Wool Weekend: Needle Felted Acorns DIY Tutorial

I have a confession to make...I'm an addict.  An addict to creating.  You see, if too many days go by without allowing my little fingers to create something, I just don't feel like myself.  I think I inherited this from my mom.  Growing up, my mom was always engaged in various forms of arts and crafts-pottery, soapmaking, spinning wool, knitting, woodcarving, jewelry, baking, designing flower beds...the list could go on and on.  No joke.  

So, when this weekend rolled in, the snow came with it.  And so did many winter memories of sitting on the couch next to my mom in our cozy little family room knitting away, or spinning yarn on our spinning wheels.  It was then that I experienced the overwhelming desire to grab my neglected, but oh so wonderful spinning wheel.  I love my wheel-I'll never forget the Christmas morning I received it as as gift from my Mom, presented to me wrapped in a big, shimmery red bow.  I was 14.  Ahh, that was a beautiful day.  Here is my wheel...

It is an Ashford Traditional spinning wheel, from New Zealand.  I love it. (Did I already say that?)

As I gathered all the supplies I needed to start spinning, I examined the wheel to make sure all the necessary parts were there.  But to my dismay, a part WAS missing.  A very important part, called a tension knob.  See the hole in this picture?

That is where the tension knob belongs.  (I would explain what exactly the tension knob is, but then it wouldn't make sense unless you knew the anatomy of the rest of the wheel, so trust me when I say it is a really important part you need if you are going to spin wool  :)  )

I have no idea where it is now that we've moved, so I'm going to need to order a new one.  Perhaps I can overnight it.  So, since I had to put that on hold, and I thoroughly enjoyed needle-felting the hat and scarf for Clara's little snowman (see previous post), I decided I should do that.  And I am so glad I did!  I've been wanting to make felted acorn Christmas ornaments for quite some time, and this was the perfect opportunity to do so.  As mentioned before, the technique is called needle-felting, and it is so much fun to do.  It is basically "sculpting" with wool.  

After the girls went to bed, I got busy felting.  My first project was using an acorn my father found a year ago while visiting us during Christmas week in Medford, OR.  While going for a walk one morning, he came upon two beautiful acorns, and brought them home.  I couldn't bare to take both the acorns apart, so I used only one:

 This particular felted acorn is extra special because the wool is from a ewe I raised from my childhood.

I had such a great time making this one, I wanted to make more. But I wanted to funktify them.  (I know functify is not a word, but I think it should be)  Here they are...

 

This green one is my favorite-I love the green on green combination.  

Would you like to make some?  Yes?  Great!  It is super easy, but be careful you do not stab your fingers with the needles-it does NOT feel good.  Trust me, I've done it a few times!  If you already own a needle-felting kit, wool roving, and happen to have a few acorn tops lying around you are good to go.  If not, find the nearest yarn/knit shop and buy the kit and wool roving.  Can't find a local yarn shop?  Here is an online store to purchase them.  And hopefully you can find some acorn tops.

Step One:

Gather your supplies.

(wool, needles, foam block (part of kit), acorn top, and (not pictured) embroidery floss/baker's twine, pliers, knife, hot glue gun) *make sure you have read the kit instructions to needle-felting

(Post edit: Sorry these pictures are not the best.  They were taken a while ago, before I really understood how to use my camera)

Step Two:

Pinch the acorn top off with a pair of pliers.

Step Three:

Place acorn top on a hard surface (ie plate) and carefully rotate the tip of a knife around until you create a hole in the middle-this is where the ornament hanger will hang.

Step Four:

Select the desired color of wool, and tear away the amount of wool you think you will need-you might have to play around with it until you have the correct amount.

Step Five:

Roll the wool up into, what I like to call, a "tootsie roll".

Step Six:

Select your "red" needle-my kit contained three different kinds of needles that were marked with three different colors (different sizes/gauges)-red, green and blue.  The red needle(36 gauge) is to be used first, for the overall sculpting.  The blue one (40 triangle) is to be used for detailing, and green (38 star) is for the work in-between.  I used mainly the red and blue needles.  See the barbs on this needle?  The barbs are what do the felting.  Pretty neat, huh?!

Step Seven:

"Stab" the "tootsie roll" until you achieve your desired "acorn" shape.

Step Eight:

Assess the size of the "acorn" by performing a trial fit with the top.

Step Nine:

If it fits, and you would like to "decorate" your new little acorn, select a different color.  I wanted to dress this little guy in a green swirl, so I tore away a thin strip of green wool.

Step Ten:

To prepare the strip of wool for attachment, I rolled it against the foam to create a uniformed shape/look.

Step 11:

I anchored the end of the green strip to the very top of the acorn.

Step 12:

Poke the "strip" with the needle as you rotate it down the acorn to create the "swirl".

Step 13:

Once the swirl is finished, create a little hanger with your embroidery floss/baker's twine by tying a knot on the end.

 

Step 14:

Pull the hanger through the hole until the knot stops.

Step 15:

Use a hot glue gun to add glue to the acorn top-I like to cover the perimeter of the top, as well as the middle.

Step 16:

Add your "acorn" and walahh!  You are done!

But don't stop there!  The possibilites are ENDLESS when it comes to needle-felting.  Today I finished a little Christmas ornament I made for Clara.  It is a replica of the snowman I made her a few days ago:

I had a great time making these ornaments, and I hope you do, too!  Please let me know if you have any questions.

Enjoy!

Comments

[Alisha Munroe]

Too fun! good job on the picture steps.

[Cyndi]

Great site!!How do I make the cute snowman????

[Cyndi]

I agree!! Easy to follow...great pics!!

[Pamela Susan]

Thank you, you two!! :)

[Pamela Susan]

Thanks, Cyndi! To make the snowman I basically applied the same principles as the acorn...and just sculpt away! It was the first time I felted a snowman so I kinda winged it. Have you bought a needle-felting kit?

[photojoy]

It's been a long way for me to have a try! I've been fascinated with needle felting ever since I read your post. Yesterday I picked up one "supposedly-easy" kit for needle felting and some more different colors of wool. I uploaded a post and linked your post. Thank you for inspiring me. Have a nice day!

[Nina Jay M.]

OK.. this is another craft I would love to learn (oh boy I bet my husband would just be thrilled if I took up another craft!) These are just too cute!

[Island Cottage Art and Design]

I bought a book on felting at Tuesday Mornings for $5.00 and fell in love with the look of felting. I recently purchased roving, and the needles, etc... but hadn't had the time to start felting. This tutorial is wonderful and has gotten me motivated to pull out my tools and start with the small acorn project.

And the snowman... adorable!

[Mandy]

I so want to make these!

[Alyce Kennedy]

Hi! Love your felted snowman! I have bodies that are ready to go but can't get past the eyes...how do you get a piece of roving that tiny??

[Pamela Susan]

Ack! Sorry I'm just now responding! I don't know how I missed this.

I just roll up a tiny piece of wool and poke it in place... hope that is helpful! :)

[Valli Sugden]

These are the cutest things, ever! Love the felted look. You are so clever and artistic.