needle felted sheep picture

How To Needle Felt A Picture

All photographs and finished pictures are Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts originals so please make sure to credit my pictures as inspiration should you decide to use them as reference for your own picture. This also applies to all social media and blog pages. Copies of my picture must not be sold! However I am happy for them to be gifted as long as full credit is given. All copyright laws apply.

I have had lots of requests to put together a quick guide to get you started on needle felting a 2D/3D picture so, using my own pictures as inspiration, here it is. It is suitable for all abilities (including complete beginners) and you can work at your own level and at your own pace. If this is your first time needle felting then please watch my beginner video tutorials to familiarise yourself with basic techniques:

HOW TO NEEDLE FELT

BASIC SHAPE VIDEO TUTORIAL

If you are new to needle felting, or don’t have many colours, I have put together a picture pack containing a carefully chosen wool selection, natural pre-felt and natural effect fibres that can be used for needle felting and wet felting. I will be focusing on needle felting but you can adapt to suit whatever project you are working on.

Shop Picture Needle Felting Kit

Preparation and planning is really important. I find using a photograph of a landscape, animal, woodland scene etc for reference/inspiration really helpful. It can be the roughest of guides or very specific to the photograph or image you have in mind. You may have a particular animal you want to incorporate into the picture which is also a great starting point; anything goes.

For this guide I am creating fields as the backdrop with a 2 D wooden gate, Herdwick Sheep and pebble wall in the foreground. It is called, ‘Watching Me, Watching Ewe.’ I know, cheese on toast right… but it was too good an opportunity not to. You should hear my pirate jokes. I save those for special occasions, usually workshops.  #sorrynotsorry to anyone who has been at the receiving end of them…

Enough pre-amble, lets get started.


1 – Using a piece of *pre-felt for the back of your picture take a marker or chalk to, very roughly, draw out your idea on to the pre-felt: ZERO DRAWING SKILLS REQUIRED. This way you can ensure that you can fit in all the elements you want to use.

* I always use pure Shetland but any 100% wool felt is OK. Size of the pre-felt I used for this picture is approx 20cm square. A 30cm square is included in the picture pack.

2 – I am making a *Herdwick picture with a landscape backdrop and stone wall to get lots of 2D elements in there. It’s quite a small picture; 20cm square to fit into some lovely shadow boxes I have. Also, starting with a smaller picture means there is less white space to fill which can be a little daunting and it takes less time.

*All photographs and finished pictures are Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts originals so please make sure to credit my pictures as inspiration should you decide to use them as reference for your own picture. All copyright laws apply.

Instructional diagram on needle felting herdwick sheep

3 – Mark your colours and objects so you know where your wool and 2D elements are going to sit. Keep it as simple as possible and remember these are just your guide lines.

4 – Time to get out your wool and needles. I am using a star 36/38 needles (good all rounders) and a punch tool (7 needles) to speed up the process.

5 – I felted the landscape first but you can start wherever you want depending on your picture style. I will be felting on my 2D elements later and adding embellishment. Lay your colour on, or between the lines, you have drawn, and use your needle to gently felt into place. It doesn’t have to be firmly felted but should stay in position.

I have used a mix of coarse wool tops and some semi carded wool tops that I had a lot of.

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6 – Continue to gently needle felt your selected colours until the back ground is full.

7 – If you are happy with the layout then go ahead and felt the whole background more firmly (but not too flat), peeling it off your mat at intervals so it doesn’t stick. If you are doing a lot of flat felting then I recommend a rice filled hessian or strong cotton felting pad and a punch tool. Trust me, you will thank me later for cutting your felting time by three quarters.

Don’t worry if you have covered up some of your lines; remember they were just a guide.

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You can also blend colours either by hand or using blending brushes (glorified dog brushes). For this picture I used a blend of Shetland blue top, light blue silk fibre and light grey Swaledale top for the sky.

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8 – I wanted a distinct line separating the fields and used very thin strips of dark brown Jacob wool top to achieve this. Felt the lines quite firmly into the pre-felt which will push it down and give a little more depth.

