Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Thank you both!

Sarah: I keep my prototypes so he'll be with me forever hopefully! I'm going to start on my first one to sell shortly

Thanks Katy, I'm so glad you don't think he's too much of a departure from my usual creatures There will be more, never fear!

Hi everyone!

I got my creative juices flowing again, hurrah! After churning out Sloths for Hugglets last year I felt like I'd never look at another chunk of mohair ever again... then I started to design Jack

I love making sloths, but they don't give many possibilities when it comes to poses beyond 'sitting' 'sleeping' and 'hanging out' (chillaxing ). I wanted to make some other animals before I turned into 'that girl that only makes sloths' and I'm really hoping that you can see from this guy that I've been sewing animals for nearly four years now (my four year anniversary is in March!). I think that making a werid creature carried me pretty far, but I wanted a challenge and so I decided to go for an animal that is already very popular, one with lots of competition, to challenge me to make something different but still... Lugly, I guess?

Enough about me, let's talk about Jack! He's about 19" head to toe, his ears push this up to about 24" so he's a big guy for me! He has armature in all four limbs and his ears, and magnetic paws so he will be able to hold props. he can stand unaided, although you can't just plonk him down I'm afraid: I have his legs in a bent toe position so he's standing on tip toes. I am (eventually!) going to sew a military jacket or waistcoat for him, and a company in America is making me some custom pewter medals for these hares I really hope to work on lots of costumed hares in the future, but for now here's Jack, naked in the woods!

Face 1 by Gantaeno, on Flickr

Side 2 by Gantaeno, on Flickr

LOVE the bunnies!

ADORABLE! Seriously so cute

Sorry I'm missing out again: good luck everyone!

Just read it: it's a great article! I could do with some of those cookie cutters XD

Wow, fantastic!

Thank you! I'm hoping he can edge over his reserve before his auction ends  :pray: 

He's really, cute, I love his muzzle!

Thank you I love making happy creatures...

Thanks a lot I learnt to crochet in the last year and the scarf is my first big project to go well I am starting to knit now too but it is harder as I am left handed and get confused a lot...

Thank you both Glad you like him: I love pink and grey together

Wow, that's a great bear! Better than the ones I make!

Hi everyone,

After enjoying him at home since I left America, I've decided to part with Blush as it's a good season for him and I've not been that active in creating new faces lately! I hope you'll visit him here http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? … 0526333956 later today, when his auction starts, to read more about him :)

Thanks a lot,

Chloe.

Pinky by Gantaeno, on Flickr

Another person here to say what a great day it was! I too have lots of photos (mainly of the competition) which I will attempt to upload. It was my first time at the British Bear Fair so I didn't know what to expect but it was a really nice venue filled with lovely bears, couldn't be better.

Great to meet you all!

I had an order lost for over two weeks once, so maybe he's just delayed because of the snow.... fingers crossed!

The Intercal dyes only dye the natural fur, so I guess if you could find the right colour backing that might do it?

Hi all,

I've got a bear I made out of thick white mohair, but I want to try something different... can I change him without deconstructing him? I'd be happy with just a tip dye but I can't airbrush...

Also, is there any way to reliably remove dye from an already dyed piece of mohair? I used a dye from Intercal that only sticks to natural fibres...

Thank you!

To me the difference is the same as that between a cartoon cat like Tom or Sylvester or whoever, and the real thing: as bear artists we have the freedom to exaggerate and create character that most taxidermists do not use. Now of course there are many bear artists who make more realistic designs, but their skill lies in replicating nature, not fabricating it. For me it's like drawing: I can draw pretty well and can copy a photograph with a lot of precision, but I cannot draw from my imagination to save my life: in the 'bear world' this means I am a drawing 'taxidermist', I replicate nature but do not add any twists because I don't know how.(I see I am paraphrasing 'Us Bears' here!)

As an aside I'm wondering how people feel about teddy bears made out of real fur? Just becuase a lot of the posts are centred on 'taxidermy is real animal skin, teddy bear is mohair' theory, but there are a lot of bear artists that use real fur too...

I think a lot of modern taxidermy in the UK uses roadkill and farm waste (I'm referencing a BBC film from about... two years ago so I could be wrong! In it there was a bird taxidermist who used a lot of road kill birds that he seemed to have freeze dried in storage There was also someone who reconstructed an extinct Irish Elk using farmed Elk skins) and in those cases I don't think the fur use can be taken as a morally wrong choice: especially as those much loved vintage coats used to make lovely teddies are probably made from animals that suffered far more!

For me there is a lot of art in taxidermy: I wouldn't want to own any but I can see a lot of skill in it. It's like the reborn dolls: too close to dead life for me! Having said that I am a vegetarian and I own a South African Impala skin: his name is Arnold I bought him whilst volunteering on a range in South Africa a few years ago, he was one of a few Impala bucks who weren't sold at auction but were surplus to the ranges maximum population and had to be culled. The meat eaters volunteering with me much enjoyed eating stew made from him, and I much enjoy having him around as a beautiful reminder of my trip...the way I see it if the animal is going to be killed for human consumption then the rest of the animal should be used too! As a result I think our judgement of taxidermy in comparison with bear artistry is difficult to judge based on animal welfare alone.

After all... how many of us know how the goats that make our lovely mohair are treated? I am definitely guilty of not researching that at all...

(sorry about the massive reply: it's a topic that confuses me at best and has to be over explained so my point makes sense!  )

Genius! I love the back rub, and the window cleaning, although I think his nose was making more marks than his paws were cleaning off!  :crackup:

LOLZ!! Nearly just did, but then I worked it out, I'm such a twit XD Underneath the section where it asks about you being in a particular fair it sais 'enter number 712 ___' and I assumed it meant that your number in the show was 712 xxx, not that you had to type those numbers to submit the form!  :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:

I am such a blonde.... lol!

Hi Everyone,

Slightly out of context, but I'm trying to sign up right now and it keeps telling me "Invalid Code. Please Re-enter ". Anyone else had this problem?

Thank you Jenny

Lordy Jane, that's clearly not my best angle XD Thanks for all the photos though, I feel like I actually managed to get 'round now!