Moved in...sort of

Just a quick note...we are getting ready to head back to the "old" house to get another load of stuff. Our first night in the new home was Christmas eve. We moved more stuff all day Christmas day and had Chinese take out for dinner. Monday evening on the way back to load up again, my car broke down and is still in the repair shop. Hope the repair isn't too costly. I have a long list of things I need ...turntables for the kitchen cabinets, drapes for a couple of windows, etc. Still cleaning and painting doors and trim too. I'm really getting too old for moving. Every muscle in my body is sore, my fingernails are down to stubs and my hands are chapped from cleaning. To top it off the last few days we have had record breaking cold. Many, who have lived a long time in Florida have never seen it this cold in December for this long. They are forecasting 70's by Friday. Well back to work...

Finally..

We closed on our new home yesterday. I was beginning to think it would never happen. Now the work begins. First, the whole house needs painting. We figure it's better to have it all done at one time, before we move in. Then we have to move all our furniture and other stuff. I think the "other" stuff will be more work. I would like to get in at least a week before Christmas. The Christmas tree will be put up but probably no other decorations this year. Tomorrow will be baking day, so I can get gifts in the mail. Sewing will be on the back burner for awhile, at least until after the first of the year.
I don't know how Lucy and Lexi will take the move. Lucy is mostly blind and deaf now, so changing her environment won't be easy on her. Forgive me for rambling but my mind is racing with all the things that need to get done. Don't be surprised if there isn't another post for awhile.
Do check out Linda Benson's blog. She is giving away an adorable little bear in a couple of days. Click HERE to check it out.

After the Holiday Show

Well, two of my little bears are on their way to new homes. That leaves four of the Sweet Shop bears looking for new homes. Today Candi K moseyed over to Bear Pile to wait to be adopted. Sundae and Buttercream are waiting in my etsy shop. I understand the show was very successful and I look forward to doing another online show with Daphne. I don't think I can do the Spring show though as I just signed up to do a live doll and bear show here in Florida.
I don't want to jinx it, but it looks like a move might be happening very soon. That will keep me busy for quite awhile.

The countdown has started

The Teddies Worldwide Holiday show is just hours away! Very exciting..I can't wait to see all the wonderful creations. Hope you can join us....9 am New York time. www.teddiesworldwide.com

The Teddy Bears are coming, the Teddy Bears are coming...

It's almost here...The Teddies Worldwide Online Holiday show! There are 75 artists from all over the world participating. I will have six bears all just 6 inches tall. Candi K is the one above. All have a "sweet" theme. You can get a sneak peek at other bear and critters that will be available at Teddiesworldwide.com
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ....

VOTE....for

Well the elections are mostly over. Here in Florida, at this minute, the governor's race is still undecided. They might have to do a recount! Anyway, now I need your vote. Bonnie and her bunnie were nominated in the Taiwan Teddy Bear Association Awards. There is online voting til the 13th. There are 6 categories and Bonnie is in category B. You have to enter an email address to vote but that is just to keep people from voting more than once and you won't be put on a list. Click here to start voting. Wish me luck!!

Ok....now Halloween's over...

Time to get fully geared up for the holidays. Thanksgiving will be here before you know it, then Christmas is just around the corner. I have been playing my Christmas music for a couple of months now. I don't think I will ever tire of it. We are still not sure where will we be for Christmas, hopefully we'll know soon.
Posie was the other bear I finished up week before last. I had dyed the fur, put her body together and started on her head months ago. I didn't like the way her face was turning out so I put her away. There she was, hanging in a bag in the closet, between pieces of mohair. Well she just needed a little face work, a nose job, and a mouth lift. She is now available on Bear Pile or my etsy shop.

Keeping busy....

At least I am getting some sewing done. Another bear for the Valentine show is currently being stuffed. I wasn't sure he was going to turn out the way I wanted but he is coming along nicely. I also did a couple of makeovers last weekend. I found a bear I had put away because I wasn't liking the way the face was taking shape. Sometimes it's best to put these kind of things away before you do something irreversible. I redid her mouth and nose and I think she's kinda cute. I'll introduce her next week.
The other "makeover" is in the photo above. Jessie was just not quite right. So she got a little face work, a new dress, and a ribbon on her head. It's amazing what a few changes can do(wonder if I could do the same for me??) Jessie Joy is available in my Artfire shop.

