Baby Bunnies en route to Florida - in search of some sunshine.

Hello everyone - Cy Bear returning to the Blog for a session again.

Isobel is taking a rest from Hedgehogs for a bit (although I shall probably refer to some of the things she has been working on "behind the scenes" as it were).  However, she's been poorly over the past few weeks, and a couple of weeks ago was diagnosed with pleurisy.  Last week, "the Muse" as she likes to call her ability to create these posts - both on behalf of  herself  and me - was a bit low, which is why there was no bulletin from us.

This week, though, she's picked up somewhat, been able to finish some of  the Yellow and White Baby Easter Bunnies she'd been sewing as replacements to our bunch of  Baby Bunnies (of many colours) and actually parcel up two who have recently found Forever Homes in Jacksonville, Florida.

So, this is a photograph of the two White Plush Baby Bunnies we had in stock when MsDM contacted Isobel early in February.  When shown the photograph, she chose the one on the right, but

then asked if she could have one of the Yellow and White Plush Baby Bunnies too.  Apparently, these Baby Bunnies reminded her of the childhood in England, when she had a White Baby Bunny and her sister had a Yellow one.  

As all the Yellow Bunnies we had were already on display at "The Artful Buttoner",in Kirkby-in-Ashfield - where we live now,  and because Isobel is currently staying up the road with her Grandson and his family, she collected the fabrics to make some more, and this is the result so far:

A second all yellow one is currently being worked on, but as MsDM asked for a Yellow and White Chested Bunny - with either a Yellow or Green ribbon (with or without check or dots) - Isobel chose the Baby Bunny on the right of the above picture (as it looks most similar to the chosen White one) and proceeded to find what suitable ribbon she had in her stash.  

Most of the ribbons now in stock are too big - because of some new offerings Isobel is working on - but she was able to find some suitable self-colour yellow ribbon, which she promptly sewed on to the Baby Bunny bound for Florida.

The two travellers are now safely, individually wrapped in chemical free tissue paper, ready for their journey to Jacksonville - scheduled to start on 14th March.  They've then both been wrapped together in bubble wrap and slipped into a polythene airmail envelope.  All that remains to be done is for the Customs label to be filled in, and the journey paid for - and both Baby Bunnies will be on their way to their Forever Homes.

The Hedgehog story is in limbo at present, until Isobel is back home and able to organise herself once again.  In the meantime though, there have been two Petitions to Parliament which could well have a bearing on the future of the UK Hedgehog population.  Both have been signed by Isobel - on behalf of herself and us Coldham Cuddlies.  One seeks to save a special Wildlife Police Unit from being closed down for lack of funds, and has been successful in persuading the current UK Government to find sufficient funds to allow the Unit to operate until 2020.

The second petition is still on going and aims to get Protection for the UK Hedgehog population in an effort to halt their decline.  It has been proposed by Oliver Colville, MP - who is the Member of Parliament behind the move to get the Hedgehog made the Official UK Animal.

The exact wording of the petition is as follows:-

Give the hedgehog better legal protection in order to reverse its decline.

The petition of the residents of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland declares that the British hedgehog population has declined by up to a third over the last 10 years.The petitioners therefore urge the House of Commons to endorse the practical supporting measures of 'Hedgehog Street' and ensure the hedgehog is given better legal protection including adding it to Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act by the Government and in particular the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

So far, the petition has attracted 25,238 signatures.  The procedure in the UK for petitions is that all with more than 10,000 signatures have to receive an official response from Government, and 29 days are allowed for that to happen.  It has been proposed by Oliver Colville, MP - who is the Member of Parliament behind the move to get the Hedgehog made the Official UK Animal. 

The countdown for the Government response  is still in progress. 

 In case you are interested,  you can learn more about "Hedgehog Street" and the work being carried out by the British Hedgehog Preservation Society by clicking on this link  http://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/.  The Press Office there were most helpful and encouraging to Isobel when she started the Coldham Cuddlies Hedgehog fund raising efforts, and we'd like to help them too, where we can.

So that's all from me for this week:  do hope everyone is well and it's been good to be back "chatting" with you again.

Your Friend:  Cy Bear.

PS:  If there are some strange "squares" and things on this blog when published, it's because of the technical difficulties experienced in "copying and pasting" the petition text from the Government site to this blog.  One day, maybe, Isobel will get the hang of it and be able to present these things without strange things happening in the process!

The Tiggywinkles Story - Part 2

Hello Everyone, once again - from my temporary base away from my flat.

Allow me to introduce one of the residents at Tiggywinkles on the day daughter Philippa and I were visiting St Tiggywinkles Hedgehog Hospital in December 2015.  How come the "St .Tiggywinkles" I hear folks mutter!  Well apparently, in the early days of the Hospital, some journalists decided that as many human hospitals in the UK (in the  Greater London Area for example, we have a St. George's, a St Helier, and St Mary's), it was felt to be only right that a Hospital for Hedgehogs, performing such good work for wildlife in general and the Hedgehogs in particular, deserved to be similarly designated! Thus it came to be.... and continues to be.

