Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

My avatar, that is? 

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Man oh man!  I'm not surprized that my own is fuzzy on my screen, but I am surprised that some other people's are fuzzy on my screen--- people who know what they are doing oh so much better than me!  maybe it is something with  the settings for my monitor?  Oh, who knows!  Back to the drawing board!

Oh Shelli.... I am still doing the minis here and there.  I stopped for a while when we were packing and moving because I had to clear out my studio space and return to just bear making wherever I could find room... usually the kitchen!  Anyway, my kids kept running off with heads and the like!  I tell you it's nearly impossible to find a bear head the size of a small grape once a child hidden it!  The people who moved into our new house might find a few very odd things in my house!  Now that we are all settled into the new place and i have a brand new dedicated studio, I hope to get a bunch more of those tiny folks made!

Kim basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Hi Other Kim!  Okay, now I am really confused!  Your's is fuzzy on mine!  Is your's fuzzy on yours?  AHHHH... computers.
Kim

Yeah... I just tried to make this avatar, and it is showing up fuzzy on my screen too!  Shelli--- your's is REALLY fuzzy on my screen.... is it on yours? 

Kim

Does anyone else have this problem?  I have noticed that some of the avatars on this board, as well as some of my eBay pictures (and other folk's auctions) are coming out on my computer really fuzzy.... while others are clear as day?  Is it just me?

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Hey, girls... not too much bad mouthin' of the lawyers, please?  As I former lawyer, I can attest that we're not ALL terrible ambulance chasers!  I did mostly domestic relations work and was a children's lawyer (GAL) for most of my brief legal career, along with representing (pro bono) several local charities, so I can say that I was one of the good guys!  I do LOVE lawyer jokes to this day though... my husband still is a lawyer and I just love to dig him from time to time!  Hey, just think, without those hard working lawyers, there wouldn't be that nice little reminder on your take-out coffee cup reminding you that your latte is HOT!   

Oh... I never leave home without a stack of business cards in my wallet, both mine and hubby's!

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals
http://www.picturetrail.com/bastadolls

Oh MY!  I am completely useless when it comes to computers... thus I don't even have a real web site, just a picturetrail gallery for folks who want to see what I've done in the past.... anyway, I do deeply sympathize with you!  I'd never want to live without my computer, but I have truly contemplated pitching it from the roof a couple of times myself!  I do hope that rebuilding doesn't take too terribly long for you love!

Beary truly yours,
Kim basta
Wild Thyme Originals

What a great point you made Shelli regarding folks using the artist's photos to resell on e Bay... I don't think I've ever seen one of my bears resold yet, but then I rarely get a chance to look at e bay that much!  When I made dolls I did have a couple resold.... the first one was with some simply awful photos taken by her new owner... i am not all that thrilled with my own photography skills, so I can't complain too much, but OMG... these were awful and truly turned my sweet little fairy child into something that looked like a piece of a fingerling potato or something!  It did bum me out to see my name attached to an auction that showed my work in such a bad light.  The other time, the re-seller actually e Mailed me and asked if I still had my original photos..... which I happily e Mailed to her to avoid the type of embarrassment i experienced the first time around.
   I'm crtainly not meaning to sound harsh about folks who do sometimes resell dolls or artist bears through e bay... I'd just rather have my work look the best it can when it reappears!

Oh... It is a copyright no-no to use an artist's photos without permission....  Probably not so much so in the bear world.... but in the fine art world... one of the way that museums turn a profit is by selling the photographs of the artwork contained within their walls for textbooks etc....  It's actually a great amount of income for them.

Beary truly!
Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Dear Nanc,
  I've actually had three folks ask me to either have me e mail them pictures of a bear  they had purchased, or send actual printed out pictures.... I've always gone ahead and done it!  One lady just wanted thme for insurance purposes....   She has an enormous collection that is privately insured.  Another has a sort of filing system whereby she keeps records of how much she paid, when and where she purchased a bear, their hang tag if it's removable.  I do know quite a few collectors who do this.... an envelope full of info on each bear.....

I do see your concern however with the occasional unscrupulous type person running a hoax auction or some such mean spirited thing....

Beary truly,
Kim basta
Wild Thyme Originals

AHHHH.... tears falling here too!  What a lovely story-- thanks for sharing.

Kim Basta
Wild THyme Originals

Just another wee word (or two) about auction end times again.... I do occassionally get "yelled" at very gently of course by a few of my east coast folks who are in bed at 10:00 on Sunday night!  So I do sometimes try to end a few at 5 or 6 California time....!  Not everyone wants to grab a latte at 9pm so they can keep their eyes open until 10 pm... though I Do!  Coffee anytime is fine with me!

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Lisa--- "Your Backyards friends, the Barkyardagins!!!!!! We've got the whole wide world in our yard to explore.... etc... "

Makes you wanna go sew for at least a couple of minutes without someone begging for another apple juice, doesn't it!!
Kim basta

Oh thanks guys for the lovely comments!!!  Rhaine was my all time favorite mohair bear that I've done to date.  You know how sometimes they fight you tooth and claw and sometimes they just flow together exactly as you imagined?  Rhaine just flowed from start to finish!  VERY RARE indeed for me!

Trapunto ??? I don't know.... I'm actually not much of a quilter, so I'm not exactly familiar with precisely what that technique is!  I think that since you are adding a bit of bulk and extra loft behind the ultrasuede (or whatever you use for paw pads) it just tends to puff a bit more while lessening the chance of getting your fabric puckered underneath the thread?  Make sense?

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Sue Ann,
  You should give it a go.... !  Since I started selling on e Bay right out of the gate without having already built up a name and a following, it was a bit of a slow start for me.  You certainly won't really have that problem... everyone already knows who you are! 

