for a swap on one of my groups for July!!  I am happy to have the chance to make a few more of these!!
I started with an experiment in free motion stitching that I made up a while back. I took small pieces of fabric and used small pieces of fusible webbing to tack them in place on my substrate fabric. I just kept laying on pieces overlapping until all the surface was covered.  I started free motion sewing and I found that the tension was off so the fabric wrinkled up a lot. I had set it aside as an unfortunate experiment and when I found it the other day it looked better than I remembered. So I decided to trim it up (4" x 4") and use it as the front of my little quiltie.  A while back I had my sister print off some sayings for me onto printable fusible fabric because it requires an inkjet printer which I no longer have.  I chose this little saying from the sheet and cut a strip of green fabric which coordinated with my front.  I trimmed out the saying, fused it to the strip and then stitched all the way around. Next, I stitched the strip to my front.  I went looking into my fabric embellishments and found this flower and leaf combo that worked well with it.  I stitched them into place with embroidery floss in the right colour and then added sequins and a seed bead to the middle of the flower.  To add a bit more texture I decided to embroider some flowers on the green strip as well.  I used seven french knots to create the flowers and added green leaves using several chain stitches.  I was happy with that!!  I used several scraps to create a little quilt for the back and stitched it to a layer of thick flannel using one line of stitching that spirialed from the outside edge to the inside.  I backed the two pieces and stitched all the way around the edge and then did blanket stitch all the way around with brown embroidery floss!!  Pretty happy with my little creation!!  Half way through my border stitching I remembered that I had wanted to try couching yarn into the edge when I did blanket stitch the next time.  Needless to say that will have to wait until next time!!!

Therese

Crazy Quilted Felted Wool Mat

I finished my felted wool mat today!!!  It has taken more than a week to get all the stitching done and the backing stitched on.  It is approximately 12" square.  Due the the unstable nature of my substrate and the tension of my stitching it has shrunk some since I stitched on all the pieces.  You can check it out here. Unfortunately, it is now a bit smaller than the requirements of the swap but not sufficiently to be unacceptable so it will be headed to the swap hostess later today.  UPDATE:  Mailing is prohibitive so have dropped out of the swap and will be keeping my wool mat for the time being.  

It was recommended by the swap hostess to use larger thread due to the loft of the felted wool so I dug through my threads and culled the larger ones into my stitching basket.  I also collected my seed and Ebeads boxes along with a bag full of sequins to use as embellishments.  Along the way I decided to incorporate a flower and leaf  and butterfly die cut as well.  I started by adding stitching to all of the butt joints starting by doing the five edges of the center piece and then continuing to follow the sequence in which the pieces were stitched onto the substrate.  I wanted to expand my stitch vocabulary so I consulted my stitch book - Stitch - step by step - Maggi Gordon and Ellie Vance regularly.  I would pick a colour of thread, find a stitch and do one joint.  I just kept going trying new stitches and sometimes inventing some because I did not remember how to do them correctly.  This process took several days.  Generally, I would remove the basting stitches as I went along.  There were only a few sections on the edges where I left the basting because the pieces needed more support.  

Once all the joints had been stitched down to the substrate I started adding the decorative stitching and embellishments to the surface.  I started by adding french knots in yellow in the center section to create a reasonably level area that could be used to display a decorative object or candle.  I then added stitching and embellishments to the surrounding pieces and so on until the whole surface had  been decorated.  Again, I removed the basting stitches as I went. 

I took several close up shots of the details of the stitching and little bits I have added.  I used seed beads in the center of my sequins to keep them in place and used coordinating thread to keep it as invisible as possible.  I created flowers and added several butterflies - a sequin, a die cut and a plastic embellishment.   I cut a square of black fabric for the backing, turned over the edges and used the blanket stitch to tie them together.  Now, that I take another look, it would seem that I have done that stitch backwards as well. I believe the line should be on the outside of the piece!!  It was a totally fun experience and I hope my swap partner will enjoy using this wool mat!!  I am looking forward to the one I will receive in return.    Therese

Felted wool mat - Part 1

 On my Crazy Quilting group I signed up for a wool mat swap!!

Here is the beginning of my mat.  I used fairly light substrate fabric, placed my first piece  of felted wool (a yellow pentagon) in the middle then I basted it in place with my sewing machine using the longest stitch length.  I laid a piece of dark green felted wool next to it, basted it place and then trimmed the one side and kept doing the same steps until I had added a piece on each side of my center piece.  As you can see on the right I have finished basting all my pieces in place and started stitching the butt joints between them. Once that process is finished I will be trimming the outside edges and starting on my crazy quilting!!  

Therese

Butterfly felted wool postcard

My newest fabric postcard!!  I am loving it!!  I created it for a swap on one of my groups, Trading Fabric Post Cards!!  I started with the beginnings of a cuff from a few months back when I created this one.  I had started with a strip of green wool felt and had begun adding beads to the outside of the felted wool butterfly die cut.  In the end, the process was taking longer than I expected and I ended up changing directions completely so this has been sitting around with thread and beads waiting to find a new life.  So, to give it a new life as a postcard, I finished off the beading and added some stitching in three different colours of embroidery thread inside the butterfly.  I added some black seed beads to form its body and I fashioned a pair of wire antenna which I also stitched on.  I was very happy with that.  To convert the cuff to a postcard I had to cut off about 2" of the length and add an inch to the width.  I rummaged through my felted wool scraps and found some warm green that coordinated very well so I cut a couple of half inch strips - one for each side and used purple embroidery thread and the sheaf stitch to bind them together.  I am enjoying learning new stitches from my "Stitch Step by Step" book which I acquired on my winter vacation.  I wanted to repeat the bright green colour so I added single stitches between the sheaf stitches.  I used white embroidery thread to add the flight path using a plain running stitch.  I created a backer for the postcard using white cotton, pinned it to the front and attached them together using blanket stitch which I executed with turquoise embroidery thread.  This was working out very well.  To integrate the front and the back I added machine stitching with white thread in the bobbin and coordinating green thread on top.  I like the way that worked out!! I took a needle and hid all of my thread ends inside the structure of the postcard.  I felt it still needed a "bit of something" on the right hand side so I dug through my sequins and found three different colours in three differetn sizes.  The medium one was originally gold but I modified it with a green Sharpie and now it is exactly the right colour!!  Gotta love it!!  I stitched them into place using green thread and added black seed beads in their centers.  I will be prepping it for mailing and send it off as soon as I receive the name of my swap partner!!

