WE all know that libraries rock, but in 2018--LIBRARIES ROCK! That's the summer reading theme and we are using it to exclaim from the rooftops just how important libraries are to community enrichment. Since the Southeast Steuben County rocks in the most amazing ways, we asked Shannah Warwick of Blckbts to show us how to felt rocks.
Dyed Wool
We felt for rocks in the park and felt those rocks just needed to be concealed. Painted rocks are all the rage, but we wanted to clothe our rocks. Or at least give them a fresh look.
Setting the wool
Each rock got a unique look by taking strips of colored wool, layering it over the rock, then wetting the wool with hot, then cold water. The heat makes the fibers expand and the cold shocked the fibers back. This expand and shock treatment causes the fibers to interlock and create a new fiber--FELT.
Rock in Process
Once each rock was completely covered, they were doused in a cold water bath with vinegar. The vinegar balanced the pH of the wool and soap. A wet animal smelling rock remains, but after a few hours of drying, it looks like a soft sculpture.
Covered and Cozy
The method was simple. Hot water, cold water, LOTS OF SUDS, agitation--the kind that releases personal tension, but makes the wool stick in place, and tons of fun conversation made this little colony come to life.
Rock Band
If you need a new way to rock your library, try some wool to felt your sediment.
That felt good
That's a wrap for First Friday Art Club with me. Check on my Pop-up library excursions in the coming months with a new blog, yet to be named. Send me your suggestions and I'll work my magic. In the downtime, follow our newest project, "Family Folklore-A Paranormal Podcast." Broadcast from the Crystal City of Corning, New York, it is a goosebumpy experience filled with chills and thrills from local residents of the Southern Tier of New York. Stay tuned for all the fun things to happen.
email your stories to CorningFamilyFolklore@gmail.com
First Friday Art Club enjoyed a special guest instructor for February 2017. Nuno Felting expert, Shannah Warwick of Blckbts sneaked out of her studio to provide a lesson in felting to excited tweens and teens, along with a couple of adults.
"Feel the difference between the fabrics."
After personal introductions and a little vocabulary building--- ie.knowing all of the items and terms used in this felting process, the ladies got rolling right along. And by rolling, I mean ROLLING! That action is almost the main activity required in nuno felting.---funny videos pending.
Wool Roving goes far
Learning the wonders of wool roving was step one. Merino wool is expensive and knowing how to make the most of your materials is important to an artist. Removing just wisps of the wool to use in your design is imperative for any felting student.
"Wisps of roving shrink in your final design"
Using too much roving in sections will cause uneven shrinkage of the final product and leave an awkward, somewhat unusable shape. This might be an effect someone wishes to achieve, but not in this class.
Wisp Away!
Students were instructed to find a partner and take turns placing the wool wisps in any pattern they chose, avoiding too much overlapping. If you look closer, you'll see there is bubble wrap as the first layer-bubbles up. The next layer is silk chiffon. The silk is the fabric foundation to the scarf being designed.
Tulle is the next layer after the design is complete.
Once the wisps are placed and the design is approved, the next layer is Tulle (sounds like "tool"). This netted fabric must be patted gently to meet the other layers and not move. Basically every layer becomes "friends" at this stage. Then a slight amount of warm, sudsy water is squeezed over the layers to prepare for the felting process.
Ball brauser is like a magic felting wand.
The final layer to this felted sandwich is another sheet of bubble wrap, this time bubble side down. The bubbles face inward toward the fabric and once the layers are rolled up, the bubbles, warm water, soap suds, and rolling action cause the fibers to interlock .
Pool noodles have meaning in the winter!
Who knew that pool noodles and bubble wrap were so imperative to the nuno felting process? Well, Mrs. Warwick was happy to share this knowledge with the First Friday Art Club. The mandatory therapy of bubble popping was momentarily allowed, but then the rolling had to commence. The rolling, as promised, was very exhaustive.....
The amount of rolling is a special "science" to this nuno felting process. Each piece needed to be rolled 800 times. That's right, 800! This gave a good upper body workout, but tired everyone out quickly. After 200 rolls, the layers are unrolled, then rerolled in the opposite direction. This gives every section equal friction, resulting in a uniform interlocked fibers.
800 rolls should have fuzzies poking through
Once everyone got their 800 Roll Workout, we needed to peak at the reverse side of the chiffon. If wool fuzzies were poking through the weave, rolling was complete and the chance to take out some aggression on the project had arrived.
Balling up the fabric, dipping it in warm, sudsy water and tossing it in a sink or tub several times shocks the fibers. This action might seem too abusive, but it is the final step to making a lovely nuno felted creation. Whoever said fiber work is just for wimps never put their muscles into this process.
It's like shrinky dinks!
Once the fibers are shocked and shriveled, it was time for the Big Reveal. Everyone was surprised how much the fabric shrunk. There is about a 30-50% shrinkage rate in this process. More shrinkage resulted if there was a lot of wool placed on the fabric. With less wool, there is less shrinkage.
Less surface wool = less shrinkage
Everyone loved their wearable art. Parents who were present requested an adult class to learn this process and have fun with their own peers. Adults just wanna have fun, too!
If you are interested in this process or have attempted nuno felting on your own, let me know! I love sharing experiences, but love seeing what else is happening in the world.
Next month we discover the expressive painting process of Pointillism. This process made famous by Georges Seurat and Paul Signac avoids paint strokes and prefers dabs and dots.
Let's call it the beginning of dot matrix!
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We added the book "Sock and Glove: Creating Charming Softy Friends from Cast-Off Socks and Gloves," by Miyako Kanamori to our collection recently and I knew it would work well with First Friday Art Club. Do you have a large assortment of one-off socks or lost the right hand to your favorite glove? Rather than scrapping them to the round file, recycle them into lovable works of art!
Transforming clothing into puppets or softy friends is not easily straightforward for most people. Even with printed templates and instructions, our brains can often argue with what we see. Despite our left and right brains occasional feud, these students took their right and left socks in adorable directions.
What in the World is a Whake?
Although I had several patterns selected to choose, students had their own stuffed friend visions and this Maker wanted a whale. While a whale pattern is not an option in the book (sequel suggestion...) this artist took the liberty of designing one. He got a little mutated in the process and became a Whale Snake or a Whake!
Olivia Newton Sock
Puppies popped up from the patch. The remnants of the "whake" became a workout gear for this puppy. I just have the the "Physical" song running through my head with visions of this pup pumping iron.
This "cat" once ran around in gym sneakers
With dogs, you must have cats. This striped variety once had the role of gym clothing for middle school. This creation could lead to more verses in the Smelly Cat song.
Cow-Pig-Sheep?
The designer of this curious creature intended to make a sheep. Her color options made her feel the animal looked more like a pig or a cow. I think the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles had some influence on these creatures.
A little noting goes a long way.
This cherub created a birthday duck for her mother.
She was surprised to see this lonesome sock become a lovable friend.
Markers are easy for facial features
To add features to these friends, we had lots of embroidery floss and embellishments. With the clock counting down to the library closing time, these makers wanted to finish their project before they left. Using markers was a simple solution.
This wraps up another First Friday Art Club. We have great projects in store for 2017.
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Shannah Warwick of Blackbts (that's Black Boots) will guide our group in the Nuno Felting method. The finished piece will be wearable art. Lookout Corning...we're getting fancy!
