Tuesday, February 23, 2010

The Felting Lady

La dame au feutrage

I've a wonderful friend who has talents aplenty. In particular I adore the silk and felted wool scarves she makes. They are vibrant and delicate, warm and elegant, and full of whimsy.

Felting is actually one of those arts that Waldorf schools seem to call to. Be it in Australia or here, Switzerland or Germany, skilled felters emerge from this nourishing environment. The nourishment is mutual. At Christmas fairs, and occasionally at our "portes ouvertes" open house days, there's a stand to sell the handiwork made by parents and teachers collaborating over tea and cookies.

Sylvie, however, is an act unto herself. If you find what she does marvelous (as I do) you can write to her in English or French at femmeenrouge@hotmail.fr She lives just outside Avignon, but can easily send photos and ship to wherever.


















5 comments:

Sharyn Ekbergh said...

looks amazing, can you describe the steps? I have a friend here who does felting too but I haven't seen her do it. looks like fun.

Lu Brazil said...

it looks fabulous the fabric,I just ended up finding your blog cause I was doing a research about Avignon, I have been there in 2007 and I want so bad to get back there one day!

Madeleine Vedel said...

She begins with a two meter length of colored silk (either purchased or such, or she's dyed it herself), and on this she applies her wool designs -- stretching out the wool, playing with it, blending it. She lays this on a screen and then lays a screen atop it. Then she takes a bucket of boiling water and soap and starts rubbing it into the scarf, atop the screen so nothing can move, only shrink and stick. Then she rolls it, then she does it some more. She removes the screen to check that the border has stuck correctly, and does it some more... When it is ready, she rinses it gently, and hangs it up to dry.

Gillian said...

Absolutely beautiful. There's a business idea there, running holiday workshops...

Madeleine Vedel said...

yes, Sylvie is a superb teacher, and fully bi-lingual! t'would be a great project for us all, blended with food, hikes, some dancing? perhaps a tango class (my tango teacher speaks excellent English too...)