A stunning fleece, a squirrel skull, a beautiful bead, a graceful spiral branch, a lovely old piece of leather, an earthy-looking piece of felt, some incredible handspun yarn: this is how it begins, these are the things that inspire me, and I will build my work around them. I am heavily influenced by Northern cultures: Sami, trans-Siberian, Native American and Canadian, Tibetan, Mongolian, Steppe cultures, elements of the Celtic and Norse. These can be seen in my work, these and the folk songs and tales that I love.

Long ago I turned to making small felt or leather bags, pouches, and vessels. In my house, they hold things like knitting needles, glasses, spindles, jewelry, etc. But there comes a time when all your friends have been gifted with several of your works, and you have no room for more in your own home, and that was when my shop, Thistle Woolworks, was born.

I call it Thistle Woolworks to show my affinity for Scotland:

The rough burn thistle spreading wide
Amang the bearded ear
I turned the weeding heuk aside
An' spared the emblem dear!

--Robert Burns

See the THISTLE WOOLWORKS shop on Etsy


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SOME OF MY WORK THAT IS NO LONGER IN MY ETSY SHOP OR NEVER WAS

THESE ARE THE WEB PAGES WE MAINTAIN

LINKS TO OTHER FIBER- AND TEXTILE-RELATED WEBSITES

RIVERWALK BEAD SHOP AND GALLERY in Amesbury, Massachusetts where some of my bags are for sale. They also have other artists' works for sale and, of course, a large selection of beads.

DEB'S RECYCLED SEWING PATTERNS, your source for vintage, discontinued, antique, recycled or gently used, and modern sewing patterns from the 50's to the present, offered for sale at reasonable prices.

NEW ENGLAND FELTING SUPPLY, your source for felting materials. Chris White, a feltmaker herself, runs this shop in Easthampton, Massachusetts, where you can find hundreds of different types and colors of wool and fiber, hand-dyed silks for nuno felting, needle felting supplies, many colors of prefelt fabric, solar pool wrap, felting magazines and more.

MAINE THREAD COMPANY. I use waxed cord from Maine Thread Company for my straps and fringes. They have a large variety of colors and weights of cord, cording supplies and tools, prompt, courteous service, and very reasonable prices.

CHINOOK JEWELRY Besides finished jewelry, Chinook has beautiful ceramic pendants that I have bought to use as focals for some of my bags, and some very unusual porcelain flower beads.

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with technical help from webwizard David Presberg
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