Valewood Bears Blog

2012-02-16T06:35:00.000-08:00

Hello, hope everyone had a nice Valentine day with plenty of romantic treats.

I don't have a lot of news at the moment, very pleased that all but one of my Valentine Bears found new homes in time for the day, I just have Elspeth left with me now which isn't a bad thing as she was my favorite and it will be nice to look at her for a little while longer.

I also have this new miniature bear finished "Fay" and listed her with Ebay this week, she is only 3 inches high standing, one of my anime design bears, and looks so sweet on the palm of your hand, fingers crossed she gets a nice new home to go to.

Well that's all for today, hope you enjoy the pictures of Elspeth and Fay, see you next time.

Pauline

VALENTINE DAY!

2012-01-30T09:20:00.000-08:00

Valentine Collection

Doesn't time fly by quickly, it not long since I was busy with the Christmas bears! With Valentine day approaching soon I thought I would show you my new Hearts and Flowers collection of bears and bunnies Elspeth and Romeo are the two traditional teds at the back, the two bunnies at the front are Rose and Jak and little Yara is the anime style in the middle.... I think she feels like the odd one out, just as well she is now on her way to meet her new Mum. I had a lovely time with the outfits as besides the bears, knitting and crochet are my favorite other hobbies and I think it fits right in with the bears. Elspeth (the girl at the back) and Jak (boy bunny) are still available for adoption from my website.

Pauline x

An Old Favorite

2012-01-18T04:24:00.000-08:00

An Old Favorite

Been playing around with my mohair stash this week and found a nice piece of smokey blue suitable for miniatures. I dug out my old favorite, an anime pattern I designed a couple of years back and it was perfect size for this cute little brother and sister. I called them Midge and Molly, both are apprx 3.5" high a bit of a challenge for my fingers and especially the tiny little collar and flower decorations. Very pleased with them and they are listed with Ebay this week, fingers crossed they get a nice new home, the starting bid is very reasonable. Next week I am hoping to have a little Valentine collection to show, all hearts and flowers, hope you will bob back to see them, a couple of my traditional teds in this collection and a bunny or two hopefully. See you next time.

Hugs..... Pauline xx

Happy Days!

2012-01-11T06:39:00.000-08:00

Happy Days!

Well it's a few weeks now since the decision to cut out the afternoon job and after a scary "what have I done" mood for a while I have settled into a nice routine and am much happier, I have yet to find out if it's the right choice financially and I may find I have to make slight cut backs in certain things I spend on for now, but I do have a lot more time on my hands to achieve the things I want to do.

Besides more time for bear making I have started back at sewing group in the village where I live, a nice get together treat with like minded people just one day a week and going to start Zumba one evening a week soon to make up for the lack of exersise I am now getting without my daily walks to the bus stop and back, it all adds up doesn't it. Also more time for cooking nice evening dinners instead of grabbing takeaways etc and so am sure we will be a much healthier household than before. Looking forward to the time I can get out into the garden to work a little when the weather gets better so more exersise and perhaps a little sit down in the sunshine with the bear making, will see!

I will leave you with a picture of my first bear of 2012, Lydia, as I now have more time I was able to give her lots of added detail such as an inset muzzle, white eye accents, little eyebrows and a cute little outfit, really enjoyed this one. She is listed with Ebay this week, fingers crossed she gets a nice new family.

See you next time
Pauline xx

Happy New Year!

2012-01-02T05:29:00.000-08:00

New Year!

Happy new year! Hope it's a good 2012 for everyone, peaceful, healthy and prosperous.

Well, it is a brand new start for me, moving into the new year as a full-time Bear Artist, I finally gave up my afternoon job which I did alongside of the bears for 4 years just before Christmas. It was only afternoons but I had to make time to get ready for work, travel to work, travel back from work etc amounted to a lot more hours than I liked. Feels a bit funny at the moment but hopefully I will have more time to concentrate on bears. Getting myself motivated into a working routine will be hard at first as I will still feel like I am on holiday for a while. I am sure it will be better and I will have more time to release all the ideas that I have in my head, as the time issue before gave me a lot of frustration.

On the bear front, I have started the year with a January sale on my website of bears and some bear clothes and also I have listed this little miniature elephant Sasha on Ebay. Hope you like her.

Pauline

Catching Up!

2011-07-25T04:27:00.000-07:00

Catching Up!

Just catching up on my blog news, not too much to tell really, still pacing myself with the bears as my thumbs do not get much better and never will. I have had Accupuncture sessions on them which have helped just a little and continue with the pain killers. With the bears, instead of just working on one bear at a time I have at least 6 on the go at once so that if I am having difficulty with hand sewing I can change jobs and perhaps do some stuffing for a while or work on faces etc, this does help the pain and the bonus is I usually have a few bears all done at the same time. It is frustrating though as I do love making my bears and hope I can continue. Still doing the afternoon job but have this week off on holiday but instead of going away we are doing some jobs in the house to get ready for putting on the market for sale, this seems to take us forever as when we are tired after work, the last thing we want to do is decorating etc.
Anyway, I will leave you with a picture of Spangle and Razzle who are listed on Ebay this week ..... click here to see auction

Hugs
Pauline xx

A Nice Break

2011-05-30T23:07:00.000-07:00

A Nice Break
We had a nice break in Suffolk last week visiting our Daughter. We stayed in a static caravan this time, the site was very relaxing with no facilities like swimming pools or entertainment, the only sounds we could hear besides other people coming and going were the birds and we could sit and look out at lots of rabbits hopping around but we usually stay in hotels and after a couple of days it sank in that we were not getting room service whilst we were out and so thought we had better start cleaning up a bit.

I have a bear fair looming in a couple of weeks so had to take some bears to sew up so it was just as well there was no entertainment on site, despite a few days out in the shopping malls and a few meals out in the evenings, I got quite a lot done and now just need to accessorize the bears ready to take to the show.

We would think about staying there again, we came home feeling a lot fitter than we usually do as we didn't seem to over eat like we do in hotels as really it was just like being at home, also our Daughter is a Dance Teacher and I joined in some of the early evening classes, besides all the kids classes, she runs 2 Zumba classes and 2 tap dancing classes for adults, I really enjoyed the Zumba.... hadn't tried it before and thinking of finding a class near home now to keep it up.

I haven't any holiday pictures from Suffolk to show as I didn't take any because we have been so many times to the area now but I will leave you with a picture of Chip, a miniature 3.5 inch commission bear just finished for a lovely lady.

Take care
Pauline

Machine's Galore

2011-05-17T02:29:00.000-07:00

Machines Galore

I just thought I would introduce my latest baby, who is taking a lot of my time up at the moment, it's a Singer 99K, really old but working beautifully, I have developed a real obsession with buying sewing machines of late, there are now 5 living with me and I don't have the room. I now have a Singer 201K (also vintage), an Elna Club Computer, a Bernina Virtuosa and a Bernette (the baby Bernina), now this new Singer 99K, I don't need all these machines and this will have to stop I know but I do have my eye on an old vintage Bernina (just like the one I used at school years ago) and I think I may now have to use the "one out, one in" method and part with one before getting this new Bernina so that I stick with 5 and no more! It is interesting just how different they all are. I should be making bears as I have a fair looming in 3 weeks time but I am playing at making curtains/cushions, taking up new jeans, making boot cut jeans into straight leg jeans etc. and enjoying seeing what the different feet will do. However, I do have some new bears finished and just waiting for their accessories.. must put the machine away for a while soon and finish the bears. Will show some pictures in just over a week's time hopefully.

Have a happy week
Pauline

Time Flys!

2011-02-11T00:26:00.000-08:00

Time Flys!

Don't quite know where the last few months have gone to! Can't believe it is February already, Christmas and New Year went by like a blink of the eye! Anyway, it is ages since I wrote a blog post but want to write more regularly now.

What have I been up to..... well we are wanting to have another go at moving house this year, we tried before but the housing market crashed whilst we had the house on the market and so we pulled out, that was 2 years ago, so we have been doing a lot of jobs around the inside during this winter to help it to sell, only the more things we do to make it nice the more I don't want to leave, if only one could put wheels on and move a house, that is what we would do because it is a different area we are wanting to go to which is nearer to my Daughter.

On the bear front, I was so pleased that Apple and Blossom won second prize in the British Bear Artist Awards in December. I have slowed down just a little on making bears lately, I have to pace myself because of Osteoarthritis in both thumb joints and a couple of fingers, diagnosed a couple of years back but has got increasingly worse just lately. I do however pick up the knitting in between as I can't sit with nothing to do, a few bear outfits here and there, a couple of cardigains for me (a long time since I did that). Anyway I will leave you now and be back with more news very soon. Hope you like the picture of Honey that was adopted a little while ago.

Hugs
Pauline xx

British Bear Artist Awards 2010

2010-09-25T02:34:00.000-07:00

British Bear Artist Awards 2010

I am delighted to share some good news this week. I am really happy to have been nominated finalist in the British Bear Artist Awards 2010 with Apple and Blossom. Seeing these two mohair colours together reminded me of apple blossom in spring time and I decided to make coordinating apple blossom bears. I had great fun creating them and making their outfits.

The next step is to take them to Brighton on the 13th December 2010 to be inspected by the judges and the results will be announced there. Fingers crossed that they will do well. The venue is the Brighton Race Course which will incorporate the British Bear Fair, it's a new venue for this fair as it used to be in Hove Town Hall. I have a feeling this will be a very popular fair and well worth putting it in your diaries.

Hugs
Pauline

Anyone for a Cuppa!!!

2010-09-15T01:38:00.000-07:00

Anyone for a Cuppa!!