Knobby the Autumn Gnome

Still pulling out autumn decorations, when I can find them. I needle felted Knobby a couple of years ago. Autumn here in Florida means low humidity and 60 degree nights. We are still up in the 80's during the day but with no humidity it is very pleasant. The fire danger is increased though. I'm not sure what I'm going to do for Christmas this year. I usually have a lot of my shopping done by now. We still don't know where we will be, as we are in short sale limbo. I would love to be settled in our new(to us) home by Christmas but with each passing day then week.....I just don't know. I continue to sew, finishing 2 Valentine bears this week. It makes the time pass.

October's here

I got out my Halloween decorations today. I really don't have many, we rarely get any trick or treaters. Bill and I end up eating all the candy. I can't find Frankenweiner, though. I made him at least 3 years ago(maybe 4). The mohair was dyed with lime kool aid and his brow is needle felted. He wears bolts and nuts on his collar. Bill found the spring for his tail. Couldn't bring myself to sell him, so he usually comes out of the critter room in the fall. Many things were packed away in preparation for a move that hasn't happened yet. Tomorrow I will hunt him down.
All the little bears for the Holiday show are finished and waiting to be photographed. Then I need to format the web page and add Paypal buttons. Make sure to mark your calendars...Nov 20 and 21st, Teddies Worldwide Online Holiday Show.

Artfire Contest

Artfire currently has a campaign running to get 20,000 sign-ups for their special $5.95 a month Artfire pro account. We need to have the 20,000 opt in before it becomes effective. There are a lot of benefits to having a pro account. Click here to find out more - Artfire Group Deal
I have had an Artfire shop for about a year. It is a great place to get your name and creations out there as well as sell them. Artfire is having a contest to promote interest. The prize is a Canon Rebel XS. This post is my entry into the contest. If you don't have an Artfire shop ...check it out. If you already have one, you can opt in the get the special rate if we get the 20,000 goal.

Online Holiday Show Nov 20th & 21st

It's official!! I just registered to take part in Teddies Worldwide online Holiday Show.
Here are the details:
Artists will also be offering Bears & Gifts Under $50US

A great opportunity to get some holiday shopping done!

Mark your calendars so you don't miss this unique online show!

Show Starts: Saturday, November 20, 2010 9:00am New York Time (GMT -4 hrs)

Show Ends: Sunday, November 21, 2010 4:00pm New York Time (GMT -4hrs)

A Sneak Preview will be available November 5, 2010!

Click here to sign up for an email reminder for the show. Hope to "see" you there!

Getting serious....

Bill and I decided after our anniversary this weekend that we have to cut way down on the sweets. I managed to do 20 minutes on the treadmill this morning. Ten pounds need to come off before it gets cool enough here to wear long jeans...otherwise I don't think they will fit. Sweets are my downfall but I know they need to go.
Speaking of sweets, I am really excited about the current series of bears I am working on. They are 5 - 6 inches and "sweet" themed. Daphne of Backroads Events is hosting and online holiday show in late November. I'm really excited about the show and plan to debut the "sweeties" then. I will post more details about the show as they become available.
We are still in limbo with our house. The banks are moving slowly. So I have had more time to sew and come up with new ideas. This piece of mohair has been in my closet for a couple of years. I really love the buttery color but it really didn't suit the smaller bears I have been making. Since Rosalie turned out so well I have decided to make a couple of bigger bears. Bigger, for me, is around 14 inches.

Last week I went to fabric store to get some Christmas fabric for a swap critter and saw this beautiful purple fabric on sale for 50% off. At the time, I had no idea what I was going to make BUT I do now. Stay tuned! Oh, the buttons were on sale too!

