Just a Glimpse . . . of a Felted Butterfly Wing

The inspiration: The book "butterfly" by Thomas Marent - an amazing compilation of butterflies photographed all over the world.

When I began felting, I'd try to mimic an entire object; however, along the way in my colorful journey, I've become much more interested in capturing the subtle colorways of closeup detail - does that make sense? If you really, really look at nature with a new eye, you can train yourself to appreciate these variations and combinations of color as well as appreciate the exquisite detail all around us.


I always make a test sample before starting a project and take notes of what to do more of and what not to do next time. This little sample is wool and mohair that was machine needle (using the Baby Lock Embellisher) and then wet felted on to black chiffon which is lovely and "puckery" where it peeps through although you can't quite see it here. It was rolled many, many times before "fulling" and it shrunk very nicely making the stitches quite pronounced.

Things learned from creating this sample:

I'll use all wool for my "real" project as although the mohair blend was the perfect color it is still a little hairy in some areas (as can be seen around the edges) although the wool is well integrated and felted.

I'll incorporate some black wool the next time to add more definition. Although I was not initially a "black" wool lover and steered away from it, I've found that it definitely adds a wonderful contrast to even the softest of colorways.