I thought I would bob in and post a picture of my latest miniature bear, so enjoyed creating this little cutie. I am always on the look out for interesting bits and pieces for the bears and when I came across this little cup and saucer I knew exactly who was going to sit inside it. I already had some black and white mini bear fur that was waiting to be cut out, once the little guy was finished, I went around some craft shops until I came across the right size of matching ribbons for around his neck and also to decorate his little saucer with. I named him Cup-O-Ty and I have listed him with Ebay this week hope you can take a peep, there are lots of pictures on his auction.

I do have another two cup and saucer bears in the pipeline, but I have the Leeds bear fair coming up in a few weeks and in the process of a few vintage style bears for this, I managed to find some vintage velvet and vintage style mohair, will be having my first go at wobble neck joints which should be fun.

Have a good week
Hugs
Pauline

2010-09-07T02:38:00.000-07:00

A New Bear Design

It's been a very busy couple of months in our home, jobs in the house, garden and bears. I eventually have time to play about with new bear designs, do a little bit of much loved knitting and hopefully start on the jewellery making kit I got from Charlotte for Mother's Day back in March.

I just designed a new bear pattern, tweaking the last pattern I designed for a 4 inch bear and having a go at pattern slicing for the muzzle. I had a look in my fabric stash and found this lovely tan and cream long pile which I thought would be appropriate and with the tinge of Autumn that is in the air at the moment thought she needed a little wool dress. I am really pleased with how she turned out and want to make more sisters and brothers similar to her now. I called her Olga and she is listed with Ebay this week. I just realised I only have just over 4 weeks to my next bear fair so after my little play this week I will then have to push on with some bears or my stand will be empty.

Hugs
Pauline

Another Bear Creator in the Family!

2010-08-09T10:27:00.000-07:00

Another Bear Creator in the Family!

Its being a long time since I up-dated my blog, time flies by too quickly, and with a feel of Autumn around the corner now my mind is more on bear making and less on gardening and sitting in the sun although we have only had a few weeks hot weather it has been lovely.

There have also been a few changes with my family, my Daughter is back in the bear making world after a break of 2 years due to the demanding work she has been doing dancing and singing in shows every evening. She has now decided it's time change direction a little, she is still connected with dancing but is opening a little dance school in September and is going to be teaching instead of performing. This will give her time again to feed her passion for bear making as instead of rehearsals through the day time she will now make her little bears and teaching dance in the evenings and Saturdays.

I was thrilled to see this little bear she just has completed, the first in two years, I think he is megga cute, his name is Bon Bon and he is a tiny 3 inches high. Charlotte's little bears can be found for adoption on her new blog Bears By Charlotte, do pop over to have a look.

Hugs Pauline xx

Stratford Show

2010-06-15T01:56:00.000-07:00

Stratford Show

We had a very enjoyable few days away incorporating the Stratford Bear fair, setting off on the Wednesday before the show we drove down to Corton village, which is 3 miles from Lowestoft and around 9 miles from Great Yarmouth and a little further to Norwich. Our daughter is based in Corton at the moment so we stayed in a hotel near there and she joined us for days out in the area, we had a day in Lowestoft which is a small seaside place with docks, a nice beach and shopping area.

The weather was fantastic and we had a day in Norwich which is fantastic with a beautiful castle and cathedral to visit, the shopping centre is one of the best I have ever seen, and we were extra pleased to fall upon the Norwich Bear Shop, we spent quite a while in there as Charlotte is just as keen as me to talk bears, and as well as the usual manufactured bears I was pleased to see a good amount of artist bears in there too, I was espcially pleased to see Laurie Lou bears there, Laurie and I chat on line sometimes but havent met, if I had more time there I would have loved to arrange to meet up for a coffee, her bears are so cute and even cuter in the fur. There were also Bisson Bears, Blee Bears, Hoblins and many more.

On Saturday we said our goodbyes and drove from Corton up to Stratford where we stayed in a hotel not far from the fair, we had a lovely afternoon and night in Stratford, it's a gorgeous town, plenty of shops and spoilt for choice of places to eat. Sunday was the Stratford Bear Fair which was held in the Civic Hall, I have to say it was one of the best bear fairs I have ever exhibited at, a great party atmospere, lots of visitors came through the door and lots of bears found new homes. I spent the whole day chatting with visitors and artists. I hope to do this fair again next year and perhaps see a little more of the Stratford area.

Break

2010-05-26T23:31:00.000-07:00

Break

It's been a long time since my last blog up-date, doesn't life get busy sometime, didn't mean to stay away so long but I thought I would start my up-date with a few pics of our break in the Lake District last week. I can highly recommend this area to visit, we only had a long weekend but packed so much in that it seemed a lot longer. We stayed at the Shap Wells hotel in Penrith as a base, a lovely big hotel that is set well away from anywhere having it's own 1.5 mile drive, with fields and sheep walking all over, being May each had lambs and we had to stop many times driving down to the hotel as they meandered in front of the vehicle. The Hotel also has a red squirrel sanctuary so we took along a stash of nuts to feed them.

We visited Bowness where we went on a boat around the Lake and a steam train ride to take in the views, Keswick.. which is a lovely town and was our favorite. We also visited Coniston and took a ride on a Gondola around the Lake there. For shopping we went to Kendal, it isn't a big town but big enough to have a few of the usual chain shops and have a nice lunch and on the way home we stopped at Kirkby Lonsdale (another of my favorites) and Settle in the Yorkshire Dales before arriving home late Sunday night. I did take along some bear making to do but didn't mange to get any done as we were so busy and I got a little bit behind with my bears for the Stratford Bear Fair which is on the 6th June and am now sewing my fingers off to get ready for this event. Will post a few pics of the bears soon.

Pauline

Give Away

2010-04-13T01:44:00.000-07:00

Give Away

Hello, just wanted to let you know that Joanne from Desertmoutainbear is giving away this gorgeous little girl Ruth. Please pop over to have a look, besides being in with a chance to win Ruth, Joanne's interesting blog is such a treat to read.

Have fun

Pauline

A Good Fair

2010-03-29T01:51:00.000-07:00

A Good Fair

It was the Leeds Bear fair on Saturday and despite lack of exhibitors this time because of the economic climate, it was better than I expected, its funny because I usually don't do very well at this fair but have continued to support it as it is local to me. A lot of people came through the door, maybe because of some stands missing this time and the fact that we were more condensed in the one room is why I thought it was busier but a few times I was glad to have my Mum to help as I was chatting to people about the bears and getting a few into bags for collectors my Mum was at the other end of the stand attending to the people who wanted bear clothes. I did find that people were buying smaller less pricey bears but that is better than none at all.

I do enjoy this fair despite the lack of sales in the past,as I said it is local to me and because of this my Mum comes along and just being the two of us,we have a good girly chat and catch up without the hubby's chatting over us about sport and cars etc.

I did work hard for the display even taking the week off my afternoon job to work on bears so I still have quite a few left needing homes and will be putting them gradually onto the website and a few on Ebay over the next week or two. These are a few at the moment needing homes. Tozzi the larger panda is on my website at the moment and the two bunnies are Hoppy (brown one) and Nipsy (pink one) are both just about 4 inches are I have listed them onto Ebay for a week. Details of all and ebay links are on my website.

The next fair will be Stratford Artists Event and it isn't very long at all, lots of preparation for that one, it's new this time for me, a round table to contend with and to decide if to stay over the night before or not and if yes where. Best make a start on the planning I think.

Pauline

A New Craft!!!

2010-03-15T01:46:00.000-07:00

A New Craft!!

Hope everyone is well and had a nice weekend. I had my head down working on the bears for most of the weekend as it is the Leeds Bear Fair on the 27th March and it seems to have come around so quickly since the beginning of the year when I thought I had loads of time. I have booked a week off from my afternoon office job the week before so get a bit more time then.

I got a surprise in the post a few days back, a Mother's day present from my daughter, this craft kit of making jewelery! I do feel a bit daunted as I know I must find time to have a go as she will be asking. She knows I do love everything crafty and she teaches jewelery making where she works at Warner's Leisure Hotels through the day time in addition to her dancing/singing in the shows at night. Whilst were were visiting her last summer I sat in one of her lessons and made a pair of earrings under her supervision and was so thrilled she must have remembered and had supplies on her list for future gifts for me. I look forward to stealing a little time on my week off from the afternoon job next week to make a start, though I wish I had my Daughter here to help, I used to watch her a couple of years ago when she was at home and wish I had taken more interest then. But I am determined to make her proud of me and it is only fair as I taught her to make bears which she was at home which she took on with such eagerness and ended up selling them, I was proud of her but she just has not got the time just now for bears with the hours she works and constant rehearsals but I am sure it will still be there when she has the time to take it up again. Would'nt it be a boring life without crafts, nothing nicer and satisfying than creating something from scratch I think.

ps!! How do you make the text smaller, I went to edit post, change the font to normal, published and it is still the same...... large, oh isn't technology great!!!

Have a good week
Pauline

A Good Week

2010-02-15T00:35:00.000-08:00

A Good Week

Last week was a good one for me, the weather was a bit better than it has been for a few weeks, there was a couple of snow flurries but it did not last long and I can see the first signs of spring, snowdrops budding in the garden, holidays advertised everywhere, easter eggs and gifts in shops, it does make me feel better.

I seemed to have more energy last week and it was very productive as a result, I completed this little elephant Florrie who is listed on Ebay this week, also I have 5 new bears cut out and half sewn for the Leeds bear fair. I finished my lovely cardigain but just have beads to sew on before I take pics. I also have a few little bear cardigains that I had been on with for the Leeds fair finished, just need to add buttons and press. I also had time to join Facebook which I have been planning for the last 6 months!

