Yes, it's me, Cy Bear back once more - delayed this time as the result of Isobel getting very busy on the sewing side of her life, and therefore not having the time to keep you updated (as much as she would like to) on the Clerical Bear developments - although they are coming along apace, and I'm hoping to be able to start that story next week, when she's got a bit further along the road.
However, we do have some lovely news to tell you - all about our Dressed Grey Wolf Ornamental Toy, ( https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/6079787797) - who has been looking for (and NOW FOUND!!) her Forever Home.
A week ago on Friday, we got an unexpected enquiry from a MsRT - who we discovered lived in Southport, Merseyside, England (not far from where Isobel and Peter used to live - well before I became a member of the Morrell/COLDHAMCUDDLIES Family - she was then "into quilt-making, I've discovered!). MsRT had come across this picture of our dressed Grey Wolf
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It apparently reminded her of her much loved canine friend "Dill",who had died a couple of years ago. She wondered if Isobel could make her one like the above photograph. We were able to surprised (and please MsRT) by saying that she was actually still looking for her Forever Home, and we'd be delighted to send her - if we could have her snail mail address, once the necessary usual procedures had been followed (a.k.a funds reaching our Bank Account!) To prove that Grey Wolf was indeed available, we sent an up to date photograph of her sitting on Isobel's new printer on the desk, beside the computer this post is being created on.
We received MsRT's order, together with her payment to our Etsy Shop account (COLDHAMCUDDLIES.etsy.com) that same day (a Friday- which often means that the next stages of the payment can take two Working Days to achieve). That did turn out to be the case, but Isobel promised to have Grey Wolf in the post to Southport the next time she was scheduled to be near our main local Post Office (late Wednesday morning, last week).
Just to remind everyone, if a Cuddly is in stock, and all usual channels have been travelled, they can be en route within one week of receipt of an order. If they're not, our process times are shown in each listing, and allow time for Isobel to make them for you, from scratch - as well as taking into account existing work in progress.
Meanwhile, to digress somewhat, a meeting of the St. Barnabas Cathedral Craft Group was convened on Monday 18th June - at which Isobel was able to show the members the fabric she had purchased from two fabric stalls in the City of Derby's Eagle Market - to be used for the Clerical Bears' cassocks. They were in the White and Maroon colours she wanted for two of the three cassock patterns she's planning to produce - having been given an old, unneeded Canon's cassock from Cathedral stocks to be recycled for the Black versions. (She spent two entire evenings unpicking the seams of that garment - not having realised just how much fabric and sewing goes into one of those important Church vestments!) Once all the unwanted linings, inserts, shoulder pads etc et al had been disposed of, the remaining black fabric was washed, and now awaits ironing, before being used for the Padre Bears being created.
(While buying the fabric, Isobel did show the Teddy Bear prototype to one of the Stallholders, who asked what Yellow Bear was called. When told he hadn't got a name, she promptly said he'd GOT to be "Father Ted Bear" - so that's what he is!!)
When the "draft"/prototype Yellow Bear was shown around before Sunday Mass the week after he'd been made - looking like this
those who met him were very complimentary, wishing the project every success - as well as Isobel being told that the Bear had bigger hips than most clerics have (by one of the regular Priests at the Cathedral! He's right, actually: they're not in the right spot on the Bear's body!). Isobel wasn't really happy with how this prototype-Bear turned out - his arms are not right, nor do they match the rest of the body, as we ran out of the scrap fabric we had used for this purpose, and indeed, we are now working with a different shape body, with legs that don't move - although we're hoping the arms will. (These will match the chosen colour fabric being used) if Isobel can find the smaller discs needed to make moving limbs for Toys exist (we'll know tomorrow after Isobel has gone to our haberdashery supplier in nearby Mansfield to find out, as well as see if she can also establish an on-going supply of the small buttons we need, in the three colours we're using. Each Bear will have 8 buttons on the front of each cassock!! FYI - a proper Priest's cassock has 33 - one for each year of Our Lord's Life on Earth). The discs we've used to date are too big for the pattern we're now following, and the black fabric we're starting with will wear very quickly using them. Isobel hopes a smaller disc will avoid that problem. Keep your fingers crossed, please! Otherwise, the future Bears will have one arm permanently raised (for a supposed blessing?)- which could be uncomfortable for them!
To return to Grey Wolf and her journey to her Forever Home: all went well, and she was duly packed up (as I described in our last post dated June 3, 2018) and posted to Southport last Wednesday. She arrived safely the next day, and Isobel was so pleased to hear that MsRT is even more delighted with her than she expected. This is part of which she said in her note telling us of Grey Wolf's arrival:
" " she" arrived today and is absolutely exquisite!, you have made her so beautifully, I love her, thank you so much, and for helping me to get " the one in the picture" as well, I'm sure I shall be back for more!"
She sent us a photo of Grey Wolf the evening after she arrived - when she was taken to Birkdale Beach (near to where she lives in Southport - where we guess she walks her current doggy friend - or maybe after visiting her Mother there, which she also told us about).
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She also included a photograph of "Dill", the canine friend I mentioned earlier, just to see if Isobel could see the resemblance between them that first caught her eye. We certainly can: and we wonder if you can too?
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Whilst we were delighted to learn that Grey Wolf arrived safely and well, Isobel did ask if we might have photos of "Lady Dill", as Isobel named her, in an indoor location too. Sure enough, the next evening, these two pictures arrived:
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End of story I think! I do love a happy ending, don't you?
See you next week, with the latest on the Clerical Bear front: and, meanwhile, have a good one EVERYBODY!
Your Friend,
Cy Bear.
