Yesterday I decided I was going to become a cobbler. I figured that’s probably a niche that hasn’t been filled in our area. I wouldn’t be just any cobbler, but one who used local leather and other materials and was all organic and crunchy. What a neat idea! Then I started doing a little bit of research about cobblering, and I quickly nixed that plan. Mostly. Maybe I can make some sandals. I could be a sandaler.

With my shoe-filled dreams mostly behind me, I thought instead I’d make a needle-felted bumble bee. I took a class in needle felting at a fiber festival about five years ago. The class project was a llama. I really think we should have started with something a bit simpler because after creating what looks like a floppy camel, I gave up on the craft until this morning. A few weeks ago I found a needle-felting book at the library, and in its wisdom, the book started with a bee. Bees, unlike llamas, have no legs or necks.

One problem. No black fiber. I did have purple, and purple is like black. Sort of. I got started with the body. I made a little purple ball and rolled it around in my hands and poked it with the needle, and I decided…this does not look like a bee. The lump did, however, sort of look like a beetle, so I went with that. I needled in wings and shaped a head and added on hot pink over the wings. For a touch of pizazz, I added some lime green spots. Now all I need are some googly eyes.