So on Saturday I thought I had deserved a break and so we went for a drive to Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, one of our favorite places, really would love to live there when we get around to moving house. It was a nice drive, no ice on the roads for a change, we called at the local creamry which Hawes is famous for and bought some fancy cheeses, some with caramalised onions in and another was a nice cheddar with port, they also have some nice chutneys in bottles so we had a few of those too. We stayed there for a coffee in the creamry coffee shop. Then we walked down the high street shops and found a craft fair open, not many stands but the ones that were there had some nice quality items. On the way back we stopped off for early dinner near Skipton at the Craven Heifer Hotel which I can highly recommend, good homemade food and an extensive menu. It was very full being Valentine weekend but luckily we managed to find a table.

Anyway, back to work now, need to get a bit further with the bears for Leeds this week. Bye for now

Pauline

A Little Off Track

2010-01-31T23:11:00.000-08:00

A Little Off Track

The bears have taken a bit of a back seat since Christmas. Alan bought me this brilliant little book... Inspired to Knit by Michele Rose Orne for Christmas, I can highly recommend it. It's a long time since I knitted anything for myself as the bears have been very demanding over the last few years as not only do they want sewing, they beg for knitted and crochet outfits to keep them warm despite their fur!
Anyway, I was very inspired to knit and bought some lovely yarn just after Christmas in a nice cotton mix, I decided to give myself about an hour a day (inbetween work on the bears) for some me time to perhaps finish this lovely cardigain in time for late spring/early summer. However it somehow turned into more me time than I planned, I haven't been able to stop and am already on the last sleeve. It has been such a pleasure. I would like to go through the whole book and make everything but I won't start anything else until later in the year, as I have bears to make for the Leeds fair in March and a new batch of bear outfits that I have planned.
I did however finish little miniature Buddy who is listed on Ebay for a week to find his new family, his little hat is made from beautiful fine shetland yarn and finished off with a little heart button as it's nearly Valentines Day.

Hugs

Pauline

Back To Work

2010-01-18T02:50:00.000-08:00

Back to Work!

Well, a belated happy New Year to all. I have been a bit slow getting off the ground since Christmas, these two bears are the first ones I started and finished in the New Year, Sage and Onion are listed with Ebay at the moment looking for their new Mum or Dad.

I took a much needed break from the bears after Christmas as my Daughter came to stay for a week. She worked every day throughout Christmas, inbetween and the New Year entertaining holiday makers with her shows and was glad to come home to Mum for a well earned rest. So we had some nice together time with a few girly chats. The weather has been terrible and we were snowed in for most of the week so even more of an excuse to have a rest without feeling guilty.

Anyway, we are both back to our work now and I am busy with new bears for this year's shows, also fitting in some orders and bears for Ebay inbetween. I have an extra show in my diary for this year which is the Bear Artist Event in Stratford on the 6th June. It's a lovely area, we spent a lot of time there when my Daughter was at performing arts college near there and am looking forward to visiting again in June.

Well, the mohair is calling to be cut out, bye for now

Pauline

British Bear Artist Awards 2009

2009-12-17T02:38:00.000-08:00

British Bear Artist Awards 2009 Prize

I was delighted that Summer the bear was successful gained 2nd prize at the British Bear Artist Awards in category 3. We were very lucky because I left her BEHIND AT HOME!!! We traveled from Yorkshire by coach leaving our car at home in the drive as it is an oldish car and also Alan does not like to drive such a long way. I had a small holdall on my knee with the competition bears in. We had traveled around 50 miles and I was thinking I had best not squash them and began to think about where they were placed in the holdall. I could not for the life of me picture where summer was placed in that bag and worriedly unzipped it to look. As I suspected, she was not there and I realised I had left her in the glass cabinet at home. I had a check list too and had marked "Nominated bears" as packed, I think I spent so long packing up the "Daisy Days" one in 3 separate boxes I must have thought I had finished.

Oh I was so upset, we were way past Leeds and usually the coach goes straight to London after Leeds, my lovely hubby offered to get me to Brighton in the hotel and go all the way back home for her. I would not allow this and tearily accepted the fact that I would only have the two nominations. But low and behold, 20 minutes later, the Coach was pulling up at Wakefield coach station, not sure why, but Alan quickly jumped up and pulled me with him, we got off and asked the driver if we could have our big case from underneath as we had to go back home for something vital. The driver was really nice and gave us the case and left us stranded in the bus station.

We then decided to get the public transport bus back home as it was too far for a taxi. I had the idea to ring up my Mum who very kindly went to our house, got the bear from the cabinet and met us at the interchange, it took us over an hour to get there but better than having to go all the way home. We thankfully collected the bear from Mum and went to enquire about the next Coach. They said it would be around an hour and we would have to pay again, so we decided we might as well go by train as it would be faster. So this is what we did and as we we had not planned to travel by train didn't realise what a struggle it is to find space on them for a lot of luggage, the train was megga busy and also we had to battle with the tube station in London with all the luggage, the competion bears, all that we needed for a stand at the show (bears, bags, boxes etc) and our clothes for the weekend. We finally got to Hove at tea time and colapsed in the Hotel until next morning, the day of the awards.

I am so glad we went back, as this is the bear that picked up the 2nd prize!!!! We are laughing about it all now and we had such a lovely day at the Bear Fair it was all very much worth it in the end!

Pauline
xx

Great News!!

2009-11-16T01:40:00.000-08:00

Great News!!

I had some brilliant news a few days ago, I have 3 nominations in the British Bear Artist Awards 2009!!!! Summer is shortlisted in the medium dressed bear category, the little panda is Candy and is in the single miniature category and Daisy Days is in the miniature group category. I am now in the process of booking accommodation and travel for the awards ceremony on the 13th December at the British Bear Fair in Hove. I was really happy to receive nominations on all three of my entries, Summer and Candy were not planned but as (I thought) they turned out cute I thought they would make good entries. Daisy days was an idea I had in the summer and was planned for the event. The piece was a bit of a challenge as I had my first try at woodworking for the swing (which I won't be repeating in a hurry!) . The chains were part of a piece of old jewelery. The flowers on the grass and the ones which the bears are making daisy chains etc are made by myself from cold porcelean using my sugar craft skills. The ones around the swing are bought as they seemed to mold around the swing better, difficult to see the detail in the picture which makes me realise that I really need to get better at taking pictures as I am not good at all.

It seems a long way for me to get to Hove but I had such a lovely time last year and I didn't seem to see enough of Brighton and Hove, so we are going to make a nice weekend of it and try and see a little more this time, that's if the weather permits as you never can tell at that time of year!

Pauline
xx

Blog Award

2009-11-10T23:32:00.000-08:00

Thank you to Ruth of Flutter-By Bears for awarding me this little award. The game is to answer all the questions with one word, not easy but will see how it goes.

Rules :-
1. Use only 1 word answers.
2. Pass along to 6 of you favourite bloggers.
3. Tell them you've given them the award.
4. Have Fun !!

1. Where is your cell phone? Bag
2. Your hair? Long

3. Your mother? Kind
4. Your father? Amazing
5. Your favorite food? Puddings
6. Your dream last night? None
7. Your favorite drink? Juice
8. Your dream/goal? Move
9. What room are you in? Dining
10. Your hobby ? Bears

11. Your fear? Wasps
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Country
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. Something that you aren’t? Lazy
15. Muffins? Gorgeous
16. Wish list item? Boots
17. Where did you grow up? Yorkshire

18. Last thing you did? Breakfast
19. What are you wearing? Jeans
20. Your TV? Entertaining
21. Your pets? None

22. Friends? Sweet
23. Your life? Busy
24. Your mood? Happy
25. Missing someone? Daughter
26. Vehicle? Car
27. Something you’re not wearing? Coat
28. Your favorite store? M&S
29. Your favorite color? Black
30. When was the last time you laughed? Yesterday
31. Last time you cried? Yesterday
32. Your best friend? Husband
33. One place that I go to over and over? Work
34. One person who emails me regularly? Mum
35. Favorite place to eat? Home

The friends I would like to pass the award on to are: (please pop along to see their blogs)

Country Bears

Bumblebearies

Sophie Z'Ours Bears

Laurie Lou Bears

Pauline

A Nice Surprise

2009-10-25T05:03:00.000-07:00

A Nice Surprise

It's quite a while since I was in blog land, been so busy juggling.... bears, afternoon job, jobs on the house, catching up a bit now though and will blog a bit more now hopefully.

Leeds bear fair wasn't brilliant for me in the way of bear sales, only 3 bears found new homes but some managed to find homes after the fair so it wasn't too bad overall and I did enjoy the day meeting and chatting to people, stocking up on supplies for new bears, it's a lovely friendly fair and very interesting as it is half dolls too, so something for everyone.

I did have a very nice surprise last week, I was delighted to notice the bears and I had an article (portrait) in the Teddy Bear News which is a German on line magazine ... click here to see Valewood Bears Portrait
All but one of the bears on there have new homes now but it is nice to see them all again.

Anyway here are a couple of the bears that didn't find homes at Leeds, Laurence is 12 inches and is a lovely shade of creamy curly mohair, sporting a pure wool ribbed waistcoat in chocolate brown and Amber who is 9 inches and made from a lovely rich tan coloured mohair, I thought I would give her a little wool knitted dress in cream lace, which just seemed to suit her well. I have bobbed them onto the website for now whilst they find their new mums or dads.

Pauline

New Bears!!

2009-09-21T23:58:00.000-07:00

New Bears!!

At last some new bears finished!! I have been a bit busy with orders in the last month but have now managed to get these 4 bears onto the website. Lorna the little girl in the brown top has just been adopted. Spice is the one in the cream top and is 9 inches high, then the two pandas are Willow and Yan, they are both 12 inches high, there are more pictures on the website of them.

