Turner Bear's Treatment - Part Two

Hello Everyone - Cy Bear being allowed to take over the story of Turner Bear's return to full, smart health.  In the interim, since Isobel took you up to and including his wash and dry-out, we've been joined by two Barn Owl Cuddlies.  One being a replacement for Ben Barn Owl  (who will be re-listed later) and the other being an order placed by a Family Friend from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - who will be on his way early this week.  Doubtless, their production process will form part of a future post - but in the meantime, let's get back to Turner Bear.

Once Isobel had collected all his pieces together from the clothes airer, it was a question of tacking them on to the new coat pieces.  When that part of the treatment was finished, they looked like this:

Each time we have a Bear in for treatment, Isobel seems to find a better way to put them back together again.  This time, she decided, once she had tacked all his old pieces on to the new ones, she would stuff the limbs from the bottom, as opposed to the top.  She also put in the joint discs too.  It worked out much easier this time around, and adding the new beige paw pads was easier this time around as well.  The next stage was to put in Turner's new eyes (his old ones had been buttons, rather than the more modern plastic safety backed ones now on the market).

Once these were in place, the old eyes were put into a plastic bag together with all the old cotter pin joints, and original ears (which were slightly smaller than his new ones and would have looked out of place if they had been attached to this new heard).  We keep all the old pieces to give back to our Patients' Forever Friends - in case they want to keep them.  In Turner's case, MrsJS decided to take them home with her, but didn't think she'd be keeping them for too long: probably, just so she could show them to her family.  

There's just one more picture to be included:  it's one of Turner's original paw pads.  In close-up, you can see just how small the seam was.  As Isobel said in our previous post, it's something of a miracle that he lasted as long as he did - and a tribute to the strength of the original mohair fabric with which he was made.  This paw pad was in some sort of felt material, which was much thicker than the felt now available.

Once the eyes were in, Isobel then proceeded to stuff each limb and once it was sewn up they were placed on his body.  The head went on first - and was quite a struggle to fit because the new material's pile did seem to be thicker than the neck joint's pillar length.  Eventually, Isobel succeeded and then it was relatively plain sailing until Turner looked like this.

As you can see - this is the first picture we've been able to take outside this year.  Isobel took advantage of some Spring sunshine, and took this and a few more just to celebrate - both the completion of Turner's treatment, and also the fact that the awfully long winter seems finally to be retreating and summer may not now be too long in its arrival.  

And just one more - one of our farewell photographs in which I like to be present.  Turner and I got to know each other quite well while he was with us - as he did seem to be unhappy with only one ear.  So, I tried to comfort him by having him sit next to me on Isobel's bed each day.

As Turner used to look without his ear

As he looked when he went home with his Forever Friend, MrsJS  last week.  It's been great knowing him, and I hope he'll enjoy life getting to know his Family.

Good night and good bye for the time being.  Cy Bear.

Turner Bear's Treatment - Part One

 Cy Bear and I are pleased to be able to tell you that Turner Bear has now been treated in our Soft Toy Restoration Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185) and was picked up to return home this afternoon.  MrsJS, his Forever Friend is very happy with end result.

First of all, we thought you'd like to know how he got his unusual name?  Well, Turner actually belonged to MrsJS's Mother and she had never allowed her daughter to play with him as most Bears get played with!  When Mother died, Turner arrived to stay with MrsJS, and by that time she still did not feel that close to him and he was just Bear, and lived for years in a drawer.  When MrsJS saw the finished version of Edward Bear ((How Edward Bear became a New Bear Part 1
 20.01.13 and Part 2 - 22.01.13, and Oops, Edward Bear Needs a Nose Job - 31.01.13)        ), she asked me to have a look at her Bear (I noticed he did not then have a name) to see if I could do anything for him.  He looked like this at the time:

As far as I was concerned, he was in pretty good condition - when one recalls the state of some of my previous Clinic Patients, so I did not foresee too many problems and was quite prepared to accept him as a patient.  However, I do like to be able to have a name by which the Patients can be distinguished between each other.  MrsJS was asked to put her thinking cap on.  The choice came two to between Llewellen Bear (her Mother's maiden name) or Turner Bear (MrsJS's maiden name). As I have a problem typing, let alone saying the former, we both decided on the latter!  So, Turner Bear he became when he joined us at the end of January this year.

