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Needle Felting Artist Jennifer Carson

...the Dragon Charmer...More than just dragons!

Jennifer Carson creates wonderful hand- dyed wool felt dragons and other fantasy creatures which she dyes herslf (using a range of interesting dyes including Kool Aid!) The success of selling her finished pieces, led her to produce a line of patterns featuring her dragons, foundlings and much more.

She tells us a little about her artistic journey...

..."I have always been a dreamer and the characters in my imagination longed to be created. As a senior in high school I received a full scholarship to Washtenaw Community College, and knowing that an education was costly, and being a young graduate (seventeen), I decided to accept it, and put off going to art school. When I was nineteen I had my first son with my high-school sweetheart, and at twenty we were married. Any plans for art school were again, put off. In the next seven years, three more children were added to our brood, and my desire to create something other than children had been growing and growing, until I could think of nothing else.

I began painting murals in children’s rooms, starting with my own. Then I wanted to create the bedding, so I learned to sew—something I had fought my mom tooth and nail over as a teenager. As my children got older and more independent, I decided to go back to the community college I had graduated from and take some more art classes. I learned to use soft pastels, loving how the colors overlapped and made each layer richer, but with four children in the house--it was a bit messy. Watercolor was the next step and I found a bit of success, but I still craved something more tangible. After three semesters of life drawing, I still felt that something was missing in my art and I was at a standstill, not knowing which way to go.

I had always loved fabric and textures and figuring out how things were put together, so I slowly moved into the world of art dolls. I began teaching myself how to design bodies, starting with a simple dragon with only two feet and constantly reaching for a more complex form. In the beginning I was painting the features onto the dolls with acrylic paint. Then my high-school art teacher showed me how to use a felting needle. That was it, the piece of the puzzle I needed to move forward with my work.

Now I am teaching others the magic of needle felting and love to see the smiles that my creations bring to people’s faces. A driving force in my own work has always been the work of Jim Henson and the wonderful artists that were lucky enough to work with him. It is my sincere desire that one day I am lucky enough to work with his son Brian, who continues his vision.

In January 2007 I was contacted to make the prizes for the National Welsh Corgi Dog Show in California and was chosen as the January Froudian Artist of the Month(www.worldoffroud.com). Now in 2008 after being featured in the magazine twice, I am the editor for Faerie Magazine's fibers arts section! If you know of talented fiber artists who are inspired by fairy tales, the land of faerie, myth or legends please send them my way."

*** To PURCHASE or FIND OUT MORE about Jennifer's Cloth Doll Patterns click on the new "CLOTH DOLL Patterns" category on the left under Funky Friends Range.

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