Halloween....already

I think it was the week before last when someone mentioned Halloween and I got the bug. Meet Mischief and Mayhem and their bag of tricks. For some reason Halloween always brings black cats to mind before pumpkins, ghosts and ghouls. This pair took shape in my brain and the pattern was made up as I went along. I have to admit a certain car insurance companies ads about mayhem contributed to their names.
Don't they look like they are ready to start trouble? They would just love to go to a new home where they could use some of their tricks.
Created with sparse black mohair they are 5 inches and 4 inches tall. Non jointed, they have glass google eyes, horse hair whiskers and wool felt ears. I hoped to list them on etsy today, but I had to help a friend take his dog to the vet. It will be $80 for the set and of course their bag of tricks is included.

Suddenly ..too many ideas

I finished this little guy, a custom order, over the weekend. Now, after a dry period, the ideas are flowing in my brain. Besides finishing the Chihuahua, I dyed a bunch of mohair last week. Mint green, butter yellow, and a couple of shades of pink are now waiting to be cut out. Some tan mohair was dyed to a nice chocolate brown( I couldn't find the right shade of brown). I was anxious to complete the little chi so work could begin on all the newly dyed fur....then someone mentioned Halloween...and my mind went in a totally different direction. Now a couple of spooky critters are in the making.
This morning was my first solo(without hubby) trip to the new Hobby Lobby. A bag full of odds and ends I'm sure I will need(sometime) and a couple of things to go with the Halloween critters in hand...headed home...my afternoon planned.

Roses on my mind

I got my copy of Teddy Bear Review yesterday and was delighted to see a photo of Rosita included in the feature "Teddy's Friends". My last post was about Rosalie and now, Rosita gets mentioned. With the suggestion of roses my mind started to wander to my mom. I grew up in a small cape cod. The yard around our home was mostly paths through gardens. My mom had a green thumb(something I didn't inherit). Kids from the neighborhood would knock on our door asking if they could have a bouquet for their mom. There were many, many different flowers, from tulips to crocus to daffodils. But the roses were the main attraction. There were small circular gardens on each side of the front yard. In the center of each were tree roses that my mom had trained to grow that way herself. Every color of rose you can think of grew along the side of the driveway. Beautiful red roses climbed up the brick on the chimney. After I graduated high school, we moved to another county. The new house had a much larger lot but the roses never grew as well there. Roses still make me think of my mom.

Rosalie gets a makeover

Been wanting to do this for a long time and this weekend seemed the perfect time to finally get to it. It was a cloudy and rainy weekend, an unusual occurrence here in sunny Florida.
Rosalie was created 2 1/2 years ago. I was never happy with the way she turned out and it was very obvious she needed a nose job. I think I have been doing needle felted noses for almost 3 years now. Something learned the hard way....you can make them bigger but you can't downsize them once they are big. This meant she needed a whole new head. She got new eyes too. Instead of the google eyes with black pupils and whites, I gave her black glass ones. Rosalie wanted to lose a little bulk, so I pulled out some of the fiber fill and replaced it with some plastic pellets...just a small amount...so she could be a little floppy. She looks and feels so much better!! Now she would like to travel to a new home. If this week isn't too busy she should show up in my etsy shop in the next few days.

Starting over

The contract on the house we were trying to buy kinda fizzled out. Short sales are complicated and are usually drawn out. The bank decided it wanted to review all it's short sales so we decided to back out and start over. We have found another house, put in an offer, and are waiting....again.
I have been sewing to keep my mind off the housing troubles. A new "series" is in the works and it's sweet! A custom order came in yesterday and I will have to dye some fur...hope to get to that later today.
My birthday went by last week. I celebrate quietly these days. The day before Bill & I went out and I had the most delicious white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. Bill had to work on my actual b-day so I treated myself to a day of shopping then some Ben & Jerry's Phish food ice cream. All in all a nice birthday.

