Getting back to normal - for a start: Treating Madame Lapin: Part I

What with the BESTeam feature for February and the unexpected Versatile Blog Award, I have not been able to concentrate on my normal posts for www.ColdhamCuddliescalling.blogspot.com as much as I have wanted to.  However, I can now do so:  but before doing so, thank you all who so kindly sent congrats on the latter!

Madame (Mme) Lapin, having returned from her "Before" imaging procedure at Outsphere UK & Ireland a couple of weeks ago. has spent the time since languishing in the Soft Toy Clinic (Etsy Listing # 79124185) in company with Mons. Reynard,  However, last week-end, her rejuvenation treatment began in earnest - beginning with a thorough attack by me with my "Quick un-Pic" so that I could remove her Kapok stuffing and clean up her clothing and plush fur fabrics.

Everything original, except the carrot, was kept for ongoing treatment

Thus, here we have all the components for her head, including her original glass eyes.  The body, for the most part did not need to be washed, as it had been well covered by her clothing.  The carrot, although useable, was discarded.  After over 30 years, I felt Mme deserved to have a fresh one to hold, in due course!

In this picture, you can see (from top to bottom) her skirt, pantaloons, top of dress and arms (with paws attached), her brown felt shoes, apron and the body prior to being unstuffed.  The brown shoes were in really good condition, so, once unstuffed and re-filled, they can be used again.

Having separated all useable parts, except for the body, everything spent the night soaking in cold water in the kitchen sink.  Last week-end the temperatures here in the UK were pretty icy, so that must have been a shock to the fabrics involved.  However, over the years, I've found a long, uninterrupted soak in cold water is a great way to begin removing surface dust and dirt, prior to the washing process.

Next morning, before breakfast, I removed each piece - one at a time - and using a washing up bowl with lukewarm water and a delicate soapy detergent added, I gently rubbed them to remove the remaining surface grime. The soapy water was an "interesting" shade of light brown when I had completed that delicate task!  Having carefully rinsed all the pieces, I gently pulled them into shape and hung them individually on an airer, which I then suspended over a convenient radiator.

Hanging up to dry!

The fabrics involved are all seemingly made of cotton or a washable, man-made material, so did not take that long to dry.  So later that day, when my latest batch of ironing had been finished, I set out  to to flatten and prepare each piece ready for the next stage - putting Madame Lapin all together again.

Ready to be sewn together again - different colour eh?

Decorative ric-rac  sewn on with  - what else? French knots!

While waiting for the items to dry, I had de-stuffed the body and replaced the kapok used 30 years or so ago with the more modern, and infinitely more tactile, polyester fibre that I use nowadays for creating all the Cuddlies forms. 

Then comes the really fun bit - re-making the original toy.  The pantaloons got some new lace edging; and the apron was decorated with a Christmas theme.   Because Mme Lapin originally was a Christmas present for my sister-in-law, IvyM, and she also is one of those less fortunate folks who also has a birthday very close to that festive date, I felt it was appropriate that Mme Lapin should now  reflect the Christmas seasonal colours in her new apparel.   ( Incidentally, Mons. Reynard was sent at the same time, destined originally to my nephew (and her son).  This was because both our daughters and a neice who lived - and still does - in Canada had already got their own versions,  and I didn't want him to feel left out.    However, somehow, Mummy got to keep him!  (Now, does that sound familiar to any of you folks, I wonder?) 

This post has now gone on long enough, so I'll continue with the Rejuvenation of Mme Lapin in my next post.  Good night for now ... God bless too!  Isobel.

Following on - and getting ready for Christmas!

During the last post I published ten days' ago - where does the time go, I wonder? - I made mention of the Christmas Bazaar held here in Heytesbury on December 10.  I mentioned that I had made 7 sales and that the toys who have left the ColdhamCuddlies family will need to be replaced - somehow, sometime!

Well, having written our annual round robin letter to our friends, in which we update folks on the Morrell family's activites during the current year, printed them off, written individual messages on both the letters and the cards into which the letters are inserted and addressed/stamped the envelopes, I've just come up for air and am ready to face the blogging scene one again.  So - as a follow on (implied in the title of this post), here is a photograph of the table of toys in the Parish Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Heytesbury - before the sale began.

