The Wild-haired Wild Hare
Meet Wander, the wild-haired wild hare!
While his possum friend Mist throws a party for the full moon’s arrival, Wander vanishes into a quiet clearing to savor its silver glory in peaceful solitude.
This Wild-haired Wild Hare was created at a time when I feared it would be my last large needle felted sculpture due to arthritis. Fortunately, this was not the case, but I was glad I finished in time for The Tomball Art League’s 2025 fall show. Due to concerns about my hand and how slowly I had to work on this piece, I was especially thrilled when it received the Best in Show award! It was truly an honor because there were many fine works in the show. In June 2026, it was included in the Lone Star Art Guild annual show which was an in-person show for the first time in many years.
This sculpture is 17 ” high by 12 ” wide and 14 ” deep. Though Wander is in the classic moon gazing pose, its sweet face makes it look like it is tilting its head up, longing to be petted! The fur is so soft and luxurious that it is tempting to stroke it, but for the sake of the fur’s lasting beauty and wild texture, it is best to refrain. I sneak in a pet every now and then.
I don’t make videos or tutorials for my larger creatures but I’ll share diagrams, materials, and info other needle felters might find helpful in creating their own version of Wander. Dimensions are noted on the drawings, so you should be able to recreate or scale it to your needs.
Planning
The first step was to draw a sideview outline of my project. Although I was going for a fantasy hare, I wanted it to be the size of a real hare. Once the outline wa the way I wanted it, I sketched in the armature.
Next I drew a back view. It’s important to make the width in scale with the height. Again, I sketched in the armature to get a rough measurement for the main support wire.
I drew outlines for the parts that would be attached to the main body. The size of the feet and ears also gave me an estimate of how much lighter wire I’d need for those areas.
Armature
The main armature is 9 gauge aluminum wire. The feet are made with 16 gauge black millinery wire which I left exposed on the toes to make claws. The ears were made with 20 gauge black millinery wire. Links to these wires on on my toolbox page.
It was important that the front legs be strong and inflexible, so I harvested the long wires from two hard, extra-thick clothes hangers. To keep the legs thin, I attached the clothes hanger wire to the leg with super-light 26 gauge wire instead of twisting the 9 gauge aluminum wire around clothes hanger wire.
Palette
For many years, one of my hobbies has been writing middle-grade fiction, so now when I’m designing a sculpture I can’t help imagining it as a character in a story. This hare’s character, Wander, lives by a small lake in the center of an enchanted woodland along with the other creatures of my Woodland and Moonlight Collections.
Like many of my creatures, I used locks to dial up the fantasy aspect. I wanted warm earth tones for Wander, so I started my palette by choosing the perfect locks. Each curl was individually selected for just the right shade.
Supply List
There are many combinations of wool that would work for this hare, but these are the ones I chose. I love how it turned out! Links to the other supplies are listed on My Needle Felting Tool Box.
Natural Brown Bergchaf: Living Felt
Natural Brown Perendale: Weir Crafts
Moorit Brown Shetland Slyver: Weir Crafts
Locks: There was no one type of locks that suited my needs, so I selected individual locks, all from Sarafina Fiber Arts.
Natural Dark NZ Corriedale: Living Felt
FUR (Fine Unravelled Roving) in three shades, Wolf, Silver Sable, and Sasquatch: Sarafina Fiber Arts
Saffron Bergschaf: Living Felt
Bio Wool Core Fiber: Weir Crafts
9 gauge Aluminum Wire
16 gauge black cloth covered wire
26 gauge wire
Two 12″ lengths of clothes hanger wire
Light Horse Hair
Glass eyes on wire