EASY NEEDLE FELTED HEDGEHOG – IN JUST ONE HOUR!

Hedgehogs are a much rarer sight in our gardens than they used to be and I remember my dad getting my 11 year old self, and younger brother out of bed at midnight to see a visiting hedgehog in our garden. What a treat and such cherished memories! Whilst you may not see the real thing very often, at least you can have your own handmade hoglet to keep you company all year round. So, I present my needle felted version of our beloved hedgehog and how using a reverse felting needle creates fabulous spikey details.

Did You Know?

Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant so bread and milk is not good for them! Find out what they really love to eat on The Woodland Trust blog at the bottom of this post.

MAKE YOUR OWN NEEDLE FELTED HEDGEHOG

Skill level: Complete beginners and beyond
Make time: 1 hour

Time to settle down with creativity, a cuppa, maybe a slice of cake, and join me for a full tutorial teaching you new needle felting tips, tricks and techniques.

VIDEO TUTORIAL AND MATERIALS LIST

You will need:

  • Grey wool top for body
  • Brown carded batting for top layer
  • Light brown wool top or carded for face
  • Darker wool for nose
  • Brown wool top for spikey halo
  • Standard/medium felting needle – I use a 38 star
  • Reverse felting needle for spikes – I use a 32 reverse
  • Glass beads for eyes
  • Felting mat
  • Enthusiasm

SHOP NEEDLE FELTING KIT- MAKES THREE COLIN HEDGEHOGS

Available from: LINCOLNSHIRE FENN CRAFTS  or  ETSY

If you want to encourage hedgehogs in your own garden here are a few guidelines from James Martin, content editor of the WOODLAND TRUST

What do hedgehogs eat, and how to feed them?

Evidence suggests this decline is most severe in rural areas and hedgehogs are actually faring better in our towns and villages than the countryside. This means gardens can be an important refuge for the species. One way you can help any visiting hogs is to provide some food. But what do hedgehogs eat and what should you feed them?

FOOD FIT FOR A HEDGEHOG

Insects and other invertebrates are the hedgehog’s main natural food source. A typical diet includes:

  • Beetles
  • Earwigs
  • Caterpillars
  • Earthworms
  • Millipedes
  • Fly larvae

What to feed hedgehogs?

As opportunistic eaters, hedgehogs will readily consume food left out in your garden. The best foods to provide are:

  • Meat-based cat or dog food
  • Specially-made hedgehog food
  • Cat biscuits

As well as providing food, you can put out a shallow dish of water to ensure any visiting hogs stay hydrated.

What not to feed hedgehogs

The following foods should be avoided when feeding hedgehogs:

  • Bread and milk (hogs are lactose intolerant so milk can make them ill. Bread has little nutritional value)
  • Mealworms (thought to cause health problems when eaten in large quantities)

Read the full blog at THE WOODLAND TRUST

Workshop Creativity

needle felted hedgehogs

Needle Felted Hedgehog Video Tutorial

Hedgehog needle felting kits are available on the Website

So excited to introduce Colin Hedgehog, the prickliest member of the Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts tribe. The full needle felting kit to accompany this video is also available on the Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts website.

This is my version of our beloved hedgehog. More fun than you can shake a stick at? Not sure what that means but it is definitely a lot of fun.

Skill level: Complete beginners to intermediate
What you need: Enthusiasm!

So, make a cuppa, cut yourselves a slice of cake and join me for a full tutorial teaching you new tips, tricks and techniques as well as trying new wool and needles.

Bonus! if you are using the kit you get to make at least 3 Colin hedgehogs! What better way to spend a crafternoon…

Happy felting!

Shop hedgehog needle felting kit at: Website     Etsy Store

For all enquiries please message me at: Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

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If you would like to see more of these types of tutorial don’t forget to leave a comment.

How to needle felt a firm head shape – Video tutorial

A short video (only 12 minutes) to help you improve your needle felting techniques.

When needle felting a head (animals or people) it is important to make sure you have a really firm shape. If you have a soft head then when you start to add the features you will distort or flatten the wool.

It is one of the most common mistakes (apart from floppy legs) but very easy to get right. As with all things, practice makes perfect, but needle felting does allow for mistakes because you can just add another layer. Just remember the golden rule: Start smaller and build your shape up and you can add but not take away. If you start too big and have to keep adding you will end up with a head the size of a football and then have to make a body to match! We are now talking life size sheep or giant hares that will just scare everyone, especially the dog or cat…

My best advice: Be patient. Don’t try to run before you can walk. Get the basics right and the rest will follow. Yes, I know your bestie, family member or work colleague wants a sculpture of their dog making after seeing a flower brooch you made? However, anything worth doing takes time. If it didn’t we would all be taking David Bailey quality photographs after an hours tutorial, or be able to put in a whole plumbing system after fixing a leaky tap… Most definitely, very soon we would all be very bored of hearing about each others achievements and stop making the effort.

Happy creating!