And Today's Creation....

MEET TREACLE

See he isn't all do for you naughtiness after all

In the lower pic he looks quite sweet

Yippeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!! Daft to be excited over creating a new bear I guess but I can't help it! This is Treacle if you hadn't guessed and he's the latest bear to wander out of the Cubby Hole. This little bear differs from my others because he's got sparkly eyes! I bought the fur for Treacle from Admiral Bears years ago and couldn't find a pattern to do it justice. Since my op I've been playing with and tweaking my patterns and thought I'd got it right for the fur at last! He has such lovely, lovely soft fur I could stroke him all day. I know I'm meant to be selling Treacle but at the minute it looks as though hes' going to be staying at home for a while, naughty as he is! Ooooooo I'm chuffed! Now I can't wait to start another bear!

And a Cheese-theif!

MEET CLAIRE PHILLY

Yes a mouse! I make mice or little cheese theives as they are known. I designed the pattern for them at a fair where I was bored ......less. In half an hour I was sewing Stilton who was to be my Stepdaughter Abby's birthday present and my first little mouse with a belled tail. She's mad on cheese which is why she got a mouse...we also knew that by belling the mouse we'd be belling her too, she'd carry it around and when she went to the fridge on a raid, well we'd hear her. Funny thing though, we always found Stilton and never his owner...hmmmm perhaps they really do have a life of their own!

Stilton was followed by Cheddar George and Roquefort. They were all boys, Claire Philly is the first girlie mouse I've done and I went all out feminine for her, altering the pattern and placements of everything. She made sure she was wearing plenty of pink ribbon in her ears and on her tail. That tail is wired...that tail is the reason my bearmaking came to a halt for a while, I had severe pins and needles in my thumb for a week after turning and completing that tail!

Hope you like her.

Finally New Bears!

MEET MUFFIN

Muffin has been waiting ages to have his photo shoot done and was feeling quite miffed that he wasn't getting anywhere to be shown off. Finally here he is, a close up to show just how nice his face really is and a wavy pic to show how podgy his paws are. I should have added to this sooner but it's been one thing after another...BIRTHDAY WEEKEND MAY 2ND and partying since then. Ahh the sloe gin floweth! I also had a bit of a break from making because my hands were killing me!

Sort of In Celebration of being Hirstute ~ Raspberry Truffle

Ahh a childhood hero, who at the tender age of eight most girls would never identify with! A stint in the hospital however without a razor in sight and everyone knows just how this guy feels! Strangely enough someone, perhaps a teen angel has taken pity upon him and her veet to his legs and arms! What a lucky little hairball he is.

Now with Captain Caveman in mind, and keep him there...can you see a resemblance?

Yep! Another little hairball. I know it's against the grain to make small, tubby bears out of mohair about a centimetre too long for them, but I love doing it. I'd never realized why the thrill of seeing tiny pudgy toes peeking through the long hair gave me such a kick when I'd made them. Then it all became clear as a bored son watched Captain Caveman on U-tube, it is a childhood dream revisited and who out there can say that they didn't have a soft spot for the little guy? Infact I thought given this I'd call this little bear Roxxie...so he'd sound a bit like Cavies side kick.

Then I took him to see Nicola in Ashbourne and she suggested Raspberry Truffle as a name for the little bear, because he's such a lovely chocolate brown beneath the shocking raspberry and white streaks. Had to agree, because as enamoured of Cavie as I was, I love my chocolate even more!

Oh and for those wondering (or not) This is the mohair I was going on about in my last blog and it's so soft and silky it doesn't feel like the regular stuff! Infact it's so nice, I've had the purple variation as well...but shhhhhhh....it's being smuggled into the stash!

No Minging Weather, Just Ming

Hello everyone out there in Blogland.

