Ready to take your needle felting skills to a new level? Have a dog or dogs you love? Perfect! This course will take you step-by-step through the process of transforming wool roving into an adorable version of your dog that is approximately 4-5 inches tall. This is for experienced needle felting students, so come prepared to stretch your skills.
Please have several photographs of your beloved dog available as a visual aid for the class and think about the pose you would like your dog to be in (standing, sitting, lying down, etc.). Please send at least one to Laura before the start of the class, so she can get to know your dog as well and can better assist you in personalizing your project.
The individual sessions will not be recorded, but pre-recorded video tutorials specific to this project will be available for you to use during and after the course. You are welcome to follow along with one dog or make several during the class. Because everyone’s color needs will be quite different (and intermediate to advanced level students often have their own stash of supplies), below is a suggestion for the materials you will need. Feel free to add additional materials as desired. Many of these can be sourced right here on our e-store!
Suggested Materials (No Materials Kit Included in Course):
- 1 oz. wool roving in the primary color of your dog. This will be used for structure as well as coloration.
- Smaller quantities of wool in the secondary colors of your dog, as necessary. Also consider colors for the nose and mouth.
- 2 glass eye beads. We have several types available, or you can use your own.
- Needle and black thread for sewing on the eyes
- Stiff thread (like upholstery thread or fishing line) in an appropriate color for whiskers, if desired (optional)
- Felting needle(s), I prefer gauge 38, 3-sided felting needles.
- Foam work pad on which to felt
- A kabob stick for rolling shapes
- A Scissors
- Any additional personalization trinkets for your dog, such as ribbon, bells, collars, scarves, hats, get creative if you wish!
Course Outline
This course has 2 sessions, with homework in between. Again, you are welcome to make more than one dog during the class, if you desire.
Session 1: Meet and greet. Needle felting refresher and “meet the dogs” round robin. All about building the structure of the dog without wire armature, which makes the shapes more amenable to adjustments as we go
Session 2: Progress report. Coloring and personalizing your dog. Mimicking the texture of fur in wool. Adding eyes, whiskers, and personalization. Celebrate our dogs!
Please make sure the email you use during the checkout is the email you’d prefer Laura uses for class communications. This is the email that will receive the link and password to the pre-recorded tutorials, as well as your Zoom link before the first class. Thank you, and happy felting!
