© Pat MacKenzie

Pat writes, 'The dimensions of this wall hanging are approximately 10 x 15 inches (25 x 38 cm). In it the type of fleece used is Norwegian which is good for felting as it felts quickly and has a soft handle. The colours are those that are available from the fleece suppliers. A few strands of unspun and undyed silk fibres are laid on the fleece and incorporated in the felting process.

I learned about the ancient craft and art of feltmaking a few years ago and found that I really enjoyed being part of the almost magical transformation from wool fibre to fabric involved in making felt. Since then I have made several different items in felt - some large, some small - these have included hats, wall hangings, bags, scarves, cushions, jewellery and anything else I can dream up!

The traditional method of making felt uses no sophisticated equipment - just soap or washing-up liquid, warm water, a place to lay out the fleece and a good bit of elbow grease! Because of these simple requirements it is ideal for workshops for beginners.

I also do quite a lot of dyeing of fleece in order to achieve more lively and interesting colours than those commercially available and I have experimented with a variety of dye sources ranging from garden plants to dried beetles and hair dyes to cold drink powders. I have been banned from the kitchen because of some of the smells generated and now I do my dyeing in the greenhouse!

A development of hand-felting is an adaptation of the industrial method which uses large flat beds of special barbed needles which punch up and down into fleece until it changes into felt - single hand-held needles are used in the hand technique, and the method allows for a more sculptural approach to be used, and 3-D objects to be created.

Over the past year the local interest shown in feltmaking has encouraged me to organise and take workshops, both for adults and children. I supply all the materials and tuition at these workshop sessions. People taking part have greatly enjoyed them and have gone away with some very exciting and interesting pieces of work, in all shapes and colours! I shall be doing a workshop in needlefelting in Biggar this autumn as part of the Biggar Little Festival - look in the festival programme for details or ring me on 01899 308470 if you're interested in joining in.'

Pat is also a member of Biggar Art Group. Works by members of the group can be seen at their Summer Exhibition in Noah's Ark, High Street, Biggar until 3rd September and later at a joint exhibition of local arts and crafts in the Gillespie Centre from Thursday, 20th until Sunday, 23rd October as part of the Biggar Little Festival.