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For artists and collectors sponsored by Intercal...your mohair supplier and Johnna's Mohair Store
Back Road BearsOk, all you "I make bears for a living" artists.....
How often do you order supplies?
Do you have a master list, take inventory, re-order what you are low on? Monthly, quarterly?
Or do order spontaneously when you run out of something?
Just curious!!
Posts: 8,574Good One Daphne~ 
look forward to the answers!
Canna Bear PaintI absolutely do not count as someone who makes a living at this, though wouldn't it be nice?
:whistle:
Anyway, I do try to stay very organized. We keep discs in their own drawers, cotterpins and such in theirs, ultrasuede and such in its own place, and so on. It makes it easier to see when you're running low on something. As we work on such a wide variety of shapes and sizes of critters over here, I can't say 'every other month, I'll need to order 100 of those!' on any item. Instead, I just try to keep an eye on things. For something like discs, once I see I'm down to say 10 of a favorite size, I'll order another bag. We are always working on multiple projects at once in various stages of completion, so it would be a mistake to say 'we have enough for one more bear!' when there are four or five bears waiting to be finished. We do not tend to do editions, but in the very few cases where we've wanted to make multiple bears out of the same fabric, we just make sure we have enough for that number before we start. Too many times I've gone back to order a fabric and found it is either out of stock or discontinued, I would hate to be stuck halfway through a bear or an edition of bears and run out permanently!
So I guess the answer is that we don't order when we run out, we try to time it enough in advance that we receive the replacement before we run out. Not that it always works smoothly
:lol:
Best wishes,
Kelly
I'm not nearly as organized as Kelly, which is mostly okay in my case, because I'm one bearmaker, and I generally prefer to work in serial, not in parallel. The most I ever have going at one time is two bears... with maybe a third one cut out. But not actively on the worktable. Since it takes me anywhere from two entire, to six entire, days to finish a bear from zero to "voila!", that gives me plenty of time to order or seek out what's missing, if I discover it in process. Intercal ships lightning fast, esp. to me here just north of them in the same sunny state, California, so mohair is actually one of my least pressing concerns.
I do try to keep stock on hand for disks and hardware, because it makes me say, "Oh, Snap" -- to quote Chicken Little (that movie is so cute!) -- when I am ready to move forward, and can't because a two-inch circle of hardboard is missing, and must be waited on, to arrive from afar. AARGH!!!!
I tend to keep a backstock of mohair, about two to four feet tall -- seriously -- so that I have something to work with if/when inspiration calls.
Whenever I go to a fabric store -- like, just today -- I grab what I think is close to gone in my thread box. I figure, if I don't need it this week, I'll need it the next.
Last, whenever I'm near an antique store, vintage shop, or even places like Goodwill or the Salvation Army, I pop in and look for treasures to use for accessories or accent. I generally try to stick to $5 or less, but sometimes I'll pop up to $10 for a really special and unique item. Rarely, I go whole hog, for something really spectacular that I just can't live without.
Ordering Bear Supplies ....
I try to stay away from the mohair specials, but fall victim to them quite frequently, so I do have lots of mohair.
I try to keep the disc and glass eye supplies filled as it takes a while for these to travel to the Midwest. Whenever I see my numbers falling on these two items, I take inventory on the 7 or so different sizes of discs and the different sizes of eyes and place an order. I try to order as many things that I will be needing at one time to offset the shipping charges.
I too am always picking up a spool or two of thread and hanks of perle cotton when I get the chance especially when there is a sale going on. Sometimes I bid on different things I can use to accessorize my bears on E-Bay. I live in the middle of a huge cornfield and don't have the luxury of very many shops, so I surf the net and E-Bay ...you can find anything and everything on E-Bay.
After making several bears or getting ready for a show, my supplies get all messy and I take the time to re-organize so I know where everything is and how many I have. There comes a time when I can't work because of the clutter, it distracts me and takes more time and effort to get the job done. Don't get me wrong, my house would never make the Better Homes and Garden mag. Far from it.
Anyhow, this is what works for me.
Hugs,
Wanda
Past Time BearsDitto for me . . . I just order stuff when I'm running low. I try not to run completely out of something I know I'll need on down the road.
Jazzy RagsYes i just order stuff when i run out too.
Kiprie BearsOh this is interesting ! :rolleyes:
I am not a full timer bear maker/artist but I do keep my supply and taking inventory......
well, but be honest with you, I have some mohair that I never saw before or remember about it. :redface:
My motto is, I order supply when they go low and when my wallet allow me. 
hee hee
Hugs/Marie
Gatehouse GalleryI try to be organised, but it doesn't always work that way.
I only work on one or two pieces at a time, but I get most of my mohair, eyes, paw fabric, shoes and dress fabrics sent from America. If I run out I have to wait for 2-3 weeks for the supplies to be shipped........so I work on the RON system........I have a BIG stash and keep lots of fabrics for RON (lateRON that is :lol:)
So that's my excuse when I see something I like.....well I just have to have it for RON.
Getting buried under my stash,
Glenys
I tend to order ahead - especially to make sure I have fabric to fulfil advance orders. This is necessary because I like to order fabric in from the US as well as here in the UK. I order my fillers in bulk and store them in bags in the attic and buy all my hardboard joints and metalwork in bulk too, topping up every time my stash starts to get low.
I try to think ahead and get my UK suppliers to bring what I need to any shows I might be attending, so that I can collect rather than pay to have it delivered and I make sure my stock of eyes doesn't run out and keep the sizes and colours I like to use stocked up. Like Shelli, I tend to grab a handful of whatever thread colours might be useful when I'm in my local haberdashery, to keep my thread box stocked.
I plan my cash flow to accommodate new fabrics and components and although I don't keep a written inventory of my materials, I do keep spreadsheets for all financial aspects of the business to make sure that the business stays in profit.
