A Blog Anniversary - and the Cuddlies set off in a new direction.

Hello there Everyone:   I'm giving Cy Bear a well-earned rest.  He's been doing his bit supervising the selection of a lot of the Coldham Cuddlies Rabbits Family prior to their leaving their Burrow in the hope of finding their respective Adoptive Homes - using a new medium.  They're off to be part of a real live Shop Display.  

Here are the selection of Baby Bunnies that have been on offer since the Christmas Carnival Craft Bazaar at Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire on December 5th last year.  These, and some duplicates, are off tomorrow (together with two Girl Dressed Rabbits and the two Dressed Men Rabbits shown below.  (There are still some Baby Bunnies left in the Burrow, too)

and they are all accompanied by the four Fleece Rabbits shown below:

Making up the contingent is a Snowy March Hare (which can also be made up in the Plush fabric used for the Brown Rabbit shown here..

Just a few weeks ago, a new shop, called The Artful Buttoner, opened in Kirkby-in-Ashfield to supply the crafters of the Town and it's surrounding areas.  It turns out that Claire, the Proprietor, lives just around the corner from both Clare and I and not only is she offering the usual haberdashery items (yarns for embroidery and knitting, plus all the attendant supplies), but she wants to provide shelf-space to local Crafters who might like to exhibit and sell their wares too.  As the name implies, there are buttons galore to pick one's way through, as well as some beautiful buttonwork at which Claire herself excels.  There are also "Knit and Natter" Sessions on offer during the week, and Clare is already a regular attendee.
Naturally, Clare and I weren't slow in calling in (separately) to see what it was like. Clare (accompanied by Alan) beat me to it and was full of praise for the site, the friendly proprietor and her equally friendly assistant, and urged me to follow up on both their visit and my own burgeoning idea to see if I could possibly sell some Cuddlies in the Shop (after all the usual discounts or other business arrangements had been discussed).  
During my visit - where the Cuddlies were welcomed with very kind words - and with Easter rapidly approaching, I arranged to take in a selection of the Rabbits we have in our shop at www.Etsy.com/shop/COLDHAMCUDDLIES - and leave her to display them as and where she wanted.  Last week, I called in to warn them of our impending arrival, and this coming Monday (9th March), the Boys and Girls shown above are going to see how they might do in this new environment. 
The arrangement is for them (and others who will be substituted after Easter) to try the arrangement for a three- month period - after which, we shall see what happens next.  The business offer is most acceptable from my point of view - and it means I've got more space to put the new Boy Foxes,  Wolves and Rabbits that I'm in the process of replacing, making for the first time, and so on.
I'm not the first local Crafter to take advantage of the space on offer and  I've given the Ladies plenty to choose from - and the way Claire operates is that Crafters leave their handicraft with her, and she and Maggie, her assistant, move the goods around the Shop - so that when Customers come into the Shop, they never see the same thing twice.  One pays a very reasonable some for the privilege and Claire takes an equally reasonable percentage of every sale that results.  (This is the first time I've ventured into this selling arena, so am somewhat apprehensive of the outcome.  But nothing ventured, nothing won!)
Now, the anniversary mentioned in the title of this post is the Fourth Anniversary of the my first post here - which took place on March 11, 2011. (So, not an inappropriate time to be trying out something new in the promotion of the Coldham Cuddlies family)   Since then, we've received 31,665 page views, attracted 367 confirmed Blogger.com Followers - not to mention all the lovely folk who comment, on Google+, Etsy.com, Facebook and Twitter.  When tentatively beginning this experiment in 2011, I never dreamed it would get like this:  thanks to you, I still have the energy and motivation to carry on!  Cy Bear joins me - in his own inimitable way - in saying thank you too.

