I guess in my enthusiasm I got a little ahead of my self on felting the core of your sculpture. Someone asked me what the wire was that I felted the core on. So I have to back track a little to the WIRE ARMATURE.
**PLEASE CLICK ON EACH PICTURE TO ENLARGE FOR A BETTER LOOK!
I make all of my sculptures with a wire armature for two reasons.
1) for strength and durability
2) for posing ability
When I first heard about wire armatures, I thought that it was a big thing. I even looked online for them to see if I could buy ready-made ones!!LOL!! It basically is a wire stick figure that looks slightly like what you’re sculpting.
I recommend using 22 guage steel wire…not pipe cleaners. Pipe cleaners break easily, and they also rust. Can you imagine your beautiful white sculpture with an orange stain on it? yuck! anyway..lets do it!!
1) cut 2 lengths of wire
2) twist them around in the middle
3) cut legs to length desired
4) curl the ends around
5) cut a shorter piece of wire for the head and tail
6) make a little loop on one end for the head, and wrap around body leaving end sticking out for the tail
That’s all there is to it. Make sure to curl in all ends so you or your buyers do not get cut with wire. It is also much easier to work on with out the sharp ends in the way.
That’s all there is to it! I hope that I made this clear! Feel free to ask me any questions that you may have! You’re all ready to start felting!
FELT:
Simply wrap a little wool around the wire and carefully felt it to stay on. Keep adding layers of wool and felt to attach firmly. After a while you will automatically avoid the wire with the needle tip. It usually glides right by it. If you felt it in too fast, you can break your needle.I always use romney wool for my cores. It felts easily and quickly with a firm finish. http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=14717998
HAPPY FELTING!
Hi there
)) I’m loving this blog…so great to see some great tips on needle felting!!
I just wanted to add to your piece here that if you very loosely twist (leaving loops) 2 lengths of wire together for the legs, the wool when needle felted will felt through loops and around the wire creating a firmer bond .. this way your creation can be bent and posed as many times as you like without loosing the shape you’ve spent hours creating with wool…nor will the wire move around inside…
Hugs,
Sharon
By: Sharon on September 24, 2008
at 5:45 am
I do double wire my armatures when I do larger sculptures, but I wouldn’t have room to double wire the legs in my regular sized sculptures. I recommend firmly felting so the wire is already tightly felted in the center. My wire NEVER moves around inside. I use 20 or 22 guage wire that is pretty thick. My blog is mostly to help newbies to get more enjoyment from needle felting. With TWO wires I would worry that needles would break more often as the wire would be in the way more. With the single wire, you can felt around one side of it and then the other side, thus the wool is tight all around it and will NEVER move around inside. My sculptures are totally poseable and do not “loose shape” as they are firmly felted. Be sure not to make the wool too firm or the posing will be limited. I recommend felting firmly so that you cannot push in the wool or it doesn’t leave a fingerprint or dent when pushed in. Then there are no loose wires~
By: gourmetfelted on September 24, 2008
at 3:06 pm
This was really a place that I needed help. The kit my husband bought did not have armature. I started to use my copper bonsai wire but couldn’t get to it. So I just felted tight. Tanks for the help. Judy
By: judy lambert on October 1, 2008
at 12:58 am
Hi Judy, I’m so glad that you were helped! That is the goal of my blog. I wish to help people to find their
“joy of felting!”
By: gourmetfelted on October 1, 2008
at 1:16 am
I dont have any of my felted Aussies listed on my website as of yet but that comes later, still trying to get the hang of some of the little things
I want to Thank You again for bringing to my attention how my Ebay photos were coming up although he does have a cute butt! And also thanks for telling me bout your site! I can see this will be very very helpful, I already learned how to make the armature with your instructions becasue that had puzzled me! Again Thanks!!
By: Karen on October 2, 2008
at 4:36 pm
im a newbie felter. i am 12 and I think im pretty artsy. i have no idea how to felt over an armature. the legs always slide off and my animal looks like a stick.
by the way, your animals are beautiful! i try to get mine to look like yours but i never succeed.
