Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Finally got those eyes. Sheesh! they really stare at you!
I should have them all packaged and ready by the end of this week.

These don't really have a shaft like safety eyes, more like a button shank on the back.

What I would give for my own studio! You are soooo lucky!
I like all sorts of lights. My 'fabric room' has flourouescent (both cool white & warm white) and incancescent fixtures. It's amazing how colors change with the lighting. Sometimes, I walk around with swatches to each different lighting source to see if they still match. No one kind gives perfect light, so I mix them all in the same room.

Made my first one in 1998. Horrible little thing as were most that followed it that first year. I've always loved sewing, fabrics, crocheting, crafts, etc.
I'd get bored after a while and turn to something else. Bears are an endless challange for me and keeps me interested. Between designing new patterns and the great fun I have dyeing new colors/fabrics, I will be enjoying this for a LOOOOOOONG time!

Hi Ladies! Took a week off to go visit family for the holidays and was thoroughly overwhelmed when I got back!
Dilu, he is wonderful. All goof & giggles!! I like him!
I've used the invisible thread. It works great if you can tolerate it getting all squirrelly on you. I prefer the nylon lingerie thread. It's super thin. I just use the black on all the Smokey stuff since it has the black back (no matter what color the fur is). But, the invisible stuff is best for closing up those seams.

Kim, what do I owe you for being my advertising agent?

Of course I kept my very first bear! Awful little thing, but she's part of me and I could never give her up! I also have several 'oops' bears. You know the ones where you try a new technique or pattern design and it went all wrong!
I also have a couple others that I just couldn't give up. I started working up the lising for ebay and it literally hurt to to think of them leaving. Scratched the listing and they are still here on my desk.
Here is one of them. Wendell is just under 6" and at the time I made him, the biggest bear I had done. The long curly fur was a real pain to work with and his legs aren't tight enough so are a little wobbly. He's my baby all the same.

This is great!! 
Must be getting ready to wash his fur!!!!!!    

Deb,
Oh heck, I don't see it here in my 'sent' messages either!

Deb,
Yep! I emailed the info to you. Check your messages here on TT! 

I don't get ANY magazines! Like I said, I've been working in the closet all these years!
I'd be happy to split the cost with someone.

Well, now I know what I'm doing wrong! On minis, there's not much to pick. I use a toothbrush too (or a bunka brush) and just scrub the heck out of it. If anyone knows where I can get an 'extra-firm' toothbrush, please let me know! Seems all the stores only carry soft and medium.
But on the bigger bears, I've been trimming the fur off the seam allowance. I did get a couple spots where it showed if I didn't sew RIGHT on that line! I never thought to pick the fur from the inside first!!!!!
I think I'll just trim off less and then pick from the inside then outside.
THANKS LADIES!!!

pickalittletalkalittle hmm hmm hmmmmm. . . . . . . .

great! now I'll have THAT stuck in my mind all day!!!!!

I use leather tags. I had a leather stamp made and got some leather punches. Now I can just stamp out dozens of them at a time. I wanted something different than the usual fabric or plastic tags.
Of course since I do minis, tush tags don't work very well. I just hang these around the neck. On bigger bears I can sew them on where ever I want.

Thanks Kim! It's my favorite too. When I got the first swatch/sample, I fell in love with it and saw the great potential. I'm horrible at shading the faces and this does it for me by only trimming the fur. Believe it or not, when I first got it, no one liked it. It took a while to catch on. Everyone kept asking 'why is the backing black?'. I kept saying, 'once you use it, you'll love it too!' It has such a nice depth to it.
Keep at it, you make beautiful bears!!

Sebastian is PRECIOUS!! Excellent work, beautiful design, and of course I love the fabric!!   

Oh, you just HAVE to wait!! If you open it (and it IS your bear) then you will love him and put him on a shelf and it will be over. This is too much fun to pass up! Don't miss it, there are too few things in life that really bring out the child in us!!

Gonna drop my 2 cents in the jar. . . . . .
I've made minis for a long time and am just now starting to make bigger bears. I find that if you are just going up or down a couple inches, then it doesn't really matter if you include the seam allowance or not. Not much difference there. But to go several inches, the proportion gets way out of whack. Even when I don't include the seam allowance, it comes out odd. Big bears have different porportions than tiny ones do.
I had to go back to the drawing board for my big patterns.
Also, some copiers don't maintain the exact proportions (width to length), so you can get fatter or taller bears even if you are just changing it a few inches.
I've always wanted to try scanning one into my computer and try 'stretching' it in different directions with my Paint program. Might give some interesting outcomes!

And anyone willing to do a 15 piece head. . . . . . .has my eternal respect!!! 

Finally got him all done. Draco stands 3.5" tall.
He has wired arms and tiny little claws. He can't fly yet since his 'baby' wings are way too small.

Can't tell you what a pain he has been, but all worth it. He's a sweetie! Gotta keep him!!!!!!

Just got 'Lil Draco finished!

Shantell,
Mini bears need a more exagerated shape going on. And the pieces are so small that even the tinyest seam allowance can change the whole shape of a part. I'm sure you know all that.
But when I blew it up, the arms and legs were way too fat. Especially since the fur on bigger bears makes them look even bigger. I had to slim down the arms and legs and shrink the head a bit in proportion to the body. Also, the face was out of proportion, had to slim down the muzzle a bit too.

Great idea Marion!  :dance:
I pinned some wings on him and they just didn't look right. It wasn't the shape of the wings, just the wings in general. 'Buds' will look really good.
Looks like we'll be spending some 'quality time' together tonight!  
By the way, I collect dragons. Got some really beautiul ones. Only 1 baby though, he's just cracking out of his egg.

Yes, I see claws on him, just haven't quite figured out how to put them on. Was going to use ultrasuede like his spikes. Will have to see. He's still 'in the works'.
This one is a prototype so probably won't be sold.
I'm sending him to the corner for a while to think about what a pain he has been!

This is Jasmine, she stands 10" tall. I've been making minis forever, so she seemed ENOURMOUS when I was sewing her up!
Actually, she is the 2nd large bear I've done. The first was a mess. I found out the hard way that you can't just enlarge a mini pattern really big. The proportions were all way off.
I used some quality synthetic and hand-painted her eyes. I sure got a lesson in trimming the face! 
I need more practice. Usually not much to trim on minis.
I used a plastic safety nose and covered it with black Ultrasuede. I must say it was a lot easier than stitching the nose. I do the nose last and am always terrified I will ruin the whole bear!!! 

I don't think his legs are REALLY BAD, they're just not what I see in my head. The thigh needs to be a little thicker and they are a little long. Plus, he has 'fingers' so I want him to have toes too. I woke up in the middle of the night (last night) with a visual pic of how to make the legs/feet. Good thing I still remember it since I didn't come downstairs to draw it!
   
Anne, I'd love to see your dragon. I think we ALL have some of that green long pile!!

Shelly,
It's some textured medium pile cashmere. It does have a 'scaley' look, that's why I used it. This one is 'Tufted Rust'.

Still working on my baby dragon. This guy is fighting me every step of the way!! 
Here is the first prototype, he stands about 3.5" tall. He still needs wings but I wanted to get the rest of him worked out first. His legs are too long, so I'll have to re-do them.

What a little cutie! Looks like she has some attitude! All sweet and cuteness, just don't get her mad!!
:clap: