Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Wow!...Thought I'd pop on and see if the party has started yet and you're already on page FIVE...you party animals you!
I just have to drop one at school and feed the horses and I'll be back...for at least an hour. I have 15 pages of TT to catch up on...... :dance: Save me a glass of champers!

Hi Everyone!
I have had a TT free December ...until now that is! It's been a rough one for sure..but made all the more easier with the arrival of my much treasured ornament from Charlotte. This girl is a needle felting queen for sure!
Charlotte thank you so much for my polar guy...he will have pride of place on my Christmas tree every year from here on. Haven't even got this years tree up yet...but the kids will rectify that tonight....maybe then it will feel like Christmas.
My ornament should be arriving any day now with it's recipient..hopefully in time to be hung up for at least a day or two. Here's my ornament from Charlotte!

Sarah Jane that is such wonderful news! I am so sorry about you losing your mum...that's gotta have hit so hard, especially with all you kids being so young. What a golden heart you have looking after your dad when your plate was so full already. The flat thing was just meant to be....and what a lovely thing to happen!
Congrats to your son too...bet that's a load of your mind!!!
Looking forward to seeing your project too!

:crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:    Eileen. Sure fooled me! :crackup:

Jared,
Post the 'choices' here and we'll help you choose...subjective opinions and all.

Thanks for organising this Shelli....I had such a blast with this last year and it made TT even more personal to receive cards from real live TT'ers!  :crackup:
Join in everyone!

Susan and Chrissie...it's funny you know, but us Aussies (well SOME of us Aussies......okay well possibly only those of us BLONDE Aussies.... ) have never stopped to think that not ALL American's get white Christmasses....to me it's the mental (very!) picture that goes with Christmas...a white one in the USA or UK. But of course..in Cali and Florida, it doesn't get cold enough to snow right? Or am I totally up the creek with my 'understanding'?
Any American Christmas movies we watch all have the snow...so you just don't think of Americans having a Christmas any other way.
Here in Australia, Christmas lunch varies from a full Traditional hot meal with all the trimmings.....to more and more people opting for the backyard BBQ or even cold meats and salads...'cos lets face it, who wants to slave in a hot kitchen when the temerature is roasting hot!   Do you still do the traditional Christmas lunch even though it's hot?

Mindy, your Christmas traditions sound so romantic....I think I'm a bit too bah humbug.....I prefer to get it all over and done with as soon as possible.

And it makes me sad that Christmas is just so commercial now and the true meaning gets forgotten. I almost wish they would make Christmas and Xmas two different days altogether, and they are certainly confused with each other.

Maybe I need a dose of Christmas spirit this year.

Thanks very much to Tami for organising this great swap..it should be fun and help us all to get into the Christmas spirit! :dance:
Can I ask though....... PRETTY please WITH SUGAR on TOP..if you are taking part in the swap and you haven't yet taken the plunge and introduced yourselves to us all here on TT, please do!!!  :pray:
It's so much more fun if you have had contact with your partner before rather than making something special for someone with no 'face'. TT is so much more fun if you participate and everyone is welcome!

In case no-one has guessed...I drew a 'lurker'...please lurker...I want to know you!!!! Please...please!!!!! We don't bite!!!   Come out, come out wherever you ARE!!!!

Samantha...I REALLY LOVE your sweet little bears! Every single one of them speaks to me...just gorgeous expressions! Are they mostly made from Sassy furs??
Do you have a pic of Isla?? I wanna see!

Doreen, you have my sympathy. If I were you, I'd be tempted to hand your daughter some cash and suggest that just this once, someone else be trusted to cut her hair. Possibly unthinkable to her, I know

Sam,
A friend here in Oz has also been recently diagnosed with Meniere's disease and when she has a bout of it, she throws up every time she moves her head.   It seems there are varying degree of it too. The friend was told by her doctor to put herself on a very low salt diet..apparently it helps, so that may be something to consider. We seem to have hideous amounts of salt hidden in so many of our canned and processed foods. Thinking of you...it's gotta be tough. 