By: april privett on October 3, 2008
at 7:27 pm
Hi April! That is so great that you are trying needle felting! I taught two 12 year old twin boys how to needle felt! They did fine and I’m sure that you can too. Can you send me pictures of what you’ve done and I can tell you how to improve them? I’d love to help!
gfelted@verizon.net
What kind of wool are you using to make the core base of your dog? You felt on the first layer of wool, and keep adding more, little by little, until it is thick enough. I use a photo as a guide to get the dogs legs right. If you keep felting and try to make each one a little better than the last one, then you’ll be good after a while. That’s what I do. I always try to make it better and there are some mistakes still on my dogs, but I keep working on them! Thank you for your kind words on my dogs!
HAPPY FELTING!!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on October 3, 2008
at 7:41 pm
Hi April, I’ve been thinking about what you said about the wool slipping around the wire. I pinch it in and felt one side , then turn it and felt another side, until you go all around. Felt it in tight before you add more layers of wool. That will keep it tight.
By: gourmetfelted on October 5, 2008
at 5:17 am
I so want to do this!! I want to do wild aniamls and dogs- I want to get the amature materials and everything I need, I also have lots of snow white dog wool, could I use it? its not carded!!
I am not sure how to start my animals even after reading all this. I guess I am just not sure how to do it! Help!!
By: medicinedogs4ak on December 2, 2008
at 9:11 pm
Welcome to my blog!! Yes you can use dog wool, carded or not!!!NO problem!!What kind of dog do you have?
The wire armatures are made by the person felting. No one sells them. It’s like drawing a stick figure inside a dog. That’s what you make to felt the fur on. You also can felt without an armature, but I never do that unless it’s something without legs!
By: gourmetfelted on December 2, 2008
at 10:00 pm
How do you decide what size your wire armature should be, obviously it should smaller than the finished dog but by how much? Also how much wire should be allowed for the neck?
You make it look so easy on your ‘Tip of the week-Armature’
By: Dawn on March 18, 2009
at 6:59 pm
Hi Dawn,
That is a great question! I put a photo of the dog that I want to make on my computer screen that is the size that I’m making. Then I hold the wire up and make it inside of the image. Be careful not to touch the computer screen, especially with the wire.
The back wire is about where the spine is on the real dog. Then you make a loop for the head and hold it up near the photo to see where to wrap it onto the legs. You can tell how long the neck is by matching the loop of the wire to the top of the head.
I ALWAYS felt the head last or it could end up too large or too small. I also leave a little extra wire on the legs until I have the body felted, just in case I need longer legs. It is much easier to cut off extra wire than to add wool length when there is no wire left. This can be done, but there will be no posing to that added on piece.
I hope that you are following me on this. It is a trial and error thing. It doesn’t always come out perfectly believe me! LOL!
I hope this answered your questions. Please feel free to ask anytime!
HAPPY FELTING!
By: gourmetfelted on March 19, 2009
at 5:36 pm
Hi Gerry,
Your felted creations are absolutely lovely (the dogs are particularly amazing!) and have inspired me to give it a try myself! What I’m now wondering is where you buy your 22 gauge steel wire from for the cores? I’ve dug around online a bit but can’t seem to find anything… or do you just purchase the wire from your local craft store?
Thanks for all the fantastic information you provide in your blog, and keep up the fantastic work!
Kaila
By: Kaila on January 5, 2010
at 8:14 am
Hi Kaila,
Welcome to my blog! Thank you so much for your kind words on my dogs! I am so tickled that You were inspired!
I buy wire at the local hardware store!!LOL! Nothing fancy. I use 19 gauge wire for larger sculptures. Hope that you find it OK.
Please feel free to to ask any more questions. HAPPY FELTING!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on January 7, 2010
at 4:12 am
Do you have a suggestion what I could use for contouring a wiggly looking felted purse handle. It needs to be firm and hold designed shape. It will be around 1/2 to 3/4 inch round.
By: lynn on December 16, 2010
at 2:39 am
Hi Lynn,
Welcome to my blog!
