Claudia Marie - Needle Felted Creatures and Fantasy

Today we welcome Claudia Marie, Needle Felt Artist and Captain of our Waldorf on Etsy Team!

If not for my journey into Waldorf education, I likely would have never became a fiber artist.  That journey began when I was assigned to write a story about Waldorf education for a Chicago-area magazine, Conscious Choice.  My son, Johnny, was an infant at the time.  As I researched Waldorf education, I was awed.  This was the education that I wished I had; this was the education I wanted for my son.  When Johnny turned 4, we found a Waldorf school; he is now in eighth grade at DaVinci Waldorf School in Wauconda, IL.

Mother and Baby

As a Waldorf mom, I reconnected with my artistic side. My mother had taught me all the handwork arts as a child, so it didn’t take long for me to remember how to knit and crochet. 

  Baby Cottontail

I so loved making toys for Johnny. Taking bendy figures and sewing little clothes that turned them into knights, princesses, and cowboys. I also created fingerpuppets in a free-form crochet style. I crocheted little kittens, unicorns and bunnies out of soft yarn like alpaca and cashmere.

 Unicorn

That was when I first yearned to make animals out of wool. However, it was years later until I finally realized that needle felting was the perfect medium for what I wanted to create. I was very inspired by some of the wonderful artists on Etsy.

 Winter Dryad Snow Fairy

I make needle felted animals, fairies and angels. I love working with wool and other natural fibers. I feel like these contributions from beautiful animals adds spirit to my creation. 

 Red Fox

Many of my animals and all of my dolls are poseable. I love to use very soft fibers on my animals—especially alpaca. Some of my animals are coated in luxury fibers, like cashmere, baby camel and angora. I pay a lot of attention to detail and my animals take a long time to create. 

 Polar Bear Cub

 My dolls are also quite luxurious. I usually use merino wool in their dresses and often accent with silk on their dresses or in their hair. I love styling their hair!

 Waldorf Angel

Most of my items are better for room décor or storytelling, than for vigorous play.

I love being part of the Waldorf on Etsy team. We have real camaraderie and we are an international team. It is interesting to get to know Waldorf-inspired artists from around the world.