Please reach us at dinkygems@outlook.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Core wool (wool that has been washed but is essentially wool that you would find walking in the fields caught on barbed wire), is stabbed with a large needle that has small cuts placed at the end which are called barbs. Sheep's wool has scales, like human hair and these scales help catch the fibres together. The stabbing process pushes the fibres together and forms a mesh. If you imagine candyfloss and how it sticks together when you press it in, it's pretty similar. It is less painful with candyfloss as the needles are very sharp and as you have to stab each creation many thousands of times to create a shape, watching TV at the same time can have painful consequences.
Each of my makes takes a minimum of 4 hours and the dogs often taken two days. That's a lot of stabbing Wire is used to keep the sculpture standing and also, sometimes, to enable you to reposition the legs and head etc to form different poses. After forming a basic shape, top wool is used to add colour and detail.
Yes. They are designed for display only. Do not give to small children or let animals close. Most contain wire and glass eyes. The more the wool is touched, the fuzzier it can become - think of woolly jumpers pilling. Older children who are careful could play with a felted animal or fairy, but the wool may start to matt and if they are combed or brushed, the wool is likely to come out no matter how careful you are. Please do not brush.
It is recommended that you use a soft makeup brush to keep clean from dust and if there is no choice, wash very carefully with cold water and sponge lightly, don't scrub. Leave to dry naturally, not in direct heat. Heat and wool don't mix!
The prices of items at a craft fair are lower because I do not add on the incidentals: packaging, petrol, time and post charges. Cardboard boxes and padding are surprisingly expensive and I have to allow time and transport costs to take to the post office. Where possible I will reuse boxes rather than recycle them but only if they are suitable. My prices are pretty low when compared to items sold on Etsy.
Most gemstones do not need specific care. I find using a silver cleaning cloth works well on the sterling silver and the plain polishing part cleans the gemstones well. Soap, water and a toothbrush clean most items. DO NOT GET OPAL WET. It is a porous stone and can destroy the crystalline structure. Pearls should be the last item you put on (after the makeup and perfume) as oils and perfume damage the nacre, the shiny outside of the pearl. Please avoid wearing pearls in chlorinated swimming pools. Ironically I've found if your opal has lost some of it's shine, wiping a damp cloth over can help.