The "constant presence thing" is really what gains an eBay specific following though.... I think so at at least.   Though I absolutely LONG to be able to do a show like so many of you do!  I've never even had the ability to go to a bear show as a spectator!  I was really hoping to get to the June 23 show in Columbus, Ohio.... but I'll be knee deep in moving boxes now on that day!

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Well, for me, it helps that everything I do is completely sewn by hand... no machine.  I follow my kids from room to room stitching a leg, a head, an arm.... when someone has a fit or there is a full blown hair pulling/kicking match in progress, I can just thrown down the limb and assume my job as referee!  I too and generally a slouch when it comes to housework. If people are fed and clothed, I'm doin' okay!  If there are no stray bodily fluids (blood, tears, pee-pee, poo-poo) visibly leaking out of anyone, I'm doing even better!   and We've had our house on the market for a long time (FINALLY SOLD) so I've actually had to clean, I mean REALLY clean to the point that our place looked like a model home.  We'd leave the potential buyers would walk through... we'd come back and within 10 minutes it was completely torn apart again!  Can't wait to get to the new place, get settled in and return to the state of semi-organized chaos that I know and love!

Honestly.... I just follow them around hand stitching.  I always have a body part in the car or my purse to work on at the dentist's office or waiting at the post office.... As for the more detailed work of setting eyes, trimming fur, thread sculpting... I save that for when the kiddos go to Grammy's (once a month or so) or after bedtime.... sometimes when there is a really fantastic episode of Blue's Clues on I can actually work for 20 minutes uninterrupted!

Beary truly,
Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

GOOD Questions!  I've been selling on e bay for about 5 years now... first one of a kind sculpted dolls & baby faeries, then mini bears, and now small to mid sized mohair bears.... I tell you, I don't think I'll ever truly have it figured out.  Here are a few things that I've learned through the years.  All generalizations, of course!  We can all probably think of many exceptions to the rule.... And remember, this is just my little 'ol opinion, feel free to disagree!  I just LOVE selling on e bay... but there are plenty of folks who don't like it... and don't do it!  Do keep in mind that not being able to fetch a high or even fair price on e bay really isn't necessarily a indication of the quality and desirability of your work.  Selling on eBay is a bit of an "art" itself.     
1. According to e Bay statistics, the most folks are logged into eBay at  around 7 pm California time.  Many people choose to have their auctions start and or end at that time for that reason.  I've always found that having almost all your auctions end at the same time (for example-- auctions end at 7:15 PM, whether its a 3 day, 5 day or 7 day auction) gives people something they can rely on... they know that every Sunday night after their news program  they can "tune in" and see what Artist X has on e bay at the moment...

2.  Having a nearly constant presence.... There are a LOT of artist bears on e Bay!  From talking with many of the folks who are interested in my work, I know that not one of them actually sits down and looks at each and every artist bear available at any given time!  I do my best to get a bear listed every week, or every other week... (We are in the process selling our house & buying another -- so I've been pretty bad lately!)  When people know that there is always something of yours to take a peek at... they are more inclined to do so.  The more someone looks, the more likely they are to bid.

3.  Good Ads -  There are lots of different opinions on this one.... should you be cute and make up a sweet story about your bear, be concise and factual..... I tend to lean toward overly long detailed descriptions AND poems, stories, etc.... Probably NOT the best thing! 

4.  GOOD PICTURES- need I say more?

5.  Oh... I think it always helps when I put a nice facial close up as the picture that is going to show up as someone scans through the endless list of other equally sweet teddies.  Your buyer is going to fall in love with the face first!  No matter how wonderful your teddy is overall,  the face is certainly what draws the most folks in.

6.  When I can afford to, I try to do the "Featured Listing" option.... yes, it's expensive, but I do find that I get many more "hits" and many more bids when i do it.  It usually pays for itself with a higher end price, but not always.  When I find that I am selling to the same three collectors over and over again, I always try to do the featured auction or a highlighted (purple bar)  auction to try to bring in a few more people.

Am I rambling here?

As for pricing and reserve, etc... I am still desperately trying to figure that one out!  I think it's really tricky!  I put a reserve on sometimes, and sometimes I don't.  I don't think it's made a huge difference either way for me.  I do know that sometimes I do it if I truly can not imagine parting with a particular bear for less than a certain amount. 

I could go on and on.... I guess those would be my best tips though.  I'm always happy to answer questions though if there's something more specific that you wish to know about.  I almost never even get a chance to look through other listings on e Bay anymore... so maybe I'm out of date with my opinions.... When I was making dolls I spent HOURS scanning through.  After baby 3 came along, I am lucky just to get my own auctions up and running!

OMG... you guys have spell check here!  How lucky for me, and even luckier for all of you who have to read my posts!  Though... it won't catch my own bizarre made-up punctuation rules!

Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals

Hi all!  Oh... this is new to me!  new computer type things are always a little bit scarey for me!  So do bear with me while I try to figure out this forum! I'll try to post an introduction later today when at least one child is sleeping;)

Just wanted to chime in on the pulled toes thing... something that I've found that really seems to halp me when doing my "big" mohair bears with sculpted/pulled toes is to first line the ultrasuede with an medium weight iron-on quilter's batting... I use Pellon brand - you can get it at any fabric store or quilter's supply.... Anyway... I tend to be very aggressive when pulling the toes of my cubs.... I ended up with a lot of puckers and creases in the ultrasuede....Who wants wrinkly toes!!!!???? The Pellon does seem to give the ultrasuede a bit more "body" as well as keep it smooth....

Oh... Tantrum downstairs... gotta run!  I promise I'll try to get back on here later and introduce myself a bit more formally rather than just sneaking in the backdoor with a word about toes!

Beary truly,
Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals
http:/www.picturetrail.com/bastadolls