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Eileen Baird'sBears
Toronto
Posts: 3,873

bear_sad Waiting sucks! bear_sad

I'm just wondering. If the fiber is long enough, is it possible to wet-felt it directly onto the egg form?

Or can it be felted on a flat surface first, then shaped onto the form?

I only ask because I break so many felting needles under the easiest conditions. The thought of felting something on a hard form makes my blood run cold bear_wacko

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

Charlotte I used sliver. a whole packet. So it is a $3.95 mess.  bear_grin I suppose I will adventually find a use for this mess.
Am eagerly awaiting your experiment.
Donna, great idea.!! :clap: Since the mache will turn out larger than the original egg, it just may be the right size. I will give it a go.
I am almost finshed the waterbomb egg. It is like a giant hens egg. I'll take pics of all of them in their different stages.  I have also made improvements to Juniors egg.
Pics will follow shortly.

Several months ago I bought some of this fabric stiffener stuff. Dilu recommended it. But for the life of me, I just couldnt figure how to make an egg from fabric. :doh:  I mean a seamless one. I did their tutorial on bowl making but it wasnt really any help when making an egg.  Now having said that......a thought just popped into my head..........(no it wasnt painful) I'm getting quite use to 'thoughting' now. Since we do quite a bit of it here on TT. bear_grin  Now what I was thinking was/is .... what if I cut up fabric and glue to the balloon?  and.....then use the fabric stiffener to set it?????....MMMmmmm OOHHH WOW!!!! I could cover my egg with scraps of mohair and then I have a hairy egg. That would be just the thing for a Hairynosed Wombat aye???  :crackup:
Well I'm off to lay another egg, I mean make another egg :redface:
Wendy bear_thumb

PS: another term for 'old chook' is 'old boiler' (boiler meaning that the chicken is sooo tough it is too old for roasting and  only good enough to boil. Like ... making soup) :crackup:

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

CHARLOTTE!!!  WOW WOWO WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You have done brilliantly! where did you get your plasctic egg from?
Is it one of those "kinder surprise" jobs? How long do you think it will take to dry? It might be a good idea to time it.
I'll take my pics,  go shower, then go shopping for a plastic egg.  I've got my day all organised now.

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

Egg Progress Report...it's been about 18 hours & the egg is still quite damp. I will hang it outside again today..had it outside yesterday until it started raining:( ...since it feels quite thick...& with the plastic egg in there...guess it's going to take a while....

Eileen,

I am sure that I could have done the entire thing by wet felting it, because the fibers were long & the way I wrapped the egg with the rovings, I just thought it would be interesting to try both needle & wet felting for this one.

I don't think it would have worked for me to pre-needle felt before adding the wool to the plastic egg...I was very careful poking...so I didn't break any needles, but I fully expected I might:)

Wendy,
Oh fun...a hairy egg for the Hairynosed Wombat...great idea:)

I got the egg at Michael's craft store..it's a 3 inch hide-n-seek egg.

Hugs &

lapousmor Sophie Z'Ours
Sarthe, France
Posts: 2,770

:clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:

Yeah, Wendy!
You did very well for this egg!
Junior is a lucky boy!

Beary hugs,
Sophie.

lapousmor Sophie Z'Ours
Sarthe, France
Posts: 2,770

Charlotte, you an an expert at egg making!

I did not read all your tutorial, but I will keep it for the day i may need it!

Thanks so much for sharing...

Beary hugs,
Sophie.

lapousmor Sophie Z'Ours
Sarthe, France
Posts: 2,770

Wendy, do you want some eggs like this yellow one charlotte used for her felting?

Here we buy them as Kinder chocolate eggs. These yellow eggs contain a toy and are covered in a chocolate shell.
Very yummy!

Beary hugs,
Sophie.

Eileen Baird'sBears
Toronto
Posts: 3,873

bear_original It's amazing what I learn here every day! :dance:

We have scores of 'dollar stores' here in Toronto. They sell plastic eggs meant to be filled with treats for kids, mostly around Easter-- but I'm sure I can find some if anyone's interested.