In Limbo

We were supposed to close on the house we are trying to buy June 30....still waiting. I don't think we have ever had a real estate closing go through without a hitch. This one is no different. These days closings are more complicated than ever. So we just wait. I have been trying to keep busy and finished a bear this week. Now I am trying to make her a toy bunny to hold. I want it to look well loved and floppy...kinda worn. This might take more than one try. I am 3/4 of the way finished and not happy with it so far.
My mind starts to wander toward Christmas about this time of year. There are a couple of ideas for Christmas critters floating around in there.
Bill and I went to the beach today for a little down time. The local beaches are beautiful and we hope they stay that way. The east coast of Florida isn't in danger...yet.
Well, you can tell what kind of a state I'm in.....non-cohesive rambling. Maybe next week I will be thinking straighter.
The photo is of Lexi in her favorite napping spot. I'll have to make sure I find a good spot for that table in the new house.

New Critters & News

Now our home purchase is up in the air. If it goes through the closing is again supposed to happen June 30th. So to keep myself busy and not fretting and wringing my hands, I finished a Teddy and a Puppy Grrl. Jenny is the bear. She is ready for some summertime fun with her jump rope. She is available on Bear Pile. Betsy is the latest Puppy Grrl...just in time for the 4th of July. All of the other Puppy Grrls have doggie print dresses but Betsy, the all American Boston Terrier, was begging for red, white, and blue. I hope to get her listed on Bear Pile in a day or two.
My other news....Rebecca has been nominated for an ABC(Australian Bear Creations) award. ABC is a beautiful Teddy Bear magazine published in Australia. I was very pleasantly surprised to see my name on the list of nominees.

Now I will go back to twiddling my thumbs, waiting to here about the house.

Happy 4th of July!

I know it's a little early, but I have a lot going on between now and then. We close on the new house June 30th. Anybody that has ever had a real estate closing knows these things never go smoothly. Something always comes up at the last minute. I am trying to get it all lined up so that won't happen but the odds are probably against me. Even after closing there will be a ton of stuff to do before we can move in. The roof will be replaced right away. A 26 ft above ground pool has to be taken down and removed. It just takes up too much of the backyard and Bill wants to plant a vegetable garden. Wallpaper needs to be removed(and there is a lot of it). Then the walls need to be painted in almost every room. Since we can afford to put in new floors right away, and the carpet is yucky, we are thinking of pulling the carpet up and painting the concrete floors. Concrete floors are not that unusual here in Florida. They can look really nice and there are many colors to choose from.
Then there is the packing and actual moving. Also selling off or donating what will not be going with us. So if you don't here from me for awhile ...you'll know what I'm up to..

Visit the Fantasy Ball

It has finally arrived!! Gerome the Gnome and Sadra the Sea Sprite are available. Chester was adopted immediately upon the show opening. He was the most fun to make. I dyed the fur for his body with fushia and purple dye, making stripes. His toothy smile is needle felted.
There are a lot of wonderful creations at the ball. Make sure you click on "Day One" to vote for the People's Photographic Choice Award category in the ACDA awards. Then "Day Two" will take you to the artists. You click on an artist's photo to see their creations. I really loved this theme but am already mulling over ideas for next years theme, Beatrix Potter.
You can get to the ball by clicking here

Fantasy Ball

It's finally here!! The ball starts May 30 at 6 PM US eastern time. It will last through June 6th. Fantasy critters started running around in my head months ago. Photos of the finished critters were submitted for the ball by May 1st. I will have 3 critters and Whisper the Wood Nymph available. I submitted Whisper for the TACDA awards and although she wasn't nominated, I am proud of her.
There will be a lot of amazing creations at the ball from very talented artists. There will also be voting on the nominees.
There is a sneek peek photo of my 3 creations and a photo of Whisper above. Check back on Sunday for full photos.
To visit the Fantasy Ball click here

2010 Golden Teddy Nominee

I am doing the happy dance!!! Yesterday afternoon I received word that "Misty Lou" has been nominated for a Golden Teddy Award. I am beyond over the moon. This is my first nomination ever. I had all but given up. There are some wonderful nominees in all the categories and some stiff competition in Misty Lou's category. But as they say "I'm thrilled just to be nominated." Photos of all the nominees in each category will be published in the August issue of Teddy Bear Review. Then the public votes. The awards will be given out at the Doll & Bear Expo in Winston-Salem, NC in October. I probably won't be attending.
Right now....I'm on top of the world!

