DIY Network

Needle-Felted Grapevine Wall Hanging A few skeins of wool, a felting needle and some imagination are all you need to create this rich-looking wall hanging. From "Uncommon Threads" episode DUCT-123

The North American Felters Network was inspired by nature when they designed today's projects. Wendy Hallman felts a grapevine wall hanging that features three-dimensional grapes. She starts by needling the background, then adds the vine and the leaves. Next come the clusters of grapes, and finally she adds detail to finish off the piece.

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Needle-felting entails taking wool or fiber and using a special needle, called a felting needle, poking, or needling, the fiber numerous times until it is the shape and density you like. When you needle into the fibers, the felting needle, which has barbs on its shaft, grabs the top fiber and brings it down through the underlying fibers, entangling it and thereby making felt. The more you needle, the more entangled the fibers get and the denser the felt will become.

Materials:

Needle-Felted Grapevine Wall Hanging

NZ Wool (Black) 2 oz.
NZ Wool (Raspberry) 2 oz.
NZ Wool (Eggplant) 1/2 oz.
NZ Wool (Moss Green) 2 oz.
NZ Wool (Lima Bean) 1/2 oz.
Blue-Faced Leicester Wool Top (Brown) 2 oz.
size-38 felting needles (at least two)
multineedle tool (optional)
foam work surface 11"x15"
bubble wrap at least 11"x15"
netting/tulle at least 11"x15"
spray bottle
dish soap
towel

Safety note: Please be aware that felting needles are extremely sharp and brittle. Keep the needles away from children! Before using for the first time, disinfect needles with alcohol wipes. Run the wipe from the top end of the needle to the tip a few times and let dry. When using the felting needle, watch where you are poking at all times. To keep the needle from breaking, try to keep it straight while entering and exiting the fibers as bending will cause it to break.

1. Pull off thin tufts of moss green wool and layer them horizontally, covering the 11"x15" foam. Add another layer, this time laying the wool vertically. Add another layer horizontally and another vertically.

2. Use the felting needle to needle all over the wool until the layers hold together tightly. Gently remove from the foam and set aside.

3. Pull off thin tufts of black wool and layer them horizontally, covering the 11"x15" foam. Add another layer, this time laying the wool vertically. Add another layer horizontally and another vertically, as you did with the green wool above. As you layer the black wool onto the foam, let the tufts of wool fall outside the 11"x15" area by 1" or so.

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

4. Use the felting needle to needle all over the wool until the layers hold together tightly (figure A). Fold the wool extending over the 11"x15" area back upon itself and needle well to form smooth edges. Gently remove from the foam and set aside.

5. You will now wet-felt the green and black pieces you just made (figure B). Starting with the green wool, lay it on a piece of bubble wrap with the bumpy sides up. Cover the wool with the netting and spray with hot, soapy water. Gently rub the wet, soapy wool through the netting for about three minutes. Carefully remove the netting and flip the wool over. Replace the netting and rub for another three minutes. Remove the wool from the netting and bubble wrap and gently rinse in hot water until the soap is gone. Roll the piece of wool up in a towel and press to remove excess water. Unroll and lay flat to dry. Repeat with the black piece.

6. Leave the top 1-1/2" area of the black background blank, without design: when you're finished with the picture, that part will be turned back to form a pocket for hanging, so make sure the artwork (grapes, leaves, vine and tendrils) doesn't extend up that high.

7. Print and cut out the leaf pattern. Using that pattern, cut leaves out of the moss green felt piece and set them aside.

8. Taking the brown wool, pull off tufts and place on the black background to make the grape vine in a T shape. Add more brown layers on top of the T shape to build up the vine slightly and give it dimension. Needle the layers securely in place (figure C).

9. Decide where you would like some of the green leaves on the vine (reserve a few leaves for placement after the grapes are added) (figure D). Securely needle them in place.

10. Using the grape pattern as a guide, determine the placement of the grape clusters. Note the bottom tip of the pattern as you will start with the bottom grape and work your way up to the top.

11. Using the raspberry wool, pull off a small tuft and roll it into a grape-sized ball. Place it where the bottom grape of the cluster will be and needle firmly around the outer edges and lightly over the rest of the grape, trying to keep the round dimension (figure E). Continue making and adding grapes in this fashion until the cluster is the size and shape you desire.

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