Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

It is wonderful that the situations worked out for both of you- Hooray!    Suzanne

Hi Danni, I'm sorry this happened to you. Lynette's idea sounds good: Have someone else- a name they don't recognize- call and say that they are your accountant or lawyer. they just shouldn't say your name until the owner (or her daughter) is actually on the phone. Good Luck-  Suzanne

Congratulations to Sarah    . What a great accomplishment, I would feel very proud of her too, Jane.
   Suzanne

Penny, your posts always give me a giggle    . You should all do what I did: have a child, wait 18 years til she's home on her semester break and say " Could you please post some pictures on a chat board for me- even though you've only been home for like, an hour?" It worked for me!    Oh, by the way she has Photoshop, but she's an illustration major and uses it ALL the time. She draws on the computer a lot!
Suzanne

Haha, Dilu- if you do try that, you may end up with a layered thing in a bowel!  :twisted: Sorry, just couldn't resist!     
   Suzanne

Thanks, Danni- at least I will know how much I'm paying, even if I can't read any of the other information  .
    Suzanne

Thanks Daphne- That's a good suggestion. Handi- wipes, here I come! 
    Jared, I wish I could say that was the case, but I know this woman personally and am positive that she meant to give the bear to the baby. However I think the price will deter her. 
    Suzanne

Marie- my daughter is very interested in Japanese music and I'm trying to find some CD's for her for Christmas. The problem is all the sites are written in japanese and the prices are in yen  Could you possibly let me know approximately how much 2857 yen is in $?  :pray: Thanks for any help you can give me! 
    Suzanne

Just a quick thought- Do you ever have problems with people picking up a bear and handing it to their child, whose hands look like they've been eating chocolate? What would you say?
  OOps- second thought- What if someone is clearly buying your - not safe for children labelled- bear for a toddler? Am I as the maker liable if they give it to their child and the child breaks the eyes and swallows them or somehow stabs themselves with the cotter pins? Someone told me they wanted to buy one of my bears for a baby and when I said they weren't child safe and told her why, she said it didn't matter. I was dumbfounded and didn't know how to respond.
        Suzanne

Thanks for all your good wishes.  I can tell you I learn something every time I log on here- I didn't know I could get a cd made with pictures from my regular camera. My daughter is an illustration major at college and I'll have to get her to use some of those oh- so- expensive skills over Thanksgiving to take some pictures for me.
   Sophie- until I found TT, I thought that I had to sew bears by hand. I had done that and enjoyed it, but there was no way I'd ever make more than a few bears because it took me so long. When I found out that many people use a sewing machine, well, it was like a revelation! :dance: I even sew the smaller (6 in) with the machine. I also thought for some reason that I would have to design a new pattern with every bear. It was hard enough to do one pattern. I ended up doing 2 patterns and sized them up and down- something I learned here- and I changed the arm and leg patterns on a couple (although I endedup throwing some of those patterns out- after the bear was made already  ). I've had luck changing ears and the head gusset- Thanks, Sueann for mentioning flexible rulers!
    You guys are the best!---- Suzanne

Hi- I don't post very often but have enjoyed this forum and learned so much that-- I will be selling my bears for the first time!  I have a space at a local craft fair that many people I know have attended and they assure me that there is a lot of high end work for sale. I have been making bears in all my spare time since June- I have seventeen done and would like to finish 3 more by Dec. 3. The catch 22 is I don't have a digital camera, but perhaps I'll earn enough to buy one, only then the bears will be gone! I will let you know how it goes, since you all have helped me so much with tips and inspiration.--
                    Suzanne 

Thank you all once again for your help. Since I'm impatient to start (the bear is done except for the nose), I think I'll check out the second hand stores for a pair of gloves or an old coat if I get lucky! I did try Michael's but the leather seemed too thick to sew or drape in the way I have in my mind.  I gave this bear an open mouth.It was the first time I tried doing that and (s)he seems like (s)he needs a big nose to balance the look.
You're a great resource group to turn to!  :)
Suzanne

HI- I'm interested in trying to make a bear with a sewn on stuffed leather nose. I'm not sure where to find thin flexible leather, though; neither the craft store nor the fabric store near me have anything even remotely possible. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
   Thanks- Suzanne

Laura- I know the yarn you used to make that bear's scarf! I made a shawl for a friend with it, same color,too, and I had some left. I didn't think about making bear accessories! Duh! I just love the way this board makes ideas flow.
       Suzanne

Shelli- I just wanted to add my thank you along with the others. It is wonderful to have a place and people to turn to to get such helpful information.
   Suzanne

Happy Birthday Eileen---Suzanne

Beautiful bear, Shelli- "Pansy" isn't very regal, but it popped into my head because I had some in a similar cream and purpley-burgundy scheme this spring. Anyway, good luck with naming her--- Suzanne

Thank you for all the good advice, as usual everything you've said is very helpful!   Suzanne:)

Hi, all- I have some curly mohair and I'm having a hard time figuring out the direction of the nap. It seems to go two ways- sort of diagonal. I would love to know what you experts do- do you follow the direction the fur comes out of the backing, the direction of the curl, or -yikes- on the diagonal? Please help! I am dying to cut out my first designed by me pattern, even though it probably doesn't look all that original. Thanks---
   Suzanne

Thanks for the help.:)Funnily enough, I used a uniball pen to trace my pattern,too but for a different reason... I tend to drag my hand along the fabric when cutting ended up with yucky black stuff on my hands. It came off the fabric easily enough, but not off my hands.:P I had to wait for it to wear off, and I serve food most of the day! Thank goodness for plastic gloves-  I just left them on most of that day.
Suzanne

Inquiring minds want to know... When making small bears with small seam allowances, do you fray check before stitching or after? I can guess at advantages and disadvantages to both and would love some experienced opinions.
Suzanne

HI, Kim- I'm glad you asked about putting pictures in messages because I want to know how to do that,too. I know it was in a reply I read, but don't remember where! :(I'm not great about computer stuff, but my daughter can probably talk me through directions. Thanks--- Suzanne

Hi, everyone! I am happy to report that the kitty is right side out and finished! Thanks for all your helpful suggestions. I'm almost sorry that this pair are going home with my niece on Sat. because I would have liked them to be inspiration for a while. I haven't ever tried designing any bears myself- the closest I have gotten was writing a story about three matching bears for a friends triplets. But the bears were from a pattern.Someday! Anyway, I asked my husband to take a picture of the bear and kitty for me so I can post it. I'm not very computer literate, so it may show up and it may not.      Suzanne

Thanks all for the helpful suggestions. I will let you know when (not if) I'm successful because I'm determined to turn this thing inside out, but the prospect of having to do it more than once is a little daunting! Danni,thanks for the nice comment about "sewzanne", but I can't take credit. Someone else called me that and I like it because I can't forget it. My memory isn't what it used to be. 
   If I don't post success right away, don't worry- this is graduation week at our house. My daughter from high school and my son from elementary school. I have to finish the kitty by Saturday though or else my niece will only get a bear and no kitty friend for her birthday. --Suzanne

Hi- I've been reading these boards and enjoying them very much. I haven't made many bears (only about half a dozen) and I thought I would try one of the kits Intercal offers. I picked Sugar and Spice and am really pleased with how the bear turned out but can't for the life of me figure out how to turn that little kitty right side out. I left the opening at the bottom but the problem is that the neck seems too narrow to push the head through. I am pushing from the inside with my tweezers; I tried pulling from the outside but am afraid that I'll pull fur out of the fabric. Any advice you all can give me would be graetly appreciated. Thanks- Suzanne