Pleasant Surprise!

This Christmas Season at Scarlet Cord Designs was a pleasant surprise! I thoroughly enjoyed all the packing and shipping, the trips almost every day to the post office, communicating with buyers interested in custom orders AND I didn't mind making all those acorns:)

These glittery acorns have kept me busy. I was starting to think I would run out
of my supply of acorn caps.

So in November when I went down south for Thanksgiving, I enlisted the help
of two very enthusiastic acorn hunters:)
(sweet grandkids)

Of course they thought I needed some extra goodies like twigs, pretty stones and
leaves.

And all it cost me for all those beautiful treasures were two Ring Pops.

Some of the special orders---

I love custom orders. They are challenging and so creative!
Isn't this cute-Antler headband on a Polar Bear.

This llama with his custom blanket went to London.

This is what I finished yesterday-I had to redo the nest. It just got too small.

Looking forward to what this New Year will bring!

                Talk soon,

What is Needle Felting?

While I would love to have this post be about my wonderful trip to see my kids and grandkids - it's not!

What kind of grandma goes and visits and can't get any decent pictures!!

My excuse...my camera is on its last legs and I didn't take it with me and my husband's little camera only took pictures that a (grand)mother could love.

So instead this is a post on needle felting because while in Georgia I got to meet the mom of a friend of Hannah's (I know this is going to get confusing. Please hang in here with me:) who wanted to talk about my Etsy experience. I will share more about Cynthia when she opens her Etsy shop. I want to be one of her first sales. Sorry, now I am really off track.  ANYWAY, one of her questions was 

'What is needle felting?'

So here are a few pictures to explain a little about needle felting but this is definitely not a tutorial.

You start with some wonderful loose wool (love the stuff!!!) and a very
sharp barbed needle and a pad to work on. You really can't see the barbs on the
sides of the needle but you can feel them with your fingers.

 You take some of the wool and start stabbing it with the needle.
The barbs will tangle the wool fibers making the wool denser or felted.
The more you stab the denser it will get.  

You add more wool to sculpt a shape. This is where my teaching abilities fail me.
It is still a little bit of a miracle to me to think that I can make something out of wool
that actually resembles a little goose or an elephant.

In my Etsy shop.

My workspace!

Cheesy picture of me needle felting. Even though this is staged
I am normally surrounded by a lot of wool and projects
that I am working on or are inspiration for the next project.

 I buy most of my supplies online. I have noticed that the craft stores are starting to sell 

needles and some wool if you want to give it a try. 

There are many tutorials online and the applications are endless.

 I've found that needle felting is very theraputic although my husband has accused me of using it as way to take out my frustrations. I think he is afraid of the whole voodoo doll thing:)

So... Happy Felting!

Talk again soon,

A Busy Week

After a very quiet summer my Etsy shop became very busy. I sold several things

and had several new orders, mainly acorns.  

   I'm just finishing these little elephants and they are joining the little aqua bunny in Sweden.

They need to be shipped before I leave on my trip to see the kids down south:)

Duplication?

These little block animals are really the most detailed needle felting sculptures that I have done so far and I wasn't sure if I could make another one close to the original. So here is the duplicate bunny and elephant. They are close enough but still different enough to be unique. Since I took that picture both bunnies have sold. The pink went to Calif. and the blue one to Sweden. Time to work on another and see what this bunny will look like.

Sorry about the quality of these pictures-they were taken on my couch which is where
I do most of my needle felting but the lighting is awful.

My Polar Bear goes to Moscow

The Russian Bear

 I was excited to have my Polar Bear go to his new home in Russia. I love feeling like you can connect with people all over the world through Etsy. I really am sooooo EXCITED - something I made, a polar bear went to Russia.  (Big Smile!)
Okay, I am calm and now I just thought I would show off my bears.

My first bear (that I am not selling) helping me
make a new bear.

My completed new bear.
He is in my Etsy shop.

Exeter Fine Crafts

It was a scary thing to do! I took some of my work to Exeter Fine Crafts at the beginning of September to be juried. I was so excited to be approved to sell my felted creations there. I have always enjoyed looking around at all the amazing workmanship in this store and now I get to be a part of it too. AND in two weeks two of my birds sold!

              Saying goodbye to Early Bird and Snow White Owl.

       I love the connection to the town of Exeter, too. It is such a pretty place.

Wet Felted Coasters

This was not real easy for me but I love the results so much I'm already planning more. 

I love the feel and look of handmade felt. I love seeing the layers of color and I love the way wool works as a coaster. I want to see if I can get better at it so more wet felting this weekend:)

I also like matching colors to my seashell collection.