Autumn Felt Workshops

As the months seem to speed by I thought it maybe time to plan some felt workshops for the Autumn. I have planned a variety of techniques to help you on your felt making journey, hopefully there will be something for everyone......

Sat 2nd September Hats
Saturday 30th September Sushi Beads
Saturday 28th October Little Creatures
Saturday 18th November Shibori Sampling
Saturday 25th November Vintage Resists

Full details are on my website www.jennypepper.com

2017 Felt Making Workshops

I have finally arranged a few workshops for 2017 after a year off. I'm really looking forward to teaching felt making techniques with likeminded people. Full details are on www.jennypepper.com but here is a taster of a few:

Saturday 21st January 2017 Needlefelting

Learn the technique of Dry Needlefelting to create Beads of all shapes and sizes. We will cover various methods of decorating individual beads. By the end of the day you should have made sufficient beads, including a focal bead to make into a necklace. Additionally, I will demonstrate how to attach small needlefelted 3D shapes to larger pieces of felt work that are dry. This day is suitable for all abilities. £50
 
Saturday 11th February 2017 Felt Flowers

Spend a day creating flowers using a variety of different methods. Start with a single flower & progress to double & triple layers, stamens & individual petals. This is a very rewarding process as each flower can be made relatively quickly ( for felt making) enabling you to go home with a selection of flowers. Try lots of different colour combinations & decorative surfaces using silks, fancy yarns etc. it can be addictive! This day is suitable for all abilities. £50

Saturday 18th February 2017 Vintage Felt

This is a very creative process where wool & vintage lace, fabrics & trims are combined in the felt making process. This enables you to create a pretty & unique piece of felt.You could choose to make a collection of samples which can be made into a book or a finished item such as a needlecsae, book cover or wall hanging. The above photo shows the first hour of the workshop to warm up, we will then progress to lots of flat pieces with inclusions of fabric, lace, ribbons etc to make into a finished piece if you choose. This day is suitable for all abilities. £50

Saturday 18th March 2017 Pods, Craters and Pockets

You will learn how to make a Pod using the resist method with Craters and Pockets on the surface, inspired by Sea Life. You will also learn how to create tails to your Pod. You will go home with a finished Pod which once dry you could consider mounting or suspending to display. Suitable for those with previous experience of the resist method. £75

Rediscovering Blogger.....

It seems I have forgotten about this page now Facebook has arrived. Thought I should add a little about recent workshops with pictures. Here are the wonderful results by a group of ladies yesterday who worked exceedingly hard to create these amazing seamless bags. Most were beginners or first timers, learning the Resist method of Feltmaking. The method being the basis of so many felt pieces and very useful to know.....

Here I go again.....

Its seems a pattern is forming and the years roll on by.....a bit like joining the gym in January, mid year the visits are rare. It seems I start my blog year full of good intentions and then life takes over.
I had a very busy year last year and IT took a back seat, this year I intend to be more organised........

I hope everyone had a relaxing break in December and January finds you raring to go with experiments and making. If you are interested in learning some more Felt making techniques there are a few spaces remaining for 2014 at my local venue. Details are below. If you live further afield I will be guest tutoring around the country, you could check my website for more details.

March 22  Vessel for the Head = Hat     

 

April 5   Storage Vessel              

May 31 Spiky Vessels                 

July 5   Multiple Resist Vessel      

 

September 13   Pods  

 

  

October 25   Nuno/Cobweb Scarf    

 

November 15  Natural World           

 

December 6    Sculptural Tea Cosy-great gift for a tea lover!   

More details are on my website

Felt Making Workshops 2013

I can't believe how quickly the year is passing by already. I remember like yesterday sitting down and planning 2013 dates for shows and workshops and it seemed so far away! Its now April and almost Wonderwool, 4 workshops have taken place already, with another about to take place here, near Scarborough and another two day workshop at the end of April after Wonderwool. Is it one of those things that goes with growing older? A month seemed an eternity as a child, its gone in a flash these days.

