Main item to announce is that Mr. Fox is actually completed - but has yet to have his final pictures taken, including the official one with me! No one becomes a member of the ColdhamCuddlies family these days unless I give them the once-over! Isobel may list them in the shop (www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com) but as far as I'm concerned they are not one of us until I'm involved too. After all, what is a mascot all about, eh?
Right: now to the matter of Mr. Fox's construction: Isobel forgot to mention (even though the pictures in the last post showed them) that once the body is made, she has to attach the arms and paws of Mr. Fox. In this case, the arms are made in a rather smart blue tweed material, with the plush fur at the end for his paws. They are stuffed and sewn in at the appropriate point on Mr. Fox's body. Then the waistcoat can be placed on the body.
After than, come his plus-fours. They are made in a cream linen type material, which feels velvety to the touch. In order to make the trousers stay in the plus-four shape, they have to be stuffed lightly with the same material used to stuff all of us - which meets all international safety standards. There's a picture of Mr. Fox at this stage coming up now!
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| Rear view of plus-fours, arms and paws in place |
Then comes the construction of Mr. Fox's boots. Isobel has a good selection of different leathers, obtained from a local glove-making factory which has been in business for over a century, and is based in our nearby town of Warminster, Wiltshire, England, UK. This time she chose a beige suede leather for Mr. Fox's boots which she says were a lot easier to sew than some of the other leather boots she has made for the Rabbits, Foxes and Coyotes in the shop. (How about visiting www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com to see what I mean?) Once sewn, she put some cardboard in the soles to help him stand up (not all of the toys are as good at it, when completed, as others!) and then the boots are tightly stuffed. Before being added to the legs, Isobel cuts out felt for the boot turnovers (this Mr. Fox's are blue, in tune with the overall colour-scheme) and then she attaches the boots to each leg using a ladder-stitch). Isobel makes sure that the join is secure - otherwise they don't stand up at all! Then the turnover is manipulated into place - and hey presto, Mr. Fox has boots. Think he looks rather smart, don't you?
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| Mr. Fox's boots seen from the front |
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