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The Dodo Blog

Wet Felting Demonstration: 3 Layouts For Batts

Nov 21, 2021

I’m really excited about this week’s topic because I find there aren’t many wet felters exploring it. And that’s the usage of batts for wet felting.

Batts are more commonly used in needle felting, but they’re definetely worth exploring in wet felting too.

When applied right, batts can:

  • save you so much time and effort, since the layout is a lot less laborious than it is for tops
  • help you achieve a more even layout

Also, if you're open to wet felting with batts as well as tops, you'll have a wider choice in colors, since often suppliers have a different color palett for batts and tops. And, in my experience, they produce a felt that is a bit different from the one made with tops: less shiny but smoother.

These are 3 new lessons about 3 different ways to lay wool batts, when to use them, as well as the advantages of working with them.

So, if this is something that sparks interest for you, you can access this week’s lessons by signing up for the ...

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New Free Felting Membership

Nov 07, 2021

Yes! That's right. I've been working on a free felting membership and it's now available for you to enjoy :)

You see, I’ve been blogging and vlogging about wet felting for over a decade. And what I’ve noticed is that in those formats, it’s easy to lose track of what I’ve already covered since the information is scattered everywhere.

I also wanted a place where you could ask me questions in a way that other felters could also benefit from the answers. So, after considering the pros and cons of the different platforms, I decided this would be the best way to have everything under the same roof.

It's called The Dodo Sandbox because it's a place for you to play, experiment and grow your felting skills :)

The membership area is divided into the “core training” and different chapters or modules, each dedicated to a different topic. When you enter the members’ area, that’s exactly what you see.

Of course, I’ll be creating new...

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Tips For Wet Felted Wall Hangings

Feb 04, 2021

A couple of weeks ago I got a sweet email from Jet van Grinsven, a felter from the Netherlands, thanking me for the inspiring blog and info, as well as asking me a question.

Jet is building a new home and wants to create a wall hanging, but isn’t sure if she should be using a stronger background as a base for the felted structure. Jet had been advised to use cheese cloth, but wasn’t certain if that was the best option. So, she wanted to know if I could give her some tips on that.

If making a felted wall hanging is something you’re thinking about, maybe you can take advantage of the tips I gave Jet, so here they are.

 

“You don't necessarily need to use a background as a base for your wall covering. It will depend a lot on what you're planning to felt. 

I'd say the first thing to think about is how thick you'll make the piece. For example, here is a photo of a wall decoration I made some time ago. It's very light, so it doesn't need any...

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Become a Founding Member

Jan 28, 2021
 

Coming to you from a locked down Lisbon. Can’t lie. Not feeling great. And I’m guessing you may not be feeling great either.

But it’s time to… I nearly said ‘react’. Instead, it’s time to act. I’ve started going for a jog in the morning again. And I’m slowly getting back to a routine, as normal as possible.

Meanwhile, I’ve been working on something that I promised you a long time ago: the Wet Felted Hats Masterclass. It’s ready and I’m now testing all the connections and technical stuff that must be in place to make things work smoothly. If you haven’t had the chance to see what it’s about, here’s the link to check it out.

If all the tests I’m doing go well (and I’m expecting they do), it’ll be available for you to buy from January 30th (next Saturday) to February 5th. The course will then be accessible from February 6th and...

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Update On Felting Suppliers

Aug 13, 2020

Sharing tips, ideas, and experiences from felters who write me emails telling me about their felting projects has been on my mind for a long time.

It's so rewarding to hear from you, whether it's about something you created based on one of my tutorials or just to chat about felt. And I'm always thinking "Wouldn't it be great to have a space where we could all talk to each other".

Finding a way to exchange experiences about the things we love is becoming more important every day, especially in these times we're living. So, I'm looking for the best solution for that. But, in the meantime, I'd just love to encourage you to email me things you’d like to share.

Today I'll be doing exactly that: sharing great information I got as an answer to one of my recent posts.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about how to choose your felting suppliers. And I ended the post asking you to send me any recommendations you might have, if you've had a good experience with any shop.

