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I tried posting this before, but I'm not sure if it worked or not...
I have 2 pieces of nose wax that are tinted, 1 brown, and 1 black.
What are the best techniques for
(A) applying a little wax and
(b) applying alot of wax, so that you can barely see the nose thread and get a good shine/polish to it?
Many thanks!
Brenda of Woo Bears!
I double-checked, and sure enough, even my 1mm eyes on wire are brown glass with teeny tiny black pupils! I know I will never make a mini bear small enough for eyes under 3mm 
And I won't make a bear that needs 23mm glass eyes, either. I will make a list and photograph what I've got for tradeseez and put it up here.
If you can do the same, I can make a summary for everyone, if you like to make it easy to choose.
Do you remember the XXX or ??? mystery packages when you were little at fetes, parties or fairs? Could be so exciting for a bear exchange! If we said "primitive little bear up to 5" or something to have an idea of what to make or receive. Just here and there... to keep a swap bear (or bunny or...) small will keep the exchange personal and fun and perhaps economical in these difficult times! We could state our basic likes and dislikes (i.e., any colour but purple, etc.) and maybe someone's kitten or puppy could choose who makes something for whom!
Cheers and bests
back to sewing
Brenda
woo bears!
Me, too! I have some 1mm-3mm glass eyes (with pupils, if you can believe it!) and also so huge glass eyes (18-20mm) that I probably won't ever use... if anyone would like to trade for them that would be great.
Such a good idea!
What about a bear swap?
A quick note to say thanks so much for the really accurate and practical help! :)
This pair of eyes were handpainted, and had pre-made wire loops on them. Frustratingly, although they were well anchored, the wire itself was sooooo skinny, I really didn't think I could make this work.
I twisted the longer part around like a curly piglet's tail (thank you for that!) and then ALSO applied some plain clear Elmer's glue, which is a bit flexible, but kept the curls together so that the pressure of my pulling was distributed across 3 curls across....
Worked perfectly! :)
I'm so glad to learn that one can improvise like this and still get great results!
Many, many thanks, all
Brenda
was teddyretirementhome now woo bears
I love him!
We have a little terrier who waves his paws in that "Aw, go on..." sort of way that your panda baby is doing in the first pic - always makes me smile - adorable!
Brenda
was teddyretirementhome now woo bears
This fellow 'Hermes' (8") is made from a short, sparse mohair that I really wasn't too sure about because the fabric backing was so loose.
Well, it was much easier to work with than I expected, I love it now, and here he is! :)
The cream alpaca boy was posted earlier - its so dense, its VERY hard to find the stitches!
Cheers
Brenda
was teddyretirementhome now woo bears
Hi everyone!
Well, here he is, one of my latest bears, 'Big Blue'.
He is 17", 5 way jointed, made from one of my fave mohairs, an almost denim blue swirly kid - a pleasure to work with! His glass eyes look brighter than they are, normally, because of the flash.
I guess he's bear #? or so for me now - I think they're getting better, but I'd love your critiques!
Cheers and bests
Brenda
was teddyretirementhome, now woo bears
I just love her toes and bare bear feet - she really seems to be havin fun
She's so funny - here in Toronto, one of the polar bears at the zoo likes to put a bucket on his head for the folks....
A very cute bear who was doing her yoga exercises for the people at the zoo...
Hi there
the wire is embedded well in the glass on both ends. The break is at 1-2 o'clock, if you know what I mean! Am on the road, so can't send a pic. The wire is a bit brittle, but perhaps I can curl it round a small awl. I used to work in silver, and my first thought was: anneal it (heat it with a torch) but of course I can't do that with glass! Aaagh!
Thanks so much for your suggestions, I'll definitely try them out when I am home again!
You are the greatest!
Brenda
teddyretirementhome
now woo bears
Hi everyone!
Do you mind if I ask a really dumb question? (please oh please!)
I have the perfect eyes for a bear. They have a thin wire loop embedded at both ends into the back of the glass eye. But the wire loop broke in one place. They were hard to find and will take me months to replace.
