Introducing Felted Woolly Delights: A New Branch of the Jagos Art Tree
A New Branch Is Growing
Something new, and very woolly, has been growing from the Jagos Art tree — a new branch which I am extremely excited to introduce to the world.
The Jagos Art tree began with my pet portraits, but it wasn’t long before the first of its new branches grew: animal paintings, coloured-pencil drawings, abstract art, digital art and, of course, all of the small gifts I made using sublimation, all of which featured my original artwork.
However, this is the first time I have felt inclined to give a branch its very own name. This time, the branch feels big — mighty, in fact! That is probably because, in a relatively short time, I have fallen in love with everything this branch represents.
Felted Woolly Delights is the home of my new collection of original needle-felted pictures, wool sculptures, whimsical characters and handmade creations, all of which are, and will be, inspired by the world around me.
How I Discovered Needle Felting
I have to make a confession now... I am a bit of a YouTube fanatic.
I say that because, while thinking about which word I should use there, I realised just how much time I actually spend absorbing YouTube content. I will quickly add that it isn’t quite as bad as I am making it sound, but it is my guilty pleasure of an evening after a full day at work. At this point in time, I do have a full-time job which, unfortunately, has nothing to do with art.
I should also add that I am not one for aimlessly wasting time scrolling through short-form content, although sometimes YouTube throws something onto my feed that genuinely makes me laugh out loud.
The type of content I watch is specific and purposefully chosen and, yes, consists quite heavily of art-related videos.
Because of the type of content I watch most often, one day, back in July or August of last year, YouTube placed something new in my feed: a video by a lady called Philippa, who has a channel called Felts by Philippa.
Well, I was intrigued, so I watched that video and, needless to say, I have been watching ever since.
Philippa is a needle-felt artist, and a very good one at that. Having watched many of her videos, eventually I knew I just had to have a go.
So, when asked what I would like for Christmas last year, for the first time in a long time, I actually had some ideas: a needle-felting mat, needle-felting needles, carded wool, a needle-felting kit, roving tops... you get the idea.
And guess what? I had obviously been a very good girl, because Father Christmas brought me everything I needed to get started.
So, somewhere between Christmas and January — I can’t remember exactly when — I picked up my mat, my first needle and some wool, and my love affair with needle felting began.
Needle felting is a slower and more tactile way of working than I am used to, and that is one of the many things I love about it. It has challenged me to let go of some of my perfectionist tendencies, which were always present in my previous work, and to enjoy the process of allowing each creation to develop its own personality.
Some of my creations become textured landscapes that almost feel like paintings. Others become sculptures and, eventually, I hope to move further into the whimsical as my imagination gives itself permission to emerge from wherever it has been hiding since childhood.
Handmade and Completely Individual
Every Felted Woolly Delight is created by hand, which means no two pieces will ever be completely identical.
To date, I have made six felted pictures, two completed mushroom sculptures, one meerkat from a kit and many, many mistakes. You should see my first attempt at a small fox, who, by the way, is now a firm fixture on my desk and much loved despite his appearance!
They have all been different, and they have all been my favourite at one time or another. The small variations, textures and individual details are all part of what makes handmade work so special.
I love so many things about needle felting, but above all else, I love that the wool had already lived a life before it reached me. It already had a story to tell.
I love that it began life as a sheep’s warm coat before starting an entirely new journey with me and becoming a piece of art. I imagine all the weather it experienced — the rain, the wind and the sun — and now it is my turn to do my best to give it a new lease of life in its retirement.
With that in mind, each of my creations is, and will be, made with patience and care, along with oodles of positive energy, good wishes and hopes for abundance and joy.
I believe that each Felted Woolly Delight is destined for a certain someone, and I know they will discover it at exactly the right time — at the very moment they are meant to.
I appreciate that I haven’t been needle felting for very long, but, especially when it comes to my felted pictures, it almost feels as though it comes naturally to me.
Because of that, I feel ready, able and brave enough to bring Felted Woolly Delights into the world, and that fills me with an excitement I haven’t felt for a while.
What Is Coming?
I am currently making the first pieces for the online collection, which will include:
- original needle-felted pictures;
- wool sculptures and characters;
- woodland and nature-inspired creations;
- small handmade gifts;
- and, in time, needle-felting kits.
Because everything is made individually, pieces will be released in small numbers as they are completed rather than being mass-produced.
I will be sharing new experiments, finished creations and plenty of behind-the-scenes progress here on the From the Studio blog and through my Felted Woolly Delights YouTube channel. Yes, I did start another channel!
I really hope you will join me on this new journey of discovery.
So, all that is left to say today is that the first online collection is coming soon, and I hope you will join me as this new branch continues to grow.