Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Such a dignified facial expression... He looks as if he's proud to be a panda 

Becky

That mohair is heavenly, and the pink shading looks lovely on it.

Becky

A very sweet koala    (The white ear fuzz is wonderful:)

Becky

Hi Aleta,

It's still only one floss -- just two needles. I've always left half of the floss hanging from the middle of the nose, then gone back to it after finishing one side. (It was the changing of the needles that led me to finish one whole side before starting on the other.)

Anyway, your bears have lovely noses, I notice 

Becky

Look at that tail wagging!    (Attention from people must trump having to wear an inmate's costume.)

Becky

Lucky you to see one! (Admittedly, though, very few are as plushy as Nat:)

I remember that you're a friend of amphibians. There probably aren't a lot of people who would know a Natterjack if they did see one.

Becky

Hi everyone,

Thanks to Lisa Page of Arcas Designs, this lovely toad "Nat" is resting after his long journey and enjoying the last of the season's wildflowers here in Wisconsin.

After Lisa agreed to send Nat to live with me, I looked up "Natterjack Toad" online. Lisa had mentioned that it was an endangered species, but what surprised us was that besides the toads that remain in the UK, there is a population of this rare critter in Wisconsin, USA. And there was Nat, coming to live near his American relatives!

I feel very lucky to have him here  :love:

Becky

That is perfect pig-fabric! Really very pretty 

Becky

I want to scratch that tummy 

Jasper is a lovely Halloween treat.

Becky

This little guy must come from Bern, right? 

I really like his dark muzzle. It reminds me of an old well-loved bear.

Becky

Eva says that she has...

    Me too!

Becky

Thanks, everyone! You've encouraged me to try more bent-armed bears 

Becky

You do good work, Marion!

The colors are lovely, and I really like that you used a more subdued shade for her garment. Very pretty! 

Becky

Thank you, Peter! I was happy with that innocent look, too :)

Becky

Hi Thomas,

It's a great question. Some of the people at Hugglets were probably simply admiring the fabric because of its texture or color or high quality. I'll bet I'm not the only bear-maker who just enjoys the fabric for its aesthetic qualities. The variety is just amazing, and it's meant to appeal to the senses, so it's just great fun to shop for it, choose it, open a box and take it out for the first time... You get the idea. We love fur! 

Beyond that, though, it's the fur that lets me begin to imagine the teddy. If it's a delicate, sparse, matted fur, I might imagine an antique-style bear. If it's long-piled and "robust," I'll probably see a larger bear. And so it goes, whether it's real fur from an old coat or a screaming purple synthetic, there's an artist out there who can think of the perfect bear to make with it.

Then there's finishing the bear -- especially the face. You work with the fur in order to create facial features, brushing, scissor-trimming, and sometimes plucking with tweezers. The fur that you've chosen limits that process in some ways, but it might also give you a wonderful mustache, eyebrows, and so on, so you don't mind too much.

I can't wait to hear from others!

Becky

This is Ferne, made with kid mohair and a bent-arm design. (Not my usual sort of bear, but a fun experiment, and I think she's pretty cute:)

I hope you like her.
Becky

Your animals are unmistakable, Cat! I took one look at the tiny thumbnail pic of this kitty and said to myself, "That looks like a Raggy Rat!"

I took a look at your Etsy shop, too, and the Christmas rat is lovely -- all covered in raisins! (He may need to sleep it off after his binge.) 

Becky

What a wonderful magazine! I'm definitely going to subscribe  :dance:

The ad for the puppets is a stitch! I know I'm going to watch it several times... 

Thanks for letting us in on this, Alison.

Becky

Hi everyone,

I had a pleasant nose embroidering experience yesterday, which is kind of unusual, so I thought I'd share.

Usually, I start in the middle of the nose area, leaving half of the embroidery floss hanging while I work on one side of the nose. Then, I take the needle off of that side, thread the floss for the other side, and start embroidering again.

The two problems I've had are that 1.) it's difficult to get the tension right if I do one whole side and then the other, and 2.) it's such a pain to keep threading the needle -- and that's before you even get to the mouth.

So... it occurred to me to thread BOTH ends of the floss from the beginning. That way, I can take a few stitches on one side, then a few on the other, and so on, which seems to keep the tension nice and even. Whichever needle I'm not using at the moment can just hang there (they don't slide off of the pearl cotton floss) until I'm completely done with nose and mouth.

It's a little thing, I know, and more of a 'duh' moment than an 'a-ha!' moment, but it has changed my life for the better. 

Becky

Wow, Carol -- you are quite a painter!

Jack is an adorable teddy, but the painting and tickets on his feet (brilliant!) really set him apart.  :clap:

Becky

Mookie is a furry armful, isn't she?

I like that little pink nose...   

Becky

Is biscuit a wee bit bashful? That's a priceless facial expression, and I love his kitty feet 

Becky

Bert certainly has personality! 

I love what you've done with his hair, too -- very nice work!  :clap:

Becky

All of them are marvelous, Shelli. I really like how you handled the tail for the little Boo mouse 

Becky

Glad to have you back, Krista.

Raz is stunning! I really like the red-brown coloring  :dance:

Becky