Cindy-Lou Thompson - A Masterclass in Needle Felting Dogs: Methods and techniques to take your needle felting to the next level

First published in paperback format in September 2020

First published in ebook format in February 2021

Veloce Publishing Limited, Veloce House, Parkway Farm Business Park, Middle Farm Way, Poundbury, Dorchester, Dorset, DT1 3AR, England. Fax 01305 250479 e-mail .

Print ISBN: 978-1-787113-83-1

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-787117-52-5

Cindy-Lou Thompson & Veloce Publishing Ltd 2021. All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief passages for the purpose of review, no part of this publication may be recorded, reproduced or transmitted by any means, including photocopying, without the written permission of Veloce Publishing Ltd. Throughout this book logos, model names and designations, etc, have been used for the purposes of identification, illustration and decoration. Such names are the property of the trademark holder as this is not an official publication.

Readers with ideas for books about animals, or animal-related topics, are invited to write to the editorial director of Veloce Publishing at the above address. Typesetting, design and page make-up all by Veloce Publishing Ltd on Apple Mac. ebook code and design produced in-house by Veloce Publishing Ltd.

www.hubbleandhattie.com

The Hubble and Hattie imprint was launched in late 2009, when its first book was published, and is named in memory of two very special Westies owned by Veloces proprietors.

Since then, many more books have been added to the list; all with the same underlying objective: to be of real benefit to the species they cover, whilst also promoting compassion, understanding and respect between all animals (including human ones!).

All Hubble and Hattie books have high quality content, presentation and production, and because of their competitive pricing also offer terrific value for money.

CONTENTS

dedication & acknowledgements

I dedicate this book to my late grandmother, Mrs Vera E Carpenter Mum. Without her love and encouragement during my formative years of all things art and dogs, my path through life would have been different. I know she would be very proud of my achievement.

A huge thank you to my loving husband, Alan, who has been right beside me through my illness, and supporting me when writing this book. Hes one in a million.

Thank you to Jude, Joe, and Kevin at Hubble & Hattie, who have worked so hard in getting my book into print, and also to the rest of the team there working behind the scenes.

Preface

I was raised by my grandmother, who I called mum. She ran a large business all-things dog in the Bedfordshire countryside and we lived in a 450 year old timber-framed, mud and daub thatched cottage. Mum was a very well-respected dog trainer, who ran her own competitive dog training club, and set some well-known professional dog trainers on their paths to specialised work. She bred Irish Wolfhounds, and we would compete annually at many championship and exemption shows throughout the year, always culminating with an entry or two at Crufts Dog Show, and also ran boarding kennels and trained dogs for security.

My life was very dog orientated but, being very musical and artistic as a child, I was encouraged by family and an excellent private education to indulge in art and music, and it was my love of art that allowed my creativity to grow.

Whilst Ive had varied employment security dog trainer, dog warden, laboratory technician, courier, private secretary, HGV driver, to name a few (and I also read Arabic at Leeds University) my love of art was never far away, and I continued to sketch, paint and model animals.

Although I had already backpacked to many countries, my life really changed when I met my husband, Alan, and we decided to move into a converted van, initially, and later a truck, and do some serious independent travelling. Our first big road trip was overland to Kathmandu and back, through 18 countries; 22,366 miles in 12 months. We lived for 13 years on the road, working the summer months in the UK and travelling during the winter months around Europe, Asia and North Africa. We could have continued living this way of life, but something beckoned us to settle down and the timing couldnt have been better. I had been suffering for many years with what were to become very serious bladder/kidney plumbing issues, which became more frequent after we settled in one place, causing a number of serious sepsis infections that almost claimed my life. The situation culminated nine years later in a urostomy, which was a positive move, health-wise.

Whilst recovering from the sepsis episodes I needed something arty to occupy my mind and hands, and I stumbled across needle felting by a famous Japanese artist, Kirino Mirii, who developed the art in the early 2000s in Japan, progressing to become a world class needle felter. I was very fortunate to meet Kirino Mirii in 2017 when she was part of a Japanese art exhibition in London, and was shocked to discover that she knew of me and my work!

At the time I started needle felting there were no books or videos showing how it was done, so I am rather proud of the fact that I am completely self-taught. I bought my first needles from Felt Alive in America, and bargained with a local sheep shearer for a couple of fleeces in return for some homemade marmalade and some of our eggs. I had to find out how to wash and card (brush the wool and make it fluffy) the fleece, and this gave me a good start.

With lots of practice, many disasters and growing interest from those around me, I began to develop my own style and techniques. The art of needle felting was immensely helpful during my health problems as it kept me focused, and gave me something productive to do. As I improved, more people wanted to buy my work, and I actually began selling my creations on eBay, with my first dog, a pug mix, going for 3.33. Once I broke the 100 barrier I set up my own Facebook page, website and other social media sites.

Over the years I have been needle felting ever willing to push boundaries and make mistakes I have developed techniques that are not found anywhere else. For example, my method of making realistic eyes, discovered by mistake, has transformed my sculptures, and given them taxidermic eyes in miniature. Discovery of other art mediums that one wouldnt consider mixing with wool have also made a huge difference to the finished sculptures. I shall continue to experiment, make mistakes, and develop more techniques with what is a totally addictive art form.

Id like to introduce my little helper, at this point, my tabby cat, Monkey (who also answers to Smonks and Punky Monkey). She loves to keep me company whilst I felt, and is sometimes very helpful, telling me to take a rest, or that shed like to pose with some newly-created sculptures.

She sometimes tries felting herself: here, she spent ages fashioning this cloud, then promptly fell asleep on it ...

I hope that this book will help you on your journey of discovering and then improving your needle felting: whilst it might concentrate on breeds of dog, the techniques shown here should prove useful for any other needle felting subject you might wish to specialise in.

Happy felting!