Looking for Patterns for new animals + other matters

Cy Bear looking in - with some interesting items for all of our followers!

The link below is from the company that Isobel is dealing with in getting the 360 degree pictures of Madame Lapin (mentioned in our recent post dated January 13 - when we told you that she was on her way.  This picture is already on the Outsphere website, but under their logo.  Isobel has told PaulN that she'll send the ColdhamCuddlies logo, as he requests, when the whole treatment is complete!  Exciting isn't it?

http://oms.outsphere.com/admin/popup.php?m=5a173ff8-41d2-11e1-acf1-003005ed931c&product=Madame_Lapin_before

Now to the title of this post in particular.  When Isobel was in Warminster, going to St. George's Catholic Church this week-end - as she got to the door, a lady who was handing out the service sheets asked if she was "the lady who made soft toys"!  Could this be a direct result of the recent Warminster Journal article she quoted in another of our recent posts ("Pre-Christmas publicity":  11/01/2012)?  Needless to say, she responded in the affirmative.

The lady, MrsM asked if we could make a Beaver - for her young grand-daughter, who has been "into Beavers" since she was three years' old.  We're not sure how old she is now, but Mrs. M and her husband are due to visit Denmark, where the young lady resides, in April.  Now Beavers have not featured large in our Cuddlies Family to date, but it looks as though they just might in future.  When Isobel got back home, after she'd had supper with Peter, she sent out an APD (All Points Broadcast) to everyone she thought might be able to give us a lead to a Beaver pattern. 

We've been very lucky - thanks to Isobel and Peter's neice, AnaliseS - who lives in British Columbia, Canada and whom we supplied The Lacey  Foxes, and a Koala and Baby Rabbit to date.  She gave Isobel a link - and behold, we now have access not only to a Beaver pattern, but one that can be used as a stuffed toy or a glove puppet!  Isn't that exciting?  While on the site, she also purchased a pattern for a baby Penguin!

This is specially good news, as on Friday morning, Isobel went round to Fine Quality Feather Company in Frome to purchase some more polyester fibre.  She'd run out and was unable to finish the two new Golden Bear Plush Puppets she's made (replacing our original one, who is on his way to Liberty Township, Ohio, USA by the way - my farewell picture with him is below).

Getting ready for the journey to the USA

While she was at the factory in Frome, Isobel also picked up the off cut plush fur fabrics they'd put aside for her and here are pictures of what she's come back with!

The actual colour of this fur is darker than it shows in this picture.  Isobel thinks this will become the replacement brown fur for Brown Bears - because she doesn't think there will be any more Hairy Bear fabric after she has done two more Bears.  Then the other new plush looks like this:

 We're not sure what we will make with this, but badgers are a possibility

Isobel is also thinking of Chipmunks and Racoons, as she seems to remember they have stripes in their fur, too.  So, they were added to the list of patterns needed in the APB I've already mentioned, as well as Badgers and Hedgehogs.  If any of our Followers know where we might find patterns for these other four contenders for places in the Cuddlies Family, we'd be very grateful to be told.  Alternatively, if you know of any old toys, in yours or some else's attics or basements Isobel would be equally interested.  If you wouldn't mind, she would take it to pieces (rejuvenate them - if necessary) and make templates from them and return the toys to the senders.  Costs of getting them us would of course be met by www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.

Then, finally, for this post anyway, Isobel and Peter were speaking to their France-based sister-in-law, IvyM mid-week.  She is the Forever Friend of Madame Lapin and Mons. Reynard and was interested to hear about developments on that front obviously;   but just guess what?  When she was visiting us just before Christmas, she was very complimentary about ME!  Isobel happened to mention that she still had enough Beaver Lamb Fur to make another version of me, and IvyM has asked Isobel to make it for her, with all costs of the production met by her!  So.....add that to Isobel's list of To Do's!  Mind you, I'm not so sure about another real Beaver Lamb Fur Bear:  but, if it's going to be living in France, then our paths are not likely to cross that often.  I do rather enjoy the status of being a Unique Bear.