Is there a way, no matter how fiddly, to fix the wire? A liquid sodder? Superglue? :)
Cheers and thanks
Brenda
teddyretirementhome
woo bears!
A friend is driving down to Chantilly, VA for the Bear Show in mid-September and was wondering if there are any great teddy bear stores for collectors along the way (219)....? Starting in northwestern New York state, south through Pennsylvania, briefly through Maryland and possibly Wet Virginia as well as northern Virginia? And a quick swing through DC...
Would love to know of any bear stores that are open along the way!
Seems some of the online directories, so kindly put up, are out of date.
Thank you in advance!
Brenda
woo bears!
I love your kitty!
My first alpaca bear. It was very different than working with the usual mohair that I use!
Cheers
Brenda
woo bears!
Can't resist! First is a Peregrine Falcon chick, 2nd is a Norwich terrier puppy who looks exactly like our little red Norwich Alfie when he was a wee pup.
Enjoy.
Brenda
woo bears!
Teddy Tots, like Tater Tots, love it!
When I first saw them, I thought of Teddy Eggs... :)
You could also make little jolly jumpers for them so someone could wear them on a lace around their neck! (or some sort of little buttoned case with their faces showing, so people can buy more than one and keep them together!)
Brenda
woo bears!
Adorable!!!
Hello!
I have a question about options for shading bears.
Firstly, board keepers, I know there is a section in the dropdown menu for airbrushing/shading etc., but it does not give me the option of posting directly to there. Is it possible? It would help keep the boards tidy.... so I'm only able to post here - under the Index - Tips & Techniques root menu.
Okay, here's my query: (well, a couple)
Has anyone used the dilutable H. Dupont or Pebeo liquid fabric dyes with a paintbrush successfully for shading faces, etc.? Were you able to achieve the shade, control the color well enough, and was it easy to work with/didn't set too fast? Could you blend it easily?
http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/fabricpaints.shtml
Has anyone tried Yasutomo Fabric dye markers?
http://www.yasutomo.com/index.php?page= … &Itemid=69
I've used prisma color pencils and Copic, and am not fully satisfied with the results... particularly how the alcohol in the markers and the blender frizz my mohair!. I know that markers bind the color to the fabric with a sort of glue in the color marker formula, which would account for the "crunchy" feel after using Copic markers, and that with some oil based color shading methods you should wait 3 days for the color to set before you can move on (brush residue out?).... BUT is there a non airbrush product that one can apply subtle shading to a bear's face that enters the mohair fibers, and does not just sit on top?
I'm an artist/designer with a BFA and know how to work with oil, acrylic, ink, even photosensitive stuff (creating an exposure on porcelain or paper) etc. on traditional surfaces and materials, but don't want to spoil precious mohair or invest in more trial-and-error shading experiments that I may only use once!
Thank you for your help!
Love,
Brenda the newbie teddy bear making nerd
teddyretirementhome
woo bears!
I'm so sorry to have missed the swap! 
I was just thinking about it today, ran a search here, and - poop! - I missed it!
I hope there will be another one soon! I have lots of new creations to post!
Cheers and bests
Brenda
teddyretirementhome
woobears!
Had to do it - have love bunnies forever!
This is my first "woo bears!" bunny pattern. He's made of very dense short steel blue mohair, with antique shoe button eyes, and filled with polyfill and glass sand beads to weight his feet and bum (oops, can I say 'bum' here?) and has a contrasting curly sparse pale yellow mohair bunny tail. He can stand and is 5-way jointed.
He has the bears for company but now I have to make him some more bunny friends! :)
Cheers
Brenda
teddyretirementhome
woo bears!
I love him - he has a wonderful profile and smile! The main photo in particular is fantastic - I like the contrast of texture in it and the beautiful light.
Danielle, I am completely hooked on your creations! Happy arrived safe and sound on Saturday - he's waiting for me to bring more of his family and friends over here to Canada!
Brenda
teddyretirementhome
woo bears!