 An unimpressed Hedgehog, who had been rudely awakened so that it could be displayed to us visiting humans - on a cold, very blustery December morning:  when it had been warmly tucked up in a wooden house stuffed with dry straw.  The staff member performing the introduction was unsure if it was one called "Lavender" or another one:  it didn't stay around long enough for the introductions to be completed - once replaced on the ground!

Last week, I wrote about my visit to this centrepiece of the Tiggywinkles Wildlife Trust located at Haddenham, in the Vale of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire based not too far from - and within easy reach of  - London.  (Rail and road communications are good and once Haddenham Station is reached by train, there are taxis available to take one to the site.)  Philippa's home is just 30 minutes drive, so although it was cold, and very windy, that day, it was not difficult for us to access by car.

This is the extensive play area available for visitors' use in the Gardens surrounding the Visitor Centre.

The building on the right is the newly opened Red Kite Centre about which I wrote briefly last week.  The Wildlife Hospital is pretty central to the area designated by the Government when the Red Kite was officially reintroduced to the UK in the 1990's, after having been extinct for many decades.  From the initial introductions, Red Kites have now become a familiar sight when one drives into London along the M40 Motorway and it's great fun watching the smaller birds testing their flying abilities and coasting along on the thermals - especially during windy conditions.  In the picture you can see the specially built aviaries for these beautiful bird patients (in the background between the fencing and the back of the Centre, which also houses a Coffee Shop for visitors to use).

Next door to the Red Kite Centre, along the designated Visitors path way, and opposite the Pond

(another view of the Pond can be seen in last week's bulletin, by the way), is a series of aviaries reserved for avian patients who arrive for treatment, where they can recover (or live, as in the case of the two ravens we saw during our visit) from their injuries.  There were two in situ when Philippa and I visited, but only one who was not camera shy!

Further along the trail around the Tiggywinkle's Gardens, we came across this notice - and since we have several Foxes present in the Coldham Cuddlies Family of Toys (a visit to this section of our Shop illustrates this - https://www.etsy.com/shop/COLDHAMCUDDLIES?section_id=7940400&ref=shopsection_leftnav_3)  - I thought I'd include the following Fox-related shots I managed to take during our visit.

Just behind this notice, you can see the roof of a wooden shelter, which we subsequently learned is where the Foxes come to get their daily rations.  It's located in a fairly large area, dedicated to the Fox Patients who are either permanent residents at Tiggywinkles, or are currently waiting to be returned to the wild.

The rear of a male fox, who had eyed our arrival with deep suspicion for some time, but eventually decided to go about his daily business.

There are several buildings around a fairly substantial ground area where we assumed other Foxes were at rest or sheltering from the nasty conditions at the time.

A general view of the Fox Den, with buildings in what appeared to be an area reserved for injured Deer in the background on the left of the photograph. 

 I've still some more photographs I took during my Christmastime visit in 2015 - which will be located throughout elsewhere in this blog. However, visitors to my Toy Shop on Etsy.com, and those of you who follow the Coldham Cuddlies  on Facebook and elsewhere, will also be aware, we are also supporting another Hedgehog Hospital in the West Midlands of the United Kingdom.   I intend to write something about West Midlands Hedgehog Rescue next week, and am hoping to be able to use some photographs provided by the Proprietor of the establishment too.

As our journey around the Gardens at Tiggywinkles drew to a close, it was obvious that not all of the residents at Tiggywinkles can be described as "wild" or "patients":  a view we came to when we saw this very healthy lop-eared Rabbit, who was sharing a space with several Hedgehog houses (with hibernating residents inside,presumably).

Rabbit's Hutch can be seen in the background of this particular pen, together with a substantial pipe - for shelter during the day and play, one would assume.

I'll end this episode of the Tiggywinkles Story and the Coldham Cuddlies connection here.

In the interim, although away from home, I am still managing to keep abreast of Shop related administration and such like.  Finally, I managed this week to re-tag and re-label all the 87 currently listed Cuddlies available for sale (that's taken some doing, I can tell you!).  Really find it quite a task, especially as I'm still not really sure what I am doing (or even supposed to do!!).  To correct the latter deficiency, I'm this week starting a 4 week course offered by one of the Teams I've recently joined -

https://www.etsy.com/teams/13191/a-need-to-succeed.   - and hope, by the end of the course, to have a better idea of what is supposed to be going on.  Partnered by Team Captain, https://www.etsy.com/people/cynhumphrey who is kindly taking me under her wing, by the end of the course, I hope to have a better idea of how to proceed!  After recently celebrating 5 years on Etsy, it's time I really got down to it and worked at increasing sales of the Cuddlies, methinks!

