Needle-Felted Animals- Update Bingo the Jack Russell Terrier!

I just thought that I would introduce you all to something amazing- the art of needle-felting, and specifically the animals made by the artist Cindy-Lou Thompson! I can honestly say that the models she has created with wool are some of the most stunning works of art I have ever seen- they amazed me so much that I definitely want to practise some needle-felting in the future. She specialises in dogs (Which look alive!) but also makes wild animals, and horses! The results are incredibly realistic, sometimes I can hardly tell whether her photos are of a real animal or a model! I thought they would be interesting to show to other collectors, although they are so expensive they definitely fit well into this hobby! Here is the link to her website, if you look under the 'Gallery' tab you can see her stunning dogs- and see how lifelike they are next to their real counterparts under the 'customer photos' tab! She has also made many animals that are favourites of other members on here!
But as I said before I found this so inspiring and something I would definitely love to try at some point, and I hope you find it interesting too!
https://www.chicktincreations.com/

Seems a complex technics to me. The fact is that the fur, for instance, results very realistic.
I am actually quite surprised and I would love surely having some of these pieces of art, especially the fox. There's a Saluki /Poodle cross
I am sure you're talented enough to try this technics successfully. Let us know if you ever try it yourself.

I knew you would spot the fox! I agree, some of that fur texture looks so complex, it's amazing! There was also a croc too under 'World of Wool Kits' which looked very realistic!
I started today on a Jack Russell using instructions from the artist- I'll post a photo here when it's completed!

Bonnie wrote:

I knew you would spot the fox! I agree, some of that fur texture looks so complex, it's amazing! There was also a croc too under 'World of Wool Kits' which looked very realistic!
I started today on a Jack Russell using instructions from the artist- I'll post a photo here when it's completed!

OH, a Jack Russell, so exciting! I missed the crocodile. There's even a chameleon, such a cool figure. The sheep is real of course. I wonder how long it took to make the giraffe, such a masterpiece and there is even a Siamese cat for Susanne. Love also the meerkat, fawn, llama and many others.

Very stuning , they all look so realistic! almost too.. they look a little like taxidermy!

These really are incredible. She captures not only realistic hair growth and anatomy, but personality and life in those faces and poses. I could have been fooled by several, if someone had told me it was a real dog. Thank you for sharing! And good luck on your Jack Russel!

These are really just too cool! I think the fluffier breed work better for this medium but even the wild dogs and other animals look almost alive.

I'd love to try needle felting someday.

I'd seen postings of goldfish created by a Japanese artist who goes by Deme Tyoubi I think, absolutely stunning. Chickintree's pieces look alive, furry critters do translate a bit better than scales!

Thank you Roger, Alain, Jill, Paige and Kelly, I'm glad you loved them! They really are amazingly realistic!
@pipsxlch I have just looked up that artist's goldfish and they are absolutely stunning!

And a month later after many hours and many days of felting the wool into position I have finally finished the Jack Russell, who I named Bingo! It definitely requires a lot of patience but I really enjoyed the process and being able to create a model with a soft texture that's still detailed and retains shape! And the process is actually very similar to sculpting, starting with a wire armature and building up the layers. More photos can be found on my website (As I am now tentatively accepting commissions) but here are a few of my favourites:

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WOW, what's that? I know you are very talented but you have just started with this technic and it looks already absolutely perfect!
I think the right word is BINGO!!!

Thank you so much Roger!

Bonnie wrote:

Thank you so much Roger!

You're welcome. I must find a way to commission you to make a fox. A fox is a dog, right?
Do you think a Corsac fox looks like a dog?

This is your first needle felt??? You really must have paid attention to instructions and also have a natural gift, because that looks professionally done. What an adorable little guy! The shape of the body is so good, I can see there's even subtle musculature and such good symmetry with the face and ears and legs. The markings also look great - nice and sharp like they would be on a real short coated dog. The long haired animals seem to work best for realism in this technique, but you really nailed it with a smooth coat. His eyes look so sweet and alive! That picture with the leafs on his nose. I hope you keep pursuing this talent of yours!

Wow- stunning job! Another great artistic talent of yours!

That's absolutely amazing! Bingo looks alive. Especially in the last photo, you can see he/she (?) has real hair. How did you make the eyes and the nose? They look very real too. I'd never have thought you could make something so beautiful from felt.

Holy canoli... GREAT job! This is an excellent art piece, I can barely explain how awesome I think it is. Fantastic job is all I can say!

HOLY HAMSTER !!!! Lilias, is there anything you can not do ?????

Thank you so much Jill, Kelly, Roger, Paige and Susanne! You're all so kind!
@Roger The Corsac fox actually does look very similar to a dog! I would love to make you one, it would be fun to try a sculpture with long fur too!
@Jill Thank you Jill! It is actually my first needle felted sculpture but I must thank the artist who I mentioned at the top because it was using an instruction booklet from her to get me started, and she is an amazing artist too so it was so nice to learn her top tips! And then I just took a similar approach to sculpting with clay and used photos to try and get the anatomy right!
@rogerpgvg Thank you again too! The felting always leaves a slight 'halo' of wool fluff around the edge which is nice because it can look like hair! For the eyes I used glossy beads and then some tufts of black wool to add the darker rims and for the nose I felted the wool really firmly (As it has a harder texture) and trimmed off any excess strands to make it look smoother!

Wow, wow, wow!!! How incredibly amazing!! Lilias, this is so beautiful!!

Is this your first work with this technique?! How? It looks like it was done by someone with years of experience    

You created such an adorable character here. His face is perfect, the lively eyes and cute nose! And the anatomy looks great, and the colors are beautiful too! Everything is just WOW

Thank you so much Anna, yes it was my first attempt! To be praised by an artist as amazing as you means so much to me (And to Bingo )!