The next Felt Workshop will be exploring and creating flowers, a relaxing way to spend a Spring day. Sadly with the weather as it is, not many Spring flowers are popping up in my garden, so a day of Felt Flowers maybe uplifting . At least the light nights have arrived and the days feel brighter, I even hung my washing on the line today, a sure sign of better things to come.

The Flower workshop is fully booked currently, but I do keep a reserve list in case of last minute cancellations.

There are a few places available on workshops coming up before the Summer:

Saturday 4th May Felt Seamless All in One Handbag at The Joe Cornish Gallery, Northallerton (Book direct with the gallery)

Saturday 11th May  Pockets and Pouches -  1 place available  Hutton Buscel, Scarborough

                                        

Saturday  8th June    Silk Nuno Scarf 4 places available          Hutton Buscel, Scarborough  

Saturday  6th  July  Pods and Pebbles      1 Place available    Hutton Buscel, Scarborough  

If you have any enquiries or would like to book a place please get in touch, I'll get back to you as soon as I can, thank you. Email me 

Cobweb samplers.....

Today I only just discovered that you can add pages to your  Blog! I don't know if it's always been there and I have missed it or if its new, but I quite like it. Of course its meant yet again I have wasted more time browsing back over photos to choose some to add to the new pages, one for my work and one for Workshop results. I did however rediscover some lovely work created by participating feltmakers and also workshop topics I haven't covered in many years. I particularly like the photo above which was a sampler day using all different natural wools to make a Cobweb Sampler Scarf. There were a variety of wools to sample, from memory, Jacob, BFL, Wensleydale & Merino plus a few I can't recall without checking back. I think I may do this again soon...... The photo also made me think of beautiful Summery days, I am longing for better weather and sunshine......

Where does the week go?

Since my last post it feels a lot has happened....all in a flash. With Wonderwool Wales coming up, far quicker than I planned, the time just disappears. I daren't count how many making days I have left until.....

I have been on an extremely inspiring "Business Day" with Susan Briggs and North York Moors NPA, I learnt so much about Websites, SEO's and Social Media, I don't think I will ever get round to implementing it all, but I am making a start. Writing a regular Blog post is one of those 'to do" things. Living and working next to North York Moors is very inspiring too, I realise I am very lucky to be surrounded by such natural beauty. Their website is inspiring too, well worth a look before you visit this area to plan what to see.

The Vintage Felt workshop was a very busy day with twelve enthusiastic felt makers. It was a lovely day and I thoroughly enjoyed looking at everyones Vintage treasures they brought with them. In the morning everyone made a Cobweb Vessel incorporating lace and then after a very quick lunch( which I almost had to force people to take!) the afternoon was spent on lots of different pieces of felt, all unique, as the fragments of lace, ribbon, fabric and buttons were incorporated. 

A visit to Cober Hill to finalise some of the Residential Feltmaking Weekend details was very enjoyable, this is such a lovely building with an air of calm. We took tea in the original panelled  entrance and lost ourselves in plans of what we will be doing. There are now just three places available, if you are interested in joining us, just get in touch.

In between all of this I am making felt for events in the near future, I need more hours in the day!

Out on the road....

Last week was a busy one and luckily everything planned happened just before the snow arrived on Saturday night.

I dropped off a delivery of work to The Joe Cornish Gallery in Northallerton, this is a lovely big gallery in the centre of Northallerton just off the main street. I was delighted to be invited to lead a felt making workshop there on Saturday 4th May, the workshop will cover the Resist technique, by the end of the day you will go home with a beautiful, useable handbag. Lunch is included too!
You can book a place online here if you would like to join the workshop.....maybe see you soon


A journey to The Dales and a lovely visit with Clare Gardiner at Fabric of the Field weaving studio and gallery. Clare sells my work in her beautiful shop where she sits and weaves. Some of you may already know Clare and her gorgeous blog about life in the Dales and at the moment, in particular, Lambing!
Clare's journey will be on the screen sometime this year in The Dales programme when it returns to our screen, really looking forward to this....

