Valerie McLean

A trip to New Zealand in 2000 exposed me to felting...a return trip in 2004 got me hooked.

Felting is an ancient craft dating back thousands of years. It is the actual making of the fabric from wool by using a little soap to change the ph, water and agitation, commonly known as elbow grease. Once the fabric or piece is made, it is then worked and molded, called fulling, to strengthen and harden the fabric. Wool is the only fiber that will do this.

Each piece is unique and sometimes it seems to havbe a mind of its own. I love the feel of the wool in my hands and working with it unitil its final form is something that brings pleasure, awe, joy, question or just plain laughter to me or someone else. There is never crocheting or knitting involved but the laying out of wool roving in fine layers until the desired thickness is ready to be worked. What happens next is up to the wool and my own ability to be flexible when the creative design ends up going a different direction than planned.

There's the joy, surprise, and pleasure in the final creation. I hope each piece and see and touch brings you that same kind of feeling.