Right, I've now got to get on with the new Foxes and Wolves mentioned by Cy Bear in his last contribution.  One Fox is complete.  Because it has been sometime since I last made the Dressed Boys, the first one has taken longer than I thought it would - but the second one (a Wolf - just so I don't get bored!) is coming along well.  Two more to go, and then I shall have to make some more Boy Rabbits.  
Going through the Burrow today showed there are still got a selection of Girls on offer.  They are more fun to make, I have to say - largely because I've made a rod for my own back with the Boys: by going "off-pattern" and giving the coats their own lining (even though they aren't visible!) and making the boots from leather (rather than felt, as stipulated in the original patterns).  I just feel they aren't properly finished without those additions and above all, COLDHAMCUDDLIES do like to offer value for money!
Until the next post - thanks again for all your support.  We could NOT do this without you.  Isobel

Dressed Toy Production Line - Foxes and Wolves as a start

Hello Everyone: Cy Bear being allowed to chat with you once again.  Don't know how long this will last, but I'll take advantage of it every time it's offered! Here's a picture of part of the production line mentioned in our title today.

You can see three (out of four that have been cut out and stuffed) bodies for more Cuddlies.  Two of them will be Dressed Boy Foxes and the other two are destined to become Dressed Boy Wolves.   (It has been decided that in future our male toys are going to be referred to as Boys (as opposed to Gentlemen - Isobel is wondering if that is why they are not finding as many Forever Homes as our undressed Cuddlies do.  Likewise, our formerly Lady Dressed Cuddlies will be known as Girls - for precisely the same reason.)

That red speck you can see on the right hand Girl's body comes off the frayed edges of the fabric that has already been cut out for some of the Boys' clothes. (That's going to mean that all seams in the items sewn will have to be over sewn to ensure the integrity of the clothing). Isobel decided to see how she would cope with doing multiples of the Toys, and spent a good three hours yesterday sorting herself out. In the flat as we now have there's some sense to doing it this way:  because all the fabric is stashed away in two cupboards, down the corridor, near the front door.  So it saves time, energy and Isobel's legs to have all the selected fabrics in the living room (which then looks like another fabric store!).   She's just got another jacket to cut out, and all the leather boots, and then she can get going on the sewing.  These are all destined to replace Cuddlies who have found Forever Homes over recent weeks - either via the Etsy sales system or during the two Craft Sales we attended in November and December.    (There are 7 replacements in this batch - leaving another 9 to be made as quickly as possible thereafter - as Isobel does want to introduce some new Cuddlies this year if she can.  We've still got a couple of Tulsa-based Puppets to make yet, as you may recall:  the fabric for those is due to . arrive sometime this week.  All in all, Isobel is going to busy!)

These fabrics could end up as dresses for the Girls, who are likely to end up as two Foxes and One Wolf.  Our previous Wolves were made with faux fur and ended up looking a little out of balance - with heads and paws looking a bit big for their bodies.  Isobel has decided to see what they'll look like and is thinking of making them with this Silver Plush fabric - I think it looks rather nice: wonder what you think of it?

The Fox Plush pieces for the Boys have already been cut out and are piled up ready to be applied to the bodies and clothing piles.

The White plush showing at the top of the left pile is for the end of the the Boys brushes (tails to those of you unfamiliar with Foxes.  Boy Wolves for some reason don't have this differentiation from their Girl Friends).

The following pics show the other leather from which the Boys' boots could be made - the Girls have shoes made with felt, which allow their pantaloons to be fitted  more easily and look better under dresses.  (The decision has not yet been finalised - which is the way Isobel tends to work:  she often starts out with an idea in mind, and can change it as the Toy evolves.)

In case you're wondering, the blue-green leather will actually go very well with the jacket Isobel has already cut out for the fourth body.  All will be revealed in our next post! Before I leave though - an update on the fate of  the Hairy Bears.  The day after I told you last week that we were waiting to hear which one of them would be wending his way to Glendale, Missouri, MrsTB emailed us to say she would like Hairy Bear No11 to be sent to her (he was the one Isobel did make with MrsTB specifically in mind).  So on Tuesday he was duly wrapped up and mailed to her.    Just to remind you, this is what he looks like.

  So now, Hairy Bear No10 and I sit on Isobel's bed each day, while she decides exactly where to put him!

This picture of the two of us was taken before the Hairy Bears had been given their distinguishing ribbons.  They looked like this before No11 departed for the U.S.A.

Right folks:  that's it for this week's post - hopefully, when we meet again, there will be a few finished Foxes/Wolves/Boys and Girls to show you.  Until then - have a good week all of you. Your Friend - Cy Bear.