Decorating help

I can now elaborate on the reason I haven't been sewing much lately. We have been house hunting...looking for a smaller home that will fit our current budget. Finally after several months of looking we made an offer and it was accepted. Closing is the end of next month. The house needs a little work and most of it can be done after moving in as we get the funds. We would like to eventually replace carpet with laminate and kitchen needs a makeover. Some painting will be done before moving in. The master bedroom is currently lavender, a definite no no(especially as far as Bill is concerned). I'm thinking a sandy beige. The room I'm not sure about is the family room. It is currently red. There is a beautiful stone fireplace and we think the red walls take away from it. I was thinking a chocolate brown but Bill wants a little lighter like maybe mocha brown. Not sure what to do with the windows on either side of the fireplace. The previous owner had half of a priscilla curtain on each....not really my taste. I have a nice valence on the front window in my home now and might see how they look. It would save some expense and we would like to do that as much as possible

Each pointed piece is a separate piece so I can divide them between two window. Just not sure if they will look right. I will have a bay window in the living room in the front of the house I will have to figure out too.Don't know yet if the brown blinds are going...haven't measured the windows in the new house yet. Down sizing means each of the bedrooms will only have 1 window instead of the 2 in each in our current home.
This will mean a big change for Lexi and Lucy too. Currently they have a doggie dog that fits in the sliding door. The new house has french doors, which means they will have to ask to go out, something they haven't had to do for 5 years.


As you can see the wallpaper is coming down. Don't like wallpaper anyway but I have never had to take it down before, hopefully it won't be too difficult.
Well, we are looking at this move as another adventure...after all isn't that what life is...one adventure after another.

Out of sorts

Since completing the last critter for the Fantasy Ball I haven't been able to get going on anything else. There aren't any cute critters running around in my brain right now. Too much else going on in there.
Unfortunately, we are in the same boat as many in the US. Our home is not worth what we owe and other circumstances mean we must find somewhere else to live. So my life has been filled with packing, and looking at smaller homes in the area. We have had one yard sale and will probably have another this weekend. It is amazing how much stuff you can accumulate in just 5 years. Downsizing means a lot of it will not be going with us. My head is filled with deciding what to pack and what to sell. It is also stressful that there is no set timetable. It could be a couple of months or even a year.
I am looking forward to the Fantasy Ball and my next post will likely be a sneak peek of the critters I will have in the show.
The photo is of a memory shadow box I created a couple of years ago(found it while packing). The photos are of me as a child. There is also a little locket with photos of my mom and dad inside. The "coin" the little bear is holding was something I made for my dad at a carnival.
Next post will be more upbeat....I promise.

Blog Giveaway....

No...not me..Joanne of Desert Mountain Bears is having a drawing on her blog for this beautiful bear. So click on over and leave a comment, I have already left mine. You can click on the pic on the left to get there.
I am working on my last fantasy critter. It has been as slow process as I only think of what is needed as the need appears. First the right color wool for needle felting, then the right color felt for paws. Since the fur was a special dying project(which I am very pleased with), I wasn't sure of colors until it was finished. Now, I have had to order more felting needles as I broke the last course needle and all I have left are fine ones. The needle felted face has started to take shape though and I think it will turn out as pictured in my mind. I must have it finished before May 1 in order to send the photos off to Sandi so she can get all the critters ready for the Fantasy Ball. It starts May 31st. I am really looking forward to it!

Clearance...

Sorry for not posting for a couple of weeks. The days just seem to whiz by. I have one more piece to finish for the Fantasy Ball...just waiting for some felt and wool to arrive. I had a lot of fun dying the fur for this last piece. I tried something a little different this time but you will have to wait and see. Everything for the Ball has to be kept under wraps til the day of the ball. I will post a sneak peek collage when it gets closer.
In trying to disperse the crowding in the critter room I have put several critters in my artfire shop at greatly reduced prices. Some have already found new homes but there are still a few that would love a change of scenery. The three in the photo are still available.
We are having a yard sale tomorrow(more decluttering). Still have to do the sales tax returns for the first quarter but income taxes are done. Hopefully, I will try to post more often but life is busy.