It's always so exciting when our TT friends get recognition of any kind, but what a huge honour Judi! I'm so happy for you!!! Yay!
And Sue Ann, your Bayley was before TT time so we didn't get to celebrate with you but HUGE congrats for that too....wow!
Now on to SECRETS...we can keep a secret..CAN"T WE PEOPLE!!!!! It must be KILLING you to have to sit on it Judi...so if we can help at all by sharing...WE WILL! :crackup:

Thanks for the reminder Amy...I'm one of those procrastinators that needs a kick up the proverbial to get it into gear sometimes.

Jenny and Melanie thanks so much for sharing news and pics. Jenny I am astounded (but not at all surprised!!!) that you sold all your bears but two! The very fact that your table is COVERED in bears makes that an incredible result! Well done! I'll bet you are deeming it well worth all those 4am mornings! Maybe you should re-name you bears "4am Bears"    Congrats on such a great show and I have to say those bears look so much better with their bodies on!

Melanie Jayne I am so pleased that this show was so successful for you! Six bears is a fantastic result for someone new to the show scene...well done! And what lovely new bears on your table..they all look fab! I love doing shows for the people part too...the comments and the smiles are worth $ to me as much as the cash itself.

Sending you lots of positive vibes Samantha.   Being sick in thel eadup to a show or on the day is every artists worst nightmare.   Just be assured that your bears are cute enough to sell themselves, so just get them on the table, sit back, smile lots, and let the bears work their magic.
Three cheers for organisation...I'm a beggar for leaving stuff until the last minute with no chace to catch up if I get sick. I should take a leaf from your book.
All the best...fingers crossed you'll feel better tomorrow...and you too Jenny!  :hug:  :hug:

That's beyond cool Melissa! So exciting for you and we are all excited for you too! As Shelli said, this is sure to open new eyes to the Teddy Bear world and such great advertising for you!
When I first saw your email about them giving you such short notice, my first reaction was to advise you to say no as they didn't offer enough prep time. But you got great suggestions from the girls here about how to turn a rather daunting task into a doable one and it has been a wonderful lesson for us all.
Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy being 'star for a day'...what a wonderful ambassador you are...and a brilliant artist to boot!  :hug:

Melissa said

I think you hit the nail on the head there Melissa! When I emailed SueAnn about Rambo I thought 'Don't be silly girlie, there's no way she still has that rooster!" Must have been my lucky day!

Shelli...I think I missed Kaki..will you post a pic? I love how you bought him for yourself for Christmas! When I told Chris I had bought Rambo he just sighed and said 'Which birthday is this one for? We must be up to 2009 by now!" Ha!

And I'm definitely a member of the Sue Ann fan club too!  :clap:

Jane I'll bet your chookie is adorable...lets see okay! You made me laugh with your 'ready for the pot' comment! :crackup:

Patty, I love your 'chicken dance'..so cute!

Absolutely scrumptious Edie and so well deserved...I love them. Congratulations! :clap:

Yes Shelli,
True talent both in word and artistry. I think the whole viewpoint sits very nicely from someone of her callibre....where someone just starting out, would possibly cop a heap of flack.  I agree wholeheartedly with everything she says and more power to her for voicing it so beautifully.
Man..how cool is that pirate! And the costume! Whew!

Lucky, LUCKY MEEEEEE!!!!!!

I just got me a wooster!!!! Yay!!!! Not just any rooster, but a special rooster from our Sue Ann!

So, am I a *collector*?? No.   But I just had to have me that rooster....and I'm so lucky he didn't find a new chicken shack at Schaumburg. I am the luckiest girl in the world...roll on  to Ozzieland Rambo, your new digs await! :dance: 

Atta girl Daph! We all need to drink some of your 'POSITIVE' juice!!
And you are right in everything you say too.

