Textiles: Felted Rock Stones and Pebble Interior Furnishings
[Image credit: Felted Rock Stones and Pebble Mat – Ronél Jordaan]
Last week a cousin of mine was visiting London from South Africa, and I got to spend some time albeit brief showing him around London’s famous landmarks, taking pleasure in being a tourist for the day; we walked so much taking about 5 hours to cover the centre of the city in a circle. Making our way down Regent Street we passed the National Geographic Store and fascinated he wanted to go in have look around. As we crossed the threshold I noticed this large greyish rock in the window display, that I instantly recognised as one of Ronél Jordaan’s amazing felt creations.
I have been a fan of Ronél’s work since before I started the site, coming across her creations every now and then through my web wanderings. Looking so life-like, rocks and pebbles are handmade using felt, a material that belies the hard unyielding texture one associates with rock forms and one which adds to the appeal of the products. So why would you choose to have rock boulders in your home… well, I remember a few years ago when miniature pebble gardens that you could keep on your desk or coffee table were at the height of popularity as people sort to bring some sense of harmony and Zen-like calm to their interior spaces as an anecdote to increasingly hectic lifestyles and information overload, obvious factors such as the possibility of hurting yourself restricted the size of the sanctuary you could create hence the need to keep it small. Things haven’t changed much, the desire to bring the beauty and tranquillity of nature is still as great as ever and these soft felted creations allow for even greater flexibility when incorporating nature-inspired elements in the home; for example, make an interior statement with striking rock cushions that would be sure to make your visitors do a double-take when being invited to rest their backs on a rock! Even the humble beanbag gets a stylish nature-inspired makeover with beautiful coils in a graduating muted colour palette, as seen in the felt chair.
[Image credit: top, Felted Hangings; bottom, Felted Pebble Mat – Ronél Jordaan]
A textile designer for 26 years, in 2004 Ronél began experimenting and researching the capabilities of using felt as a creative medium, creating felted forms through trial and error. From a workshop in South Africa’s Gauteng province, Ronél works with and has trained local women in the community, building up a range of products that in addition to her signature rocks and pebbles span luxurious furnishings and fashion accessories such as cushions, throws, carpets and shawls.
[Image credit: Felt Chair – Ronél Jordaan]
Ronél takes care to ensure her products not only look good but also are good for overall wellbeing and uses 100% South African Merino wool that is free of harmful irritating acids commonly used in wool treating processes. The wool is dyed with natural dyes free that are certified as lead-free. Felting is a very skilled craft one that sees threads of pure wool rubbed together to build up the layers, a process that interlocks the follicles of the individual strands enabling them to become matted and dense, giving felt its distinctive texture. Looks like it could be quite soothing when immersed in the process.
…brings a touch of soothing calm into the home
Additional details:
For further information about Ronél Jordaan and where to purchase visit: www.roneljordaan.com