Therese

Navy and purple felted wool cuff

Another cuff for my giftie swap!!  This one began with a pieced layer of navy blue felted wool (3" x 8").  Because I am using scraps I had to combine two pieces of felted wool to create the length I wanted.  I butted the two pieces up very tightly and sewed them together using a wide zigzag stitch and black thread.  The thread is very matte and therefore pretty much disappeared.  I did position the main focal point - a beautiful embroidered floral design -  over the

seam so it would camouflage it was much as possible.  I started by doing buttonhole stitch all the way around using thin lavender wool yarn (thrift store find).  I positioned the focal element (thrift store find), pinned it in place and sewed it in place using embroidery thread that was the same colour.  I wanted to add yet more texture but not take away from the beauty of the embroidered piece so went looking for seed beads I could use to embellish it with.  I found these that did exactly what I wanted - they almost look like stars in the night sky!!  I sewed them on randomly using navy embroidery thread so the stitching does not show.

 This wood bead was just the right colour so I drilled an extra hole in it to make it a button and sewed it on with navy thread.  I created a wrap by braiding three pieces of lavender wool yarn into a string which will create an adjustable closure on this cuff.
Really happy with how this one turned out and love the colours!
The giftie swap was for Christmas so this is appearing here only after the gift has arrived and been opened by the recipient.

Therese

Gray and rust felted wool cuff

 I have joined a swap on one of my groups where we are swapping little gifts for Christmas.  I have decided to make cuffs for the participants so needless to say these are only appearing here after they have been opened for Christmas by those who received them.

I started with felted wool scraps that my daughter gave me after she was finished her large projects like table runners and teapot cozies.  I started with gray wool (1 1/2" x 8 1/4") for this one and did buttonhole stitch all the way around using dark gray thread.  I added the rust fiber using my sewing machine in free form arrangement.  I die cut a little row of ovals out of dark red felted wool using a large Sizzix border die.  I pinned it in place over the fiber and sewed my embellishments in place through all the layers.

The little circles are plastic and the others are a combination of gold sequins and black seed beads.  After sewing the embellishments in place I went back adding a stitch between each little oval using the same black thread.  Finally, I added two black beads on the end that combined with the long length of fiber creates an adjustable closure for this cuff.
I am enjoying making cuffs. You can check here, here and here for some I have made recently.  I did several others over the summer unfortunately I did not get photos of those.

Therese

Felted wool cuff with layered flowers

I created this felted wool cuff for an Altered Cuff Swap I am participating in on AFTCM.  I used felted wool that my daughter gave me along with some coordinating fabric.  I pieced three pieces of navy together to create the base onto which I sewed the teal flower die cuts (TH) using turquoise thread.  I used heat and bond to adhere two strips of fabric together to create the smaller flowers.  They were die cut using the smallest flower on the Tim Holtz Tattered Flowers die.  I sewed them on over the teal ones stitching over each petal as close to the center as possible.  As a final embellishment I added a large turquoise sequin with a gold bead in the center.  I added two small snaps as a closure for this cuff!!    I really like how it turned out!!  

Upon rereading the guidelines it would seem that I have strayed too far off the mark and will be making another that complies more closely.

Therese

Leafy wrist cuff

 Played with felt last week and came up with this leafy cuff for my daughter using scraps she donated to me.  I have limited colours but thought I could make a leaf cuff work.  I chose scraps that were big enough to cut with the TH Tattered Leaves die and cut 12 leaves.  I used wool thread which I obtained at a local thrift shop  - also limited colours.  I found some to coordinate with all of my leaves and did the button hole stitch around all of them hiding my ends in the felt.  I wanted to add a bit of colour so used gold thread in my sewing machine

and added the veining in each leaf. Now came the fun part - layering them to create a pleasing arrangement.  Once I liked the placement, I pinned them to each other to maintain their order and stitched them together.  I used regular sewing thread and hand stitched each leaf to the one below it where they overlapped.  I used very small stitches and did not go all the way through the felt so the underside looks as nice as the front.  I added two little black snaps as a closure which could be moved if it didn't fit perfectly.  As it was, it was just right and she liked it!!

Therese

Fabric collage Christmas cards

 I created these little Christmas trees using this piece of fabric collage I made up the other day.  The trees measure 3" across the bottom and 4" tall.  I managed to get 20 little trees out of my 9" x 16" collage.  Each tree is embellished by hand with red sequins with yellow/gold petite seed beads centers.  Once embellished, I machine stitched the trees to a layer of white embossed cardstock incorporating a little tree trunk made of brown wool felt.  The stars were hand stitched into place and this layer was glued to a red card front.  I added a little colour printed greeting which was punched out with the SU Window punch.
I am super happy with these cards!!!!  If you click on them you will be able to check out the details.  You will see that my free motion stitching is not the best but for my first attempt I am happy.  Twenty cards for my stash!!

Therese