George Weil Blog & FAQs

Welcome to the George Weil Blog FAQs which includes information about the art and craft products sold on this website. There are project ideas, photographs of items created by our customers, product reviews, and step-by-step instructions. See also our USEFUL LINKS page which includes a listing of websites offering information about the products sold on our website, training resources and Guilds.

If there is anything you would like to see included here or if you would like to contribute an item, please email graphics@georgeweil.com

Polymer clay Christmas Tree Ornaments

Polymer Clay Tree Ornaments

The malleable polymer clay can be shaped or moulded using a number of methods. A simple way to create consistent shapes is to use a cutter and rolling strips (or CD cases as in the example below). The polymer clay...
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wool-fleece

Iron Age Tools at The British Museum

Evidence that wool has been used for clothing exists at The British Museum as far back as the Iron Age (800 BC – AD 50). There are a selection of combs carved from animal bone probably used to prepare the...
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Extruded Polymer clay

Using an Extruder with Polymer Clay

The ability to create long lengths of uniform shapes from polymer clay helps with the cane making process. A simple chequered cane can be accomplished from the square shaped disc. Using 2 in black and 2 in white, the square...
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wool-yarn

Prepared for Dyeing?

When buying fabric you may occasionally come across the term Prepared for Dyeing or PFD. This means that no starches, sizing or finishes have been used on the fabric. These treatments, including optical whiteners, will interfere with the absorption and...
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Mixed Colour Pack of Cubic Zirconia Gem stones

Cubic Zirconia

Cubic Zirconia (CZ) is the cubic crystalline form of zirconium dioxide, an inorganic metal oxide mainly used in ceramic materials. Diamond vs CZ The CZ gemstone has more light dispersion (fire) and is heavier than a diamond. Although a real...
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silk-painted-butterfly

Butterfly Painted on Silk

We thought you may like to see how the gutta outliner butterfly turned out. The clear outliner, which acts as a barrier, was applied by following the lines traced with the autofade pen (now the Hemline Vanishing Fabric Marker). The...
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autofade-pen-washout

Prepare Design for Silk Painting

You don’t need to be good at drawing to paint designs onto silk fabric. Here we show a neat trick for utilising designs found around the house including printed fabrics, wrapping paper, wall paper and even from colouring books! Look...
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Use the autofade pen to trace images onto silk

The Fabulous Autofade Pen

This post is for those of you who haven’t yet discovered the magical autofade pen. It is a fibre tipped pen which can be used to trace or sketch out designs on fabric and paper. The violet coloured ink magically...
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Reed 30 dents per 10cm, 10cm high

Measuring up for a New Reed

When ordering a new reed, check the overall length of the reed you are replacing. This includes the end caps which add about 2.5-4cm to the total length. The reed height is normally defined by the size of the opening...
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Wax melting pot for Batik

The Tixor Malam Wax Melting Pot

Planning to do a lot of Batik or Encaustic Art? A thermostatically controlled wax melting pot is an essential addition to your tool kit. This wax melting pot is mains operated through a British 3 pin plug. Temperature Control The melting...
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Natural Dyes

Book Spotlight: Natural Dyes

Natural Dyes by Dominique Cardon is the definitive book on the subject of natural dyes and their use. The hardback book includes 778 pages with 560 illustrations, covering the world wide sources and dyeing traditions, along with details of dyeing...
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Dyeing wool with acid dyes

Space Dyeing in the Microwave with Acid Dyes

Here we include a recipe for space dyeing yarns, fibres or fabrics. This technique is also known as low water immersion dyeing. The randomness of this microwave method is so satisfying – there’s no need to fret about precise colour...
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Felt by Sarah Brooker

Felt Artist, Sarah Brooker

Sarah Brooker‘s skilfully crafted and vibrantly coloured felt artwork has been created using Fibrecrafts dyed Merino wool tops. One of Sarah’s early works was used on the 1996 Fibrecrafts catalogue cover. The original was bought by Ian Bowers (our Managing...
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Jacquard Procion MX Dyes, 18g

Jacquard Procion MX dyes

The Jacquard Procion MX dyes have been formulated for use on cellulose fabrics such as cotton and linen, although they also produce reasonable colours on silk and wool. These fibre reactive dyes become locked into the fabric when combined with...
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Merino Wool Tops for feltmaking

Merino Wool Tops for Felt Making

Felt making is most effective using wool fibres. The best to use is wool that has been cleaned and combed. The treated wool is known as wool tops, or wool roving. Fibre with a Bradford count of 60 or higher...
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papermaking-kit

Hand Papermaking

You can make paper out of a number of materials using either a prepared pulp, cotton linters or from recycled papers. You can also make paper from plant fibres which need first to be soaked in water for up to...
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Funky Groovy Tie Dye Kit

The Jacquard Tie Dye Kit

The Jacquard Tie Dye Kit has been designed for children, and is especially fun while enjoying the Summer weather (this activity is guaranteed to pry them away from the Xbox!). Children over 8 (and adults too) will enjoy making their...
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deckle-edge-cover

Book Spotlight: Off the Deckle Edge

Neeta Premchand was born in India but spent her adult years living in London and Germany. Her papermaking began as a hobby but developed into a passion which she writes about in her book ‘Off the Deckle Edge‘. This, her...
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Applying wax with tjanting

What is Batik?

Batik is a method of patterning fabric or paper using melted wax. This creates a barrier, or resist, to prevent dye from colouring the waxed areas. Wax Melting Pot The safest and easiest way to melt the wax is with...
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A wide drumcarder for blending wool

Ashford Wide Drum Carder

The Ashford Wide Drum Carder has arrived in stock, and is a great investment for production spinning and blending fibres for felt making. Specification The drum carder has an extra wide 29cm drum which can produce batts of up to...
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