Complete Photo Guide to Felting

Ruth Lane is a self-taught fiber artist who loves to create one-of-a-kind fiber art pieces and play with a wide variety of materials, including wool, silk, fabrics, yarns, and threads. She is the author of the book Complete Photo Guide to Felting and has taught and written tutorials about a variety of feltmaking techniques, including basic wet felting, nuno felting, and making 3D felt objects using a resist. A long-time member of the Felting Forum, an online forum of 2,500 feltmakers from around the world, she also blogs about felting and other fiber arts at permutationsinfiber.wordpress.com. Ruth co-owns a fine craft gallery, The Purple Pomegranate, which represents more than 180 American artists whose work includes jewelry, ceramics, metalwork, mixed media, woodworking, glass, fiber, prints, and paintings. She lives in Kalispell, Montana.

• IntroductionA Brief History of FeltingAll About Wool and Other FibersSheep and Wool VarietiesOther Fibers that FeltLocal Fiber Mills and Fiber FestivalsEmbellishment FibersPreparing to FeltFiber PreparationDyeingInspiration and DesignTraditional Wet FeltingEquipment and SuppliesTechniquesNuno or Laminate FeltingEquipment and SuppliesTechniquesNeedle FeltingEquipment and SuppliesTechniquesGalleryGlossary of TermsResourcesAcknowledgmentsContributorsIndex

"The wide parameters of the colorful world of felting will come as a surprise to all but the most experienced felters, who, along with those of novice status, are the audience expert crafter Lane addresses in the large-format, comprehensive guide. Lane offers this basic definition of felting: wool fibers are matted into fabric that historically was used as effective protection against the elements but has become a popular craft for perhaps less utilitarian but certainly increased aesthetic purposes. A presentation of fundamental practices leads the reader to confront and absorb lesson on advanced techniques, with directions by Lane expressed in patient prose and the ample illustrations assisting the text well. The greatly informative chapter "All about Wool" discusses such topics as grading wool and the various "breeds" of wool (which depend on the breeds of sheep from which they are derived). Washing the wool, carding, and dyeing round out the book's introductory portion, at which point the author imparts detailed information on three types of felting: traditional wet felting, Nuno felting, and needle felting, with techniques and sample projects given careful elucidation. A concluding gallery of greatly creative felted works by an array of artists adds final inspiration. For more encyclopedic treatments of various crafts, see the adjacent Read-alikes column." — Booklist, December 15, 2012