My first fair of the Autumn is coming up on the 10th October so I am busy making new faces to take there. Also busy knitting some new bear wear that will be for sale there as my stocks are low. I find knitting very theraputic and love to knit for an hour or so just before bedtime, its surprising I can get quite a lot done in that time, poor hubby has to listen to the click click of the needles and it usually puts him to sleep in the chair which is a shame as I can knit and talk and watch television at the same time, wouldn't be surprised if he pretends to be asleep to save his voice! Well, back to the bears for now.

Pauline

A Busy Time

2009-09-15T23:47:00.000-07:00

A Busy Time

I don't know where the time goes, we are almost into the Autumn already, I had my fingerless gloves on at work yesterday, doesn't seem to be any heating on there, it is a huge old building and we only moved there at the beginning of summer as we had outgrown the old place and with it being summer I didn't realise how cold it is is going to be in there Autumn/Winter. Hope they warm it up for us soon.

I have been so busy in the last couple of months, had a lot of bear orders to complete so haven't had a website up-date for a long time but at last I have some to put on by the weekend or early next week, just have to put accessories on them and photograph them.

Also, the website has been down, it has taken me a long time to get to the bottom of it, but it seems my host have had problems with customers who use front page extensions (which I do) as they have moved to new platforms (don't know what they mean) so now it is back BUT because I was out of action twice, Google search engine have got rid of my website and as most people use Google they can't find me so I had to get to the bottom of that too and it seems I now have to apply to Google to be reinstated and put some new tags on my site (getting into deep water now, for me anyway!!) So hope to be back on the search engine soon.

I do have this little bear called Sky to show, he was completed as a summer challenge on a forum, he is miniature at 3.5 inches. I am giving him away in a prize draw to one of my mailing list customers, will be drawing a name on the 1st October.

Take care
Pauline

A Break in Suffolk!

2009-08-17T01:28:00.000-07:00

A Break In Suffolk!

We just got back from a really nice break in Corton which is 3 miles from Lowestoft, 5 miles from Great Yarmouth. We stayed at the Warner's Leisure Hotel where my daughter, Charlotte works as a dancer/singer so we got to see some of the lovely shows that they entertain us with each evening. I was a very proud Mum!!

We arrived a day late though because when we set off in the car, we only travelled a few miles and the car started to make a strange knocking noise! We made a detour to the nearest quick fit who jacked the car up and told us it was a front wheel bearing that had gone and they couldn't fix it. We had to find a garage that could do it quickly so went back home and rang around until we found one that said yes he could do it immediately. Alan took the car and they said it would be an hour. However, when he returned to the garage, they explained to him that they hadn't got the part in and sent somebody out to get one. They couldn't get it until mid-week. So we had to leave the car in the garage and quickly hire a car for the next morning. I did look at trains but there were rail strikes around Norwich and we would have had to break the journey overnight so it would have taken longer.

Anyway we finally arrived a day late and enjoyed the rest of the holiday. The weather was fantastic, we didn't go sight seeing even though we planned to, we didn't realise just how exhausted we were and as the weather was so hot we just crashed out through the day in the gardens where they have nice areas for sitting out at the hotel. I did take my bear making to do whilst sitting but there was a wasp infestation in that area and so I had to keep watching for them with a piece of stiff card in my hand to waft them away so I needed my hands for that! Also there was a ladybird infestation and we were covered in them on our clothes. So no work was done that week. In the evenings we were not so lazy, there was quite a lot of dancing to the live band which we loved, the band was fantastic and played quite a variety of ballroom, latin, sequence, rock and roll, in fact something for everyone, we loved it and inbetween the dancing we watched the shows each night.

We are feeling nice and refreshed now, but will have to go back again soon as I did want to go into Norwich this time to have a look around and a few more little places around we missed. On my return I finished the little bear that I planned to sew on holiday and here she is, Grace is just 3.5 inches high, made from some of the lovely miniature bear fabric I had delivered a few weeks ago. She is listed with Ebay until Sunday, I really enjoyed making her.

Warm wishes

Pauline

A Break in the Yorkshire Dales

2009-07-13T03:12:00.000-07:00

A Break in the Yorkshire Dales!

Last week we had a much needed break from work and after doing a few jobs in the kitchen, which we have been renovating since March, we decided to down tools and have a few days in the Yorkshire Dales. I can highly recommend it for a relaxing holiday and a nice change from the seaside. We went quite high up, there was miles and miles of unspoilt countryside, a lot of the time we were the only ones on the road for miles, quite unusual in this day and age, perhaps it had something to do with us going mid-week.

We stayed at Hawes whch is our favorite place in Wensleydale, famous for the creamery where they make cheese, you can watch it being made and try out the different flavors before you buy. We stayed at Herriot's Hotel which was conveniently right on the High Street and used this as a base to see some lovely villages such as the market town of Leyburn, Pately Bridge, Kirky Lonsdale, Kendal, Ingleton and Settle.

As you can see from the picture with Alan on the walls are limestone everywhere (drystone), waterfalls, fields and hillside, very pretty, there are quite a few soap operas and films made in this area such as Emmerdale, James Herriot's "All Creatures Great and Small", Robin Hood and Calendar Girls. If you are feeling energetic there are some brilliant walks, caving also can be done as there are plenty in this area. We didn't join in with anything like this as we wanted a complete rest for a few days. We came home feeling so much better, Alan is back to the kitchen with a little bit more enthusiasm and I managed to get this little bunny Molly onto Ebay this week and cut a couple more bears out.

Hugs

Pauline

A New Bear!

2009-07-06T05:32:00.000-07:00

A New Miniature Bear!

It has been a lovely warm and sunny week, and has been a nice change to sit and sew in the garden, not much wind blowing either which can be annoying when trying to hang on to tiny pieces of miniature bear parts.

I am delighted to have just finished this little Panda, I have been on with him for a while now in between some commissions. His name is Kenji and he is just 3.5 inches high. He is one of my older designs, which I thought would look lovely in this gorgeous smokey gold and cream Sassy miniature fur. I managed to find some silk thread to match for his nose embroidery. Then had a lovely time knitting his little jacket in 1ply wool on tiny needles, I am pleased with how he turned out. I have listed him on Ebay until Sunday 12th July. I am hoping to have a few more miniatures soon as I received a lovely order of miniature bear fabrics last week and this week I have holiday from my afternoon office job so am hoping to fit in a little bit more bear time, although Alan my hubby is also off work and hankering after a few excursions so I will have to take some bear pieces along with me to sew.

Hope it's a good week for everyone

Hugs

Pauline

A Passion for Elephants!

2009-06-19T14:14:00.000-07:00

A Passion For Elephants

I can't stop making these little vintage style elephants and just thought I would bob them on to say hello. It is a new design for me and I am loving making them. The grey one, Eleena, blue one Ola and gold one is Effie and have all found forever homes. Kiki is the pink one and is on Ebay at the moment to look for her special Mum or Dad.

I have such a soft spot for real elephants too, I watch every nature programme on TV about them, they seem such gentle giants and are so sensitive, and they way they all rally round to look after the babies, it's just amazing to watch them.

Hope you enjoy the picturs of my little ones. I am having a change now though and am creating couple of pandas which are around 12 inches - quite large for me as I seem to make more of the smaller bears.

Have a good weekend

Pauline

A Haunted Weekend Craft Fair!

2009-06-02T02:31:00.000-07:00

A Haunted Weekend Craft Fair!

I did a two day craft show at the weekend, the weather was fabulous for both days, warm , sunny and cloud free. It was quite a large event with stands of every craft I can think of and was the second time I have exhibited there with the bears.

The venue is a big old house which is now a museum called Shibden Hall and has belonged to the Lister family for generations. Craft weekends are held there twice each year and the stands are all set out in the different rooms, downstairs, upstairs and outside in the courtyard, stables and barns etc. This time I was at the very top of the house in one of the bedrooms. Everything was still in place, the big old bed, wardrobe, dressing table and everything people would have used in the 1800s there. My table was set out just in front of the bed.

The house is known to be haunted and although we didn't actually see anything, a few funny things happened during the course of the weekend.

On arriving in the bedroom just before setting out my stand, I stood in a spot to look around and suddenly felt dizzy and as if I was on a ship which was moving - almost sea sick and mentioned it to my Mum and Husband who were a little concerned. I moved away and sat down for a bit, then felt better so set up my stand. During the day another stall holder came to see me, we were having a nice little chat, when she suddenly had to hold on to a banister saying she felt dizzy and sick and felt like she was on a ship. My Mum and I looked at each other in amazement as the lady was stood in the very same spot that I was in earlier when the same thing happened to me and she had said the same thing that I had. Then, a little later, a gentlman with his wife was about to come into the room and stopped in his tracks, said to his wife "sorry I can't go in there, there is a presence in the room" and he would meet her downstairs!! One or two other things similar happend and also I had a little grey bear that I kept having to look for, either he had fallen on the floor, fallen off his stand, I was constantly looking for him and putting him back in his place, sometimes he was in the most peculiar places and I just thought visitors were picking him up and putting him elsewhere.

Later in the day, a lady came into the room, told us she was a medium and that there were two children spirits in the room and they were loving a particular bear and she pointed to the little grey bear and said "have you noticed this one moving at all"? Also she said that the mother who was called Victoria was there, that she loved us being there and the bears but she was pacing around as there was a chair from the corner gone from where she sat (Mum had actually pulled that chair away to sit on) and if we felt any floor movement, draughts or cold spots it was her pacing. She went on her way then ane later a man and his wife came. As the wife was looking at the bears, he was having a look around the bedroom and Mum said there had been a few little happenings today, seems a little bit spooky in here. He said "yes I understand what you are saying, I am a practising medium and there are 2 children coming through here". I looked up and said " is the mother with them" he said "no I cannot feel the mother but definitely 2 children coming through". That was two people saying the same thing (seemed like it was Mediums' day out!! He he he). Aparently, the house always attracts a lot of visitors who are keen on the history of the house as well as looking at the craft stalls. It kept us amused I must say, it was a very interesting weekend.