A Belated Happy Easter, it was a good one which makes a change and sunny! Oh so sunny in a land that sunshine had forgot! So that made the Nottingham Bear Fair just fantastic! We were meant to be doing a stall on it, but obviously after an op, it's not going to happen, so we went to visit instead because it's important to support you local bear fairs. Anyway it was a great day, there were plenty of people there that I knew to natter to, Sue of Fenbeary Folk, she'd got some lovely dumpy little pink bears on her stall, wearing the cutest cardigans, and as usual I talked her poor ears off! Nice to see her though, and nice to see her new designs! Jean and Pete of Jennibears, I couldn't resist her blue bear with the big thumbs, he's sitting now on my sideboard with Peardroplet, brandishing those thumbs at me.

We have a thumbsucker in our midst folks, oh yes! She's thirteen and hasn't broken the habbit yet! Doesn't matter what you tell her the dogs rolled in as that thumb goes to her mouth, she still sucks it. Doesn't matter what germs you inform her lurk beneath those finger nails, she's still there...protesting that the germs make the thumb taste better! We tell her it'll make her thumbs smaller, she reckons it reduces her chance of getting paddle thumb (enlarged thumbs) through her excessive texting habbit. She's got an answer for everything so it's probably a good job that her thumb is in her mush for most of the day...it keeps her out of trouble. Anyway, the thumbsuckie bear was bought in her honour...I mean a bear with thumbs, how can you resist?

Haven Bears had some great little teds with sleepy eyes and I wanted Walnut, but I had spent my money for bear rations away, otherwise that would have been thumbsuckie bear, podgy pink bear, AND Walnut in the first half of the fair!

Wandering up the way to the Pavillion at Patchings Art Centre, sort of promised no more of anything and fell foul of some gorgeous mohair! Oooooo it's to die for and I've nearly finished the bear Sue, so I'll show you what I've been up to! It was similar mohair to one that she made...that I wanted....

Want, want, want...note the mantra so far and think how annoying it is when you tell kids, want, want, want doesn't get! I hate it and I'm 36, no wonder they throw tantrums!

Up in the Pavillion there was Barbara Ann and she had some fabric that was to die for! Oooo all rainbow colours ready for more hippy bears and funky bunnys. Sew What and Stuff it, purveyors of all things purple and fluffy, I had a LONG worship at that stall too. Baggaley Bears were tucked in a tiny corner so I went and pounced poor Vicki because I'd spoken to her a couple of times on a forum...see what wierdo's you attract now? Her bears are just stunning, so tiny and with so much detail and she had the most adorable little lavender panda there, I could have eaten it! Fortunately there was carrot cake and so I didn't have to offend anyone...but that bear was divine! Vicki was busy sewing away and thankfully quite used to strange women who are talking one minute and then taken away by the moving pictures the next! (One of those digital photo frame jobbies...great idea!)

Anyway, here's what I was up to before Patchings.

Ruby Tuesday and The Stones!

My Aunt and Uncle have had a lousy time of things of late. I mean really lousy! It was their Ruby Wedding Anniversary, and so I made them Ruby. The stones were rose quartz, said to aid healing it is a gentle loving stone to aid recovery. Amethyst was sent for spiritual connections and these were refered to all week as "The Stones". Which is how come the bear got called Ruby Tuesday! I couldn't resist, and knowing my Uncle is a music buff, it had to be done. At this point I'd like to add that Ruby Tuesday is an awesome song, it's one of my favourites and given the choice between the Beatles and The Stones....there is no choice. I have every respect for John Lennon, but his mates....nah. Mick on the other hand...aww come on who isn't fascinated by a bloke who dances like a chicken?

Anyway, the bear had a teeny belly button, a sprinkling of glitter and a satchel to carry the Stones about in...and if you were wondering the stones weren't designated names, so it remains unknown as to whether or not the rose quartz is Kieth or Mick!

