Patches for Strangefolk

I'm getting ready to travel to St. Louis this coming weekend for the Strangefolk Festival!  I am taking many new creations.  Hat and Mitten sets are some of my favorites.  As you will see, the colors and textures and patterns on the wool sweaters I find to recycle are so inspiring.  But, this past weekend, I had fun creating a group of patches.  I dredged the idea from the back of my brain.  Several years ago, my husband needed me to cover up an area on a shirt he loved to wear. I searched the internet and did eventually find something  that would work as a patch, expensive though!......but now, I have some IDEAS for making unique, original patches, even custom designed patched if requested!

This elephant is one of a series of patches.  The elephants were originally part of a piece of fabric made in India.  The garment made of the fabric was no longer serviceable.  I stitched the elephants onto pieces of heavy, woven wool from a blanket.  The Patch can be sewn onto a garment, messenger bag or used as a decoration on a pillow or.....use your imagination.  It can sewn on by hand using contrasting or matching yarn and a blanket stitch or sewn on by machine.

The piece of wool used in this hat and mitten set has lots of texture especially in the raised dots.

The heathery green wool used for this hat and mitten set is very unusual.  It is very Limey!

If you are near St. Louis, Saturday or Sunday, you culd come see the 150 vendors of indie art, the great food booths and the super  bands.  Check it out on their website:   Strangefolk 

Lots of Birds

This morning is very cool after three warmish days. The birds are as sensitive to the weather as I am. They showed up in multitudes today. My new heated birdbath draws in the bluebirds. So this morning I sat at the breakfast table watching the birds and drawing small designs that I could turn into appliques to put onto bags. I have so many small scraps of wool, I never throw away a wool fiber....I grabbed wire and wire cutters and started shaping legs to make three dimensional birds. I will try antique lace for wings for the spring birds made of light yellow. They will look a little like chicks. I will post a picture as soon as I "hatch" one. In the meantime I am posting a picture of my first needle felted three dimensional bird, a bluebird of course.