Then came the search for as close a match as possible to his rather unusual Bear colouring.  Whilst pale yellow and gold bears are quite common as Patients, and Brown Bears of different shades and Silvery Brown Bears are to be found in our shop at www.Etsy.com/shop/coldhamcuddlies, Red Bears are not as frequently seen.  So the first step in our search was for Turner to lose his left ear, so that it could be sent away to my mohair fabric supplier - Mohair Bear Making Supplies of Telford, Shropshire. 

 (To ensure that Turner's Ear did not meet the same fate that Edward Bear's had, it was sent by Recorded Delivery - ensuring that a signature was collected at the other end of the journey!)

 

Turner Bear and Cy Bear - with the former minus an ear

While we waited with fingers crossed, I got on with Treating TW Bear making The Buchanan
Foxes (Etsy Listing #65456642) and the Snowy March Hares (Etsy Listing #125962011).  When the match came back, it was absolutely spot on - but I couldn't proceed without MrsJS' input.  We both are regular Zumba attendees so it can be convenient to exchange such details there.  On this occasion,  however, she visited us at my home.  I was given the go-ahead, and a couple of days after, the treatment began.

It turned out not to be as easy as has been the case with our other Bear Patients.  We worked out that Turner was likely to be over 100 years' old - if he'd been with his original Forever Friend since she was a baby.  Whoever made him used very, very tiny machine stitches and the seams were less than an eighth of an inch wide.  It is something of a miracle that he stayed in one piece as well as he did - even though he had obviously not been cuddled as much as some Bears can be.  I think the secret lies in the fact that the original tacking had been left in.

The purple tacking can be seen in place on the  back seam

Consequently, the unpicking process took me a whole 6 hours - but eventually we reached the point where all his pieces were ready to be immersed in a luke warm bath - to remove the dust and left-over stuffing.

Stuffing:  paw pieces and cotter pins used for Turner's head and limbs

L to R - Legs, fronts, head and 1 ear, arms and back pieces

The stuffing was actually somewhat different to that I've been used to dealing with.  While it felt like wood, it wasn't the chippings I've had to discard previously and held it's shape much better when parted from the fabric.  It also did not leave the material as dusty as the normal chippings do. So, Turner did not need an all night soak in the end, merely a quick soapy wash and rinse, after a couple of hours soaking in the luke warm water I find so useful in removing the superficial dust that lingers on these occasions.

After a bath, I don't wring out any Bear  (or any other old toy for that matter).  I put each piece on to a flat towel, and then roll the towel up very tightly.  Once the towel gets unfolded, most of the moisture has left the Bear pieces and they are ready to be hung up on my clothes airer (over night in Turner's case), and he was then ready for the next stage(s).  These will be unfolded in our next post - which Cy Bear is itching to undertake!

Until then, we leave you with the hope that everyone is well - and our thanks for continuing to view this blog in increasing numbers.  When I looked earlier today, we've got to 13,600+ which is wonderfully encouraging!  Good night - and God Bless.  Isobel

Attempting to re-start the posting process - here goes!

It seems a long, long time since I posted here - and yet it's only been two weeks!  However, in that time I've discovered a lot of things about computers that I never knew (nor wished to!), but have  I've now sussed how to upload pictures to Etsy, so there are two more Cuddlies in our shop at www.Etsy.com/shop.coldhamcuddlies.  Obeying the suggestions received via Tim Adams of Handmadeology Team on Etsy to then post the item to one's blog, I'm now going to try and do it there today and thus prove that I have indeed mastered the arcane route through Windows 8 and all.

 (To be fair to Tim:  he did suggest it should be done immediately after listing on Etsy - but frankly I was so exhausted by the effort needed to do the listing yesterday, that I decided today would be better late than never!)

