Angela Barrow

I'm a feltmaker living and working in Ilkley, W.Yorkshire. I first began making felt about ten years ago and have since completed my City & Guilds Diploma in feltmaking and am a member of the International Feltmakers Association. Using mainly wet felting techniques,I love to create pieces with colour and texture, working in both 2D and 3D. Nuno felting, the method of combining wool fibres and fabrcis through the felting process, features highly in my work and I like to use a range of fabrics including synthetics which give fabulous texture.
 
For wearables I use high quality merino fibres but I also like to work in a range of British wool fibres including: Swaledale, Blue Faced Leicester, Wensleydale, Cheviot, Shetland and Black Welsh Mountain. These British fibres bring different qualities and textures to my work. Where it's appropriate to the piece I love to include recycled and found objects, these finds often dictating what I create.
 
In 2009 I felted around an oversized fibreglass curlew as part of the Flight of Fancy, Grassington Arts Trail. This has led to me experimenting with more work for displayiong outdoors and exploring what happens to that work over time when exposed to the elements. It's also led to me applying for Flock to Skipton to be held this summer and in which I hope to be felting around a fibreglass sheep. What attracted me to both of these projects is the challenge of can I do it? How would I do it?