Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

a thing i do is only use one piece ears.  I find on miniatures the nap isn't as obvious - so if you do one ear piece one way and the other upside down with the corners touching when you cut them out then once sewn make a hole at the bottom fold and turn it through (this is probably clear as mud)!  Another option is to use fur one side and paw pad fabric the other then they aren't so bulky.  Good Luck

They are fantastic - can I ask where you got the fabric from - I love it.

I personally would stick with what you know and if that's all it cost then you may be able to go through 2 or 3 machines (hope that you wouldn't) cheaper than the parts for a computerised model.

i wash and tumble dry my mohair it seems to make it thicker and fluffier

I put synthetic bears in the machine on a gentle cycle and opened the machine at the end of the cycle to be faced with a pile of stuffing, floating eyes and very little else.  Be Careful!!

I have put my name in for the swap i hope you have got it.  I have been reading the topic about customs and taxes etc and my 2 cents worth is that if I am getting an artist bear i will have no problem paying the cost fo the import tax or what ever it is as the bear is invaluable to me.  (Invaluable in a good way - what a strange word so is the alternative - priceless)

Is finally finished.  The new owner is ecstatic and the bear maker is still in disbelief.  Of all the bears I have made this is my least favourite - probably becuse I had so much trouble with it.  Sorry about the poor picture quality.

When I sew miniatures I have the same problem until recently.  What I do now is mark the sewing line on the fabric and ensure that the needle always goes on the line.  I also start at the tip of the nose on one side and do a couple of stitches and then do a couple on the other side and keep going that way.  It is easier to thread two needles and use them alternately.  Hope this makes sense.

OK so someone asks me to make a teddy bear out of an old fur coat.  It is African Goat so I thought beautiful soft angora type fur  WRONG!  It is coarse,wiry, goes every which way and of course like many deconstructed furcoats is made up os a million pieces of patchwork.  I have so far made a head, body one leg and one arm but am not happy.  The head I tried to stuff last night and the fur is long and very unruly so I decided to give it a haircut.  This has helped a very little bit but does anyone have any advice they could give me on progressing further - it has already taken me over 12 months because I am far from passionate about it (Rosie please don't read this)!!!  I have used gallons of hair conditioner on it trying to tame the hair can I leave this in or will it wreck the fur done the track?

Thanks for the info - due to our very short visit it look as though I will have to settle for the shop in Christchurch.  The reason we are only doing the South Island is that I won this trip around 5 months ago and had to use it up in 6 months.  We were going to spend at least three weeks there  to do  both islands but I started a new job 6 weeks ago and couldn't bring myself to ask for 3 weeks off so we had to settle for two.

I'm a coming to NZ in 12 sleeps time - mostly South Island although am spending a couple of days around Auckland.  Where do you all hide out?  Where are the good bear shops and suppliers etc?  Please let me know to save me having to drag my husbandall over NZ looking for bear shops because if I use that method I have to spend an equivalent amount of time looking for trucks and boy stuff!

How about starting at a local craft fair with your mum being the main seller?  You could offer her maybe 10% of any profit but being a mum she may not want that.  Or perhaps she could set you up with an eBay id or maybe you could ask her to join this forum and see what all of us like minded people do.  Good luck with what ever you decide.

Sorry to hear about your friend sending wishes her way.

Me too if at all possible.

I keep a number of bears on my bed (surprise, surprise).  The other day I went in there and they were all laying face down on a pillow with their arms round each other.  I asked my big tough truckie husband what they were doing and he said they were in mourning for all the bears that got burnt in the bushfires.  I almost cried!

You are such a tease!  :hug:

That's what I'm hoping!

It took a mammoth effort emotionally but I packed up all my bears that aren't 'quite there' (the ones that just weren't quite good enough) to sell and sent them to the bushfire appeal along with lots of clothes and shoes that weren't worn much.  I put a note in there that the bears weren't for children, rather, the adults that needed one for whatever reason.

Hey Jane I'm with you I found 12 too.

108 lives lost now.  I have a very close friend who is with the bushfires council in rural Bendigo one of the areas that has been hit badly and so far I haven't been able to get in touch with her.  I just pray that her and her husband are ok.  they have said that if they catch the people who started some of these fires they will be charged with murder.

Me too Clare Fuller

That's amazing he has obviously travelled from one of our drought affected areas

i started just yesterday as I want to make a realistic polar bear so I looked at pictures on the internet and I have been sketching ideas too.

Anyone else notice this:  I have never ever been able to draw, not even a little bit but when I sketch Ideas for bears suddenly my drawings are now looking like bears.  Perhaops there is a future in anime for me :crackup:

Anti - clockwise only unless I blocked out the top and looked at the feet only and then clockwise.

That's pretty amazing Denise thank you.  I am studying photos and pictures of polar bears and sketching what I sort of want but it will be months before it will be complete.  I have just returned to full time work after close to 20 years and finding it all a bit of a juggling act.  I didn't work full time for such a long time because of my health but I now find that I am almost back to being able to do full time only thing is I seem to just work sleep and eat!