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‘I can’t imagine a life without crafting’

11 Nov 2021

  • Sudarshani Wijekoon on felt creations
Sujatha Sudarshani Wijekoon realised her dream during the pandemic; she turned her passion for felt creations into a business, and now, several months later, SS Creations is thriving and loved by adults and kids alike. We had a chat with Sudarshani to better understand the world of “felt”. She told us that every single one of her creations is handmade, where she painstakingly incorporates designs onto them. During the pandemic, she was out of work, so instead of sitting idle at home, she decided to turn something she understood she was talented at into a profitable business, which is how her brand came to life. “I initially began with paper; I sold origami pieces, but that became a challenge to deliver, ensuring that it retains its shape. So I moved onto felt products since they are not so easily destroyed,” she shared. Sudarshani is also self-taught. She told us that being self-taught has two big advantages. “It’s made me a very experimental felter and it’s given me a very good perspective of the difficulties people have when learning to felt,” she shared. That’s why she puts a huge focus into the details when she’s creating and is always happy to share tips and tricks with other aspiring brands. SS Creations specialises in custom orders, so whatever you request, Sudarshani will be able to recreate for you. She uses 100% wool felt to create her goods. “I love working with felt because of its versatility and sculptural possibilities. It’s very strong and forgiving, so I can poke and pull it about quite a lot,” she said. For her, forming an item out of felt and seeing it take shape is so exciting, and she discovers that each one she makes has a whole new personality. She does occasionally indulge in creating her own ideas. “If I’m developing ideas for new pieces, I take out materials and display them, so that I can look at them for a couple of days and decide what feels good,” she said, adding that she derives her inspiration from everything around her and then gets herself to bring these ideas to life in the form of felt. For her, making her creations out of felt is a form of self-care and relaxation. “I can’t imagine a life without crafting. It relaxes me from the routine and stress. When I’m crafting, all worries disappear.” We asked Sudarshani if she faced any challenges with procuring felt, since there are many import restrictions in place, to which she said she hasn’t been affected yet. “I order my felt online through third parties, and I haven’t had any problems with the delivery yet.” She named her biggest challenge to be managing her time, adding: “With everything going on, it’s very difficult to find time to sit down and start creating. Since everything is handmade, it takes extra long to finish just one piece.” She also has difficulty delivering her goods as recently; with all the travel restrictions, most delivery services are not operating, and even when couriering, she has received complaints from customers saying it hasn’t arrived on time or hasn’t arrived at all. Despite all this, now with the situation having eased up, business has returned back to normal, and she has a steady stream of orders. Sudarshani has plans to introduce other materials to her brand; while felt will remain her speciality, she is looking to widen her range of available products and cater to a larger market in the future. Facebook: SS Creations


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