When I'm not working on the SEO Course, I shall be continuing with my Baby Rabbit replacement programme.  Four new Yellow and White Baby Rabbits - https://www.etsy.com/listing/249743397  are about to be renewed and I'm set to do four more Pink and White versions next (https://www.etsy.com/listing/166947912).  One is already promised to a little Girl, who was adopted at the same time as my young Grandson.  Like my youngster - she is about to conclude the long-winded adoption process early in April.  The day that their names are changed by deed poll to become part of their new family - the Celebration Day - has been set for dates, one after the other,  in the first week of April. As the two youngster live close to each other, we're hoping to keep up the friendships already begun.

See you next week.  Hope everyone has a good one!

Isobel



(Thanks are expressed to Tiggywinkles Wildlife Trust for permission to use these photographs to illustrate this post - and the subsequent follow-ups.)

The Tiggywinkles Story - Part One.

Hello again Everyone.  Good to be back again with you.  It's time for me to begin telling you all more about the fund raising efforts that the Coldham Cuddlies and I have been involved with for some time, and I hope you'll find the story full of fun and information.

Ever since the beginning of October 2015, I've been mentioning my interest in Coldham Cuddlies and I trying to do something to try to halt the decline of the UK Hedgehog population.  With the three Coldham Cuddlies Hedgehog Toys (shown later), I've been attempting to build a fund-raising campaign to try to help those who are much better placed to do so in a "hands-on" capacity. and have chosen two UK Hedgehog Hospitals to support.    They are West Midlands Hedgehog Rescue and Tiggywinkles Wildlife Trust.  It's the latter that I'm going to tell you about in today's post - as well as maybe a couple more as well.

Starting in 1978, using their back garden as the operations base, Les, Sue and Colin Stocker began what has now become the busiest wildlife hospital in Europe. When Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital started few people had given much thought to the welfare of such creatures as frogs, badgers, wrens, owls, hedgehogs and all the other small animals that give us humans so much pleasure.

The Introductory Notice Visitors to Tiggywinkles read as they start walking round the Trust's Grounds, with examples of the Patients that are regularly treated at the establishment.

Once they realised such care was available, the public began to provide patients in ever increasing numbers - to the point that over 200,000 patients of all shapes, species and sizes have now passed through the doors of the Hospital. Together with a friendly local veterinary surgeon (now enlarged to being a team of specialist surgeons and veterinary nurses) the Stockers took every patient in that presented - and treated those who could be saved – free of charge.

A typical Tiggywinkles Patient List

That is still the case, with animals given every chance to live when they are initially assessed. Euthanasia is very much the last resort. Those not able to cope in the wild, are carefully housed within the Visitor Centre gardens and grounds which surround the current state of the art Wildlife  Hospital – which was opened by HRH Princess Alexandra in November 1991.

One of the oldest residents in the Badger Sett at Tiggywinkles

Stories of Three Tiggywinkles Permanent Residents:  Merry and Christmas arrived on the same day (at Christmas time).

The Hospital now stands in six acres of Church Farm, Haddenham, Buckinghamshire – thanks to a 999 year lease provided by Buckinghamshire County Council – responding to a massive fund-raising effort by the Stockers and friends, as well as sponsorship from British Telecom and BP.

Like most of the signs at Tiggywinkles, this is housed behind glass:  making photography with a small digital camera challenging.  Hopefully, Readers can get an idea of the Hospital surroundings.

The specialist knowledge gleaned in the daily operations of Tiggywinkles is now shared throughout the world by means of publications, books and lectures to veterinary schools – whenever the staff are invited. Latterly, a special City and Guilds course has evolved for young students wishing to specialise in wild life care, with many progressing to fully fledged animal welfare qualifications.

Tiggywinkles staff teams are also called upon to assist at large scale wildlife disasters outside their immediate location in Buckinghamshire - such as major oil spills, where sea birds and other animals are affected.  It's  educational  to read this particular sign board - and an indication of how important the work carried on at this establishment is - not only in the UK, but also in Europe too.

Special pens have been built to separately house badgers and foxes, sheds built to shelter deer patients, a large pond (almost a lake indeed) for bird life (some indeed just visiting) and most recently – in 2011 – a massive set of aviaries was opened to house Red Kites so that the Hospital is able to cope with injured birds, the result of the tremendous success of the Government's re-introduction of the species. The new Red Kite Information and Education Centre is now open, allowing the public to get near to these “masters of the sky”.

The Badger Sett, with the rear of the Visitor Centre and Museum (L) in the background.

The Pond at Tiggywinkles, where patients live, and all avian visitors are made welcome.

Inevitably as the public learned about the Wild Life Hospital's services, they also came just to visit and learn. Naturally, they cannot see the patients in the Hospital, but there is a first-class Museum – with artefacts and information about Hedgehogs, who have been around since the days of Ancient Egypt - and still continue to fascinate. Hedgehogs have become mascots to battleships, lent their names to military formations in battle, and perform evaluable garden services in controlling slugs and other enemies of the world's gardening public. Their biggest drawback is that being nocturnal and small, it is easy for our busy world to forget they are there.