Hope you enjoy the picturs of the house and grounds. If you are ever in Yorkshire it is well worth a visit.

Pauline

Blog Award

2009-05-31T23:54:00.000-07:00

Blog Award

Thank you to Ruth of Flutter-by Bears for passing this makes my heart smile award to me, it is very kind. I will make time this week to pass it on to 10 more people who's blogs make my heart smile.

Thank you again Ruth

Pauline

Kitchen Progress

2009-05-27T23:50:00.000-07:00

Kitchen Progress

Well we have progresses slightly with the kitchen, units are all in, worktops on, new oven and hob in and working, ceiling just needs one more coat of paint (I have promised Alan I will live with the ceiling for a little while and I'm trying not to look at it too much, need some new inset lights in there yet as the ones we have are white and they need to be silver)

We need to tile on the walls yet so it looks a bit bland and dirty, we have no flooring yet, this will be coming in a few weeks. Then the fun part for me will be making curtains/blinds, getting accessories and putting finishing touches on. I did expect to be finished by May but still have another month or so work. The new cooker I think looks nice but the performance is not as good as my last one. It's not as hot and takes forever to cook meat, my muffins are heavy, my Yorkshire puddings look done and rise well but are not done in the middle, either I just have to get used to it yet or there is something wrong like maybe too much heat coming out of the seal (just guessing here) or controls faulty.

Well, back to work, I have a fair at the weekend and have to get a few bears finished yet.

Pauline

A Kitchen Bargain

2009-05-11T00:49:00.000-07:00

A Kitchen Bargain

I can't believe we are still on with our kitchen. I really thought it would be completed by now but although the kitchen is all in we still have no floor (just floorboards and a bit of carpet at the other side, no tiling or decorating. The wooden ceiling is still in the process of being painted, will take pictures of where we are now later but I had to show off this bargain table I just bought. We did already have a table which was a huge oval pine one that seated about 8 or more but as we had an island built in the new kitchen, there was no room for it to come back in so I had to look for another. I wanted something similar but smaller and searched high and low to no avail for a month or more, went everywhere except one shop that I knew would be too expensive for us and avoided it.
After a month of searching I finally thought as I was passing the expensive shop and there was a 20% off sale for that day, I might as well have a look and torture myself. There are 3 floors of the most beautiful wooden furniture (all colours) so very well made but price tags way over what I was able to afford. THEN..... on the second floor there was a sign that said "end of line and seconds section upstairs". Up I scrambled and then.... my heart skipped a beat, there was an oval table, 4 seater that extended to 6 (no chairs) just as beautifully and solidly made as the ones downstairs, exactly what I was looking for. Hubby said "oh it definitely is the wrong colour, it's no good". I said "it won't be when you have finished with it dear". I looked at the price tag and it was half price (because the salesman said of a tiny scratch and also the colour was the deepest mahogany, almost black and dated... did I care!) and a further 30% off that day!! I didn't listen to hubby's whining voice, I just said "I will take it". I can see it in my minds eye painted white, just like all the shabby chic painted white furniture that is in the shops now and so up-to-date. It is after all hubbys fault for painting the wooden ceiling boards white to save the mess and cost of having it re-done or skimmed, as I mentioned before I had no intention of having a shabby chic style kitchen before he did this and all my plans changed, it might be a while before I get this table done as things are going slower than I'd like and I am using the table with a cover on at the moment, will post pictures of the finished table hopefully soon. Now I am looking for new chairs for it and hoping for a similar bargain.

Have a nice week
Pauline

Another DIY weekend and a Bear on Ebay

2009-04-26T23:21:00.000-07:00

DIY and a Bear

Hello, hope everyone had a good weekend. We have spent yet another weekend with the kitchen facelift. This time hubby painted white over the knotty wood pine ceiling that he put in 10 years ago and wich he was filled with pride in at the time. Now very dated but he was reluctant to take it down. The kitchen is white with black worktops with stainless steel cooker/hob and sink top, I had planned to add some bits of red for warmth and a black tiled floor (dramatic and up-to-date) but now the ceiling is white wooden pannelled it is all reminding me of Laura Ashley and now wondering if to go with that look and add some flowery bits and bats and curtains/blinds. Or do I dig my heels in and demand the ceiling removed, stick to my original plans but it will only cause more expense and upheaval as I suspect the ceiling would need re-doing or at least skimming, but there again, I have never been a fan of pastel/Laura Ashley prints and flowers. Oh decisions!!

On the bear front, I had a little bear on Ebay last week, called Kazu, that didn't find a Mum or Dad, despite a starting bid a lot less than he would have sold on my website for. I will add him to my website later this week and see what happens. I suppose times are hard and also Ebay is slow when the weather is warm which it has been. This week I decided to be brave and list Blossom, a pretty pink bunny for 99p with no reserve to see what happens, this has worked in the past quite well, but with the present economic climate it could be a flop. Blossom has been with me to a few Bear Fairs and hasn't gained a new Mum or Dad and I think now is the time for her to find her forever home. I am a little scared as since listing her last night she has watchers in double figures but not one bid, 99p and NOT ONE BID, heck it is almost free and no takers, oh well it is early days, the auction runs for a week, will be very interesting.

Take care all and have a good week

Pauline

DIY Madness

2009-04-17T01:21:00.000-07:00

DIY Madness

Hello, hope everyone had a nice Easter break. We took the time to do some jobs on the house, I think a lot of people choose Easter and the beginning of spring to sort out house jobs as the DIY shops were absolutely heaving, I have never seen them so busy, and I suppose with the "credit crunch" more people are choosing to improve their homes rather than move. We had a new kitchen installed last month, it is almost finished but we are now in the middle of new floor covering/decorating etc. There were a few mishaps with the company we bought the kitchen from, like they forgot to deliver one of the major work tops with the kitchen and had to re-oder for it and wanted to charge a further £30 for delivery, we thought it outgragous especially as it was their fault it was forgotton about but we didn't get anywhere with the arguement and hubby decided to pick it up himself. After 2 weeks it arrived and they rang us to say it had arrived, as it was 3 metre long hubby took along his saw to cut it to size in the car park so it would fit in the car, they only gave him the wrong one, a glossy one instead of matt and as it was dark in the car park he cut the wrong one in half. He got it home before he realised they had given him the wrong one, rang them up immediately and our one was still at the shop and he had cut sombody elses up and had to take it back and then had to repeat the cutting process with our own one. The other one was a special order for another customer so poor things will have to wait a few weeks for theirs! A few more things like this but I won't go into everything.

Anyway I haven't got much motivation for bear making at the moment as I am not comfy cosy in the house with all the DIY going on but I did manage to get little Saffron done and list her on Ebay last week, her listing runs out on Sunday http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=330321782793

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Pauline

Show Time!

2009-03-23T02:33:00.000-07:00

Show Time!

It's nearly time for my first show of the year, the Leeds Bear Fair is this Saturday 28th March, I am looking forward to it very much, I love this show, it always has a lovely atmosphere, it is quite local for me which is a huge bonus . Whilst I am excited it has been hectic in the last couple of weeks, I cut all the bears out ages ago but have only just put the finishing touches on them (with less than a week to go!!) and photographed them all. Here are a few pictures and there are some more to look at on the website Valewood Bears .

I have designed this cute little bear with needle felted details just recently and they are becoming quite popular. However, I do love my traditional design, which I make in 3 different sizes and it is nice to have something for everyone so I have quite a mixture to take along on Saturday, together with some lovely new bear outfits for the rail. Hope to see a few of you there, it's great to chat to collectors and other artist too. If not I hope you have time to pay them all a visit on the website.

Hugs
Pauline

A Week of Gremlins

2009-03-13T02:25:00.000-07:00

A Week of Gremlins

There is a saying that everything comes in 3s, it's usually true for me, this week though it seems it comes in 7s. It started with the cooker failing, it's funny but it has been working perfectly until this week, we are having a new kitchen in soon and I was thinking of putting the old cooker back in (it's a built in one) as it worked well, but as it is brown it crossed my mind that maybe it would look out of place with all the new silver things that will be going into the new kitchen and just wondered if to invest in a silver one, so I went to have a look at a few in a showroom, the next day my old cooker failed, it is as if it knew I had fallen out with it!!

The next day my fire in the dining room failed, will not light at all so waiting for service men coming out to it. I waited for the 3rd thing to fail and yes it happened. The car's clutch had been playing up a bit for a while, now it refuses to go up even the smallest hill so is booked in for a new one in a couple of days. I thought that would be it and said to hubby "oh well everything comes in 3s".

BUT, the next day, can't believe it, my kettle is leaking, my iron has failed and my hair tongs are flickering, sometimes working and sometimes not, also British Telecom came up the street to do a job for a neighbor and when they went away I noticed my house phone dead. I rang them from my mobile phone and they had to send somebody out to connect us again. It is Friday now and hopefully the gremlins have now gone to spend next week somewhere else, not that I would wish all this on anybody else.

In between the bad bits I did finish this pretty little girl who is on Ebay until Sunday, her name is Lola, just 5 inches, I am feeling like using brighter colours as spring is on the way!

2 New Bunnies

2009-03-06T13:35:00.001-08:00

New Bunnies

Yes I know it isn't Easter time yet, but I thought I would just bob these two little bunnies on to say hello!

