Kitchen Progress

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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

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!!

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