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

paper-mache-eggs.jpgPAPER MACHE EGG: update.......

These two are the update versions.  Juniors egg has been modified and the smaller one contains the water bomb.
I used silk paint in the paper mix before applying.


Thanks Sophie. We have kinder surprises over here as well :hug:

Here in aust we have a pavlova mix that comes in an egg. I'm going to attempt to make a felted one with that as the core. ...????... worth a try aye?

I'm also wondering about fabric. Two layers pasted onto the balloon then apply stiffener, should do the trick? I wonder if that would work??MMMmmmm

Wendy bear_thumb

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

Wendy, Eileen & Sophie...and whoever is interested...The wet felty egg is still damp:(...so longer to wait...bummer....totally...but wow this egg thing is fun...

Wendy...would you soak the cloth strips in the stiffener & then apply them??? I dunno...but just a thought...& what is a pavlova mix??? sounds yummy!!!

Hugs &

patsylakebears Patsy Lake Bears
Sydney
Posts: 3,442

Charlotte thank you for doing the demo photo's it really helps when I see what is being done...... tell me do you use water on all your needlefelting things??

Eileen Baird'sBears
Toronto
Posts: 3,873

bear_original Beautiful eggs, Wendy--they look marbled.

I should think fabric strips sloshed with stiffener would work as well as paper mache. What's in the stiffener? Maybe 50/50 glue and water would work as well.

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

Patsy,
You are most welcome!!! I love doing visuals of my work...makes it much easier to understand...and no...I never use water for my needle felting...only for the things I think need wet felting...then it's hot water & soap & lots of rubbing...just imagine a pair of slippers...made to fit your feet...by taking wool batts & wet felting them into shape...them putting each one on your foot...and getting a foot massage until the slipper is molded to your foot...a perfect fitting pair of wool felted slippers just for you is the final results...that was my beginning in felting...I even did slippers for a wonderful group of kids at Imus Ranch near here a few years ago.

Hugs & the egg is still damp...

patsylakebears Patsy Lake Bears
Sydney
Posts: 3,442

Wendy you just keep getting better and better with these eggs of yours...

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

papermache5juniorand-bunyip.jpgpapermache4bunyipsitting.jpgpapermache3bunyip.jpgpapermache2junior.jpgPapermache1.jpgOK finished eggs  plus two new ones. I'm going to do the fabric one next.

The eggs with Junior and Queenie are the finished ones. I like Queenies best. So I am making a larger one similar which is the lighter green one. I gave the finished eggs two coats of gloss.  I like the natural ragged top of Queenie's egg the best as well. Instead of the jagged cuts.
I'm enjoying making them as well. It so soothing just sitting there quietly paste ing.  bear_grin
I couldnt resist popping Junior and Queenis in the pics. Queenis isnt quite finished yet. Still alot of work is need on her face. Poor luv. bear_grin
Wendy bear_thumb

How's that felted egg Charlotte? is it dry yet?

Eileen Baird'sBears
Toronto
Posts: 3,873

bear_original Awwwww . . . they are so adorable in their shells bear_wub

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

Eileen, A friend of mine popped by today. Now she didnt really give JUnior any notice before. But seeing him in the egg. Well she thinks he is the most adorable critter I have ever made. :crackup:
It's amazing what an egg can do. :crackup:  I'm going off to start on the fabric one now. Bye.... bear_thumb

Charlotte, with the pavlova mix, it is just add water. A lot easier than seperating the whites and adding sugar and all that stuff bear_grin   bear_thumb

rufnut Rufnut Teddy's
Victoria Australia
Posts: 2,725

Thank you Charlotte, cannot wait to see your egg dry... The technique looks great.  I was watching a friend do some wet felting yesterday, she uses Merino and rolls in on bubble wrap once she has finishing the designing, but she makes scarves.  She uses Bamboo as a base..  It there anyway you can get the excess water off without ruining the felting process?

Wendy, your eggs are looking great too.

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

Wendy,
Junior & Queenis & their new eggs are wonderful!!!!!!

My Egg is finally dry!!!