Crib in the background, together with part of the pulpit showing a splendid carving

It was our luck to be placed there - right next door to a hot radiator (just to the left of the Golden Teddy Glove Puppet shown in this picture).  As it was  one of the first really cold days we've suffered this Winter, and believe me, English churches can be cold - even in high Summer - every time I began to get a little chilly, I just moved to my right and sat on the radiator!  LOVELY!

The local paper was invited and actually attended.  Several pictures were taken by the reporter, who also "interviewed" me, asking me about the Cuddlies - and showing particular interest in the concept of the Soft Toy Clinic and it's activities - I'd given him a card earlier in the morning!  The report has not yet appeared - but as The Warminster Journal seems to be about two week's behind in its reportage, I suspect if anything does appear,  it will be in an edition after Christmas.  If I feel it is a good story, I will include it in a future blog.  Even if it's only a brief mention, all publicity is good publicity - and a good ending for my first full year as Toymaker to the ColdhamCuddlies, and, hopefully, a good start for 2012 as well.

In the front of the table, you can just see the latest additions to the ColdhamCuddlies family:  a medley of Baby Bunnies, made in Pink, Purple, White and  Blue Fleece and decorated with a green holly leaf collar with a bright ribbon for use as a pram or cot toy.   This has been my latest project, which I've just completed having made four of each colour.  They will be listed in our shop after I've completed this post and although a little late for this Christmas, they can stay in the shop until next Christmas - or I can always change the collar and hanging ribbon for any colour that is requested.  (Hot off the Press:  Etsy Listing #89020911)

Two of the bunch (an all-Purple Baby Bunny and an all White Baby Bunny) have already left us - destined as a Welcome to the World present for a young man called Michael who arrived on December 13 - weighing in at 10 lbs! - which just happens to be Peter's birthday as well!  So no excuses on our part to forget this young man in future.  He was sent the Purple Baby Bunny, and his big sister was given the all White one - just so she could play with her little brother later on.

A Christmas ring of Baby Bunnies

Here, for your amusement are close-ups of the various Bunnies prior to joining their plush versions in the Baby Bunnies storage bag!  Their eyes are all made using Black Double Knitting yarn, and are also firmly sewn in, as well as being tied together and fixed into the individual toy's stuffing.  Little fingers should not be able to get them out, but if they do, they will probably collapse under the strain!

The remaining Purple Fleece Baby Bunnies.

Little Michael's present is similar (because I am quite incapable of making identical ones, however hard I try!) to the Bunny in the centre.

Here are the remaining White Baby Fleece Bunnies - the centre one's tail doesn't really show up!

These are like the one sent to Michael's Big Sister.

These are the Pink Baby Fleece Bunnies - choice of White fronts, or not, are up to the Buyer!

These are the Blue Fleece Baby Bunnies - their tails do show up!

All the Bunnies have furry white Bob Tails and do sit up if firmly placed on their respective surfaces - unless of course they are being hung up in a pram or the side of a cot.  They'd all also make ideal stocking stuffers, and I'm considering making them up - if they don't go before - as hanging mobiles in time for next Christmas!

Right - I'm now off to list them in our Etsy shop - www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.  See you all soon!  Isobel

Introducing Glove Puppets to the Cuddlies

The time has come for me to branch out a little - and that's thanks to Ed Ted's Best Friend, RFE.  After sending Ed Ted for treatment, and continuing to clear out the attic in his childhood home, he came across Big Koala (who was pictured with Cy Bear and Ed Ted appeared in our last post) and two glove puppets.

  Many of you may well be familiar with the television puppets Sooty and Sue (golden teddy bear glove puppets) who featured for a long time on Children's Television here in the UK during the 1970's and 1980's.  These two are Sooty and Sue look-alikes, having been hand made - probably by RFE's Mum or a friend of hers - to entertain  him when he was a little boy.  They were a little worse for wear, but not like Ed Ted and I've again been given a free hand as to how I treat them and what I do with them.  When complete, the intention is for both puppets and Big Koala (who still has to undergo his Clinic treatment) to be given away to a children's hospital for the patients there to play with.  The exact donor site has yet to be selected - but I'll keep you posted when a decision is made.

