George Weil Blog & FAQs

The Sloshy Lokta paper used for this paper bag is handmade in Nepal. It is a light-weight natural lokta based paper that has different coloured pulps ‘sloshed’ over its surface, leaving a trail of intermingled colours. The potential for stitch, book covers and card craft is unlimited. These lovely little bags are so easy to make! We found this

There are a huge range of artists rubbers and erasers available on the market today. Each eraser has unique qualities to suit different situations and art styles. Here is a short overview of some of the types of eraser and brands we stock here at George Weil. Natural Rubber Erasers The Daler Rowney Mystic Eraser is made from India rubber, harvested

with Sue Heaser This pretty jewellery is made using slices from the Millefiori flower cane and slices from the Leaf cane. Materials and Tools You will need a flower cane reduced to about 13mm diameter, a leaf cane reduced to about 13mm diameter, a slicer blade, a darning needle or needle tool, silver wire - 20 gauge (0.8mm), 10 jump rings, a toggle

with Sue Heaser A simple leaf polymer clay cane will set off your millefiori flowers to perfection. This delightful bracelet was made by threading wire through millefiori flower slices and linking them with wire that has been threaded through leaf shaped cane slices. To make a soft leaf green from bright green clay, simply add a little brown or bla

with Sue Heaser Flower canes are easy to create from polymer clay and make beautiful jewellery. You will need the following materials and tools: Polymer clay: ¼ block each of white, violet and black. Small quantity of golden yellow Roller or pasta machine Slicer blade Step 1 Make a blend using the white and violet clay. Roll the blend thinner int

Silk dyes will produce more vibrant colour results than iron fix silk paints. The dyes penetrate the fibres and are locked within the fabric through the steaming process, ensuring greater wash and light fastness. The results of this process far outweigh any inconvenience as the silk remains supple while silk paints tend to leave a residue on the su

Formosul or Formasol is the active component of Discharge Paste. Discharge Paste is used for removing areas of colour from dyed natural fabrics such as cotton, silk and viscose. Please note that some Procion MX fibre reactive dyes do not discharge and some give a simple colour change. It is therefore wise to test fabrics before starting a project o

A mordant is required if the colour from natural dyes is to remain wash fast. Materials can be pre-soaked in a mordant and left damp prior to dyeing. The mordants can also be added to the dye bath while the dye is being simmered. Mordanting materials before and after dyeing with natural dyes will add extra fastness. Dyeing without Chemicals The qua

Imagination is all you need, along with findings from around the home plus many of the materials from this web site. Newspaper and wall paper paste make excellent papier mâché as does paper pulp combined with CMC (Methyl Cellulose) paste or Silk Paper Medium. This Newclay Dragon was made by 11 year old Liam Farlow Newclay is a nylon reinforced mo

These lovely Christmas Crackers were made using papers available from this web site. The cracker on top and the one in the foreground are made from Metallic Papers which are available from most stationers, while the cracker behind was made with Banana tissue paper which is highlighted by bold husks of banana fibre. Alternatively, the Marble with Go

A stunning gift wrap idea that you just wouldn't want to tear apart! Top Present Wrap parcel with Metallic Paper Take another piece and fold it to half the width of the package, place over first layer and secure Take a strip of Silk Gauze Paper crinkle it lengthways and place over second layer Pinch ends, secure and fan out. Cut-out a Christmas Tre

You can paint bags, canvas shoes , t-shirts and more using fabric paints and the following technique. If you're fed up with High Street fashions and can't find the colours or styles you want, this is a fun way of customising items to create a unique and personal look. If you would like to paint your own bag, this canvas shopper can be ordered from

There are a number of 'bags for life' being offered at super markets, but if you want to create a unique and personal design, our canvas bag can be painted with fabric paints. How to Paint your own The design was sketched out on a piece of paper before being copied onto the bag with an autofade pen. The ink from an autofade pen will fade automatica

We're always surprised at just how versatile polymer clay really is. Victoria Sommers very kindly sent us some photographs which illustrate this well. Glass and translucent polymer clay These decorative pots have evolved from glass jars and glasses that have been covered in a clever layer of blended polymer clay. Victoria has used a translucent pol

This colourful, tactile scarf has been crafted by Susan Litton. She first spun a small amount of each of the Fibrecrafts silk fibres and then microwave dyed the yarn samples with Acid dye. She knitted the yarn into a long, narrow scarf. Then attached tassels across both ends and at intervals along each side for about 30cm. The photographs do not do

Roz Plant (pictured right) emailed us these examples of her quirky batik work. Herself and husband Phil, who is a painter and potter, opened their workshop to the public in May 2008 and more of their work can be viewed online Roz has been a batik artist for over 26 years has been ordering from Fibrecrafts since she started. In her email she told us

This balanced double weave scarf (pictured right) set at 20 epi uses a design from Handwoven magazine. It includes a Celtic Knot in the design with a final size of 25cm x 150cm (10" x 60"). The back face is light grey and the image is brought through the weave structure. The yarn is Jagger spun 2/18 wool/silk, giving 10,000m/kg (5,000yd/lb). The sc

Pat Hodge bought her spinning wheel from Fibrecrafts in September 2002 and set about learning to spin under expert tuition from Phyllis Funnell. Here she proudly shows off her hand-knitted sweater made from the yarn she has spun from Jacob and Shetland fibres. Well done Pat!

Phyllis Funnell sports her Moebius scarf knitted from a pattern in the 'Treasury of Magical Knitting'. She hand spun the super soft yarn from grey Alpaca. In hindsight, we should have taken more photos of this lovely lace knitted scarf but we are delighted to have a photo of the modest Phyllis at last! Both the Alpaca fibre and book are available f

Maisie Parker sells her hand painted glass from a small craft shop in Baltimore in South West Cork in Ireland. The stunning effect is created by first drawing a design with outliner. The outliner is allowed to dry before filling in the spaces with the chosen glass paint. The glass paints give a transparent colour which can be intensified by paint