Raewyn a Fairy Bear

Raewyn is a gift for a friend that collects fairies. I had a lot of fun making her. The fur is from Sassy Bears and Fabrics. It is the first time I ordered fur from there. The fur is specifically for miniatures bears and is synthetic, kind of like upholstery velvet. It was wonderful to work with and I am currently working on another small bear in a tan color. Raewyn is 4 1/2" sitting(she was made to sit), her eyes are hand painted and her paws are ultrasuede. Her wings were purchased from JTBCREATIONS on etsy. Each wing had a 1/2" wire at the center for attaching. It took me a little while to figure out how I was going to attach them. Using a small jointing disc, I put both wires through the hole then bent the wires down. To make sure they didn't rotate, I put epoxy glue on the wires and disc. The disc was then inserted into the back seam and the seam sewed shut. I had a lot of fun looking through the bead catalog to find the perfect ones for her "crown".
There has only been time to sew at night because during the day for the last 2 weeks I have been going through my book inventory. I had high hopes when I purchased the inventory almost 2 1/2 years ago. I was led to believe the income would be much higher than it actually was. Now, with postal rates going up May 1, what little profit there was on book sales has gone down to almost nothing. The books with low values are just going outahere! The inventory, which took up the entire garage, will now only take up 2 walls along the sides. The plan is to have it all gone within a year.
On an upbeat note, another idea for a bear came to me night before last. Some new fabric I purchased on Tuesday sparked the idea but she sorta came together right before I fell asleep that night.

Finally finished her

A vision of this little girl bear came to me one night several months ago. Sometimes my best ideas materialize right before I go to sleep. I saw everything, from the red polka dot dress to the little Mary Jane shoes.
The first thing I shopped for was the material for her dress. It had to be red with black dots. Most of the material had either the wrong color dots or the dots were too big. Finally, I found the fabric in the local quilting shop. Then after the two shows in February I ordered some mohair. After completing my submissions for the Black and White Ball, I started to work on her. She was ready to be dressed by the last week in March. Her dress was the first I have made with pleats but it turned out just as I had seen in my mind. Her little undies were made from a vintage hankie.
Now I needed her shoes. I have always had trouble fitting shoes for my bears. Generally a bears feet are wider than dolls feet. I had one pair of cute black dolls shoes but at 2 1/4", they were too big. Googling doll shoes, there were several good sites with prices from $3 to $10 per pair. CR's Crafts had the best price and selection so I ordered a pair of shoes along with a couple of other little things. After waiting almost a week for the package to arrive, I tore into it to find a pair of very tiny shoes. The soles were the right length, but there was no way they were going on bear feet. Drats!!! A trip to the thrift store solved the problem. I purchased a patent leather(I don't think it's real leather anymore) clutch purse. Using a down sized shoe pattern for 18" dolls, I made little patent Mary Janes and a purse.
The end result....Becky Ann . She is available on my website.
I don't know where the drive comes from to create but I feel satifaction.

More Makeovers

Finally finished a couple of makeovers. . I used Rit dye to get the beautiful shade of purple on the bear that is now called "Lumi". She is wearing a necklace of fimo beads. The pink was achieved using strawberry Kool-aid. Her name is now "Noni". She also has a necklace of fimo flower beads. I am waiting on a package so I can finish up another bear I have been working on.
I do need to take some time to work on the books for the water business. No fun at all ... I'd rather be making bears.

Yard Sale Finds

I stopped at a few garage/yard sales on Friday after my regular errands. Usually I look for little knic knacks or doll things I can use with my creations. The last sale I stopped at was more like an estate sale with everything in the home being sold. Apparently someone had collected Teddy bears, as there was a table full. Most were Boyds and there were a few store brands. It's a good thing I decided to dig a little. These two wonderful Steiff bears came home with me for $5 each. They are in wonderful condition. The one with the red, white, and blue bow is called Teddy's Bear and is dated 1998. The other is Delighted and dated 1997. I think they are my best find at a yard sale ever!

My first Elephant

Say hello to "Hettie". I have been wanting to design an elephant for a long time. This mohair has been hanging in my closet for a long time too. I fell in love with the material I used for her dress last week at the fabric store, found the vintage lace for her petticoat at an estate sale and suddenly on Saturday it all came together. The mohair is actually a little longer that what I had envisioned for my elephant but the color was so perfect. Hettie was actually my great grandmother's name(I got her middle name, Nancy). It just seemed like the right name for a little dusty pink ellie. Hettie will probably make an appearance in my etsy shop sometime this weekend.
Later today Bill has an appt at the VA clinic. That means a trip to Michael's craft store..YEAAA! It's a good 40 minute trip so I don't get to go often. It's almost like Christmas morning for me(no fun for Bill though).

I'm still here!

I didn't realize it has been almost 2 weeks since I posted! The days have flown by. I can't even remember all that I have been doing. Last week I was feeling a little off because of a "vibration" in my ear. I don't know how else to describe it...not ringing but like my ear drum was humming. After 2 days and little sleep I went to the doctor. She sees a hair poking my ear drum. The nurse flushed my ear twice with no luck getting the hair out. They made me an appt with an ear, nose & throat specialist for the next week. Bill suggested I try the stuff for ear wax removal because it bubbles up. So I tried it and sure enough a little hair about the size of a small eyelash came out. Weird huh?? The appt with the specialist was canceled(thank goodness...can't afford it anyway).
I did manage to get almost 3 critters finished. I am waiting on some accessories to complete them but I can't "reveal" them because they are going to appear at TBACA's Black & White Ball in June. I can show you Cubby"s Easter Surprise. Cubby appeared in the TBACA's Easter Challenge and is now on the front page of my web site. He is the first bent leg bear I can remember making. His little chick is needle felted, as are the Easter eggs in his basket.
I am working on a Pekingnese and struggling with it's face. They have such cute smushed faces and since this one is a request I want it to be just right.
I am also struggling with the decision about whether or not to get an Artfire shop. There introductory $7 a month forever will soon no longer be available. It will go up to $20 a month but I'm just not sure it is the right venue for me. I have to decide very soon.

I got to meet a flickr buddy!!

I meant to post about this earlier...the days just fly by. One of my contacts on flickr and fellow blogger Vivian was in Florida for her grandma's 93 birthday. Luckily she was staying on Daytona Beach which is only about 40 minutes north of me. We arranged to meet for lunch last Friday. It was bike week in Daytona so there were motorcycles everywhere and most restaurants were crowded. We found a place called The Deck Down Under(because it sits under a bridge). We arrived a about a quarter to 12 noon and went right up to the counter and ordered a couple of burgers. By the time we sat down the line was out the door and remained so the whole 3 hours we were there. The tables were on a deck overlooking the Halifax Riveer. We had a wonderful time talking and getting to know each other. Viv and I had decided before hand to swap a couple of our creations. Viv made me an adorable pin keep with a pink teddy on top. I made a little kitten for her in memory of her Jasper that recently crossed the rainbow bridge. It was wonderful to see(in person) someone I have met on the internet.