By the way, two replacement Golden Bear Plush Glove Puppets will be listed on the Shop site (www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com) very soon and will form the content of the next post here shortly.  The replacement Panda Bear Puppets are well on the way to completion.  Then, Isobel will probably be undertaking the treatment for the French Rabbit and Fox toys.  They have been patients in the ColdhamCuddlies Soft Toy Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185) since November last year.  They have been very patient (pun not intended!).   It's all go in this household!

With that comment, I'll end this post!  Good night for now!  Cy Bear.

Rejuvenation of Big Koala

This looks like being a joint production between Cy Bear and myself - since he mentioned my involvement in the various stages of rejuvenating Big Koala (as opposed to the Little Koalas (Etsy Listing #55190188) already in the ColdhamCuddlies shop at www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.  This turned out to be a much more involved job than I had originally anticipated.

When Big Koala arrived as an in-patient at the ColdhamCuddlies Soft Toy Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185) in mid-summer 2011, he was a very heavy toy indeed and really could not be described as either cuddly or soft.  He was very heavy and hard and as his Best Friend, RE told us, had sat on a bed for all the time he could remember - never having been played with at all.  He really did not encourage cuddling or playing.  He just SAT - as this picture of him shows:

In the garden, with his friend Ed Ted

When I began to assess him, it became obvious that he was not going to be able to get the same treatment that Ed Ted had received for example.  Although looking in a lot better shape than Ed Ted had on his arrival, once I began to unpick the stitching, I found that his skin was actually real hide, very tough (through being over 40 years old) and quite unsuitable for recovering with a new fabric coat.  So, while still being careful to keep all the pieces in the same order, I resolved to create a new template, and once that had been achieved to discard the skin all together.

Koala's back pieces ready for a template to be drawn

The rest of Big Koala's bits and pieces, with his base on the right

I then separated the skin from the stuffing - which was absolutely rock solid, felt somewhat sticky to the touch and had a very faint whiff of eucalyptus or some such odour.  This caused me to conclude that the stuffing could well have been eucalyptus bark.  I had to use my hand-held "Dust Buster" vacuum to clear it from the hide and collected some of it in a plastic bag - shown below - prior to discarding everything to do with the original Koala toy.

Koala's original stuffing

Once this process had been completed, the cardboard templates of New Big Koala were put in my usual envelope filing system to await his reconstruction.  The Christmas Bazaar, Christmas itself and other family events intervened, so it was only last week that I was able to get down to cutting out the new member of the ColdhamCuddlies family, and start the sewing process.

Cy Bear taking over from here - at Isobel's insistence!  She found the reconstruction process a lot easier than taking Big Koala apart had been.  The sequence of putting the parts together is also completely different, apparently, to the way she does the rest of us Bears, but in the end a lot easier.  There are a lot fewer seams involved and, of course, no joints to be taken into consideration.  His eyes went in much easier than Isobel has found to be the case when making some of the other Cuddlies, so she is very pleased with the new pattern she now has to offer friends, family and visitors to our Etsy shop at www,coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.

She made the head first - and to begin with wasn't too sure that she had got the seams in the right order.

As it looks here, his muzzle is far too long and pointed, and she was somewhat concerned that the leather nose would not show up properly.  When she came to put the head on the body (shown below), she realised her mistake - she had not sewn up enough of the neck area, apparently! - quickly corrected it and the result was much more satisfactory.

Body, without stuffing, but with claws in place

Big Koala's claws are made from some of the dark brown leather off-cuts Isobel has been able to source from the Dents' Glove Factory in Warminster, Wiltshire, and taken from one of the only original claws on Big Koala in his previous guise.

Isobel then had to stuff both pieces of the new Koala frame.  His eyes were put in before she began stuffing the head and ears - the other Bears' ears do not need that treatment, but Big Koala's do.  Then the two bits were sewn together, leaving an opening at the top of Koala's back through which the stuffing has to be  pushed.

Please ignore the electric tooth brush, and broadband connection hub in the background, if you can!

This picture shows Big Koala with his two pieces in place, but minus any stuffing.  Once that had been done, Isobel closed the gap, and hey "voila" (as the French would say), there was the new, modern Big Koala ready to be introduced to the world, once Isobel had embroidered in his mouth.

