Fascinating Feel for Felt - Page 2

Santiman's concept of building miniature felt houses began more than two years ago, she recalls. "Here we were, my wife and I, in the part of the pandemic where we're all stuck and can't go anywhere."

Having made mid-century Christmas villages from the kinds of kits you find on Etsy, Santiman thought about the houses being made of paper, and realized they wouldn't last.

So, she decided to try her hand at making the houses out of felt, experimenting by making them larger, more elaborate, and exploring different shapes.

"I found it so meditative and calming, especially during a scary time like the pandemic," she says, adding that she made at least 80 percent of the felt houses during Zoom meetings while working for a nonprofit.

To create the houses, Santiman uses sheets of colored felt and embroidery thread, and fills the inside with Poly-Fil, the kind used in stuffed animals. Breeze block walls are fashioned from crochet lace.

"I'm like a kid in a candy shop when I go out to buy the felt," she says, explaining that there's a malleability about felt material that makes it workable. Flat sheets lend themselves to architecture and walls, softer sheets for curves. Stiffer felt is used for walls. No wires are needed to shape or hold walls up.

A licensed marriage and family therapist based in Beverly Hills, Santiman is also a classically trained opera singer who has worked in the Los Angeles area since 2006. As for her role in building felt villages, Santiman says, it's all been on "a hobby level."

"I love to sew," she adds, "and it's been this history of making whimsical craft-meets-art. Otherwise, I'm more into the performing arts. I co-write, produce, and perform in gay cabaret shows, where I'm being silly and funny, and whatever."

With contagious enthusiasm, Santiman points out, "I'm excited about me and Deb getting to do this show. It was meant for us to come together, in an expression and a collaborative-ness that feels really good."

The 'Modville' show marks the first time Santiman has shown in a gallery. "The space is big and beautiful—we hit the jackpot there," she says. "Now we're spoiled. Where will we go next? Everybody's saying we have to take the show on the road."

'Modville' continues at The Bag art gallery by appointment through July 22. For more info, visit Linda Santiman's Instagram page.