Felt on the Catwalk

At the end of March the Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School (yes that's where the 2011 Southern Felting Convergence is going to be held) hosted a  Fashion Extravaganza. 

It was a sell out event  and featured the best of the local fashion boutiques. The fashion was stunning and made more so with the inclusion of individually made felt pieces by local textile designer Kerry Gelmi.


This scarf adds interest and compliments the structural lines of the dress.

Here the blue piece adds colour giving a contrast to the different textures and shades of the blacks and greys in the outfit.

And here the felt becomes a showstopper!

All  design content property of K Gelmi.
Photos by Toni C and Lynxpics.

A Week of Felt Hats - Sunday

Finally it's the end of our week.  We have been busy so now it's a day to relax.

This hat is soft and comfortable and the lovely pink lends a flattering glow to washed out faces suffering from the excesses of Saturday night!

Hope you have enjoyed our week of hats.  We have certainly enjoyed making them.

Designer V Hornibrook

We look forward to seeing you all in your hats in October 2011 at the 11th Southern Hemisphere Felting Convergence in Bunbury Western Australia.

A Week of Felt Hats - Saturday

Saturday's the day for attending an autumn wedding.  This hat is perfect -

It's warm and colourful so will go with any dress you choose and you'll be the glamorous one in the wedding photos.

Designer C Castledine

A Week of Felt Hats - Friday

Friday's hat is appropriate for a long afternoon walk.

Back view

Then to watch a sports game in the evening just turn the hat round and keep your ears warm from the autumn chill.

Designer D Palmer

A Week of Hats - Thursday

Continuing our different hat for each day of a week we are up to Thursday.  Today needs something smart for shopping

and lunch.

Designer D Palmer

A Week of Hats - Wednesday

"Wednesday's child is full of woe" so goes the old saying.  To cheer Wednesday up wear a frivolous hat.

The other side looks like this -

And the back view-

Designer J Gibson

A Week of Hats - Tuesday

Tuesday's hat is pretty and feminine.

Just the thing to wear out to coffee with the girls.

Designer M Melchiorre

A Week of Hats - Monday

Now it's getting cooler it is nice to wear a hat and just imagine having enough in your wardrobe to be able to wear a different one every day of the week.

If you're suffering from Mondayitis then pick up the pace with the "Interactive Hat"

The cords and trims can be rearranged to fit your mood.  Much better than Sudoku on the bus.

A different look can be created every time and if you felt some extra cords and balls in different colourways.....

Designer K Cutting

Felt Designer In Focus - K Gelmi

Song Lines by K Gelmi

For the past week we have had this gorgeous image in out "Art to Wear"  section in our side bar.  Not surprisingly it has caused a bit of interest and we have been asked who the creator is.

The artist is the talented Kerry Gelmi.  Kerry's a New Zealander who we'll claim as our own (well that's the Australian way) as she now lives in Bunbury.   Kerry's a textile artist who is relatively new to felting but as this beautiful entry to a local wool designer competition shows felt is at its best when its natural qualities are taken advantage of. 

Kerry very kindly has agreed to share the story of her piece - titled "Song Lines".

The Gelmi Birman is put in charge of stripping Merino Wool from Sals Wool Den.

The design takes over the entire house!

Now comes the high tech bit.

A bit of throwing.

Song Lines - Detail

We asked Kerry where her inspiration for the outfit came from:-

"My inspiration for the garment is songlines or can be called dreaming tracks.

By singing songs, indigenous people could navigate vast distances across the land describing in the songs, landmarks and waterholes.

The colours of the overdress represent the red earth, the infill, the rock masses and the gridlines are the songs".

You make beautiful music Kerry.

All images and design content property of K Gelmi

Calling All Tutors

Convergence is all about sharing knowledge and learning new facets of this amazing textile medium so felt makers who are prepared to tutor and workshop are key to a successful event.

A range of skill levels need to be catered for.  There are always people wanting to learn to felt (our Bunbury Felters Group has a waiting list it is so popular) and most experienced felters are capable of giving a tutorial on basic techniques.  However, we also need to cater for the dedicated group of felting addicts who are always eager to learn and experiment with more advanced techniques.  Convergence is about stretching the limits of felting as we know it!

If you are interested in attending Convergence as a tutor or know someone who would be perfect then email feltconvergence2011@westnet.com.au

Felt a Festival Scarf

Felters love making scarves.  The colour combinations  are endless and they give maximum opportunity for combining wool fibres with fabrics.  There's also the benefit that one size fits all which gets around all those tricky shrinkage issues.

If you haven't thought about entering the Reflections Scarf Festival 2010 run by the National Wool Museum in Geelong then now is the time to do so.

 The "Reflections" theme is designed to get you thinking about your roots and consider where your artistic ideas come from.  There are a number of awards given with different categories including :

• Best Felted Scarf
• Best Use of Colours in a Scarf
• Best Scarf Made Using Sustainable Practises

It is $15 per scarf to enter and all scarves are exhibited and can be offered for sale if you wish.

The Reflections Scarf Festival will run between 18 June and 25 July 2010.  If you are near Geelong at that time go along.  As well as the exhibition there are workshops running.   Geelong is also a lovely city to look around with lots to do.

Geelong water front.

These handsome Victorians are everywhere.

So check out the full details at http://www.nwm.vic.gov.au/ and get felting.  Entries have to be in by 24 May 2010 so you still have lots of time to create . 

See you there.