Busy Needle Felting again...

Over the last couple of weeks I have been busy needle felting again.  My biggest creation yet has finally emerged..... mammoth.  Here he is......

 

I've made mammoth using British Jacob wool and I've made the tusks using polymer clay, which I have painted and given a distressed look.  Poor Mammoth has been in a fight, as you can see by his worn tusks.  

I've also made sloth.  Sloth is based on a crochet sloth that I made a few years ago.  Here's the original......dressed in Barbie clothes!!!

And here is the original with my needle felted sloth whilst in the process of making him....

Just doing his press ups........

All ready for eBay...

Yay... 

Hope you like them.   

Needle Felted Portrait of Milo the Miniature Schnauzer

 It's been a wet afternoon in England and so I thought it was a good time to do some needle felting.  I've been meaning to do a portrait of our dog Milo for a while so thought I'd share with you step by step pictures as the portrait progressed.

 Just getting started with the outlines.

 Filling in more details.

Adding fur on nose.

Adding those all important Schnauzer eyebrows!

Time for white highlights on his head.

Adding to his beard.

Don't forget the shine on his wet nose!

All finished.

Hope you like him!

1940s Summer Snood

I've been spending the last few evenings trying out an old 1940's crochet pattern for a Summer Snood.  After a few false starts, I finally managed to master it!  I chose a lovely pillar box red wool that has a very fine gold thread running through it.  Here it is displayed on my old hat block.  Hope you like it.  I'm going to be trying out a few more patterns so watch this space......

Hedgehog for Somerset Wildlife Trusts Knit for Nature Campaign

I have been busy knitting this hedgehog to support Somerset Wildlife Trusts Knit for Nature Campaign.  If you fancy joining in see the following link:-
http://www.somersetwildlife.org/knit_for_nature

My little Oxfam frog....

Meet my little frog that I bought the other day from an Oxfam shop in Totnes.  Here he is enjoying a drive to Beesands in Devon.  He is a lovely little colourful frog but he also comes with quite a serious message.  On his leg is attached a label which reads " This frog comes with a message.  While we in the west are having an obesity crisis, hundreds of millions of us survive on a handful of rice a day - the same amount of rice that is in this frog."  Quite an eye opener and sad message.  Little frog is going to find a home in my kitchen as a daily reminder to me to be grateful for all of the food that I receive and to help others in need.

Memory Cushion

I've had great fun coming up with this cushion for my Sister's Birthday present.  I wanted to create for her an extra special cushion with memories attached to it so, I used a piece of tartan fabric from one of my Mum's old kilts.  This had a very special meaning to us both and it was so good to see it being made into something new and something that she could see everyday at home.  She is a big bear fan and so the subject was easy to choose.  Hope you like it....

Anyone know what this is?.....

Hi there.  Does anyone know what this is?  I've come across it in a charity shop and it is being sold as a sewing cabinet.  It looks like your spools of cotton go on the little pegs but I'm not sure what the little drop down table would have been used for.  It isn't strong enough or big enough for a sewing machine.  Not sure what age it is either.  Any ideas? ..........................

Granny Square Wedding Blanket

Over the last 9 months to a year a group of ladies from Church have been working on a granny square blanket to give to a young couple getting married next weekend.  Last Sunday I had the pleasure of presenting it to them.

I am so grateful to all of the ladies involved.  They did a great job and I think the blanket is beautiful and very fitting for a wedding blanket.  We added hearts and owls (as they are into owls and other birds too).

I chose colours that represented spring, in particular wisteria.

A great place to look for colour inspiration is www.design-seeds.com.

Felting tops have arrived...

So excited today as my new felting tops have arrived from Adelaide Walker.

Lovely tops just waiting for some felting!

 I have recently discovered the beauty of needle felting.  It is great fun and very addictive to do.  So far I have been using Merino tops but as I have been enjoying making dogs, I wanted to try tops with some more texture and depth.


I have gone for Manx Loaghtan top in fawn, Jacob top in black, Shetland top in mid grey and Scoured white curly kid mohair (this one is going on my wire haired fox terrier "Bob").

Bob

Adelaide Walker have been great.  My parcel arrived very promptly and well parcelled.  I will definitely be ordering again.  You can find them on http://www.adelaidewalker.co.uk/

Can't wait to get felting.

Hope you have a great day.

Welcome Back ....

So good of you to drop in again on this beautiful sunny morning.  I thought I might introduce myself,  I'm Bobbin and Bodkin and I love creating.  I live in a 1970's style house in a little village in Somerset with my family, my dog Milo ( a miniature Schnauzer ) and two stick insects called Log and Long.

Milo toasting himself!

During school time I serve school dinners at a local village school but my real dream is to spend my work days sewing, crocheting and needle felting in my conservatory studio with Milo toasting himself in the sun!  Another dream is to own a VW Campervan or a vintage Caravan but I think that may need to stay a dream for a little bit longer!

I have been reading a lot about living simply and it is really speaking to me right now.  One thing that I have been wanting to have a go at is growing fruit and veg in our back garden.  It may go horribly wrong but I guess you don't know until you try.  My biggest worry is Mr Slug!  I don't believe in slug pellets as I love hedgehogs, frogs and toads too much and so will have to find alternative ways of managing things.  Any ideas, I would love to hear them.


Come on little seeds!


At the moment I am working towards my table at the Devon Bear Festival being held at Newton Abbot Racecourse on  Sunday 19th April.  This festival is run by Sarah and Steve from Kingswear Bears in Kingswear, Devon and features new, artist and antique bears, together with fabrics, patterns and all you need to start creating your own teddy bears.  More details can be found from http://www.kingswearbears.com/dbf2015.html

I will leave you with a quote from Kung Fu Panda:

"There is a saying - Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery but today is a gift, that is why it is called the Present."

Enjoy today.

The Adventure has begun.......

Welcome to my first blog post....I feel rather like an artist sitting in front of a blank canvas right now.   It is both scary and exciting at the same time.  Please pop back and watch as this blog unfolds  with sewing, crochet, needle felting as well as tales from my first veg patch!