Learn how to make your own felted Imps!
25/04/2017
Making your own imp at home is really simple with felting. There is both a wet felting and needle felting technique. These instructions are for needle felting, but wet is safer for younger hands! Plenty of online instructions for wet felting exist, if you want to take a mini-molecule friendly approach.
You need:
- 1 felting needle (simple or fancy, it's up to you!)
- 1 thick piece of foam board
- Felt! (like this stuff, for example ) Get as colorful as you want. These balls were perfect for imps that fit in the palm of your hand. If you aren't using googly eyes, get some white and black felt for your imps face.
Optional:
- A thimble
- Decorations! (like googly eyes or pompoms)
- Craft glue for decorations
Bodies: Every*body* needs one!
Step 1: The main body
Put your foam board down on your work space to protect it. Choose the color you want for your imp and shape it into a rough imp shape with your hands. Take your needle and poke the needle (up and down) into the felt.
Imp body shapes: Normally a lot easier to mould than your own.
Step 2: Getting an even body shape
To keep the circular body shape, keep turning the felt as you go, so you're poking it evenly around the sides. If your imp is looking a little flat, just add some more felt around the outside and keep going. It's easier to add than to subtract with felt!
Next up, the Imp's stem. At least, that's what we refer to it as - it sounds a little botanic, but the Imp doesn't mind.
Step 3: The stem
When the felt is compressed and the imp shape is well defined, continue up the “stem” of the imp until it is compressed and holds its shape as well.
Tips: Necessary for pointing with.
Step 4: Adding the tip
Now, select another color of felt for the ball on top of the imp stem. If you'd rather glue on a pompom, you may save yourself a few accidental needle pokes to the fingers! Roll the felt in your hands to form a ball and felt it just like you did when you created your imp. Once you have a good shape, use the needle to secure it to the imp stem. Your base imp is done!
Eyes: Necessary for seeing you with. More importantly, they're vital for cuteness.
Step 5: Adding eyes and details
To make a face for your imp, either use the decorations you have on hand, or take small amounts of white and black felt to form eyes, eyebrows and a mouth. You only need a small bit of felt to add these details! Once your imp has a face...go nuts!
Details, it's all in the.
Finishing up
Finally, take a picture and share with us! We'd love to see where your imagination takes you. We held our very own 'Imp Felting Workshop' last week with a few of the Molecules and their minis; here's what we made to give you some 'impspiration'!
Aren't you 'IMPressed' with our imps :)
Share your imps with us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook using #DreamsPS4, or leave us a comment below. We can't wait to see your felted creations, and don't forget to mind your fingers!