Lunch at The Wensleydale Creamery was a must, the Rarebit was gorgeous, followed by an indulgent Sticky Toffee Pudding. Will definitely be returning soon.....

As we were passing we just had to visit Farfield Mill, a wonderful place with varying Exhibitions throughout the year, check their website for current details. There are also lots of makers studios there, unfortunately when we were there none of the makers were in their studios, will pick a different day next time. Nonetheless its  a lovely place with a great cafe too!

Friday saw me on my way to Kendal to  a Saturday workshop with the IFA at Castle Arts Centre. The weather was getting wetter, but still very driveable. Saturday flew by and the centre we were in was busy, a ballet class was taking place next door which evoked memories of my childhood......
By the time I travelled home the weather was awful, the fells were covered in snow and we decided to change our route to the main roads to avoid the snow. Much later that night we were home and warm.

                                                     Exploring Felt Vessels in Kendal

Woolfest and more.....

I love Woolfest, the atmosphere is wonderful, I am excited to have been allocated a stand (pen) for the 2013 event. I attended the first show as a visitor, all those years ago,  as I really didn't know what to expect. I had never been to a Wool Festival before, I have exhibited every year since then.  Since that first visit it has become an annual event on our calendar, inked in immediately as one year finishes, looking forward to the next. My son has grown up with it and loves it too, this year he'll be in London for Uni visits when I come, but has just told me he's catching the train up to Penrith to catch a day at Woolfest, I'm smiling......

Last year saw a new section open up at the Auction Mart, increasing the size for exhibitors, I was on stand K260 on a corner of the new extension. If you found me there, I will be on the same stand again this year, alongside Jackie Lunn and Jane Cummins. 

I have been running day workshops since 2005 near where I live, I never planned this, sometimes things just  happen. I am a Feltmaker first and foremost, I am addicted to the process, I experiment far too much as my mind bursts with ideas. The workshops started as a follow on from an ArtsWeek project I delivered at our local school. The project was for the children, but the "helpers" were fascinated with the process too. I arranged a day for the grown ups and the rest is history as they say.  Prior to the workshops commencing I had been making Felt for ten years, exploring techniques and possibilities, constantly discovering new ways, sometimes through planning but sometimes by accident! 

This year I have been invited to deliver workshops around the country, I hope to meet up with more Feltmakers on my journeys. Below is a brief diary date of where and when I will be during 2013.

Workshops:

Hutton Buscel, near Scarborough, North Yorkshire, various dates throughout the year.

March 9th IFA  Kendal, Cumbria  Natural Vessels

April 29th/30th Wonderwool Wales  2 Day Workshop

 May 4th Joe Cornish Gallery Workshop, Northallerton, North Yorkshire

June 1st The Dutch House Workshop, Crayke, near Easingwold

September 15th IFA Great Missenden, Seed Workshop

October 4th/5th Cober Hill Residential Felt Weekend

Shows:

April 27th/28th WonderWool Wales, Builth Wells

June 28th/29th Woolfest, Cockermouth, Cumbria

July 27th/28th FibreEast, Bedford

September 28th/29th Yarndale, Skipton, North Yorkshire

There are a few other events in the pipeline which I will share when I can. 

    http://www.woolfest.co.uk/

Wonderwool 2013

I am delighted to have been invited to lead a 2 day Sculptural Feltmaking Workshop at Wonderwool 2013. I will be exhibiting during the 2 days of the show on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th April, the workshop will follow on Monday 29th and Tuesday 30th April. Full details are on their website. Im really looking forward, to what is for me, the first show of the season . You can join their Facebook page for latest details as well as taking a look at their Wonderwool Website

Happy Creative New Year to All

Heres wishing everyone a Happy and Creative New Year 2013. Workshops begin again late January near Scarborough North Yorkshire. If you have always wondered how to make a Hat there are places available on February 16th,