Both have just been adopted, Lana at the top is 4" small, she has gone to live in Wales and 11" Alice at the bottom who has gone to live in Devon. I love making bunnies, I almost always have one or two on my stands at shows and most of the ones I make are vintage style and nearly always girls dressed in knitted lace dresses. Just cut another two out, hoping to get them finished for my first fair of the year at Leeds on the 28th of this month. I have a few bears finished now for the fair, they are just needing accessories. They may be popping on to say hello very soon. I'm also busy knitting for the fair, I always like to have a rail at the side of my stand with clothes for bears and have quite a few people who come back each time now looking for something new! I find it amusing and cute when people bring the bears along to try things on, its especially funny when boy bears get a dress tried on by his owner. I do have some really pretty dresses but they look awful on typical boy bears. Oh well, I'd best get a few more nice cardigans done and then there are plenty for the boys too. Back to work

Pauline

Demelza's New Life

2009-02-15T05:03:00.000-08:00

Demelza's New Life

Working as a Bear Artist gives me tremendous satisfaction as I complete each bear and they are all my favorites once completed until I finish the next one and then that one is my favorite for a while, but I have to admit I have a few all time favorites, who I sometimes wish I had kept for myself. Demelza was one of those bears, who graced the home page of my website for a long time after she had sold. However, what makes it easier to accept Demelza flying from the nest was to know she went to a lovely lady who treasures her as much as I did, in fact she has a much better and interesting life. Lucky Demelza went to live in Germany and has a very busy life with her new Mum Sonja who takes her on holidays and very kindly sends me up-dates and photographs, the last one was a riding holiday where she met the horses and was able to sit and watch her new Mum having lessons, you can just see her sat on the fence above one of the horses there! There is also a picture of her with her new friend who Demelza's Mum also adopted, dosen't she look happy. I am told that there are plans in preparation for a skiing holiday next month and her Mum is on the lookout for a little skiing outfit for Demelza. I do hope I get some pictures, what a lucky little bear.

Pauline

Tagged!!

2009-02-08T04:20:00.000-08:00

Tagged!

I was tagged by Ruth of Flutter Bye Bears . I have to say 6 random facts about me and tag 6 other people. Most people I see have been tagged already so I will just write the 6 random facts.

1. I have a driving license but haven't driven a car for about 10 years!.

2. When I was 6 years old I climbed out of the bedroom window to get a toy which I could see in the gutter that must have been dropped there by the children who lived there before us. The roof was slippy with rain and I fell into the garden on a rockery. I was taken to hospital but only had shock, no broken bones - the doctor was amused and said I must have floated down as I was so light and thin.

3. I eat dry bread, I hate butter, margerine, spread or mayo.

4. I have two's, I like things in two's and do things twice.

5. I learned my daughter to read as a baby (she is grown up now). I didn't work so had time and found a book called "Learn Your Baby to Read" that came with flash cards, you started them at 8 month. I didn't believe it would work but amazingly she could read before she could talk and fluently at 2 1/2.

6. When my family buy cereal they try to hide it as I mix it all together in a plastic carton to save space, it infuriates them having to eat a mixture of cornflakes, sugar puffs and rice crispies etc.

Have a nice day
Pauline

2009-01-23T01:57:00.000-08:00

A Blog Award

Thank you to Sue of Fenbeary Folk for sending me this award, she is one of my favorite friends in the bear world and her bears are just gorgeous. Pop around to see her Fenland Blog

" The authors say that blogs who receive this award are exceedingly charming . This blog invests in proximity in space , time and relationships . These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends .They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandisement . Our hope is that when the ribbons of these awards are cut , even more friendships will be propagated . Please give your kind attention to these writers !Deliver this award to 8 bloggers who will choose 8 more , and include this cleverly written text in to the body of the award . "

Now the game is for me to send this to 8 other people who I want to have an award.

Number one is

Vee of Bumblebearies, I visit her blog often and enjoy her posts so much, she always makes me leave smiling, and she is a really lovely person. A link to her blog is on my blog list to the right

Number 2 is

Ruth of Flutterbye Bears, she has one of the most interesting blogs I visit and also her bears are super cute. She is also a lovely lady. A link to her blog is on my blog list to the right

Number 3 is

Catherine of Bumpkin Bears, I love to visit her blog to see what she is up to next, such a talented lady. You can also visit her from my blog list on the right

Number 4 is

Ellen Borrgreve, she has such a creative blog and some gorgeous bears to look at. She can be found on my blog list on the right

Number 5 is

All Bear by Paula Carter, I love to visit her blog, very entertaining and she is very inspiring and a lovely person, she creates some wonderful bears too. You can also find her on my blog list on the right

Number 6 is

Bootbutton Bears. I like to visit her blog, besides seeing her gorgeous vintage style bears she gives a brilliant insight into life in Australia. Visit her by clicking on Bootbutton Bears on my blog list.

Number 7 is:

Country Bears, by Clare, a lovely lady who makes wonderful primitive bears and raggedy dolls. Find her also on my blog list to the right.

Number 8 is:

Aleta Sillybears, a very creative, beautiful and entertaining blog and her bears are to die for. Click on Aleta Sillybears on my blog list to visit her.

Happy New Year

2009-01-06T00:39:00.000-08:00

A Happy New Year!

Hello and a very happy 2009 to you all. My first bear to start the New Year is Gok, a tatty little panda bear. I had him in progress over the Christmas holiday, we went to the Suffolk area but I didn't get time to sew much. Anyway here he is and has now made it on to Ebay until Sunday evening.

I have just had a nice order of mohair fabric and in my excitement I cut 2 little rabbits out immediately, was in the middle of putting the pieces together and then stopped to cut out again, 2 bears this time. Then I later in the day I had another flash of inspiration which led to me having 2 rabbits and 5 bears cut out!! I normally only work on 2 at a time so it is a little daunting now to see all 7 of them placed in individual plastic bags waiting to be sewn up. So watch this space for some new little faces appearing soon.

Pauline

3rd Prize at BBAAs

2008-11-28T01:09:00.000-08:00

A Proud Moment - 3rd Prize for Loretta

I would like to share my special moment. I was so proud on Sunday at Hove that my Loretta came 3rd in the dressed bear category. All the entrants were outstanding creations so I feel especially honored to receive this award.

My other entry Mungo was also a finalist in the miniature section.

I have my thinking cap on for next year now, I think competitions could perhaps become addictive, I just have to find more hours in the day somehow to bring all of the ideas in my head to life!

Pauline

British Bear Artist Awards!!

2008-10-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

British Bear Artist Awards!!

Good news for me and the bears!!

I am so happy and proud as I just found out yesterday that I have 2 nominations in the British Bear Artist Awards for my bears - Mungo in category one (miniatures) and Loretta who is in the dressed bear category. The final judging will take place on the 23 November. How exciting!

Pauline

Where has summer gone!!

2008-09-14T23:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I must have blinked and missed it - I am talking about the summer, have we had one, we must have because it's September AGAIN. I can count on one hand the times we have mowed the lawn, got the garden chairs out, only to take them in again as soon as we sat down either because it was too cold or it rained after 10 minutes, hung the washing out in sunshine. I could go on!!

I have to say though that Autumn is lovely in its own way (of course it would be better if you had had a bit of sun through the summer!), I love the colours outside, love the cosy fire, the cuddly jumpers that I can hide my bigger bits under and the shops starting to get festive goodies in to buy. With Autumn approaching I have just completed my first Halloween bear. Ghostie was a commission for a special collector. I will miss him as I have a soft spot for him but I know he is going to a lovely home so it's on with the next bear now.

Enjoy the Autumn and lets home for an Indian Summer, if not a better one next year!

Pauline

A New Elephant

2008-08-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

A New Elephant

Hello, just thought I would pop on to show my new creation. Little Libby is the 3rd miniature elephant I have made. Apple Blossom was the first I made in spring and then Fleur, the second one was born. I tweaked the pattern a little each time and think I now have it how I wanted it to look and Libby is my favorite of them all. I knew she was going to be a girl before I started her. Most of my bears and animals are boys. I do try to make a few girls but sometimes when I dress them they look at me like thunder and demand the girls clothes off immediately. It's difficult with some bears though to decide what sex they are until you start to accessorise the bears, most times they only ask for a nice matching bow and other times - well I get carried away and one of my favorite parts of making the bear is finding the right accessory at the end. Libby has decided to go on to Ebay this week to look for a new Mum or Dad.

Pauline

New Design

2008-07-08T15:09:00.000-07:00

A New Bear Design
I have been busy for a while now improving my needle felting and wanted to incorporate it into my bears in some ways. I do love trying out new tecniques, some I never try again but with needle felting I wanted to persevere until I mastered it as I could see the potential detail I would be able to add to my bears. I finally came up with a bear design that I am very pleased with. These are the first two, with needle felted faces and feet detail. The khaki coloured one is called Corky and was adopted last week and is now living in Scotland and the little blue one is Bugsy, who is now on Ebay looking for a new home. There are more in the pipe line but I am awaiting a lovely mohair order arriving and can't wait to get started when it arrives.

Pauline

Fairs

2008-06-16T23:37:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would pop in post a bit of news of what I have been up to. Besides a little holiday in beautiful Scotland (a few pictures to see), I have been mega busy with fairs and craft fairs this year, I now have a break from fairs though until October and then it all starts again. They are so much fun and I get to meet loads of people. I quickly realised that the craft fairs do not result in the sale of many bears but they are a good opportunity to promote the work of a bear artist and hopefully gain new collectors in the future - or even a few new bear makers, so this has compensated for the lack of sales at the smaller craft fairs. I have started taking along small bits and pieces of hand made things to sell which pays for the stand. However, I have decided to cut down next year on how many I do as I haven't been able to make as many bears and will book maybe just 2 craft fairs nearer home and then still do the bear fairs but maybe not as many as I have this year. It is easy to sit and sew bears at the fairs I know but I always feel it rude to sit behind my stand and sew, I to chat as much as possible to anybody who comes to look and also chat to other exhibitors. But as much as I have enjoyed them I will enjoy the summer break from them and catch up on some new bear designs that have been ticking over in my head.

