Scarf alchemy

At the moment I am working on a scarf commission for the girlfriend of a friends son. It is a mixture of natural fleeces in shades of grey. The base is a mixture of grey merino and lighter grey chichilla. this gives it a lovely soft and crucially, non itchy, back. On top of this I have added some of my facourite fleeces. These are Gotland which in its natural state is almost dreadlock like, the other is a pale grey Cotswold, again a lovely curl. These two I have carded to varying degrees so that some of the natural curliness is left. On top of this I have added little spiraling circles of bright pink mohair.

So far I have wet felted, needlefelted in order to secure the pink, and it is currently dripping after being wet felted again. As a scarf it is very light and soft and translucent when helf up to the light.

I am not one for neat precise edges in my wet felting preferring a more organic finish. Often I will add stitching to the finished article inorder to secure the curly fleeces. I prefer to do this rather than felt them in too tightly as they then retain a little of their 3D quality. These fleeces in their natural curliness don't felt in as quickly as the likes of the merino. The other advantage to using stitching is to add colour contrast and texture.

I am essentially self taught and so am always experimenting ti the process to see how different techniques work and also to find out which way is best ergonomically. I like to add fabric into the mix, using silk either to completely back a scarf of a a stiffening central material. Often I will add scraps into the fleece when setting up an these will then show thro the felt in flashes. I love the alchemy of the process and the degree of randomness. Every mix of fleeces felts slightly differently so I never entirely know how it will be when I unwrap the roll. It is a very forgiving process, luckily with children around, and can be left at any point without causing harm.

May of my scarves come with a needlefelted or recycled fabric brooch attached. the idea is that the wearer can pin the scarf as she wishes and it will then stay in place. Some of my scarves are more substantial (especially where there is a central silk piece) and are therefore more collar like. These can be worn to dress up a simple sweater, often having a slightly Elizabethan feeling.

This is definitely the most rewarding part of my work. I love making the brooches but the scarves or bowls are more akin to the painting I used to do and allow for a stronger sense of creativity. The challange for me is, how do I continue with these larger piece when on the boat. I have yet to figure that one out.