Recent problems our prickly friends face include loss of habitat. Modern farming practices mean that increasingly in the UK they are having to share it with Badgers – who are not only a protected species in this country, but also are not above enjoying the occasional Hedgehog "snack". Tiggywinkles does not discriminate between these two species, and welcomes patients from both. Indeed, when I visited with daughter Philippa, just before Christmas 2015, we were able to see the badger sett (see the picture above)  – but not its residents. Because, like Hedgehogs, they are nocturnal animals.  (Recently, as late as last week, moves have started to have Hedgehogs protected - in the same way that the UK's endangered Red Squirrels are.  So watch this space!)

The modern Hedgehog is also up against the ever growing need for building land – with modern houses surrounded by fences, which disturb the normal hedgehog routes between home and food. Gardeners in the UK are being urged to cut holes (the size of disc covers) in their boundaries – to save their garden Hedgehogs having to go into roads and streets to make progress, and then losing their fight against the car drivers sharing the same space. The recent flooding experienced throughout the UK will not have helped either – with many Hedgehogs who might have hibernated in garden wood piles and rubbish heaps probably being swept away in the flood waters.

Personally, having been an avid Beatrix Potter reader myself – as well as reader to my daughters of the same stories – I've always had a soft spot for Mrs Tiggywinkle, so it's no surprise perhaps that when I learned – several years ago – about the Tiggywinkle Wildlife Trust,  I'd be a likely Trust membership candidate. I was also reared on the stories of Little Grey Rabbit and her friends, particularly Fuzzipeg, written by Alison Uttley. (Samples of these stories can be seen in the Visitors Museum in Haddenham too) and since December 2015, there have been 3 Coldham Cuddlies Handmade Hedgehog Toys looking to be adopted by future visitors to Tiggywinkles.  (The Visitors Season begins at Easter each year, with opening hours being Monday-Friday 10.00 am to 4.00 pm). 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/259346605

Coldham Cuddlies is the online Toy making business that I started in 2010 as occupational therapy to ease my arthritic hands, as well as to provide a break from care responsibilities for my late disabled husband. After his death in 2010, the Cuddlies became a full time occupation, and during the 2015 autumn, I became aware of the current dangers to the UK Population as a whole. With three obvious candidates to uses as my Helpers, finding an acceptable way to support Tiggywinkles has become something of an obsession in my life!  

This post has gone on long enough, so I'll end it now.  The Tiggywinkles Story will continue next week,  Until then, here's hoping everyone has a great one.

Isobel

(Thanks are expressed to Tiggywinkles Wildlife Trust for permission to use these photographs to illustrate this post - and the subsequent follow-ups.)

Squirrel Kalaedescope - You Choose between the Blacks, Reds and Greys!

Greetings everyone - and apologies for the absence of last week's post.  Several reasons for it, including the fact that our Black Squirrels (mentioned by Cy Bear in his last post a couple of weeks ago) had still to be completed, and also because I  have been unexpectedly away from base. (While this still continues to be the case, hopefully all will be restored to "normal" soon).

In the interim, because "home" is not far from where I find myself at the moment, I've been able to retrieve the necessary fabric and other haberdashery needed to complete the Coldham Cuddlies Squirrel project.  So, this post will serve to introduce the three latest members of the Coldham Cuddlies family:

First - even though he/she is/are the newest members of the Squirrel clan - meet Basil:  so called because the name rhymes with Cyril Red Squirrel and Sybil Grey Squirrel, who were alluded to in Cy Bear's last post two Sundays ago. (My word, doesn't the time fly by:  here we are, already mid February 2016!):

https://www.etsy.com/listing/268063642

Basil (R) has a felt acorn sewn on between his front paws, while Basil (L) does not:  just to give interested parties a choice of how their new Coldham Black Squirrel might look when thinking about adoption procedures!

This is Basil Squirrel (R) with his acorn - currently upside down, but ready for turning the right way around if required.  Cy Bear, in his last post, did mention that I was wondering how to sew the facial features on to this very black toy - because, of course, for most of my other Cuddlies, they have them sewn on with Black DK Yarn.  Eventually, I decided to go with light Brown DK Yarn for these boys, and think it works quite well.  White was just a little too stark a contrast.

Here is Basil Squirrel (L) giving a better side view of his shape.  The tails curve round at their ends, quite realistically, but being black, they don't show up as clearly as they do with the Grey and Red Squirrels.  They're all on sale at £20.00 GBP ($29.00 USD), are made in a totally smoke free and animal free environment and make really Cool Toys for Toddlers, Tots and even Grown-ups too!  

To be quite honest, I'd never heard of Black Squirrels prior to beginning the Squirrel project - one that had been on my "To Do" list for some time, (at least 3-4 years ) since receiving a Birthday (or even Mother's Day) gift from daughter,Clare.  

