Nuno-Felting at OFFF

Nuno-felted scarf

For the past few years (the last weekend of Sept.), I've attended OFFF (Oregon Flock & Fiber Festival) with my friend Dean, who's a weaver.   In the past, I've purchased huge bags of dyed wool rovings, which gives me a great selection for machine needlefelting with my Embellisher.

I still did some shopping at this year's OFFF, but the big highlight was the nuno-felting class I took with Carin Engen, a wonderful fiber artist from northern Cal.  Nuno-felting is still a relatively new technique, where wool fibers are felted onto a silk base (or chiffon, gauze, scrim, or other light, open weave fabric), resulting in a beautiful puckered texture (see below).

  

Back of scarf folded over the front.

Unlike traditional felting, the entire base fabric is not covered.  Instead, the roving is carefully placed on the silk base to create a design, both from the colorful wool itself and the puckers that will result.

  

The beautiful puckers and gathers on one edge of the scarf.

A big sigh . . . now that I've learned this new felting technique, how will I find the time to fit it in with all the other fiber and mixed-media arts I love to do?