When measured up against Hairy Bear 4 and me, he is just about the same size in height  - 36cms  from his base to the middle of his forehead over his nose (14-1/4 inches).  He is actually fatter than any of us Bears, but doesn't have the separate arms and legs like us.  However, his girth is 58 cms, if he is measured between his arms and legs (22-3/4 inches) and Isobel says he took as much, if not a little more, polyester fibre to complete.

Showing the different shape that Big Koala is

So, when she's done this blog tonight, Isobel  is going to list him in the Etsy Shop (www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com) at the same price as she charges for all of us Bears (except me, of course). As the Official Mascot to ColdhamCuddlies, I'm not for sale!).

As a final picture - here is one of  the ColdhamCuddlies' Koalas all together. 

Good night to you all - Cy Bear and Isobel.

Decorations for All Seasons

The Boosting Etsy Shops Team's goal is to offer support
and promotion of one another's Etsy shops primarily through our
personal Blogs, and also through our Twitter Accounts and Facebook Fan pages.
Commitment to this common goal is what makes our team the BEST!  

 Having now had a chance to visit some of my fellow team members since my first, tentative steps within the BESTeam fold, I am going to have another attempt to feature some of their shops which have taken my eye.

 I've noticed many of their blog posts have a theme or thread running through their features, so am taking Decorations as mine for this essay.  The first three sites I hovered over had samples of flowers used to decorate different items/sites that really appealed - to the extent that they are going to feature today.

Autumn (as we call it in the UK) or Fall as it is known in Canada (where I lived for 12 years) and the US could be described as my favourite time of the year.  Whilst it does herald the onset of winter shortly, the colours are so bright and warm, and the hot summer temperatures have been lessened by the cooler winds and shorter days, that one tends to concentrate on enjoying them - and let's forget about winter, until it actually arrives!  So, when I saw the Fall Silk Flowers in a Scarecrow Basket, I couldn't resist including it in my selection.  This is an offering from Debbi and Amanda, a mother-and-daughter team specialising in vintage, jewellery and other enticing products, of which this is a prime example.

Debbi and Amanda's work can also be seen at their Facebook, Twitter and Flickr sites, as well as at www.ourhometoyours.etsy.com.  They suggest this as a home decoration.  However,  I can't help but feel that it should have a wider audience.  I could see it gracing a church window or sitting on the step below an altar or lectern as a Harvest Festival decoration as well.  It's dimensions (22"wide x 182 high x 14" deep)  would not be drowned by a medieval church window, of which we have a considerable number here in the Heytesbury area of Wiltshire, England, UK.  You could say, we are spoilt for choice!

My next selection is a great deal smaller - still a decorative object -  but this time balancing delicately on someone's head.  I can see an auburn headed lady going for this - although brunettes and those with raven black hair could also find a use for this lovely head-band.  How about calling it a "fascinator" though?  These do seem to be the latest "must-have" headgear these days.

This comes from the KnitfulDezigns Shop owned and operated by Veronica Grace - whose range of decorative headwear knows few bounds.  There are some delightful children's headwear that will definitely feature in a future post, but for today, I'm going to be satisfied with highlighting this delightful floral object.

My final selection for this feature is this beautiful Charmeuse Silk Hand-Painted Scarf.  Measuring 45" square, it is surely far too attractive to end up draping someones neck - however gracefully it is arranged (and Joy Silk who is responsible for this lovely object - as well as some equally decorative jewellery - actually provides the requisite instructions for achieving a satisfactory result with each sale.

Left to me, I'd mount it and frame it behind chemical free glass and have it as a well-hanging.  It has already been a featured item during Breast Cancer Awareness week in Joy's locality and I think it deserves more publicity than just being an adornment in someone's wardrobe.

I'm blown away by this partiicular item (although all her products look lovely).  Painting on paper is hard enough:  painting on silk is a whole new ballgame!  Joy's work can be seen at her Etsy Shop  (www.etsy.com/shop/Joyflower),  Twitter:  @JoySilk;  Her blog can be read at http://www.joysilk.blogspot.com and her email is joy@joysilk.com.

As a newcomer to the Etsy BESTeam, I've been made very welcome.  There must be many other Etsy bloggers/shopowners around who would be similarly welcomed and helped - while simultaneously promoting your own Etsy shop.  Why not give the Etsy BESTeam forum site on Etsy a visit and give it a try?  If they've invited me, they'll surely give you a berth!