My first sunset

OK time to share the fruits of another playday ;o)

Friday last week I finally got around to felting a sunset! Our garden backs on to fields & woods, right behind our back fence there is a HUGE beautiful old beech tree. In the winter the sun sets right behind the woods & some nights the sky is just so breathtaking that all you want to do is stand and watch the colours changing. Unfortunately I havent had much joy taking photographs of this... the sun is just too bright even as its going down, and I don't have filters etc. I have managed to take a couple of nice ones though... I decided quite a while ago that I really needed to felt a wallhanging with our sunset beech tree...

Needs to be mounted now

I didnt want to clutter up the bottom of the picture too much with undergrowth etc, so I felted in strips of silk fabric & curly locks to add texture...its enough to hint there theres stuff there without being too busy.

My inspiration photo

I shall probably mount it onto linen stretched over a board, thats how I mounted the seascape I made for my nan a year or so back. I did a fair bit of surface embroidery onto the seascape though and dont want to embroider this sunset, so I shall have to see how that works out. Ive also got a dilema about what colour to mount it on...creamy white? or dark?

Yesterday I worked on a big piece of felt that Im planning to make a tunic or maybe a jacket from. Today I am dyeing the felt; I mordanted it this morning with alum & creme of tartar - got to say it smelled much more than when doing a smaller amount...which makes perfect sense I supose ;o) Now Im dyeing it with Tinctoria Red Lac, which smells nicer than the mordant - hope it takes well and that I like the colour... In the cauldron it looks like mulled wine!

Hopefully pics tomorow...