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Time to create some 2D elements.

9 – Wall

I have used lots of muted colours to create the pebbled wall appearance. Avoid all ‘flat’ colours by blending different colour wool by hand; if using the landscape box some colours will not need blending as they will already have texture and different shades. A soft palette works really well for this style of picture e.g purple blended with white, dark grey blended with white or light grey

Make your stones by rolling your wool into a very rough ball shape (this is not the shape you will end up with but will create dimension) and felting all over with your needle. Keep the wool moving as it firms up and don’t try to make it even; have you ever seen even shapes on a dry stone wall… Make quite a few different shapes and sizes; mine are  approx 1.5cm to 2.5cm then place them on your picture in the walled area to see how many more you will actually need.

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Once done stitch or glue them into position; I’m not a purist and whichever you choose is fine. Clearly, using glue is so much faster and a strong fabric glue will do just fine as long as you give it a little time to dry. Using glue also allows you to move your pebbles about before the glue dries; you will be ready for a cuppa at this stage anyway.

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10 – Time to make the Herdwick sheep head (or whichever animal you have chosen).

Please follow the link to the video tutorial: How to needle felt a head shape  You will want to flatten the back of the head so it sits nicely on your picture. You can then needle felt your eyes or use beads (included in the picture pack).

11- Start with a small length of white wool (approx 2g) and roll into a rough oval shape felting (stabbing gently with your needle) and tucking in the ends as you go.  Gently felt until it holds its shape and turning as you felt. Continue to felt until you have achieved a rough egg/oval shape. Now flatten the back of the head by needle felting until it sits flat on the picture but don’t attach it yet; it’s ears are missing.

12 – Ears: For the ears take a pinch of white wool. Lay it on your pad and draw a rough circle with your felting needle and fold the wool around the line you have drawn, felting it into the centre. Turn over (to prevent from sticking) and repeat a few times, leaving one end loose (to attach to the head) and felt until flat, smooth and slightly firm. Repeat for other ear. Attach the loose end of each ear to the side of the head and felt or sew into position so it is peeping over the wall.

13 – Gently felt on very thin wisps (even thinner than that) onto the face to create the nose and mouth. N.B. Easiest way is to roll very thin wisps of wool between your fingers before felting to the face. Alternatively, you can sew on using black or dark grey thread.

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14 – Add your gate by rolling and felting your brown wool into short lengths and overlapping for effect before gently felting into position. You may reposition a few times before you are happy with it.

15 – Add your wool for the body of your animal but don’t felt it flat and keep it quite loose as this will create dimension. I have used loose curly grey locks.

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16- Now add your foreground details. I have used greens and some locks for a grassy feel but be as creative as you wish. You could add flowers, butterflies, bees etc.

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17 – Finishing touches make all the difference and as you can see I have used french knots (easy and absolutely no need to be perfect). YouTube French Knot Tutorial. Curly locks also add more interest and dimension.

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There you have it. Super easy 2D picture tutorial.

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I have done a few pictures which are so worth the time they take. Here are a few more ideas for inspiration.

‘Asleep Under The Cherry Tree’ A gift for my daughter.

Again, I have used French Knots as well as beads for interest and detail.

 

 


‘Midnight At The Northern Lights’ 

Midnight is the name of my hare in the picture and inspiration came from my dream of visiting the  Northern Lights.

 

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You can also use wet felted pictures as a base and then add  two dimensional effects using needle felting. Free motion embroidery works really well on wet felted backgrounds. Below is a very unfinished picture waiting for me to decide what to do next. I have needle felted onto Shetland pre-felt then wet felted the whole scene incorporating locks and silk fibres.

There are lots of YouTube videos showing wet felting techniques: Wet Felting Tutorial

 

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So there you have it. The possibilities are endless and I hope this guide has inspired you to try something new. Happy creating!

If you would like a picture pack then please click on the link below for the website. You can also find my favourite selection of needle felting accessories and tools.

