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lovenshire Nov 4, 2009

I don't know what is the matter with me.  I had this bear all designed in my mind before I ever started drafting her pattern.  I bought the exace fur I wanted and gathered all my supplies.  Now, the problem!  Every time I log on here and see all the new bears I think, perhaps I should change the leg design.  Perhaps I should add a tail, perhaps the ears should be smaller, larger. Perhaps the bum should be larger...etc, etc, etc!
I wish I would just get her done and then worry about the next bear!  Any solutions????

Carlyle Bear Co. Nov 4, 2009

You should never compare yourself to others.  Just decide that your bear pattern is the best bear pattern that you can make at this point and go on from there.  When I first start making bears I would look at the magazines and do the same thing!  Then I realized that even all of those wonderful artists started at the same beginning I did and had uneven paw pads and crooked legs but it is all part of the process.  Most of all if you keep comparing yourself to other bear artists you will never be the best you can be.  If you are worrying about it then you can't be enjoying it and that is what it is all about right? 

So I don't look at the magazines quite as much as I used to but I do frequently admire the masterpieces here and hope one day that I am even half as good as any of the artists on here.  But I won't be if I worry about the end and not the journey.    This sounds awfully preachy.  Sorry, but I do know exactly how you feel when you doubt yourself. :hug:  :hug:

So get out those scissors and pins and CREATE!

Big Bear Hugs!!

lovenshire Nov 4, 2009

Well, it's not really messy paw pads or crooked seams...it's all about style.  Such as, I made my pattern with a bend in the back of the leg to give it shape...then after looking at it I thought, hummm, maybe I should have given her knees too!  She's a baby so I gave her a little bum and then I thought, hmmmmm, maybe I should have given her a big bum since I want her on her tummy...
Perhaps I should just stop looking at new bears until she is done!  Just stay with my original plan...

lapousmor Nov 4, 2009

I would say : follow the pattern you drew and then look at the result.
Then you can see what you can improve for your next bear according what you want to get.
You have to follow your own idea as I suppose you want your style to be unique and recognisable as yours.

Good luck!

Beary hugs,
Sophie.

lovenshire Nov 4, 2009

 

Yes I do and I suppose as long as I try to change mine to look like someone elses that won't happen.  I just, like you said, need to make her and then decide what I want to change on the next one.  I am going to try to stay away from the new bears until I get her done.

Us Bears Nov 4, 2009

If you want to make an omelet you must be willing to break some eggs.  ;)

It is good that you are open to all the creative options open to you as you design a Bear.  However, until you have an idea fixed in your mind you are not going to be able to create a good work of art.  It's kind of a vicious cycle.   But, during the creative process, there comes a time when you just have to make the call and begin cutting.  If you don't, you'll never make a Bear.

I suggest putting the project down for a day or two.  Do something else.  Take your mind off it completely.
After a short time, pick it up again.  Take a look at it.  Make your final decision on the design and start working.

If you don't you might never get finished.

eteddys Nov 4, 2009

Lenora,
Finish the bear you have designed.  Then, decide what to do with the pattern.   You may find that once your bear is complete, it's just the way you want it.  Or, you may say, I need a tweak here or there.  You make the adjustments and then make another bear.  Then you may decide oh, I would like another tweak here and there.  And so on, and so on.  When I make a pattern, it rarely stays the same.  I may have 2 or 3 arm designs that I can use with a particular body and head and then maybe I'll change the head to an inset muzzle.  Soon, the bag for that pattern is a mish mash of pieces that will all work together.   Everything is a work in progress, patterns always evolving.  That's what makes bear making fun.  Forage ahead with what you have started, then see where it will take you!
Hugs,
Alison

lovenshire Nov 5, 2009

 

Alison, I don't know what was wrong with me.  That is exactly the way I created all of my cloth dolls.  No two were ever the same because I would alter the pattern to suit my whim at the time.  Don't know why I didn't apply that to the bears.  Yes, I am just going with my original draft and then I'll see what I think of Babe...that's what I named the pattern!