When I first started needle felting, I came across the Bear Creek Felting website. The owner, Teresa Perleberg, has been raising sheep and needle felting since 2006, and opened Bear Creek Felting in 2008. The following came from her newsletter.
Spring doesn’t start with green grass here.
It starts with walking into the barn and noticing all the growing bellies… and realizing how close we are to lambing.
April 1st begins our new year.
About 180 ewes will lamb, and for a while I live by the rhythm of the barn instead of the clock.
It’s long nights, checking every few hours, and knowing things can change in seconds if I’m not there watching. Some moments are joyful — a lamb up and nursing right away. Some are hard. You try to keep everyone alive and healthy, and you feel every bit of it.
By the end of lambing I’m exhausted in a way that’s hard to describe… and also completely full at the same time.
That season is why I do this.
Months later, when I’m dyeing wool or packing kits, I still remember the exact sheep that fiber came from. The quiet nights, the worry, the relief, the tiny new lives wobbling onto steady legs. It’s not just wool to me — it has a beginning I was there for.
So when you sit down with a project, you’re holding the result of that whole cycle.
If you’ve been waiting to start a project, this time of year feels like the right moment — taking wool born from these long nights and giving it a new life in your hands.