(This particular toy publication has been responsible already  for  https://www.etsy.com/listing/99686556 (Barney, Barn Owl) and our Frog - the current version being a Brown and Yellow Toy to be seen at https://www.etsy.com/listing/116285186. )

https://www.etsy.com/listing/265274960

I'd taken the first versions of the Grey and Red Squirrels to show friends after Mass one week after they had been completed, and during the conversation after their revelation, not only was the suggestion made to name them "Sybil" and "Cyril" respectively, but mention was made about there being Black Squirrels in existence in parts of America (with California mentioned as being where they were most prolific).  Since most of my Cuddlies seem to find Forever Homes in the USA, it thus seemed a logical move to find out more.  

My research (thanks to Google and Wikipaedia) told me that Black Squirrels derive from the Grey Squirrels and are about the same size as the Greys.  The Reds, are not only smaller, but they are now more often to be found in pockets of  the UK and, since the introduction of the Greys to our island, they are diminishing fast.  Because the Reds are more susceptible to a "squirrel pox" carried by the Greys (who seem to be largely immune to the disease), as well as being unable to stand up to the invasion by the bigger North American species.  The Black Squirrels are not just limited to California, but are commonly to be seen in the northern American States - across the whole Continent, as well as the southern Canadian Provinces north of their shared borders.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/265276978

However, curiously, there is an isolated colony of  Black Squirrels in the UK - in the vicinity of the town of Letchworth, in Hertfordshire (north of London).  Why they remain there, without having spread around the rest of the UK raises some interesting queries - as well as why we don't know more about them. 

Basil Black Squirrel - a view of the rear

When the move back home takes place, I'll take pictures of the three different coloured Coldham Cuddlies Toy Squirrel colony together, but meanwhile, here is one of the Reds and Greys to be getting on with.

Together with that photograph, I'll  also be going back to my Hedgehog obsession - starting to tell you more about the Christmas-time visit made to Tiggywinkles Hedgehog Hospital, one of the two Hedgehog charities the Cuddlies and I are trying to help in the fight to halt the decline of the UK Hedgehog population.  Permission has been received to use my photographs - as a reminder of that visit - and arrangements have been  put in place as to how the three Hedgehog Toys I donated to the Hedgehog Hospital Trust could be used to possibly increase our contribution to our fund-raising efforts.  All will become plain in coming weeks.

Sybil Grey Squirrel - rear view

Meanwhile -this week, nationally in the UK,  there were some developments in the overall fight for our Hedgehog Population.  Some moves are afoot to give Hedgehogs the same protection currently on offer to our Red Squirrels.  Both species are also among the contenders to be declared the National UK Animal.  You'll not be surprised to know that I'm solidly behind the Hedgehogs: although, I do admit to having torn loyalties were it to end in a race between the Hedgehogs and the Red Squirrels.  (Foxes and Badgers have been mentioned as well, for those who might be interested!)  What about the Grey Squirrels, I hear folks enquire?  Well, there are moves to try to remove them all together - because of their effect on our native Red Squirrels.  They are not native to our islands.

Watch this space - developments on all fronts will, of course, be reported as and when they occur.

Finally, Cyril Squirrel - from the back

Be back again, hopefully in normal surroundings, next week.  Cy Bear is on guard, as ever, when I'm away from base.  See you all then.

Isobel

Two Cuddlies have new Forever Homes and there are Two Cuddlies to Introduce.

Hello Everyone!-

This is coming from Kirkby in Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, England, UK on a very wet and - so far at any rate - less windy afternoon.  We've had some terrible winds here in the UK (not not that bad around our flat fortunately.  When it does blow, the living room window rattles, and being on the top floor of the building, the effect is even more pronounced).  We're expecting another storm to blow in across the Atlantic Ocean tomorrow, so we're all hunkering down and keeping our heads down.

MrsPB from Warrington, Lancashire was as good as her word and earlier this week sent us several shots of our Yellow Plush Dressed Rabbit  the subject of the last two week's blog posts.  Here is our Rabbit getting to know her new friends, Daddy and Mummy Gingham Rabbit:

We were actually sent three pictures in all, but this one was the clearest when all the transferring photographs from Etsy,com. to Download file on this computer,  and then to here was accomplished. (The other two were a little out of focus).  It's interesting to see the difference in how they've come out - because our Yellow Rabbit is actually smaller - although all three are obviously based on a similar original pattern.  MrsPB said that so far she's not got a name but that "that will come in time"!

There's some great news to report about Barny Barn Owl - who, together with Ollie Owlet, a bunch of Hedgehogs and the other Yellow Plush Bunny were taken to be displayed at The Ark Book Shop in Kirkby for the first time at the end of last week.  Isobel had about 10 minutes to spare on Wednesday morning - after doing some of her weekly shopping in the local supermarket - and dropped in to see how things were going (and to check that the Cuddlies had been behaving themselves, too!)  She was delighted to learn that Barny was purchased and taken home on Saturday (the day after he'd arrived).

