A necklace and earrings set on display in a mannequin.

A wooden wall with various animal silhouettes on it.

Eye of the Needle

Fernie Forge, a local blacksmithing business in Hosmer expanded to a second location in Fernie in 2014. Eye of the Needle sells metalwork made by Fernie Forge and others, fibre art, knitting supplies and glass.

One day private felting classes are available. Contact Sandra Barrett for details.

Felting commissions are accepted and encouraged as original fibre art continues to become cherished gifts for special occasions.

The iconic “Explore Fernie” app includes Eye of the Needle as an historic building - the former Salvation Army Church and draws visitors downtown and inside the studio and gallery. The building is a designated RCMP safe place for the 2SLGBTQ+ community.

Having a working studio offers visitors insight to current work in progress and creates a learning experience of different Canadian sheep breeds and exotic fibres from around the world. Showcasing local artisans’ work in the gallery provides access to hand made, one of a kind functional art such as copper boxes, metal hooks, felted garments and forged gardening tools. Foreign tourists appreciate quality Canadian made hand blown glass and pewter as well as jewellery, candles and honey made in Fernie.

Niche products, such as wool pellets, made in the East Kootenays as a slug repellent and natural garden fertilizer has made an impact on gardeners visiting Eye of the Needle. As a new innovation for raw fleece it has definitely created interest and sales.

Knitters now have an option to buy yarn made from !00% milk, peppermint or nettles as an alternative to traditional wool and visitors from Lethbridge, Calgary and Edmonton return regularly to this destination to see what’s new, including embroidery threads made of wool and silk.

Product development includes investment in new equipment to enable felt to be printed, expanding the range of custom felted products available as botanically printed special occasion keepsakes. Felting and crochet kits cater to beginners.

Extended hours including opening on Sundays gives pipeline workers an opportunity to shop locally and encourages a different sector of the community to Fernie. Flexibility to open at other times by arrangement has also proven popular.

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Fernie Forge herd of alpacas

The first two pedigree male Huacaya alpacas were purchased in 2005 from Grasmere, about half an hour from Fernie and alpacas have lived on the acreage in Hosmer ever since. Over the years more male alpacas were added until there were five. Females mixed with males give birth every year, so it was decided to limit the Fernie Forge herd to males only.

Alpacas are sheared once a year and their fibre is skirted, sorted, washed, carded, spun into yarn or felted by hand. Their natural coloured carded fibre is sold at Eye of the Needle as a locally grown product known for its fineness, warmth and lustre. Finished fibre art in the form of landscapes, garments or wall hangings is sold at the gallery, mostly as commissioned work felted by Sandra Barrett.

Each of the alpacas was given a name beginning with B for Barrett - The B team. Bill, Ben, Bob, Basil, Barney and Bart gave pleasure to many visitors coming to visit Fernie Forge. Bart, a beautiful black alpaca kindly donated by a neighbour lived for only two shearings before dying from congenital heart failure. He was the last alpaca brought into the herd after Bob and Barney died.

In 2024 the herd is back to two alpacas, as Bill the leader and eldest died at the ripe old age of 18 last year. Brown Ben is now the leader, followed by Basil, mostly grey with brown spots and a white neck. They are browsers rather than grazers, thriving on a low protein, high fibre diet of grass and hay. In the winter their diet is supplemented with alpaca pellets and a mineral lick for an appropriate balance of vitamins and minerals. They come running at the sound of pellets being rattled in a metal dish but like many alpacas, don’t enjoy actually being touched. You can see them from the highway in Hosmer, between Sparwood and Fernie.

A close up of two alpacas with one looking at the camera

Two horses grazing in a field with trees

A newspaper article about sandra barrett and her alpaca.

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Virtual Tour

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Local Fibre, Global Craft

Our second location 260 5th Street, Fernie, is open to all and features an extensive array of artworks from talented artisans across Canada and around the globe. Our gallery is filled with the creative essence of blacksmith Sandra Barrett, who ingeniously incorporates glass and felt into her sculptural steel works. Eye of the Needle Studio proudly collaborates with artisans like Robin Wiltse, a fibre artist from Kaslo, showcasing a unique synergy between metalwork, glass, felt, and fibre art. The former Salvation Army church's ambience adds an extra layer of charm to this fusion of creative expressions at our crafts and fibre art studio.

Our creative collaborations

Our story has been featured in ARTiculate magazine, highlighting our efforts to support regional arts and crafts in a refreshing way. We pride ourselves on showcasing unusual artwork in a 1908 heritage yellow brick building, contributing to the arts and heritage scene.