Portaferry Felting Residential 2023

Feltmakers North Guild

Lets tell you all what we have been up to over the summer holidays with regards to our fabulous group & everything to do with Felting!

'Festival of felt'
The beautiful shores of Portaferry, on the Peninsula in the warm Mediterranean sun at the start of June.

Feltmakers North had its 1st Felting Residential after a long break and what a weekend of felting fun, being creative, and getting to know each other over the craft that we love and having dinner and walks along the shore.

Saturday we had our first Workshop with the very talented Textile Artist Dympna Curran from Portaferry & valued committee member of Feltmakers North.

Sandy is very happy at her work, look at the lovely colours that she had in her little brown bags!

The photos should give you a sense of the different stages of the bag making and laying of fibers.

You get to this stage and you can feel the excitement, your going to have a bag and the end of the day.

A great way to make a lovely bag.
Lots of different steps to follow with great instruction from Dympna & we worked very hard, with many a laugh on the way. We had a tea break with treats to keep our energizes up and a few stories on the way. Did i mention the tights! say no more....

Fabulous Elaine!

 

Hello everyone

Welcome to our 13th AGM held on Saturday 20th May 2023, at the Hillsborough Village Centre.
What a great day it was for all our members to be apart of the proceedings, the run through the year's finances from our Sandy, Treasurer who does such a great job keeping us in check. Thanks to Elaine stepping in for Deborah as she is on holiday (wishing she was with us), reading the sectary's report of the year and what a report! A filled calendar year for us all, we did so well. Leah giving an input on her 1st year of being on committee and the job of looking at funding & bringing together are evaluations from all are workshops and how well she has got on. Great to hear! Jane gave an input on the opportunities of partnership working with the IFA and the August Craft month and other possibilities so its really exciting and Jane is great at keeping us all informed. Looking forward to the year ahead.

  

 

 

Wall Hangings by Debbie

Feltmakers North members and visitors were in for a real treat when our Deborah Woolsey, (Secretary of Feltmakers North) took the Felt-In on Saturday 18th March, St Patrick's weekend and Mothering Sunday. Just look at the fabulous colours, texture, and the creative Shibori with holes and added embellishment. Deborah or Debbie, as she likes to go by in our group has came with such a display of beautiful wall hangings to show us all. What a variety of texture, technics, talent and creativity to inspire us all. Looking at the land & sea and putting this intention into her felt work through the use of scraps of material, wool fibers, silk, whatever is in your bag of goodies! Looking at the flowers from a previous summer, her Lupin's grown in her garden and using them to develop her ideas for her wallhanging. The hanging was backed with a beautiful old tea cloth that was her mothers, to the surprise of her sister Joanne LOL. We love the stories that are shared in the group, especial when you cut up the good material that was an heirloom! Great use of timeless material that has history to it and always a story to share of its journey amongst felting friends with a lease of life once more given.

We all were treated to a great introduction to the use of the world around us for ideas and inspiration to our work and also to the use of 'pinterest' and how to safe ideas, research techniques while we can also follow other interesting feltmakers and think outside the box.  Some beautiful samples on show!

Having fun laying out the fibers

Helen wearing her new apron, just delivered and as she signed up and paid her membership, its hers to keep!  Did I also mention that Helen won the ballot this month! Congratulations!!

Who said we couldn't work hard and still have lots of laughs!!

Debbie's piece inspired by Lupin's in her garden

Also a sample of how to use a resist in our felt making

Debbie is such a grounding person, with a lovely teaching style that you just be carried along, you could listen to her all day! But, we do need to felt and create .... under her encouragement and positive manner.

Debbie say's, I just like to throw it down and see whats happens!

Well Debbie, we did and what a great time was had by all.

NO Felt In in April, so enjoy your Easter.

See all member's only at Feltmakers North 13th AGM Saturday 20th May 2023, 

with a workshop by Sarah Jarden on Drop Spindle Spining & a lovely picnic lunch.

Welcome back! February's Felt-In got off to great start with our very creative Deirdre Gallagher introducing Shibori techniques to the group along with a few spikes and roping to bring together into a beautiful wet felted necklace! Ann made reference to it being more of a day workshop! We all agree! What a busy morning, so much to take in, learn and to do, the excitement in the room and the silence ...as everyone was quietly busy lol. I'd love to know what Beverly was giggling at? We did have plenty of laughs, you should know our group by now!  Shibori - Spikes Ropes / cording & Inclusions

We really did experience all of these on the morning - can't wait to see what everyone brings back for the Show & Tell table.  

Love how versatile felt can be. Taking my own blended roving that has been carded on the carding drum and made into a cord or roping to form a necklace to wear. So much more easily made! 

(no cracks girls to cover over) Look at the mix of colour, just speaks the sea or ocean to me. Murlough Bay Beach, in the Co Down that swipes down to the Mournes is where I draw my inspiration from. displaying different parts to the techniques that when put together formed my display pieces of jewelry for the morning felt-in. Lots of information to take in! The visual dairy from my HND Art & Design course came in handy to show the importance of drawing from your own sketches, photos and what you like and love form your surroundings - then you take it to sampling and then your finished pieces.

 Adapting as you learn and grow. Just play!

Our group at Feltmakers North Guild really go out the whole way not just with the sampling for what we are doing that morning but also with a gift offered up for the ballot as well as the presentation of our work to the group, I think you would agree. I think Sandy had her eye on this necklace from the start of the morning, did she win the ballot? You will need to read on to find out LOL.

Inclusions made with stones & coloured gems. Shibori made with marbles of different sizes.

This is a beautiful scarf made using Shibori - just look at the effect, I love it!

Margaret & Sandy busy being creative with bright colours shown. Sandy is now trying out the necklace, it really does suit her. We have Deborah & Johanne (our sister act) having a great time with Anna in the background trying not to look at the camera.

Show & Tell table-more beautiful cushion covers made & a pleated vessel from Sandy's felt-In and workshop - aren't they fabulous!

What a display of fabulous work, by our members! We have cushion covers, pleated vessels, bracelets, framed Red Robin,a book cover and lovely handbags made by Ann on display.

What a great display of work and talent!

What do you think?

Well, the ballot has been pulled and
who 's number came up? Well you will never believe it! Sandy was our winner, congratulations!

Beautiful on you Sandy, Well done!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the February Felt-In, it was another great morning being very creative with lots of laughs. Going home with many ideas and plenty of homework says Sharon,

 (nice homework though). 

Look at the lovely pleated vessels - thanks to Jayne, Leah, Patricia, Susan, Anna, Sharon, Beverley & Sandy for bringing them in for us all to see, and all the other bits! What a great selection.

See you all on, Saturday 18th March

Deborah, over to you with felted Wall hangings!

This is going to be exciting!

Bye for now.

All visitors welcome, £10 for the morning.

Deirdre Gallagher

Chair of Feltmakers North Guild