Needle Felted Krampus Head
Inspired by my friend Diane Hawkey and the making of her ceramic Krampus figures and Krampus head ornaments, I wanted to create a needle felted Krampus head. And of course I like to have a visual reference for creating things and why not share here. I don’t have every little detail, for that I would have to teach a class. For now, this is just a fun inspirational project. Hope you enjoy!
PS – check the bottom of the post for the link to Sarafina Fiber Art with video references if you want to learn more about needle felting.


I then covered them with Sarafina Oats Core Wool.
I also melted some Sarafina Swax and covered the Core Wool (using the colour shapers).












I think I should work on a pointy nose for next year!
I do work part-time at Sarafina Fiber Art where I help purchase raw sheep fleeces, and help wash and dye them for kits and online inventory. One of the really cool things about working at Sarafina is learning things from Sara in person and seeing things as she develops tools and techniques (it really is magical). For those of you not working there, she has lots of videos showing off these tools and techniques. Over time, after making some of her projects, you can start to create your own creatures based off of your knowledge she shares. I want to help point you in the right direction so you can learn cool things too.
Here is a list of different Sarafina Fiber Art videos that will help you understand the techniques behind the above photos:
FELTING FOR BEGINNERS (if you are completely new to needle felting, start here!)
SWAX (this video shows you how to apply wax to your wool). Using Ewe Smooth – rub on your hands like a solid lotion – helps keep the Swax from sticking to your fingers.
FACE ACE (this one will show you how to use the Sarafina Face Ace to make shapes, attach shapes, then blend in the shapes with some fuzzy wool).
SARAFINA GOAT (this one will give you good goat face shapes, wrapping the horns, and swaxing the horns).
If you want to get started on your own needle felting adventure and are ready to buy supplies through SarafinaFiberArt.com, use the 1x coupon code for 10% off discount of Sarafina wool tools and supplies with: MARSHA10 at checkout.
Art Elements Bee Theme Blog Hop
This month’s Art Elements Blog theme was Bees. So many ideas buzz around in my brain when it comes to insects. Bees are one of those insects that I do really enjoy, but can be annoying if they are not happy with you. So I try to keep them happy by planting lots of flowering plants in my garden for the longest bloom time and providing them with plenty of space for their own habitats.

I am part of a ceramics community called “ClayShare” and there are some great classes and really cool tools. I ordered some of Sharon Hoppe Designs laser etched rolling pins, and one happened to have these bees and sunflowers. Perfect for this month’s theme. I made some of these mason jar ceramic disc lids to hold up your cut flowers. They just sit on top of the jar opening, and you put the flower stems in the holes.

You can see below how well these work for keeping the flowers spaced out. These are perfect for getting rid of that annoying “not enough” cut flowers for the arrangement to look nice.

When I think of bees, I think of honeycombs and that shape being a hexagon, I wanted to carve out some new clay stamps (I fire them, then they get pressed into a clay slab, then cut up into my shapes for final pieces).

One thing that I want to still do is make a needle felted bee – especially since Sara put out a new Bee video: Sarafina Needle Felted Bee Tutorial (You’ve got to watch to the end and check out here MC Bee Pollen Pocket Dance).
Thanks for stopping by to check out my post for this months theme. Here is a list to the other participants:
AE team:
Guests:
Art Elements Gnome Blog Hop
This months theme for the Art Elements Blog Hop is Gnomes. I was delighted that Jenny picked this theme because I’ve got a thing for gnomes and love making them out of wool. You can see some previous posts I’ve written up about Bottle Toppers and Gnome Ornaments.
I usually create these gnomes with a bit of a theme to give them some character, and recently I’ve been making a lot of bunnies due to teaching a class in early March, so I thought it would be fun to put some bunny ears on this gnome.

Top Row – lay out fibers and add blenders. Flip fibers, then use the zullitool to shape the ear.
Middle Row – create the basic bunny ear shape and use the multi-needle tools to flatten and make the shape secure. Add some pink for the inside ear color.
Bottom Row – the wide bottom gets folded and felted to create a tapered bottom with fringy edges that get felted onto the hat of the bottle topper gnome.


I really had fun making this guy up and want to make a few more like him. And possibly the teeny gnome ornaments with bunny ears too. Those would be lots of fun!
Here are the rest of the Blog Hop Participants:
AE team:
Cathy
Jen
Jenny
Lesley
Claire
Niky
Guests:
Tammy.
Linda
Hope
Cat
Sarajo
How To Finish Ribbon Ends
I have been selling Ute’s hand painted silk ribbons (2mm round cord, Silky Ribbon and Fairy Ribbon) since 2004, and the question I receive most is: How do I finish the ends of these silks? And instantly my brain is overwhelmed because there are so many ways!
When I am looking for jewelry inspiration these days, I usually go to Pinterest to see if there are any DIY tutorials or photo inspirations. Here are two of my Pinterest Boards where I save things I like (these are great places for you to start to get ideas yourself).
Marsha Neal Studio Ribbon Jewelry Pinterest Board
Marsha Neal Studio DIY Jewelry Tutorials
There are some physical differences between silk, leather, cord, and other materials that you can use as layers in jewelry design to consider when designing with them (do they hold knots well, do they compress, will you need glue, etc). Some things come with experiencing the nature of these various materials and how they wear over time.
To have your jewelry piece hold up over time, avoid chemical exposure (pool water, salt water, some hand soaps), direct sunlight, sharp edges that come into contact with the material, tight knots in places you want to untie later, etc.
Here is a list of some techniques that I really like to use:
– Overhand Knot (simple – like tying your shoe laces).
– Wrapping using wire, waxed linen, silk (fold over cut ends, looped ends, wire wrapped end with a cone bead to cover it up).
– Stop Bead (silicone lined bead or silicone o-ring).
– Crimp Ends (Glue in, teeth clamp, fold over, large crimp beads).


Silks are folded over loop end and tied to itself (right).


You should put knots, beads or some other small resist at the end of the silk to keep them from coming back through the stop bead.



This photo is showing the Silky and Fairy Ribbons instead of the 2mm round cords.

The ends were doubled over at the very end to give the crimp a bit more to bite into.
This is also the type of crimp where a bit of E6000 epoxy comes in handy to make sure that is stays put over time.

I will probably keep updating this post as I make other samples, but I am hoping this will help spark some ideas for some basic ways to finish the ends of these silks in jewelry designing.


Art Elements Theme Reveal Monthly Blog Hop for October: Eyes
Another month has flown by and it is time for the Art Elements Blog Hop for the October theme: Eyes. This is such a fun theme that I am definitely going to explore a bit more as there is so much beauty and emotion through the eyes.




I will definitely be revisiting this theme a bit more in depth as we get through the holiday season and all the prep work that goes into making items to sell during this busy time of year.
Please stop by the Art Elements Blog to hop the other contributors! (I will update my post as soon as I get the list in the morning). Thanks for stopping by!