Marnie’s Process

PAINTING WITH WOOL

Marnie has a passion and instinctive aptitude for felt painting, which she finds to be ‘an exciting mixture of premeditation and unpredictability’, much like her Scottish habitat.

Her ‘Painting with Wool’ process involves both wet and dry needle felting. Marnie finds both wet felting and needle felting techniques therapeutic in different ways. 

“artistic ideation, building in intensity to the point of a sort of temporary insanity, then, gratefully, the insanity slowly dissipates with the resolution of the finished piece’.  

-MARNIE COLLINS

Close-up Picture of artist Marnie Collins, combing and aligning multicoloured raw wool fibre.

WET FELTING

In wet felting, ‘the starting point is thoughtfully planned and skilfully executed, and then bravery must take over.’

The application of water intentionally tangles and shifts the fibres’ positioning. Unveiling a piece that one has spent so long to create in its new, organically altered state is always surprising. Marnie imagines it is a fibre artist’s version of skydiving/ free-falling.

At this point, reinvention and release of preconceptions occurs, and faithful adaptation begins. Marnie has developed her felting techniques by trialling combinations of traditional methods with original invention. She has a generous hand when it comes to texture and sculpture creation, yet she balances colour delicately.

Marnie describes her unique artistic journey as: ‘artistic ideation, building in intensity to the point of a sort of temporary insanity, then, gratefully, the insanity slowly dissipates with the resolution of the finished piece’.  

Close-up of colourful wool slivers and needle punching tools

DRY NEEDLE FELTING

Dry needle felting is gratifying as the needles turn into an extension of the fingers, sculpting so delicately and precisely, transforming the surface into 3D relief.

Needle felting takes experienced touch and deliberate angling to keep the fibres in place.

  • Marnie Collins- art inspiration- beach pebbles- tree bark- tree roots

    Sources of Inspiration

    01 / NATURE’S COLOURS & TEXTURES

    Marnie draws deeply from the natural world—its rhythms, flows, and unexpected contrasts. She delights in surprising patterns and colour pairings found in landscapes, shells, or stones, echoing the approach of expressionist painters such as Marc Chagall, with his vivid storytelling and dreamlike palettes.

  • A scenic Scottish landscape featuring rolling green fields, distant hills, a stone wall in the foreground, and a partly cloudy sky overhead.

    Starting Points

    02 / PHOTOGRAPHY FIRST

    Marnie is a keen photographer and uses her original photography as a starting point for many of her wool paintings. Sometimes colour matching to the natural landscape shades, other times, manipulating colours for a more expressionist palette, Marnie’s colour use is impactful and emotive.

  • Marnie Collins Felted artwork depicting a serene landscape with a mountain, green fields, and a cloudy sky, with some raw wool fibres and felt materials surrounding it.

    Layer by Layer

    03 / CREATING TEXTURE

    Marnie applies the fibres in a deliberate way, mixing colours subtly, then sculpting in textured layers.

  • Marnie Collins art featuring a colourful felted wool landscape featuring a mountain in the background, a body of water, green rolling hills, a stone wall, and a flower garden in the foreground. The sky has swirling clouds and a setting or rising sun.

    Painting with Wool

    04 / CREATIVE FLOW

    Expressing her inner-child’s sense of wonderment, playfulness and fearlessness, Marnie Collins art pieces are intended to emit joy, delight and intrigue to the viewer.

    Painting with wool creates a visual richness not possible with flatter mediums.

Fashion Accessories

ZERO WASTE FASHION

Mindful of the importance of creating zero waste, Marnie creates wearable art from her felt painting cut-offs in the form of “Fashion Accessories.”

  • Zero waste fashion accessories from artist Marnie collins, made from 100% felted wool

    Mulberry Breastplate

    3-piece jewellery set

    £250

    SHOP
  • Zero waste fashion accessories from artist Marnie collins, made from 100% felted wool

    Green Leaf Breastplate

    3-piece jewellery set

    £250

    SHOP
  • Zero waste fashion accessories from artist Marnie collins, made from 100% felted wool

    Teal and Red Necklace set

    3-piece jewellery set

    £195

    SHOP

“It’s wonderful to work in a region which is rich in textile heritage, and where access to natural and dyed wool fibres of various breeds and qualities, colours and textures is easily accessible.’

-MARNIE COLLINS

The Studio

SCOTLAND, A CAPTIVATING MUSE

‘The Scottish Borders has a rich history of artisanship and textile heritage, and I find the art and design community here incredibly supportive and inspirational’.

Marnie’s studio is based in her home in Galashiels, the Scottish Borders.  Much of the wool she uses comes from local wool processors or from nearby Yorkshire, England.

Providing an endless source of inspiration, the Scottish landscape is represented in a variety of ways by Marnie’s artwork.

The Scottish Borders landscape reflects a comforting, ancient and softened topography, whereas the majestic contours of the Highlands and Isle of Skye are far more impactful and captivating.  The luminosity in the Isle of Harris is unexpected, making the naturally coloured landscape, rock formations and water pools so vibrant.