We're not sure which of these two pictured is the one who is in his new home, but I'm delighted to be telling you about his good luck.  Isobel's arrangement with MrsSQ, our contact in The Ark Bookshop, is that she'll keep dropping in, and once a month, they'll meet.  The money from any sales will then be given to Isobel -minus the agreed 20% commission for the display space.  When visiting the Cuddlies on Wednesday last week, they'd already been moved from the back of the Shop to a shelf in one of the Shop's front windows!  (So,..... watch this space!).  None of us expected quite such a fast result.  (In case you were wondering:  a branch of the Cuddlies bank is situated just across from The Ark Bookshop, so it's just a hop, skip and a jump for Isobel to be able to pay any funds in straight away!)

Isobel has not been feeling as well as normal this week, and hasn't ventured outside the flat too much as a result.  But it has meant that she's been able to do quite a lot of sewing - as well as doing a lot of admin. work for the Shop.  All 89 items in it are having their tags(labels) changed - from references to Christmas (which is now over, of course) to some new ones referring to Easter - be it gifts, presents, bunnies/rabbits or eggs (although to date, we don't feature the last item - though one never knows!).  She's about a third of the way through, and is re-reading the descriptions for each Toy as she checks the item, so it's something that cannot be rushed.

However, we now have two examples of two new Cuddlies - listed last week-end, but yet to be described to you.  They are currently sitting in one of the chairs in the Living room, waiting for the third member of the trio to be completed.  So, meet Sybil Grey Squirrel

https://www.etsy.com/listing/265274960/

and her cousins, Cyril Red Squirrel

https://www.etsy.com/listing/265276978

The felt acorns are currently "fixed" in place with velcro and are a little fragile.  However, as they are an "additional" item, and not really part of the Toy, when they go to their Forever Homes - hopefully before too long - the"decorative items" can easily be removed and each toy then becomes a cuddly armful for a new Forever Friend.  (Mind you, that might change ere long:  the acorns keep becoming unstuck from one or other Squirrels'  front paws, and Isobel could well get fed up with putting them back in place - before that happens!)

There is already one Black version made (to be called Basil Black Squirrel ) but waiting for his nut to be fashioned, and to have some facial features added.  Isobel normally uses black double knitting wool to produce these facial features on all us Cuddlies, but when one has a completely Black Squirrel, she's debating how to sew them in such a way that they can be seen, but not stand out too much.  By next week, hopefully, the problem will have been satisfactorily solved.

So, until then - this is Cy Bear (Cy does stand for Cyril, too - but as you all know I'm Cy Bear to all of you, My Very Good Friends).  In our Red Squirrel's case, not only was Sybil named first (by a lady who attends the same Mass at St.Barnabas Cathedral in Nottingham as do Isobel and The Family, but she also suggested Cyril - because "he looks like a Cyril"!  Who am I to argue? (Basil Black Squirrel has got his name, because it goes well with the other two!)

See you all next week - Cy Bear signing off:

Moving onwards - in all directions.

Hello again, Everyone.

I am very pleased to be able to tell you that the Yellow Plush Rabbit we spoke about last week as being en route to St. Helens, Lancashire  duly arrived, because we got a message back from MrsPB that the Traveller had arrived and was "already becoming a favourite".  We've been promised a picture for this blog, hopefully being taken some time this week-end.  When it arrives, we'll include it in a future post.

Now back to the production of our Yellow Plush Rabbits - with their new feature:  ear linings that match the fabrics of their dresses.  The idea is taken from the two sample Rabbit photos provided by MrsPB when she gave us her Order in December, 2015, and it's one that may well become a regular feature in future Coldham Dressed Rabbits - (does make a bit of a change from the usual brown satin linings, don't you think?)

Anyway, having made the pantaloons for both Girls - and added a white lace edging to each pair of legs - Isobel then went on to make the two dresses.  This is done by gathering up the fabric and arranging the pleats evenly around the Toys' waists and then sewing the skirt in place.  Before she does that though, we attach a "Coldham Cuddlies" embroidered label to the back seam of the skirt.  It gives our Toys some provenance, and putting it inside the skirt is a discreet spot to do it. 

To give the skirts their individual look(s), Isobel attaches two rows of ric rac trim to each dress, by embroidering them to the fabric with individual French knots.  The skirts then look like this.

Then we fit the bodice on to the Rabbits' bodies (to which each Toys' arms have already been sewn in).  The combined bodice/arm structure is then fitted over the gathered dress waistlines and attached to the skirt with invisible hem stitching, so that they now appear like this:

Having completed the front of the dress, we must not forget the all important Rabbits' bobtails. These are placed at the back of each frock, just under the waistline and sewn on firmly,  They have to withstand a fair bit of pulling, as being fluffy, it's understandable that the Forever Friends of our Rabbits are drawn to playing with them - they are so soft to touch!

Then we cut out and make the aprons, this time made with polyester fabric, which proved to be a little tricky for Isobel's fingers to handle easily.  We only got a small supply of the fabric this time around, and she doesn't think she will be using it again, because it's very slippery to handle, and doesn't really like being stitched with anything.  Putting on the individual patch pockets (which match each dress) was quite an undertaking.  (Next time around, she'll be looking out for organdie - or some similar material, which isn't quite so slippery).

