About Us & Our Products
The Fibre Bin was literally conceived in a wooden bin used as a family home during the Dirty Thirties on our prairies. This building was 16 ft x 12 feet, so while the square footage was limiting, it did provide a focussed area to work in. The building was moved to our yard soon after we moved here and was a seasonal studio for the first ten years we lived on our farm. Since that time, my studio requirements expanded, so while this structure still holds a prominent place as a heritage building, I have moved into a larger year round felting space in our home.
My inspiration has always been the natural environment around me. Growing up in a rural setting, and thanks to my parents and grandfather, I learned to appreciate the smaller worlds around us. The birds, the trees, the skies and the wildlife around us are all inspirational to me. Humankind is really such a small part of our bigger environment. I utilize motifs from our natural world and the small gifts it gives...such as feathers, leaves, flowers...in my work and acknowledge how important our local ecosystems are.
I have been involved in the fibre arts for over 20 years. It all started with our first llamas...using their fibre I learned to spin, knit, dye, weave. I continued to explore the possibilities of natural fibres and their characteristics. I found felt making early in my exploration, and revisited it in a workshop which both inspired and intrigued me. After that I knew that felt making “felt” right. For the last ten years I have been focussed on working with the process of creating seamless, nuno felted garments and accessories. ...looking at opportunities to expand my learning and expanding my technique.
I have been fascinated by the layers that can be created, similar to layers of clouds, leaves on our trees or looking at layers within raw wools. The motifs I use share my love of our natural environment and my own homage to what they represent in our current day of urbanization . I consider each work as a piece of art made in natural fibres and each are treated with individual designs, composition and inspiration.
To Care for My Felted Pieces:
Felt is a very durable fabric and with proper care, should last for many years to come.
My pieces should be treated similarly to any high quality garment to preserve the quality of the natural fibres. You can hand wash your piece with a mild soap or even a high quality shampoo and ensure the soap is well rinsed. Roll in a towel to remove excess moisture. Then lay flat on a towel and/or when damp/dry (more dry than damp) hang to dry fully. You can steam iron on a lower heat with steam or with a damp towel between the iron and the felt to reset how your piece sits if necessary. DO NOT put into a washing machine or dryer as this will undermine the handwork done and may result in causing permanent damage to your piece.
Pilling is a natural characteristic of wool and all pieces may have some pilling in areas of higher wear over time. This can be addressed by gently shaving the pills off with a sharp razor or using a shaver designed to remove pills.
Refund Policy:
Every piece is a hand made unique object, using top grade materials. There will be slight variations in colours and finishes. As the images of my pieces are on line, the works may vary with individuals’ monitors or screens when viewing my products on your computer or mobile device. Because of the labour intensive nature of creating these pieces, we do not allow returns. While measurements are provided to ensure you have correct information with your selection, if there is an issue with sizing, please advise with 30 days of receipt for either exchange or a store credit. Customers are responsible for the costs of return shipping. It is strongly recommended that items are sent with a tracking number. Please contact me in advance to discuss any concerns before shipping.