Big Koala, with his friend Ed Ted

So, to begin with, I took both the puppets to pieces.  The Sooty type has a really nice head, but was stuffed with lots of bits of wool, tightly packed together. They were not very clean looking, so have been discarded. Once in pieces, the Sooty head looks as though it will provide a really good template for a new puppet.

The Sue look-alike was a bit less impressive, her head was much smaller, her ears were badly crumpled, and the whole head was  a very hard feel. When I took her apart, I found the head to be made up of wood chippings, tightly packed together and shaped to provide a bear-type head.  Her eyes were small, perched on a thin piece of wire - there's a photo of head innards and eye coming up - and as I took them out of the stuffing, one eye came away in my fingers.   Very little force was needed to effect the separation! Tres dangereux!

Having got the heads off, I then attacked the bodies - or the bit where the hand goes in to operate the puppets.  Sooty's was a somewhat complicated piece of cloth which had been folded and stuffed into the wool.  Am not sure how it operated as successfully as it did - but I have decided to discard that piece as well as the body, as it seems to be more complicated than required to use in future.  This is how it looks:

The V-shaped darts are where the separate arms were sewn in.  Don't think my arthritic fingers would enjoy attempting to fit these into place, so am going to go with Sue's more straight-forward design, shown here:

To complete the Glove Puppet project, I've decided to actually use a combination of the two Bear puppets' patterns.  Sue's body and finger stall which fits into the head through the body - you can see where it should go in the centre of the  photo above;  the rest of the completed puppet will be taken from Sooty's profile.  A picture of all the bits can now be seen:

On the left of the photo, are the crown - with a plastic nose so tightly fitted that I cannot get it out, Sooty's hands and side of face, complete with his eyes - which again, I cannot move, there's Sue's head stuffing left in as a contrast (it's now in the garbage bin!), with the little eye and finger stall peering through.  The finger stall is made with cardboard, which has been shaped and glued together.  Sooty's black ears (in much better shape than Sue's brown ones) are being retained for the pattern template.  When made, I will be able to differentiate between the two puppets, because Sue's ears are made with brown plush and I'll embroider the facial features in black and brown yarn to match the respective toy.  When the templates are drawn, I will be discarding the original fabric pieces, as they are really too disreputable to use.

So the next stage is for me to press the pieces flat,  draw the templates on cardboard, as I have done with all the other recent toys I've made,  and cut them out and place them on the new golden plush fur fabric I just happen to have in stock.  There's enough for at least two puppets, and I may be able to get one more - it will depend on how they fit on the piece of material.


However, the really exciting thing about this whole glove puppet project is that when complete, I think the finished head will be similar in size to my Rabbits and Foxes already offered at www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.  I'm going to experiment with a head of each toy to see if my suspicions are correct.  If so I will  then be able to offer Bear Glove Puppets in future, as well as the other animal puppets as well.  With Christmas, Thanksgiving etc. coming up, think they should provide a good novelty or stocking stuffer item!  What think you?

A quick update - the Soft Toy Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185) - can now forge ahead.  Susan from Bear  Basics got back in touch yesterday (September 1), having re-opened her business after her summer vacation. She has been able to match Brr Bear's fur and the material has been ordered - and actually arrived here today!.  Alas, Tommy Teddy's matching has yet to be achieved, but I have decided to look for something in the fleece line - there are more pastel colours on offer in that area, I believe.

The little bear with a big burn on his cheek is called Rupert, and I'm meeting his Mum tomorrow to see if the swatch from Bear Basics is acceptable to her.  If it is, I will be ordering that at the beginning of next week, together with a selection of Growlers for placing in bears that have been known to talk.  Brr Bear is one of them, so by the time I've deconstructed  him, given him a wash and ironed him back into shape, I'll be able to place his new voice into his body when I come to re-stuff him.  Delivery date for him is  two week's hence!

So, I've got my work cut out - think Cy Bear will be posting the next few editions of the blog!  Meanwhile, I'm signing off.  Isobel