The the final touches include sewing on the Heads - which have already been made with ears attached, and the eyes and facial features added,

and then, last, but by no means least, the apron is made,   Isobel created a waistband for both Rabbit Girls using blue satin ribbon and tied it to fit under the Rabbits' tails.  Previously, we used to sew the apron in place, but this time around - with a firm, juicy-look carrot in the pocket of each Toy - Isobel decided to allow the Forever Friend (or Mum) to untie it (a sort of undress feature) so that the Toy is more cuddlesome.  They thus ended up looking like this, minus the carrot:

and then finally ended up looking like this (as you all saw, if you read our post last week!)

So, what has happened to the remaining Yellow Rabbit you may be wondering.  Well she is now displayed on a high shelf at the back of another small shop in Kirkby in Ashfield.  A couple of weeks ago, Isobel was approached by a lady called MrsSQ, who works in a bookshop, which specialises in selling books - mainly childrens' religious material, and also music videos and odds and ends.  She is anxious to increase the shop's footfall, and while both Isobel and MrsSQ were having their hair done two weeks ago, she learned about us Cuddlies (as ladies apparently do when they're doing such activities) and asked if she could have some to use in her shop windows and on shelves too.  

Now, our arrangement with "The Artful Buttoner" is due to come to an end in a couple of months, and although Isobel has been happy to be associated with them - and may well continue to be in future (but only for the smaller Cuddlies - like the Baby Bunnies, and Baby Koalas - and any other small toys that may appear in our online Shop www.Etsy.com/shop/COLDHAMCUDDLIES), we're going to see what happens when some of us Bigger Cuddlies - like the Foxes, Big Koalas and Frogs - and our new Red and Grey Squirrels (as well as the Black ones, when they're made) grace the shelves of "The Ark Bookshop".  Over the coming weeks, the bigger Cuddlies still on display in "The Artful Buttoner" will be coming back (Isobel will be bringing them back in the shopping trolley each time she is in Kirkby). 

We now have no Baby Bunnies  in stock here at home in the flat.  Those we did have were taken to "The Artful Buttoner" during the week, as the basket in which they tend to stand was literally down to the last four!  So guess what Isobel will be doing in the coming weeks - making lots of Baby Bunnies of one colour variant or another.  That's after she's made some Black Squirrels, to join the Red and Grey Squirrels that have just been listed in our Shop earlier this afternoon, together with Yellow Plush Rabbit we've talked about here. (I'll  post about them next week, maybe - or very soon, anyway).   She's also got to make another Daddy Hedgehog to replace the one sold from "The Artful Buttoner" in December - so there's no excuse for her to be sitting idly in her arm chair each evening - whether watching TV (not often these days, because there's not much to interest her at the moment) or listening to Classic FM on the radio - which she thoroughly enjoys. 

Not only does "The Ark" sell books, but there is space in the Shop for three or four tables, where coffee and biscuits can be consumed - and it's very conveniently situated not far from the 'bus stop Isobel uses to get to and from Kirkby on a very regular basis.  Although the service is very good (normally), there can be times when there is a bit of a wait before the next vehicle arrives, so it's good to be able to drop in, keep warm and meet more local customers in comfortable surroundings.  A group of Hedgehogs, Yellow Plush Rabbit on the Left, and our two Owls, Barny, the Barn Owl  and Ollie the Owlet are now sitting on the shelf overlooking the counter at the back of "The Ark," and I'll keep you posted as to how things happen (or not!) as the case may be.

Hopefully, there will be something more to tell you about the Hedgehogs soon - although we did send off the two cheques I mentioned last week, on Friday of this week.  We actually managed to send even more than the £10-£15.00  each I mentioned last week - I'll tell you more next time around.

Until then, have a great week Everybody.  

Your Friend.  Cy Bear.

Apologies for Absence - Computer Malfunction the Cause

Greetings once again, Folks.

Cy Bear back again, after a couple of weeks of enforced silence.

 After the trip to Buckinghamshire, the computer on which Isobel communicates with the outside world - both on behalf of us Cuddlies and herself - began to stick (or rather the space bar - whatever that is - did).  Apparently that impaired her ability to type as fast as she is wont, so a trip to the nearest Supplier's shop was organised.

 It also coincided with the fact that the machine hadn't had its regular annual Health Check since it arrived with us almost 3 years ago, and with the warranty on it being due to run out in March 2016, Isobel decided that if that fault, and one with the microphone (which hasn't worked for ages) were non-repairable, she'd be more than happy to consider a completely new machine (having had a lot of trouble with the current implement since its arrival).  Following a visit (enabled by daughter Clare giving Isobel and the machine a lift to and from the shop premises), the computer duly spent 8 days being checked over and repaired and was duly returned with a full functioning Bill of Good Health.

Isobel,  while delighted to be re-united with the machine, (she'd had time-limited access to the internet via the local library computers in the interim, but was inhibited from doing EVERYTHING  she normally does each day for us Cuddlies) she does admit to being a teeny bit disappointed that the delinquent machine does seem to be behaving itself - AT THE MOMENT!  She has yet to test the microphone - and there's still 2 months left on the warranty if it doesn't!!!

