Anyway, back to the nub of this post - the completion of the Koala replacement project. (They can be found at www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com/Etsy Listing #55190188). When I left off last time, I was going to carry on the Koala production line while watching an evening of television. This took place, and the programme(s) were as good as hoped, so I relaxed as well as sewing another couple of the little bears. The fourth one was completed next day and I set about the next stage of construction.
This involves stuffing the two bits of each bear (head and bodies). For once, I did not make my usual mistake (stuffing the heads, before putting in the eyes!). It's so annoying to have to unstuff the heads, and then put in the eyes! Sometimes, I think I'll never learn. However, this time it was achieved satisfactorily, without having to take too much time making sure they were level. Some of my animals have ended up with their eyes not quite matching! Which then means one has to take them out and replace them, as the safety backing is so safe that it's almost impossible to correct matters with the original eye! As I make more toys, though, I'm discovering I can sometimes move the backing and re-use the whole thing. However, in order to guarantee the integrity of the toy, I feel it is normally best to go the whole way, and replace everything!
Anyway, this time around all four pairs went in first time around, and the stuffing duly went ahead. The limbs of the Koalas are quite small, so the stuffing has to be put into them first, using small pinches of the polyester fibre at a time - otherwise I find they can develop kinks where the limbs join the torso and the resulting bear does not look comfortably stuffed! It's a bit fiddly, but worth the effort.
They were all completed on Friday - the day the car episode occurred - and I was then unable to photograph the completed foursome, because I'd run out of batteries for my digital camera. Mine just eats the things - I do wonder if it is just my camera, or whether it is a general thing with these gizmos? Admittedly, mine is not as modern as all these things on the market at the moment, but on the whole I achieve reasonably good results and I'm normally quite happy with the final picture.
Here are two of the foursome, sitting on the arm of a bench outside one of my neighbours' bungalows. The other two are shown below:
The hydrangea bush they are hiding in is beginning to die on us, alas, but it has been a really beautiful pink this year. There's sufficient left, fortunately, to show off the little guys, though, isn't there? Looking at these photos, I do assure you, the eyes are level - it's just the way they've been photographed and they way they are sitting on the bench!
I've now almost completed the replacement Baby Rabbits (those sold at the Produce Sale in Heytesbury Church the week-end before last). The little Brown one (Etsy Listing #73079287) just needs a ribbon sewn on, and the White One (Etsy Listing #5503616) has just got to have his bob-tail and ears attached, as well as his ribbon, and the stock will be up to snuff once more. Once this post is complete, I'll be doing these finishing off items.
Talking about the Little White Baby Rabbits, the two that set off to New South Wales a couple of weeks ago arrived safely at the end of last week - and beat their intended Best Friend recipients, who have still to make their appearance! Am still waiting to hear about the safe arrival, in Saudi Arabia, of Panda Bear (Etsy Listing #55036116) - but he left the UK a couple of days after the White Rabbits, and he's had to negotiate all the timings involved with Ramadan and so on, so I'm expecting a message sometime later this week.
Right, that's it for this post. I'll end with a picture I took this afternoon with Ed Ted, Cy Bear - who will be posting again, soon, I promise - as well as Big Koala, whose Best Friend is Ed Ted's, and who arrived a week or so ago for renovation therapy in the Soft Toy Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185). He is in not too bad shape, but his stuffing is incredibly hard. I just cannot imagine what it is, but it certainly does not encourage cuddling. He also requires a new nose, ears and claws!
Until the next post - Goodnight and God Bless! Isobel