Final Stages of the Felted Egg

Here are some pictures of the final stages of the Egg
The final size is: 5 inches long & 4 inches wide outside. The inside is about 3 inces by 2 1/4 inches..

I hung the felted egg in a mesh bag on the clothes line when it wasn't raining(we have had a lot of rain lately) and it took 48 hours before it felt dry enough to continue with.
eggdryer001.JPG

I marked the crack lines with chalk & then needle felted deeper along the line.
eggtutorial2003.JPG
I then took some tiny, very sharp, scissors & started cutting the egg along the line.
eggtutorial2004.JPG
The egg was very thick & the cutting was not easy.
eggtutorial2005.JPG
Once I got the egg opened up, I realized it was still damp inside & needed more felting.
eggtutorial2007.JPG
So once it was totally dry, I needle felted the insides & rounded out the cut edges.
eggtutorial2008.JPG
eggtutorial2009.JPG
Here is the final results!!!!!
eggtutorial2010.JPG

Note to self & any who try a project like this:
Use less wool...the egg doesn't need to be so thick (it is over 1/2 inch thick)
Wet felt for a longer period of time. (It was not well felted on the very inside)
Make more eggs, I can think of all kinds of kritters to make to put inside them!!!

Any questions or comments are much appreciated!

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

LOL Karen,
Looks like I was working on the final results at the same time you were posting bear_original
I did carefully squeeze as much excess water out of the piece, & then rolled it in a bath towel to remove more of the water. I then rolled the egg around & around in my hands to make sure it was back in shape before hanging it to dry.

Wet felting is a very interesting process...I have done a fair amount of it. Mostly felted slippers, which the lucky recipient gets a foot massage as the final felting step before rinsing & drying :dance:

Hugs &

rufnut Rufnut Teddy's
Victoria Australia
Posts: 2,725

Yes we must have been.  bear_grin Fabulous Charlotte, it turned out well.  :clap:

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

What a shame charlotte that you live so far away. I could really do with a foot massage oops I mean slippers bear_grin
I noticed you cut your egg length ways. I didnt think to do that with my eggs.  :doh:
I'll have to do it to the next one. Yes, I'm hooked!!!
I've found that with my last two that I'm also not putting as many layers . I like them to be a wee bit fragile like.
Your egg looks great. A lot of effort to make though. ?? looks it. bear_grin
What was it like needle felting the damp insides?
bear_thumb

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

Thanks Karen bear_original

Wendy,
Well, if you ever get to New Mexico...lol a foot massage...ummm slippers could be arranged bear_thumb

I was going to cut the egg the other way to begin with, but changed my mind...lol

I did not needle felt the damp wool...I had to wait for it to dry more bear_wacko  bear_whistle

Yes...it was a lot of effort to make this one...but the first is always the hardest...now they will be easier!!! Right bear_cool

Thanks again for planting the seed!!!!

Hugs &

matilda Matilda Huggington-beare
WA
Posts: 5,551

It is easy to garden with a fertile brain. bear_grin  bear_thumb

Are there going to be more eggs? Now that is a question, aye? will there be more? bear_grin  bear_grin

I've finished my last 2. But will wait until I make the fabric one first. and post pics of all of them together.
I also have made one using a hens egg as the template. Not quite finished that one yet.
Also my last two only got 2 layers of paper each. Where as Juniors egg has at least 8 layers.
One size A3 piece of paper is enough to make 3 eggs. So its cheap to make. I also have only put on 2 layers of gloss. And they can be completed in 2 days. Sooner if the drying is sped up.

Thankyou Charlotte, it has been wonderful making  eggs with you!!! :hug:  bear_thumb

makafelts Charlotte Des Roches Designs
Adkins, Texas
Posts: 1,543

You are most welcome Wendy...it's been great fun...I have another felted egg nearly finished a thinner one & am working on kritters to live in them...ohhh this is just so much fun!!! Gives a whole new meaning to the age old question..."Which came first..the ?chicken? or the egg...?" :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup: I will post pictures when done bear_rolleyes

Hugs &

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