Now when I left this blog on 3rd January, I'd been telling you about the new Yellow Dressed Rabbit girls Isobel was working on:  it's great to be able to tell you that today's bulletin is going to carry on the story - and may well take a couple of posts to do so.

The Yellow Rabbit story is now complete with the chosen Rabbit dispatched yesterday to St. Helens in Lancashire, UK.  The Rabbit shown on the right of the picture below is the one that is en route:

That's not where Yellow Rabbit (YR) will actually live - which is in Warrington, Cheshire.  The destination address is presumed to be where her Daddy works and where a signature can be obtained when the parcel arrives - allegedly on Monday this week.

This what these two Lady Rabbits look like from the rear:

This time around, (because there was some discussion when the project was under discussion at the beginning of our conversation with MrsPB), Isobel has made the apron so that it can be easily detached should YR's Forever Friend find the carrot in the apron pocket impedes full "cuddle access". The carrot itself is only sewn in lightly, so that could be removed if it is decided to leave the apron in situ.

So, how did the process proceed:   to get from the pictures at the end of our last post on 3rd January - to the finished items shown here?

Well, first of all, the bodies of both Rabbit Toys were stuffed:

All Coldham Cuddlies Lady Dressed Toys (be they Rabbits, Foxes, Coyotes or what have you) are made to sit down.  However, if the fabric used for their dresses is strong enough, and there's a convenient cushion, wall or background against which they can be propped, they can be made to stand - for photography purposes, anyway.

The next stage in production is to attach the shoes - from the photographs of MrsPB's two Rabbit Toys,  (also included in our earlier post) it appears that who ever made them, used the shoe pattern to make plush feet to match the head, paws and legs for those two Toys.  This is what the 2016 Coldham YR versions now look like.

Following the provision of  shoes, the next stage was to make the pantaloons for both Toys.  This time around, Isobel used some pale blue shiny poplin fabric she had in stock, and added white lace trimming to the bottom of each leg on both Toys.  The pants were then gathered and fitted around the "ankles" of each Rabbit, using pale blue embroidery yarn, with all six strands, to achieve the gathered finish.

Then the next stage is to start making the individual dresses........

I'm going to leave you all in suspense for another week - just in case, the negotiations regarding the Tiggywinkles blog project take longer to complete than we hope (or indeed, if permission to use our pictures is refused).  That outcome is not really expected - because Isobel intends to write about Tiggywinkles in exactly the same way as she does here (and helps me to do as well, of course).  But. these matters can never be taken for granted, and we have to be prepared for that outcome.

We've yet to get in touch with our contact at Tiggywinkles about being able to describe what it's like at that establishment - and to use the pictures in our camera to do so.  There didn't seem to be much point  - without a functioning computer for one thing:  also, each time we'd attempted to telephone our contact there, she was not in the office.  So, that is one of the first things we're hoping to get done this coming week.

Meanwhile, I can tell you that Isobel has amassed another £10-15.00 GBP for both Tiggywinkles and West Midlands Hedgehog Rescue since we sent our initial £25.00 each in November.  Not that we have sold THAT many Hedgehog Toys since then, although we've found new homes for several in that time.  But, we've been generously supported by those who have purchased any COLDHAMCUDDLIES Toys over the Christmas period as well.

In the Shop's shipping policies, Isobel tells would-be Buyers that she does over-estimate the possible shipping costs.  She'd much prefer to send a refund if the payment exceeds the actual cost - and it's a modus operandi that has proved acceptable to ALL our customers.   Now, the news of our effort to try to save the UK Hedgehog population is spreading - via the Etsy Teams Isobel works with as well. Since the Hedgehog Project began therefore, Isobel has suggested that our customers, together with Friends and Followers  - ALL of whom have given written support for her attempts to date - that instead of the refunds being sent back, they consider allowing Isobel to add the surplus shipping charges to the ColdhamCuddlies Hedgehog fund raising scheme.   (Naturally, if they'd prefer not to do so, the refunds will be returned - as in the past).

To date not one of our customers has refused - which is why, when Isobel gets around to adding up the funds, there could well be even more than £10-15.00 GBP winging its way to each Hedgehog Hospital.  I'll let you know next week!

Early in the New Year, our original Brown Daddy Hedgehog was offered a new home by Mrs LH of Marshall, North Carolina, U.S.A.  Before he left, the usual Farewell photographing ceremony took place -

Yesterday, we learned that he had arrived safely - and that he is currently sitting in MrsLH's work room, supervising her production efforts.  She is considering allowing her young grandson to play with him when they next get together!  (MrsLH is a fellow member on one of  Isobel's Etsy Teams - and her work can be seen by clicking here https://www.etsy.com/shop/LindasQuiltedGarden).

The news of our effort to try to save the UK Hedgehog population is spreading - via the Etsy Teams Isobel works with as well.

Until then - have a great week Everybody.  Your Friend, Cy Bear.