Well, I got...

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Felting Suppliers I Recommend

Jul 16, 2020

I’m often asked who I recommend in terms of suppliers for felting materials.

My first recommendation would always be to find a good one near you, a brick and mortar store, where you can see and touch the wool before you buy.

But, not all of us have good felting suppliers around the corner. In fact, depending on where you live, it’s often difficult to find a local shop that carries the big diversity of materials you need for more sophisticated felting projects.

So, most of the times, we have to resort to online stores.

Even for online suppliers, I’d still recommend finding one as close to home as possible. That’ll mean less money spent on shipping, and it’s also better for the environment.

Next, I’d look into the variety they offer and how dependable they are when you need advice on the best wool for a particular project.

Another important factor is the shipping time. If you need materials for a project you want to finish soon,...

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The 7 Pieces Of Felting Equipment I Can't Live Without

Apr 16, 2020

I’m not the kind of person that buys all types of equipment when I start a hobby. Even though I’ve been felting for 15 years, there’s still so much I haven’t bought, and I probably never will. And much of the equipment I have invested in, have been purchases I’ve made in the last 3 or 4 years.

I know it’s easy to get excited about all the products for felting offered online, but you really don’t need much to wet felt. When I started, I really only had the basics. First, I didn’t want to spend money on something I wasn’t sure I’d be doing for a long time. And also, because I think the magic of felting is exactly the fact that – unlike in so many other textile techniques – you nearly only need your bare hands and wool to create an object.

But, since it was quickly clear to me that I’d go on felting for a very long time, I’ve slowly started getting equipment that makes...

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What Is What In Felting

Apr 02, 2020

Are you going crazy with the ‘what is what’ in terms of the wool for felting?

I do my best to avoid insider lingo, but the truth is there’s no escaping. You’ll just have to learn a couple of new terms when it comes to this. Otherwise you risk not getting the right materials for your projects. So here is some of the terminology you’re bound to hear if you’re taking on felting:

Raw fleece is what you call the wool when it’s right off the animal and unwashed (that means dirty and greasy). This is not something you can normally get, unless you buy directly from a sheep farm.

Scoured fleece has been washed to remove lanolin and dirt, but it still has the lock structure. I use it to fill pillows or for doll’s hair, for example.

Wool batts, wool batting or carded wool is very similar to quilt batting. It’s the result of removing the debris from the wool with a machine that breaks up the lock structure, and then going...

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Tools & NEW Workshops

Feb 13, 2019

It’s been quite some time since my last post, and some of you have been asking when the next update will be. It’s true that this isn’t how things have been in the past in my blog, so here is the reason.

Without going too much into my private life, a lot of stuff has changed for me personally and professionally in the last one and a half years. This means that regularly posting twice a month just isn’t possible for me right now, as much as I would love to have more time to create new videos and new courses. And I only want to post when I find I have something valuable to share with you.

The last thing that would cross my mind is to give up on felting, blogging and sharing what I know with you. So, the show will go on, just not as regularly as it used to be.

Having said that, I hope you will still find it worth it to hear from me and I’ll jump right into today’s topic.

I’d like to show you what I’ve been working on, and what I want to...

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Wool Batts VS Pre-Felts – The Q&A Sessions

Feb 13, 2018
 

Welcome to the second episode of the Q&A sessions.

Today I have an important question about the basics of wet felting. MorningCoffee left this comment on my YouTube video “Felting sheets with wool batting”. Even though I’ve already given her a short answer, I’d like to say something more about it, since it’s a very frequent question. So, MorningCoffee says:

“I have a question. I don’t know if it was covered already, so sorry if it has. But is wool batt the same as “pre-felt” sheets?”

And the answer is NO. The confusion might come from the fact that they look similar, but they’re actually very different products.

I’ve already spoken a bit about wool batts and pre-felts in a couple of my blog posts and I’ll include the links to those below. But I’ve never addressed this directly.

Now, I avoid using a lot of technical terms in my videos because I don’t want to overwhelm you. Especially if...

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