MING

I finished this chappie before I went into hospital. I had bought some years ago gorgeous chinese silk with gold dragons all over it in the hopes that someday I'd wear it as a dress. Nope, it made it's incarnation as a headboard in one of my make-over sessions! I had saved enough to make a bag...so I thought. No! It turned into bear paws, you can't see them here but they are divine saphire blue with gold dragons on them. I even made sure that the dragons on the left and right all were positioned so they looked as though they moved in that direction. (sad I know!) His eyes are hand painted with glitter and are two shades of blue and gold and quite stunning...and no, you can't see them either! But he is a lovely soft faux fur in french navy and soft white chinchilla, so he feels scrummy! He's soft and squishy too being filled with elastomer pellets and currently living on the sideboard because I can't bring myself to put him in his bear fair box. I can't wait until I can start to make bears this size again, I've made loads of little bears and bunnies and am ready to do something larger, stuffing it though is the problem, I don't have the shove behind me.

Anyway, for those wondering and at this point miraculously still awake (well done!) he's called Ming, not because I made him and thought Ewwww Minging! But because he has a tiny pointed beard and reminded me of Flash Gordon's arch nemisis Ming the Merciless. (OMG yes I was a fan!) Now many may think why name a cute fluffy ted after someone who was anything other than cute and fluffy. Well rumour has it...and I'll lean in here to whisper...at heart Ming was a big softy and besides being into fair ground rides, candy floss and collecting victorian valentine cards, he was nothing but the perfect gent to Dale Arden . So what if he destroyed galaxies, he had good reason. So what if Flash got in his way a couple of times and told everyone that Ming was a bully. He was a victim of bad publicity is what I say. I mean come on...look at that pootum, I'm sure his mummy loved him. (You'll note he is pushy too and has dominated the very top of the blog...just incase you were wondering!)

Incidentally, was it just me that got a huge kick out of a bloke called Buster Crab for all of the wrong reasons or did anyone else out there snigger too? I mean what a great name that was!

A Stitch In Time...or AWOL

It's taken me ages to decide how I was going to broach this subject and I'm still not sure, but it's about my recent lack of blogging.

Hmmm...

Blogging has been awkward for me on the principle that I've always believed good girls keep diaries...bad girls dont. I have never kept a diary! But I was enjoying blogging, and had got into the swing of blogging when...a miracle occured, then went nightmarishly wrong and I was taken into hospital for emergency major surgery. It didn't go according to plan, things weren't tickety boo with the surgery or with myself afterward. I think what I'm trying to say is blogging hasn't happened because a crappy time has been had by all and my heart has not been in it. (Not to mention that the op wound made it impossible to sit at the computer or to lift the lap top.) I was impressed with the internal stitching though, real impressed it stretches from hip to hip and it's sooo neat. I wish I'd had the presence of mind to ask the surgeon how that was done so I could apply it to my bear making! Ladder stitch would be a thing of the past...

Just be thankful there are no pictures!

Scrumpy Jack and the Charlie Bears

Well this is Scrumpy Jack, all ready to go with me and his apples to Rivington Barn on the 13th of march. This was a pattern that I've been working on for a good three years, they started life as squat little dumpling bears and then got stretched and tweaked until they looked like this! Great, but the amount of work that goes into them...phenomenal! Five hours on the sculpted toes and face alone, which I suppose serves me right for being so pernickety! But he's done and hopefully he'll be adopted too before too long.

I have to admit that I did him while I was watching the QVC programme on Charlie Bears, I don't ever watch QVC even though I'm addicted to Kirks Folly Jewellery, it's gorgeous, but to be honest the style of presentation bores me. Fifteen minutes to talk about one item, how much can you say about one thing? It seems to be loads... Only once before did I turn to this channel while I was at my Mums (another Kirks Folly addict) and we wound up watching Xena Warrior Princess inbetween the jewellry items. To be honest though here I was curious, I wanted to see just what those bears looked like from the new collection and have to admit, I like Diesel. Now I'll be shunned by the artist world for sure :(

But for a small company based in England to be making as big a splash in the bear world as Charlie and her husband have done, well it's got to be said, that's impressive.

The Phlox Guardian and Yet More Snow!!!