Finally

This has been the coldest winter on record for this part of Florida. Today was the first day we have been even close to our average high. I enjoyed the warmth by sitting by the pool and sewing for awhile. The pool looked really good and hopefully it won't be too long before we can get in. The rest of the week looks even warmer....yay!!! Time to come out of the winter doldrums and get busy. For me that means working off some winter weight. This getting old means the pounds seem to add up faster and I want to be able to wear the shorts I wore last year. I have been busy working on critters for the Fantasy Ball and the ACDA awards. I can't reveal anything yet but if fantasy critters are your thing keep an eye out. I want some multi colored fur for one critter and have been unable to find it. I think I might have to experiment with tie dying. Spring fever is the best and I feel it coming on.....Welcome Spring!!

Updated website

I spent most of yesterday working on my website. Some critters got moved around and some were added. Cubby is now on the front page with his Easter basket. I also added several bears to my etsy shop and a couple more to Artfire. Four of my Kitty Kibbles cats are on their way to a new home. Today I added Daisy to my Artfire shop. I am desperately trying to get into a Spring mood. It is still very cold(relatively speaking) here. We are used to an average of 72 degrees this time of year and we have not made it out of the lower 50's recently. I know friends north of here are getting hammered with snow and more snow but I am just not used to the cold anymore. Not to mention I do not own many cold weather clothes. You won't find me complaining about the heat in the summer...I say "Bring it on!".

The Critter Room is overflowing!!!

The Tampa show went well. The collectors were lined up at the door waiting for the doors to open. It stayed busy most of the day. Two Puppy Grrls and two little dogs went to new homes. I will be listing those that came home with me on my website and my etsy show this week.
While unpacking I realized how crowded the critter room was getting. I spent this morning listing several kitties, dogs and bears at reduced prices in my Artfire shop. These critters are really itching for a change of scenery!
I will start creating again next week. This week is for catching up on computer things - listing and bookkeeping. I might even try to squeeze in the time to read a book.
Take a look in the Artfire shop and see if there is a little critter calling to you. The photo just shows a few of those listed today.

Got her done....

I worked all week to get one more Puppy Grrl done for the Tampa show this Sunday. I think Rosita turned out well. Bill and I had to deliver some water in Melbourne today so I talked him into stopping at JoAnn's. I needed some ribbon roses for Rosita and some bright fabric for a table cover for the show. When we got home, I added her hair ribbons and a ribbon with a bone button to her dress...finished. She had her photoshoot and now she is ready to go.
Now I just have to go over my checklist, pack the car, and we hit the road at 6 AM Sunday morning. Really looking forward to this show!!

Just a few more days.....

I'm working on last minute things for the Be My Valentine online show. The critters for sale are all complete but they need tags, which have to be printed then laminated. Then they need to be prepared for shipment so I can weigh them and give an accurate quote on shipping charges when they are purchased. Sending emails to all the collectors on my mailing list also needs to be done.
Last week my sewing machine went on the fritz....panic. I had a spare but not the right presser foot for it. So, I took my machine to the local quilt shop for repair and was told it would take 2 weeks. Bill remembered there was a guy at the flea market that did sewing machine repair, so on Friday we drove down there. He was no longer there! We asked around and found out he had moved to another flea market about 10 miles farther south. He wasn't there Friday but we found out he would be on Saturday. I decided to take along my mom's Singer Featherweight too. This guy really knows what he's doing and I will have both machines back in working order shortly. I'm really looking forward to using the Featherweight again as it is the machine I learned to sew on when I was a child.
Been trying to get a few more puppies and bears done for the Tampa show too. Cappy in the photo will be headed to Tampa along with some little puppies and several Puppy Grrls. Next week I will get all the tags done for that show. Since we are driving almost 3 hrs to that show there is more prep to do....receipts, bags, lunch, etc.
Make sure to check out the TBACA Be My Valentine show. It starts at 4 PM, eastern time here in the US. There is a link to a time converter on the BMV page.