Sandra,
It's a difficult one for sure. I LOVE doing shows... the chance to meet customers face to face and see their reactions to my bears, the chance to meet other artists and share experiences and just in general for the whole 'feel' of it. I have only dabbled in ebay very briefly, but found I was forever handing over fees and not selling. I think unless you list weekly on ebay you don't develop the required 'presence' to gain people's interest, and it's a big committment which I think for me would suck all the enjoyment out of the sales.

My personal feeling about shows is that it's too expensive for those like myself who are not yet established names. Big names can pull big dollars for their bears and many only need to sell one bear to cover their costs. I will do any show that is within a few hours driving distance...but if I have to fly, mostly it's too cost inhibitive.

For instance..The Gold Coast Int. Teddy Bear Fair. Ball park figures here of course......$250 for the table, $250 return airfare,$400 for three nights accomodation, $40 short term parking for my car, $100 at least for food.....I'm down around $1000 before I even sell a bear.
I have committed to do one interstate show per year, and am trying to look at it purely as advertising.

I know how extra exciting the Melbourne shows are when we get interstate artists joining us...it adds to the magic.

But how many can afford to do two or more interstates per year. Is there something you can do to make traders choose your show over say the Gold Coast Int. Teddy Bear Fair if it comes down to making a choice? I know there is discounted accomodation to stay at Jupiters...but even with the discount, it's hefty if you're trying to save costs. I need to find accomodation for around $90 a night to make it 'do' able.

I think many people will follow the shows that have the best reputation for drawing the crowds....at least they can be sure then that they are giving their work the best chance possible of selling.

I wonder if it would be a possiblity for the major state show promoters to get together (via email of course~!) and maybe offer a discount for those who book to do more than two shows...sort of as an incentive to commit ahead of time and also so the promoters can use their names to help draw the crowds and other artists.
Unless the big shows can continue to draw interstate traders, I can't see them surviving. But I understand you have to make something from the shows, even if it's all going to charity or why do all that organising?

From what I have seen, if an artist thinks the crowds will come...they'll be there rain hail or shine...but if the crowds are in doubt, safer to save the money. I think it's a catch 22 as well....the crowds don't come so the artists don't come so the crowds don't come...etc. So where the buck stops is anyones guess. I guess it all boils down to everyone needing to be committed to making the shows successful, and then maybe the newbies like myself can be lucky enough to experience another teddy bear boom. But last time it happened...there wasn't an ebay to contend with.

I'm speechless Linda! I hope you will be entering the TOBY's or Golden Teddies with her! The double jointed neck makes a great difference so well worth the effort! Thanks for the instructions too, very kind of you. :clap:

How many shelties did you make before they looked so realistic? You are so talented!

Tracey...I'm so sorry. I am also in a position where my kids haven't really lost anyone close to them yet and I dread the time when it comes, as it will. We hurt so badly when our kids hurt and we just wish we could make it all go away. It's always complicated more when we are in pain too...but you can take comfort in each other. I think the memory bears are a great idea too, when you are ready, and may be therapeutic for you too. Sounds like the talking may have been what the boys needed most at this stage. I know my 15 year old is less receptive to motherly affection and comfort now than he was when he was younger....sad that...but he won't brush my hand aside if I rub his arm or squeeze his shoulder as I walk past. Just little things so he knows you want to comfort him.

What wonderful memories Harolds wife will have of all those trips. They were very lucky to have their health in their later years and use it to explore the world together instead of sitting home like most people their age. I'm sure Grandma will have some fabulous stories to tell the boys about Grandad's adventures when the time is right.
Thinking of you all, :hug:

Marie honey! What dreadful news.   Thankyou for sharing it with us, your friends so we can support you. You're heart must be breaking right now....I'm so sad for you, mum's are irreplaceable. What a courageous mum to fight for so long. Sending you huge hugs and you wll be firmly in my prayers in the coming days. (((((((((((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))))))))))))))
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