Well this is the last of the flowerbeary guardians for the moment, mainly because I've run out of pretty glass flowers . This little lady is the Phlox Guardian and her expression made me laugh so much I did something I rarely do...I left the quirky mouth alone! Oh no! Could this mean a slip in quality? Nah, I just like the uncertain way she looks, it was how I felt making her. One of those bears where you know the mohair is too long for the pattern but hell, you've sewn the legs so on with the show! You know you're going to have to trim more and more...you aren't sure about the colour and finally when you've made it you sit back and think...actually that bear makes me laugh. So blow it! If nobody wants her she can stay with me. I can honestly say though the trickiest thing about this bear was finding a pink coloured spring flower! Eeeeeekkkkk!!!! It's not easy, especially when all you can think of is Tulip, but that won't do because they aren't Tulips that she's holding! Out came the myriad of herbals and gardening books, and there was much thumbing until I found a variety of Phlox that was named Marjorie. It was a sign! Help was at hand! It has the same name as my late Nan, and the same do for you expression.

So onto the next bear! Looks as though I'll have plenty of time seeing as college was cancelled all week, bit tricky, I'd bought my flowers for the task at hand. I'm doing Floristry and while I love doing arrangements, coursages are not my favourite thing in the world....maybe because once upon a long ago, they were one of the things I had to make lots of...and if I manage to pass my qualifications I will have to make them again. But anyway, the snow, it's madness! How can a whole country grind to a halt over six inches of snow? I mean places like Canada have it worse and my friend Vera in the states was telling me that they have a snowplough go around over there! I had to laugh as the governement official tried to worm his way out of why London has literally stopped through it...his excuse? It was the wrong quantity of snow!

How inconsiderate of the British weather to put such a spanner in his works...isn't there a EU guideline to tell the clouds just how much to drop, what size flakes and what shape?

The upshot of this is it's been a great day. Kev got up really early while I was twisting and tormenting myself with gardening books and he made the kids a sleigh. Unfortunately the snow is too deep where we went for it to move very far so we are hoping it'll ice up a bit and then it should go like the clappers! Can't wait! We took our three little dogs with us. Bella and Bonnie the cavalier king charles girlies loved it, but came back covered in snowballs, the poor things had snow clinging to their legs, their tummies and their bottoms. As soon as we got in they made a beeline for the radiator and snugged down for a sleep. Tallulah my little rat dog, was in her element and didn't want to come in, but she was freezing, so we've changed her coat and look at her now in that very first picture...have you ever seen such a big smile? Now that's someone who has the right idea about how to deal with the snow bless her muddy little paw prints. Lmao...yeah...as you can see...not a lot of ironing done either!

First Rumblings

Blimmin Heck it's cold!!! I mean we have penguins knocing at the conservatory door and the snow is deep enough to bury my chihauhau jack russel cross. Now before you start thinking awww poor little dawgie, she's not, she's loving it, I have tunnels all over the garden where she's been.! We are quite lucky really because everyone in this house loves the snow and when it first settled all ten inches of it, we raced off to snowball fight on the local cricket pitch...and came back at half past ten in the evening...not responsible parenting considering it's a school day, but what the hell, they can go to bed on time any night, what they can't do is play in the snow...or be pelted with snowbombs by a mother who ought to know beter.

It's all ice today and so I've been sitting getting this blog going, so that I can show you these two new little bears...andof course there was a reason for all of the snow waffle. My little bears are guardians of spring, each of them clutching a delicate little glass flower in their armatured paws. Armature is something new for me and I will definately be using more of it! I just love thw way it gives them such posability! Both of these little guys I'm doing for the Rivington Barn fair, which I understand is the first fair that Katie Countrymice are doing and I'm off to stalk one of her bears! They are so cute!

In the mean time, here's the Snow Drop Guardian (little white plushy guy) And heres' the Primrose Guardian (Little chap with an orange nose) I hope you like them, it's taken me ages to chase them around the garden for their photo's. Oddly enough after I'd lifted the stone in the rockery that they were hiding under, they were easily persuaded to come into the warmth, and so they now sit, in the CubbyHole wth Faithful (the bear in the headr) drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies. The thing is if you look at the nose of the Primrose Guardian, it's rather orange and some of my baileys is missing...I think he'sbeen having a crafty tipple!