Etsy Listing #59809283

Our latest Country Gentleman Fox is a Retro Collectable Chestnut Plush Furry Fox Toy, dressed in Hunting Pink - the latest version of a popular ColdhamCuddlies toy.  He's actually a re-listing of one of the original ColdhamCuddlies listed on Etsy in September 2010 - one version of whom found a Forever Home on the outskirts of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada early in 2012.

(He was purchased early by a lady from our village of Heytesbury for her daughter who still lives in British Columbia.  It later transpired, as these things do in subsequent conversations, that not only did she know where on Vancouver Island our home was at that time, but also that I worked for her father's accountant in Victoria, during our sojourn on the Island!!)

His body is made separately with calico and stuffed with polyester fibre which meets all international safety standards.  He has a waistcoat which is made with Red Felt, over a striped Brown and White waistcoat, which is not actually visible.  Like all our Collectable Toys, this Country Gentleman is not made to be undressed, and is ideally suitable for children aged 3 years upwards. His riding trousers are made with white felt and his boots are made from Black Suede Glove quality Leather, with self-colour tassles as a turnover at his calf.  His jacket is made with red felt.  He has a white felt stock round his neck and his head paws and tail are made with chestnut brown plush furry material  His tail is tipped with white plush furry material to distinguish him from the lady foxes.

This Country Gentleman Fox measures 17.5 inches (40.45 cms) from tip of ears to the sole of his boots, with a tail measuring 5 inches (10.03 cms).  He weighs approximately 250g and is stuffed with polyester fibrefill meeting all international safety standards.  This allows him to be treated as a Small Packet when travelling via the UK Royal Mail's standard parcel postal rate.

This Country Gentleman also has a companion - by name Beau Fox:  allow me to introduce him here:

Etsy Listing #128704624

O.A.A.K.Beau Fox, the latest in a line of ColdhamCuddlies Retro Collectable  Fox Toys, is made with Chestnut Plush fabric and  dressed in a Royal Blue Velvet Coat, trimmed at the wrist with light blue ric rac trimming.  He has blue tartan waistcoat, which can be glimpsed under the coat front, which is fastened with two silver gilt buttons.  His bushy tail has the white tip that all Gentleman Foxes grow up with.  His Apricot Felt trousers are made in the traditional riding habit estyle and are set off with Crimson Leather Boots with a self colour tassle turnover at the calf.  The leather is glove quality and very soft.  He has a white stock, decorated with a red emblem,  to set off the Royal Blue Velvet Coat. As a Collectable Toy, Beau cannot be undressed - but he makes a cuddly armful for children ideally aged 3 years and upwards.  He is not recommended for younger children because of the buttons on his coat, which might be vulnerable to prying little folks' fingers.   Previous incarnations of Mr. Fox have become Company Mascots.

(I've just remembered that one early Mr. Fox - dressed like our Country Gentleman (before ColdhamCuddlies became more than a hobby) sat on a bookcase in Peter's office.  He was a Father's Day present one year, as he admitted he'd always envied our daughters their Foxes in Edmonton, Alberta and became a conversation piece when visitors came for meetings!  Alas, he is no longer - having not survived our moves around the UK).

Beau measures 17.5 inches (40.45 cms) from the tip of his ears over his muzzle to the sole of his feet.  His tail is 5 inches long (10.03 cms and he weighs approximately 250 g.  This would allow him to travel as a standard Small Package via the Royal Mail International parcels system.  He is stuffed with polyester fibrefill meeting all international safety standards and has plastic brown eyes fixed with a safety backing.  His facial features have been applied with black double knitting yarn and his fluffy ears are lined with light fawn satin.

These Foxes usually take between 3-6 days to produce from pattern to final article, and Buyers should be aware that I no longer drive and am thus reliant on rural public transport in order to reach Royal Mail outlets capable of handling international packages.  This I do on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays of most weeks - so in cases where deadlines are a factor, please take this fact into consideration when placing your orders.

As is my custom here, I'll be doing a blow-by-blow description of each Fox's construction, in later posts, but just to end with - and to rejoice in my having achieved what I did begin to think an impossibility - here is a final picture of both gentlemen, sharing the limelight together.

It's good to be back - and here's to the next time:  soon.  God Bless.  Isobel