Warm wishes
Pauline

Spring Bears

2008-04-21T02:13:00.000-07:00

SPRING BEARS

Its a while since I last posted on my blog, I have been really busy with bear fairs and craft fairs and just had time to look around and I think, I hope, spring is here, daffodils in the garden is a sure sign and after making Apple Blossom my little pink and green elephant I seem to have continued with the spring theme in my bears. My latest creations are Blossom a miniature pink bunny, Meggi a delicate apple green 6 inch sweetie and Yoshi an 11 inch cream and smoky blue panda. It is fairly unusual for me to work with these bright colours, most of my bears are browns and creams and a lot of them aged. However, I am finding myself increasingly drawn to pretty bright colours at the moment, it must be with the cold and dreary winter we have had. Blossom bunny is on Bid4Bears

until Sunday. Meggi is on Ebay until Sunday and Yoshi the panda is available direct from my website (the link is on the top left of my Blog).

Warm Wishes
Pauline

A Lovely Break

2008-03-24T04:28:00.000-07:00

A Lovely Break

Just got back from a lovely break in Wales which I needed to recharge my waning batteries. My daughter Charlotte had a few days holiday to take before the end of March so we decided to meet up and take a break together and we stayed at Bodelwyddann Castle Hotel just outside Llanduddno. The weather was cold but sunny and dry and the castle had acres of land which was lovely to wander around, would be even better in the summer months. Being an historical castle there was a super museum to look around with most of the original rooms still furnished and paintings on the walls and the upstairs there was a play room set out with Victorian puzzles which visitors were encouraged to have a go at, we spent a good hour or so in there.

I took some bears to sew up but didn't get any done at all as there was so much to do in the castle during the day. There was regular dance classes, painting classes, archery, shuffleboard, beetle drives, quizzes, air rifle shooting, indoor bowls to name but a few. Also there was a leisure center with swimming pool, sauna, gym etc. You could also have beauty treatments in this building.

The evenings started with dinner, followed by early evening dancing, quiz and bingo...... followed by an amazing musical theater show by the entertainments team. After this there was dancing to the resident band music until the early hours. For those who wanted a quieter time there was another place to go where you could sit and have a drink and listen to the resident lounge entertainer who played the keyboard and sang.

Now back to work on the bears as I have a show at the end of the week and Charlotte has gone back to her job in Suffolk where she is an entertainer at the sister hotel to the one we stayed at.

Pauline

A new design for spring

2008-03-06T02:13:00.000-08:00

A New Design for Spring

The promise of oncoming spring in the air and a few green shoots popping up in the garden prompted me to dig out a piece of green mini bear fabric I have had stashed away for a few months. I designed a new baby elephant pattern a few weeks ago for a challenge on Teddy Talk and felt this was the ideal time to bring him/her to life. The outcome was Apple Blossom, she is just 4 inches high and I am really pleased with how she turned out. To my mind she was definitely a girl and told me she wanted to be dressed. I created the little dress specially for her, crocheted in very fine cotton yarn and finished it off with pink to match Apple Blossom’s inner ears and feet. I feel she may have some brothers or sisters soon but I have a few bears to finish for a forthcoming show at the end of the month.

New Year's Resolution!

2008-02-12T01:26:00.000-08:00

New Year's Resolution!

Well has everybody that made New Year resolutions stuck at them? I make the same one every year to cut out biscuits, sweets and cake only to find myself a week after with such a huge craving (it’s like a drug) that I cram more of those goodies into my stomach than I normally do to satisfy the week long craving. I seem to gain about 5 pounds in weight each year and it sticks around my middle for some reason.

This year I decided not to make the resolution and just to have the goodies when I feel like them but cut down on the amount and thought, instead I would do more exercise. I hate the sweaty, greasy gym equipment so my favourite way is to dance. I love to ballroom and Latin dance but have let it slide over the last few years so that just before Christmas I wasn’t doing any at all but I signed up for a new ballroom and Latin course this year in a bid to burn some calories AND…. Wait for it….. an Egyptian belly dancing course, oh my, the shimmying and waggling of the tummy doing this is, I am sure going to do the trick, I think I may lose so much weight that it won’t matter how many chocolate bars I eat a week. Honestly though it is so enjoyable, I can highly recommend it.

The belly dance class has just ladies of all ages and shapes, some wear belts full of dangly coins that tinkle as they shimmy. The ballroom class I attend with my hubby so he is getting exercise too, nobody gets too dressed up at this class just smart trousers or skirts but the place where we go just to social dance (without lessons) is very, very dressy, its usually on one Saturday night per month and the ballroom floor is huge, it ends up in 3 lanes as the better dancers move into the middle and centre for more room so it is like the motorway, slow and beginners around the edge, improvers in the middle and the inside with the professionals doing the quick step at about 40 miles per hour, it can get a bit dangerous if you don’t have much floor craft (we are not the centre ones by the way!!)

The funny thing is I am less tired with these classes, I can feel worn out in the evening and after a couple of hours at dance class I come out (at nearly bedtime) feeling less tired than I went and on such a high I don’t want to go to bed. I usually do an hour or so bear making to unwind before bed and the next morning, I am full of energy I seem to get more done through the day.

I don’t know if this will last or if I am going to be disappointed when I get on the scales, but I am sure whatever the outcome it is good for the body and such fun. Everyone should try it.

Pauline

I'm Neele Felting at Last!!!

2008-01-25T01:45:00.000-08:00

I'm Needle Felting at last!!!

Well, at last I think I am conquering the needle felting phobia…. I have longed to try but had this, big phobia going on for ages with the needles, I eventually took the plunge and got over it. The first try was just a hard round ball which I just discarded. The second try was this red bear head, not sure if I will treat him to a body and am thinking about this at the moment. The third try was to felt onto an already made bear’s face and this white bear is the result and I think I personally prefer this to making a bear from scratch. I didn’t find needle felting easy, I found it quite difficult to shape a bear’s head with a needle, sponge and bit of fluffy wool… amazing, and I am now in awe of the talented needle felt artists that make whole and beautiful creations. I am still in disbelief that I did not prick myself once …I did come very, very near… but I must admit I did use that needle very, very, very, very slowly ha ha, Charlotte had a bit of a laugh through this little challenge.

I do not love this technique but I am so glad I know how to do it now and I feel it will be a valuable addition to add to my bear making techniques for the future.

Warm wishes

Pauline

Needle Felting Mania

2008-01-09T01:44:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to All

Just a few pictures to start off 2008 with – Charlotte has still got the needle felting bug, she hasn’t made any mohair bears since getting started, I am amazed that she still has all her fingers intact she gets sooooo near with that needle!! I sometimes can’t take my eyes off the process and watch her pricking and shaping for hours with little bits of wool that looks like fluff and turns them into these cute bears. Chip, Nutmeg and Gretchen are the latest 3, I think they are getting prettier with each one.

I have had a little go and am still so scared of the needle that I cant use both hands so there isn’t much shaping getting done, I would like to master it and am trying to devise something long to hold the piece well away from my hand and then prick with the other, I tried with pliers but it was just squashing the piece out of shape (much to Charlotte’s amusement, she is trying so hard with me) – there must be a way, I will find one soon!! But in the meantime I am happy to carry on making my usual mohair bears.

Tagged!!!

2007-12-17T14:19:00.000-08:00

I have been tagged, by Marlys of Waggle Bears, never been tagged before but I will play I think. I have to tell 5 little known facts about myself and then tag 5 other favorite blogs that I like to visit.

So here goes:-

1. I have a full driver's license but have not driven a car for over 7 years. I do plan to get back into it at some point.

2. When I was a child, on my way to school I amused myself by running to a lamp post, walking
to a lamp post, running to a lamp post, walking to a lamp post all the way there and back. I did grow up to be normal.... honestly!!

3. I started tap dancing in my 40s, gained 3 gold bars and danced on stage in amature pantomines for quite a few years.

4. When my family buy boxes of cereals at the supermarket, they hate it when I mix them all together into the same storage container to save space!

5. In Autumn, Spring and Winter my house has to be kept at 25 degrees as I hate the cold..... I always know when it is under or if it is over I get too warm and I hate that too. I am ok in the summer.

Well that is the 5 little known facts about me and now I am going to tag the following 5 bloggers, these bloggers I don't think have been tagged lately and also I so love their bears.

1 Honeypot Bears

2 Scruffie Bears

3 Bears By Jodi

4. Lanie Bears

5. Wylde Thyme Bears

Now you all have to do the same. The rules are:

Share 5 random facts about yourself on your blog
Link to your tagger (that's me!) in your "random fact" post
Include these rules in your post
Tag 5 people by including both their names and links to their blogs in your post
Let those you've tagged know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog

Have a good day

Warm wishes
Pauline

More Fun At The Fair!

2007-11-20T13:09:00.000-08:00

Well Charlotte and I took a stand at a local craft fair last weekend, there has been a lot of discussions on Teddy Talk about promoting artist bears to people who do not know much about this craft. I printed out some awareness leaflets (an idea from Laura Lynn) to point out what an artist bear is, the price of mohair, type of joints and the finishing touches and handed these out to the public.

There were about 25 stands of different crafts and we were the only bear stand, we got such a lot of interest and surprisingly sold some bears, handed all the leaflets out and our business cards (you never know what comes from this) and had a fantastic day talking to everybody and the other exhibitors. Mind you, half way thorough the day my sister in law and her husband bobbed in to see us and whisked Charlotte of to a nearby pub for a swift half (I think that swift half turned into a few swift halfs) and I was left holding the fort. She did eventually come back and was walking straight so I forgave her.