I’m not sure what you mean by wiggly looking. If I were making a purse handle, I would felt it very, very firmly. You could even wrap a coat hanger wire to make it stronger. You could wet felt it rather than needle felt also. If it is uneven, then you need to wrap more layers and felt them until it is smooth. It should be firm enough that your finger doesn’t make a dent in it. I hope that helps!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on December 16, 2010
at 4:55 am
Hi Gerry, I just tried that thing with the foral tape and it made me so mad I didn’t finish the sheep yet. You keep getting the gum off the floral tape stuck on your needle and it just makes a mess. Wool sticking to that too. I will never use the tape again. I would like to know how to get the ends of his feet to cover all the wire or do you have some wire showing also. Thanks for the site. It really helps alot. Rhonda
By: rhonda on April 29, 2011
at 5:38 pm
Hi Rhonda,
Sorry that the floral tape idea didn’t work for you. That was one of my readers ideas and I have never used it. I did delete it so no one else will try it if there is a problem with it. Thanks for letting me know.
Please note: Using the floral tape is NOT in my directions for needle felted sheep.
To felt the feet. I take a thin piece of wool that is about 2 inches by 1/4 inch or so and wrap it around the curled wire of the foot. Carefully tack it down with a few pokes, and then felt it all around. You can also add a little ball to the bottom of the foot if necessary. Be VERY careful felting feet. That is when I usually get poked!!OUCH!!
Please feel free to ask any more questions anytime! I’m so glad that you like my site! Thanks for the input!
Happy Felting!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on April 29, 2011
at 6:24 pm
Hi Gerry!
I stumbled upon your blog tonight, and may I say, your work is absolutely gorgeous! I can really tell that needle felting for you is a labor of love. I enjoy needle felting myself, but quite honestly don’t have much experience under my belt. I’ve been needle felting some animals and was recommended by “Little Felted Animals” by Marie Noelle Horvath to incorporate cotton piping cord into the limbs of animals to add support. However, I am guessing this does not lend at all to posability. What do you think? Have you ever used cotton piping cord in your animals? Also wondering–if I were to use wire armature as you suggest, would it be acceptable to use copper wire? That may sound funny, but I’ve got 2 packs of copper wire sitting around at home that I had purchased for some other project that ended up not coming to fruition. The copper wire I have is 16 gauge, 1.3 mm. I would probably try using this until I can get my hands on some 22 gauge steel wire as you recommend. Unless that’s a completely horrible idea! Please let me know what you think. And thanks for all your tips!
By: Valerie on December 20, 2011
at 6:54 am
Hi Valerie,
Welcome to my blog! Thank you for your kind words on my sculptures! Many hours and much love go into each one! I have never found that cotton piping cord. I asked around in places that should have it and it was as if I was looking for martians!!LOL! Plain old wire works for me! I get it at the hardware store. Any wire will work as long as it is thick enough. Copper would be fine. 16 gauge is pretty thick but if it bends after you felt the wool on, why not use it? I use a range of thicknesses depending on the size of the sculpture. Sometimes I double or triple the wire if it is something really large and I don’t have thick enough wire. Some people don’t use any wire. There is no right or wrong way….. as long as it works for you go for it!
Happy Felting!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on December 21, 2011
at 5:09 pm
Hi Gerry, I use thin strips, 1/4 inch or so, of felt fabric wrapped around my armature before felting on the core wool. It doesn’t take long to do and gives the core wool something grab onto! Nancy
By: Nancy Davidson on March 20, 2012
at 2:52 pm
Hi Nancy,
Welcome to my blog! That is a good idea if you can’t get the wool tight enough on the wire. I have found that if you wrap the wool tightly on the wire, then the wool clings to itself. The key is not to add a thick layer to start with. It is better to wrap the wire with a thin layer of wool and add to it. But if that other method works for you…go for it. There is no right or wrong way to needle felt. The end result can be achieved with different methods!
Happy Felting!
~Gerry
By: gourmetfelted on March 28, 2012
at 2:00 pm