Finished Cardigan

Cardigan #1

The cardigan is almost done - but here's the (almost) final product. The motif is falling cherry blossoms on the back and front right hand side. Black beads will be added for some sparkle and detailing, but I wanted to share what it looks like at the moment.

Cherry Blossoms

So, I started the sweater prototype to see how well the felt would applique onto a thinner fabric. It worked brilliantly! The only thing is that my prototype is a cheap $10 cardigan, and I'm planning on ordering in Cashmere/Merino hoodies to applique on. But, to try it out, I'd rather spend only $10.

I decided to do a cherry blossom motif, as stated in my previous post. The only major problem was that I didn't have the colour wool I wanted for the pink petals, and I had to go to Lincraft to stalk up once more. As always, Lincraft was a dissapointment and didn't have any more felting wools - so I bought a mohair/alpaca blend of pink knitting wool instead. I was a bit worried about using it because it was in "string" form instead of lump of wool, but it worked pretty well. It was actually quite nice to have the different textures of the knitting wool and the felting wool mixed together.

The middle of the cherry blossom has a yellow centre with light pink petals. Darker pink was added to make it look more like a cherry blossom instead of a kid's drawing of a flower, and soon I'll add some black beads to add more detail.

What I find really interesting is the final product that ends up on the inside of the sweater. A muffled motif appears instead of the crisp petal shapes that happen on the outside. It's very beautiful, and I'm wondering if I could ever use it somewhere.

Shh...

It's been a bit quiet. I finished my first pair of boots, showed them around and got lots of feedback. I even received some orders!

I've ordered a few more pairs of boots to fulfill these orders, and I'm starting to make a prototype of the sweaters. Unfortunately, even with all my yarn I still don't have the colours I want. So I need to go back to Lincraft and buy 1 more pack of wool.

I also need to start designing motifs for the next pairs of boots. On the back of the sweater prototype will be falling cherry blossoms. I'm thinking of doing a cherry blossom tree on one pair of boots, and a wave on another. I might also attempt another koi fish - though it's difficult to get fish right because of the lack of detailing in this technique. Another lily pattern may emerge as well.

Mock-Up: Tell me what you think

Beads

Felted the 2nd boot

I've finished felting the second boot. This doesn't mean I'm finished, it just means the hard part is over. Felting is actually a really quick craft! I think i spent so long on the first boot because I had such a horrible tool to work with. Now that I have the Winterwood felting needles, I blast through the project!

What I love about this technique is that every time you do it, it'll be different. So the two boots are supposed to be identical mirror images, but because they are hand done, each has it's own personality. They're quirky. The first boot has a more flowy tail on the fish, as this one is a bit more "swooped." Very interesting, and I love it!

Tools

Lincraft is a horrible place to shop. I bought my first felting tools from there because it was handy and easy. However, I spent a fortune! The yarn was cheap, but the needles!! Wow! $35 for a 5 prong needle and $15 for spare needles in a pack of 5. That's just ridiculous. Luckily, I found a FANTASTIC supplier on the website. It's called Winterwood Toys. Situated in Park Orchards, VIC, they deliver for really cheap and have fantastic, wood tools and amazing needles. For 4 prong needle, it was only $12, for a pack of 10 needles it was $15 and for a single needle holder it was $5. Just amazing. Just look at the difference between the well made wood tools from Winterwood and the crappy, plastic one from Lincraft:

Thank you, Winterwood, for stalking me with fantastic tools. Once I run out of wool, I'll even be going to these guys for stock. They have an amazing range of 100% pure new wool felt that is hand died and commercially died in fantastic, bright colours.

Winterwood's website is amazing. Just click this link: www.winterwoodtoys.com

Half a pair finished

Today I finished my first boot. Only half of the final product, because I still need to do the second boot. Felting is quite difficult, as I knew it would be, but I thought it would be easier to make shapes than it actually turned out to be. Just tells me I need to choose simple motifs. My koi fish turned out simpler than I had designed in the first place, but I don't mind that. I actually quite like it. I also decided to add some more embellishment through beading, which also adds detail.

I've begun to order other pairs, so if people are interested in purchasing a pair, feel free to contact me.

Bye for now.

Welcome!

Missing James is a label that customizes clothing with dry felted motifs. At the moment it's in its very early stages of development, but soon we'll have finished the prototypes and move onto something bigger and better.

The idea is to customize Ugg Boots, cardigans, canvas carry bags, pillows, etc., with one of a kind designs using a dry felting technique. This techniques creates an organic, fluffy motif that's different then what you'd normally achieve by embroidery or printing. Starting with eastern tattoo art influences, slowly Missing James will branch out.

Even special orders can be done! So if you want, say, a specific letter, or a specific image on an Ugg Boot, Missing James will do it for you!

The first prototype is in the works. A pair of blue Cardy Ugg Boots are being felted with a lily and koi fish pattern. Each boot has the same image facing into each other.

Here are some pics of the process, but don't be getting any ideas!!