Bag Lady

I have been hunting for some old photos. Of course I'm finding everything but the ones I'm searching for. Tonight I came across a bundle of photos (pre-digital) of the many bags I made circa 1996-1998. It is so much fun for me to look at these old pictures, and remember each and every one of those bags! Of course, they are all made from old sweaters that I recycle and turn into thick wool felt. And most of them are adorned with antique buttons. Here are some of them ... I'll scan the rest another day. I hope you enjoy my walk down Memory Lane. (I do still make bags, but I'm not nearly as prolific now as I was then.)

Click on the titles, below, to enlarge selected pictures

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1.

1998 Five Bags

, 2.

1996 Two Bags

, 3.

Maroon and Yellow Bags

, 4.

Purple Bag

, 5.

Two Blue Star Bags

, 6.

Yellow Sleeve Bag

, 7.

1996 Green Bag

, 8.

1996 Raspberry Bag

, 9.

1996 Black & White Bag

, 10.

Green Bag with Penny

, 11.

1996 My Tiny Navy Blue Bag

, 12.

Pouches

Forget-Me-Nots

It's spring, thankfully. I'll take this opportunity to share some felted wool Forget-Me-Nots. They are all made from my typical fiber of choice - felted wool made by repeatedly washing, and shrinking, wool sweaters. Stitched with Persian wool thread and adorned with vintage and antique buttons.

Forget-Me-Nots Nine-Patch 2002, 13" x 13" plus framing (frame not shown)

This one is more colorful than the others, even though the background squares are grey. The tweedy ones are from a coat that belonged to my mother. This piece was purchased by someone whose house ended up being featured in a magazine. I was so excited to see if it would show up in one of the photos. Well, it did. If you look real close, and if you know exactly what you're looking for, and if you use a magnifying glass, you will see a part of it, behind a lamp, at the edge of the picture.

Detail

Pinkeep, about 2.5" across

I love making pinkeeps - this one unfolds into two attached wool circles for keeping pins and needles. I just had to "steal" one of the forget-me-not circles to make it into a pinkeep.

Forget-Me-Nots 2004, 20.5" x 23.5" (27" x 29.5" framed).

I worked on this one for years. It went through many changes before I felt satisfied with it. In addition to wool from sweaters, this one also contains some felt that my daughter and I made from fleece (the yellow pieces). Lots of the blues are from an old blanket, given to me by a friend. The blanket had originally been a paper-maker's felt, used in his grandfather's business. When it wore out, it was cut down and made into blankets which were used by the family. I am particularly pleased with the colors in the background squares and the way they change. There is a nice flow to it, which I worked very hard to achieve.

What I Make From Dryer Lint

You know I am all about recycling, and I wash old sweaters and other woolens until they shrink and become thick wool felt. One byproduct is what gets left in the lint trap: lots of wool fluff. I can't possibly throw this away! So, I make wooly balls, and sometimes I turn the wooly balls into wooly ornaments.

If you would like to try this, but you don't happen to be washing, and ruining, dozens of sweaters, you can use wool roving. Pick whatever color appeals to you. Grab a large handful and shape it more or less into a ball. Then wrap wool thread around it. Stuff this sloppy ball into the bottom of a stocking, and tie a knot - the process of pushing while you tie the knot will improve its shape.

If you want to make more than one, just keep repeating the process until you have used the entire length of the stocking. At this point you can call it a garland and quit. But if you hang that garland in your living room, your family may have you institutionalized.

Now throw your weird garland into the washing machine and let it start - hot water and just a bit of soap. After about five minutes, you need to check on how things are going. The wool will start to felt and if you let it go on for too long, the nylon stocking will become embedded in the balls. Yuk.

Once your balls (ha, ha I said "your balls") have felted as much as they can without grabbing onto the nylon, it is time to remove them from the washer and finish them off by hand. Remove the balls from the stocking and rub them against something rough, like an old-fashioned washboard. You do this while keeping them hot, wet and soapy. They will "harden off" and become nice, tight, hard balls. That's really the most difficult part of the process - takes lots of elbow grease. Once you have the finished balls, you can either enjoy them as is, or dress them up with ribbon, buttons, bells, and what have you.

Above all - have fun doing this! Although, during the hardening off process, you may decide you'd rather pay someone like me to do it for you!

Go Fish!

Just listed at my etsy shop! I made it by recycling sweaters into wool felt, then lots of cutting and hand stitching. Fun!

Update: Go Fish was featured at Softies Central Thank you, Therese!

Flying Geese - Flying Away

It feels so good to say that Flying Geese is complete. Here is a detail photo.

UPDATE: Please go HERE to see how the piece actually ended up!

Two Angels at the Tree

Made from recycled sweaters, Two Angels at the Tree is adapted from a painting seen on an early American blanket chest. I loved making the tree, with all of its French knot leaves, and the border, with its blanket stitching trim. The angels’ dresses are made from sweater sleeves; if you look closely at the hems, you can see the ribbing that was the cuff. Materials used in making this piece are: felted wool made from abandoned sweaters, a little piece of vintage lace, and wool tapestry thread.

Two Angels at the Tree, which is a one-of-a-kind piece, measures 11” x 9” and is sold.


Below is the beautiful original painting, as seen at www.oldtiques.net.