About Clare Ballard

Personal History

I  was born and grew up in Essex, England. After marrying and having 3 children, I moved to Shropshire  in 1986 where I lived with my family for about 20 years. Now that the children are all grown up and having children of their own,  my husband and I made the decision to move to the West of Ireland. 

In 1993 I qualified as a Teacher,  gaining a bachelor of Education Honours Degree in Art and Design.  I studied ceramics, Photography, Print-making and my main areas of interest: Textiles and Design Technology.

I have always loved to work with textiles and have knitted since the age of 6!  Now needle felt sculpting, wet felting and weaving are my passion. My sculpted creatures and characters are unique and have a humour  all of their own. My wet felted bowls, bags and book covers are all my own designs and each one is individual. I love to weave using a peg loom, Brinkley loom or just weaving sticks that are held in the hand. Making your own fabrics by weaving or felting couldn't be more creative. Every piece turns out differently.

Materials and Techniques 

I use  washed, carded, dyed  fleece to make my felted items. Sometimes the fleece is hand dyed to create  different effects.