Shop website wool bundle

Est. 2013
© 2013 Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

40 thoughts on “How To Needle Felt A Picture

  1. Ute

    Amazing tutorial! I have been wanting to make a felt-picture for quite a while now but I had no idea how or where to start. Thank you for sharing this.

  2. Antonella

    Hi! this tutorial makes me feel needle felt could work for me. I have in mind the Starry Night by Van Gogh as a Valentines gift… not sure if I can make it.
    So, since there is a dark night, could I use dark blue pre-felt as a background? what do you think?
    Thanks a lot!!!

    • Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

      Starry night is on my to do list and I think a dark blue would be perfect. I used a dark blue for my Northern Lights picture. Pictures are such great fun and you can use beads and scraps of material for embellishment. 🙂

  3. Shelley

    First, thank you for this tutorial. Question though…a) What is pre-felt? b) Is it readily available at fabric store or is it a specialty item? c) does the finish product get pulled OFF the pre-felt or is the pre-felt the backing? In #7 of the lesson you said, ‘7 – If you are happy with the layout then go ahead and felt the whole background more firmly (but not too flat), peeling it off your mat at intervals so it doesn’t stick. If you are doing a lot of flat felting then I recommend a rice filled hessian or strong cotton felting pad and a punch tool. Trust me, you will thank me later for cutting your felting time by three quarters.’ It’s the ‘peeling it off your mat at intervals’ that has me a little perplexed.

    Having never done any felting of any kind, this is all foreign to me. Would you recommend a good book on the techniques?

    Thanks again!

    • Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

      Hi Shelly. Pre- felt is a sheet of felt that has been partially felted. It’s perfect for needle felting a picture onto and it stays on the pre- felt. I have some in the shop but it’s not a fabric store item. You will always use a foam mat or soft surface to rest your work on which is just to protect your table, knees etc and stops the needles from.breaking. You need to peel your work of the surface at regular intervals so it doesn’t become stuck to what you are felting. I have some YouTube videos you will find really helpful. 🙂💞

      • Shelley

        Thank you for getting back to me! I’m still confused by the ‘not stuck to what you are felting’ though. If I am felting the roving onto pre-felt and am doing it over a foam mat (etc.), what exactly am I pulling off and off of what? I would think I want the roving to stick to the pre-felt, yes? Does the pre-felt then get stuck to the foam mat and that’s what I am pulling off?

        Sorry for being so confused about it. And thanks again!

  4. Samantha Towell

    Am totally new to this and found this article really helpful am definitely going to give it a go. I believe you and i are in the same neck of the woods.

  5. Tracy Cayler

    Oh my gosh, Sandy, I absolutely love Midnight At The Northern Lights! The end product is beautiful. Any chance of making this available as a kit or pattern? If you do, I will be buying one maybe two!

    • Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

      Hi Tracy
      Thanks so much. I loved making this and I definitely want to add it to the kit range, probably a pattern to start with. So many ideas for the Spring and Summer and this is definitely on the list. 🙂 Thanks Sandy

  6. Lisa

    These are beautiful!!! By any chance will Asleep Under a Cherry Tree and/or Midnight at the Northern Lights become a kit as well?

  7. Michelle

    Thank you for sharing! I am wondering how you “finish” the edges? Under step 7 the picture shows the extra felt on one side of your piece, is it cut off or folded under the back?

    • Lincolnshire Fenn Crafts

      Hi Michelle. I don’t cut the edges as that would damage the fibres. I usually hang the piece from driftwood on cotton rope and leave the edges uneven as I like the finish. If you are framing then just fold over the edges. 🙂

  8. Sandra Dickinson

    I have just made a Winter Hare from one of your kits (a Christmas gift from my daughter). My very first time felting and I absolutely loved it, so absorbing and relaxing. I am delighted with my little hare! Can’t wait to try it again.

  9. Kim Bailey

    Your work is beautiful! Thank you so much for taking the time to share how you make these wonderful works of art–I am feeling a lot less intimidated now and might actually have a go at it 🙂

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