We also got some leads for other similar craft stalls in our area and have booked up for a couple more, both for next month, we thought it a good idea as it was near to Christmas, the only trouble is for the second one we have to dress in Edwardian outfits, oh dear!! We are going to look sooooo comical, we are planning our outfits at the moment, we wonder whether to dress as Edwardian school children as we are both tiny (although I am not so tiny width ways!!) Anyway we are having fun looking at pictures of costumes and seeking out fabric. I will try and get some pictures on the day to put on here. Oh the exciting times our bear making brings to us!!

Warm wishes

Pauline

Friendly Challenge!

2007-10-31T02:21:00.000-07:00

Well, Charlotte and I read the other week about a few bear artists who completed a bear in one day from start to finish and as we cannot seem to manage more than 2 bears per week each we began to discuss how they might manage this. Charlotte is not an early riser and whilst she is home from contracts usually crawls down the stairs between 9.00 - 10.00 am. I hinted that the fast bear artists may probably get up at dawn and sew until midnight and that Charlotte would not ever be able to get up in time to complete a bear in one day.

Anyway, being girls that love a challenge she said she would prove that she could get up early AND complete a bear in one day. I work in an internet office in the afternoons for 4 hours and said to Charlotte “ok, if you could do that then I bet I could, if I pushed myself, make one bear in a day AND go to the office in the afternoon as I was usually out of bed at 7.00 am. We agreed to do this on the Friday and were allowed to get our materials ready the day before.

Friday morning arrived and I jumped out of bed and was cutting out at 7.00 am, not expecting to see Charlotte until 10.00 am but to my surprise at 7.30 am she padded down the stairs, had a quick breakfast and started to cut out her bear. We were both doing miniatures and hand sewing away. I had to stop and go to the office and we hadn’t gotten further than a couple of limbs sewn up, but these little bears need such small stitching and we are both always striving for perfection in our bear making. Anyway we were enjoying our friendly challenge and had a few laughs pinching each other’s pieces, hiding each other’s thread etc. We decided we wouldn’t go to bed until they were finished.

I came home from the office and Charlotte was way in front of me but still not at stuffing stage, I had a quick tea and was back to work. We were still sewing at 11.00 pm and as Charlotte had gotten up at least 2 hours earlier than she normally did she was yawning! My fingers were aching by that time and my eyes were also closing and as we did not want to spoil these little bears that were looking stunning already we agreed that we had failed our challenge and reluctantly put them down and went to bed. We are in awe of the people that can manage to make a bear in one day.

Anyway the next day we did manage to finish them and so glad we did not stay up and spoil them, we are so pleased with the result. Kiyoshi the panda (my little one) and Cloud (Charlotte’s little one) made their debut on Ebay Sunday night.

Fun of the Fair

2007-10-17T00:54:00.001-07:00

I had a great day at the Pudsey bear fair on Saturday. Some bears went to new homes and my knitted bear wear seemed popular again. There was a steady stream of people coming through for most of the day. The best part is getting to meet all these lovely people and chatting. I also really enjoyed chatting to all the other artists, some I had met before at other fairs and also met some artists that I hadn’t met before, there are such a lot of talented people out there.

I was lucky that I had a couple of helpers on the day, my Mum wanted a day out so she came along and my daughter, Charlotte is home for a while and came along too bringing a few of her miniature bears to sit on the table. This enabled me to leave somebody on the table whilst I went shopping, another highlight of the day. I fell in love with lots of bears but this little one from Lynne of Flossy Bears really stole my heart on the day so she came home with me. I also bought new mohair and other supplies to keep me going for a while.

The table next to me had Rita Harwood of Woodland Teddies and she was demonstrating needle felting. I had heard of this craft and seen some wonderful bears made from this but some of the stories I had heard about the sharp needles and punctured arteries had put me off looking into it further so I had not seen it done until I saw Rita demonstrating. It was fascinating so we bought one of her kits. I haven’t yet got around to having a go but Charlotte has been in a needle felting frenzy since Saturday, I haven’t seen her face much since, she has been huddled over a piece of sponge, pricking, pricking, pricking, first she made a ball, then a bear’s head, then a flower for one of her mini bears that she had just finished (picture here on the blog) and is now in the process of a full bear and she hasn’t pricked her finger or punctured any arteries yet. I am surprised at how quickly she has got into it. I am seriously planning to have a go really soon.

The next Pudsey fair is March but I am booked for a local craft fair next month to try and promote artist bears and I am so looking forward to it.

Going to get my hands into my new supplies now and cut out some bears.

Warm wishes

Pauline

Lemonade Bears Benefit

2007-09-18T11:22:00.000-07:00

21st September - 23rd September on Bid4Bears- Raising Money for Childhood Cancer

This year I am participating in this very worthy charity auction, the Lemonade Bears Benefit Lots of artists will be donating a beautiful bear each towards the appeal. The auction will run for 3 days from the 21st -23rd September and all proceeds will go straight to the appeal funds.

Here is Kai-Shi who is going to be my donation for the Lemonade Bears Benefit. Please pop along to Bid4Bears on the 21st -23rd to have a look at the auctions as there will be some great bears there.

Warm wishes

Pauline

Scruff Bear

2007-06-16T00:55:00.000-07:00

In one of my earlier posts "One Of Those Weeks" a little bear went wrong! I cast all his pieces aside and tried to forget about him. But I had some very helpful comments from Vee,Aleta and Laura Lynn to not throw him away, to finish him and either put a butterfly on his foot (where the hole was) or to make him into a tatty ted.

I felt guilty about him in the plastic bag in the cupboard and could not get on with anything else for thinking about him and his feelings, so last week I got out the pieces again and finished a little tatty ted called Scruff. Here he is and I have to say I adore him, will keep him and cherish him (thank you Aleta, Vee and Laura Lynn) and my mind is now free of guilt and ready to get on with new bears to sell!

Bear Clothes for Fair

2007-05-30T01:39:00.000-07:00

Just preparing for a bear fair which is next week and finished a few cardigans ready for all the bears to try on. Most of my stand will have bears that are on my web site hoping for new Mums and Dads but part of the stand will also have bear wear.

I am looking forward to a lovely day, meeting all the other artists and their bears and browsing around the suppliers for new mohair, glass eyes etc.

Then after the fair I am must try and work on some new designs that are in my head waiting to get out.

One Of Those Weeks!

2007-05-17T02:37:00.000-07:00

Well at the beginning of the week I had a great idea for a miniature bear and eagerly cut out my pieces, the mohair was a little thick for this size of bear. I usually use my turning forceps for miniature bears but could I find them amongst the messy drawers? No I didn't have a chance so rather than tidy up my drawers just then,I picked up one of my stuffing sticks, this would do for now... bad idea.... I carefully turned the little head, the arms , the tummy, first leg and then lo and behold, when I was turning the second leg - my last piece....

Oh no!!! The stick went through the foot pad and made a hole, can you see the picture with the stick through there. So this little bear sadly wont materialise now and has been put away in the drawer, with the mess (oh I don't throw anything much away, that's why my drawers are such a mess). Thankfully this (holes) does not happen often and I decide to spend the rest of the morning cleaning out the drawers, hurray found my forceps, pity it is too late for little brown bear! Never mind, we do have to learn from our mistakes!!

I have another idea and cut out a black bear, start to sew and whilst sewing have a better idea, so I put away black bear for now and cut out a pink bear, with great idea in my head start to sew enthusiastically. Half way through pink bear I get another idea, run to get more mohair out and cut out a panda. Now I have too many bears cut out and wonder which one to finish first, I walk from room to room thinking and then remember I have 4 little bear waistcoats that I knitted ready for my next bear fair on 9th June, but not sewn up and stuffed into a bag somewhere, and also there was the little bear dress that I finished which also needed sewing up to go with another idea I have for a bear. I decide to abandon the bears for a couple of days whilst my head clears and sew up the waistcoats and dress..... my mind will be clearer if I can finish a few things off.

Here are the finished waistcoats and dress!!

Now back to the bears with nice tidy drawers and two empty bags, I decide to pick up the panda and am hoping to finish him at the end of the week!

Warm wishes
Pauline

Last Week's Work

2007-04-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

Last week I designed a new dungaree set for bears for a customer for a 5" bear. These are the first two prototypes. When I start a new design I begin with a biggish one just to get the design. This was the darker one for a 9" bear. The cream one was second for a 6" bear and the 3rd - well that one has gone off to one happy customer for her 5" bear to wear. These two will go onto my web site at some point soon or to a bear fair with me.

I have only done 3 bear fairs so far and it amuses me to find that my stand sometimes becomes like Marks and Spencer fitting room for bears as people come along with bears from different stands to try on all the different clothes. It is difficult to have enough different sizes though to please every bear.

I love to knit or crochet late at night when I am too tired to work on bears but not tired enough to go to bed, I can sit with my knitting and watch television as I don't have to look which is good when I want to give my eyes a break and I am still creating something at the same time. I just hate getting so tired that I have to give in and go to bed as I feel it a waste of hours when I am asleep. It is amazing how many outfits I accumulate though in that bit of time.

I am constantly searching out new fine yarns for these little outfits. I like to make them from fine Pure Merino or Bottany Wool, maybe sometimes Silk or fine cotton or quality mix. Mohair bears are such a luxury it seems a shame to put them into anything less.

Oh well thats all for today, I am loving this blogging but back to work and cooking the dinner - just a thought, wouldn't it be good if we could just take a pill instead of cooking, eating and washing up, there would be even more time to craft ..... maybe not, food is so good and so comforting, would be a waste!!

Warm wishes
Pauline