Saturday 16th February   Felt Hat Workshop near Scarborough, North Yorkshire

Stylish and warm,  create your very own felt hat in warm pure wool. Choose a simple pull on style or create something a bit different with folds and points. You can take a look at
www.jennypepper.com for full workshop details

                                           

Wishing Everyone a Very Happy Christmas

Residential Feltmaking Retreat Weekend

     Residential Feltmakers Weekend Retreat with Jackie Lunn and Jenny Pepper 

 at

   Cober Hill, Centre for Refreshment and Inspiration,  Cloughton, near Scarborough,  North Yorkshire.

   from

 Friday 4th October to Sunday 6th October 2013

 Following the success of our 2007 and 2009 retreat at Cober Hill we are  happy to announce we will be running a weekend in 2013. The theme will be Decorative Sculptural Feltmaking. We all lead busy lives and the luxury of time to spend on feltmaking and experimenting with different techniques is precious. During this weekend we will indulge in experimenting with techniques culminating in a finished work on Sunday.  

The weekend is fully inclusive of:

• 2 nights accommodation in an en suite bedroom
• Full board of 2 x 3 Course evening meals, 2x Full Breakfasts, Saturday lunch and Sunday Lunch
• Tea, Coffee ad biscuits at any time
• All materials required during the weekend
• Some equipment, such as bubblewrap, nets, drum carder, hand carders and hat blocks
• Tuition throughout with two tutors, Jackie Lunn and Jenny Pepper
• £290 per person in a shared twin room
• £325 per person in a single room

Not Included:

• Travel Costs
• Holiday Insurance
• Towels, scissors and general personal tools you may require  
• More info : www;jennypepper.com

 

2013 Felt Workshops

 As we come all too quickly towards  the end of this year, I have already planned 2013 Workshops. Full details are on my website and can be viewed by clicking here

www.jennypepper.com 

www.facebook.com/JennyPepperFeltmaker

Pop over to Facebook for all the latest Felt news and ideas.......

Shibori Tyeing Sculptural Felt Workshop

On November 24th I will be running a Shibori style felt making workshop near Scarborough. It will be an exciting workshop using Shibori style tyeing / stitching methods to create sculptural pieces of felt. We will tie, clip, fold, pleat, stitch, bind and manipulate the felt to alter the structure. An experimental day to learn lots of useful methods to add to your felt techniques knowledge. £40. (please note we will not be dyeing felt) ( only 4 places remaining)

If you would like to book a place please get in touch by email

www.jennypepper.com

Facebook thoughts

It seems that many are turning to FB for up to date info and less to blogs? Many I used to read are no longer posting, but are active on FB. I find it all a puzzle and just as I am becoming familiar it all changes again. I am trying to keep up with FB and here is my page if you would like to visit, it will be more current than this blog page. Just click below the Pebbles......

 https://www.facebook.com/JennyPepperFeltmaker

Woolfest 2012

As always I had a wonderful few days at Woolfest...despite the rain!

My annual treat of animals was just perfect. Thank you to everyone who popped by to say hello, it was lovely to meet up with old friends and new. Cant wait for next year!!!

 I very carefully ironed and rolled all my cloths before packing the car, but still it creased in the damp atmosphere, no ironing available in sheep pens....

 Very busy Alpaca, wouldn't stay still for the camera!

I bought a beautiful Blue Faced Leicester fleece which I think you can possibly see here. Also got some delicious Wensleydale and Teeswater. Need some good weather now to finish washing them in the garden.

 Just peeping......Not my dog, but irresistable...

Teeswater sheep

Craft in the Bay Exhibition

Winter group exhibiton

Its been a long time since I blogged...it all seems very different to last time. On Sunday 22nd January 12 till 4 I will be at a "Meet the Maker" day at The Gallery, Lockton near Pickering North Yorkshire. There are four very diverse exhibitors, showing painting, mixed media, jewellery and feltwork. Lockton is a pretty village on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, The Gallery has an upstairs coffee shop and Gallery. If you are in the area, pop in and say hello....