Click on image for course description, fee info and registration link. For more information on the different types of online course and how they work, please read the FAQs.
Fibre fundamentals
Type: Felting Foundations video tutorial
Available: immediately
Video duration: 1hr 30mins.
Access to contents: permanent
In order to develop and grow our work as felt makers, it is fundamental that we thoroughly understand our medium: wool! Passion and talent is one thing, but how can we make the most of our medium if we do not understand even the most basic fundamentals of wool’s structure, properties and characteristics?
If you frequently feel disappointment with the outcome of your work and the quality of your felt, and you do not understand what you may have done wrong, this bite-sized tutorial aims to set you up with the fundamental theoretical know-how that may have been lacking..!
Seamless colour transitions
Type: Felting Foundations video tutorial
Available: immediately
Video duration: 1hr 34mins
Access to contents: permanent
Smooth and seamless colour transitions in your felt work are a great skill to master, as they can help accentuate sculptural forms, or provide a contrasting background to line and texture on 2D surfaces. I am often asked about how to achieve seamless colour transitions, and in this video tutorial I offer you practical tips, techniques, diagrams and exercises that you can practise at home for maximum success, along with underpinning theory.
Inspired by nature: Horns
Type: Scheduled course
Available: Book now for Aug 2024
Duration: 3 days over 3 weeks.
Total video duration: Approx. 7 hr 10 mins.
Access to contents: 12 months
Join me in this class inspired by animal horns! Nature’s very own sculptures, these structural hollow forms range from simple to simply breath taking, and many display intricate textures that can be interpreted in felt through some fun felt making techniques... This class has a strong focus on obtaining ridged textures through the use of differential shrinkage and the incorporation of other materials. 2 types of horn will be created: A straight, textured horn and a curled, ridged ram’s horn. You will learn how to prepare the resist for each of these shapes, how to lay out the wool around a resist for best results, how to incorporate texture, ridges and colour transitions, and how to use colour to highlight 3-dimensional form. All of these techniques are transferrable and, although this class is ideally suited to mask making students, you really do not have to be into animals or mask making to benefit from this course!
Inspired by nature: The lotus
Type: Scheduled course
Available: dates to be announced
Duration: 3 days over 3 weeks
Total video duration: Approx. 4 hr 40 mins.
Access to contents: 12 months
With its intriguing shape, crisp edges and hollow spaces filled with seeds, the lotus pod lends itself extremely well to trying out a variety of sculptural felt making techniques, and makes an excellent introduction into working with "complex" or 3D resists.
In this course I will show you how to prepare the resist, how to navigate laying out wool around a complex resist, how to incorporate 3D elements such as craters and seeds, how to sculpt fine detail and respond to the wool, and how to finish the piece to a high standard. I aim to take the pain out of figuring things out for yourself by taking you through each step, while opening the door to new approaches that will help you in your future projects!
Though we will focus on the challenges of replicating the shape and textures of a lotus seed in felt, everything you'll learn in this workshop is applicable to other projects, and infinitely adaptable to your own visual language.