New Bear In The Studio

There's a new bear in the studio - almost finished. I still have to add the ears, eyes, mouth and nose. Hopefully his nose will not be a re-run of Susie's mishap. Sorry Susie! :<} I have been referring to the new bear as "Red" at this point, but that may change when he is completed and has his personality. He is made from wool felt in a beautiful color called "Ember". In the pattern he is a "sleeping" bear on a shelf edge - which is why the pose - but I have also taken a photo of him in a sitting position so that you can see his shape. He looks a little "necked" at this point but soon he will be all together! He has large ears so I am not sure how to attach them as I don't want him to look like a mouse. :<} Well, by the end of the day he will be done and we shall see!

Bonnie's Kits To Go!

This is a photo of one of the books you can find on my brother Dick and sister-in-law Bonnie's online store - Bonnie's Kits to Go! If you like handwork, this is the place to look for great products! They carry all kinds of wonderful things for cross stitch embroidery, crocheting, knitting, beading and much more - all manner of kits and charts and books! I was looking at their site again this morning and found this great book of 12 individual little teddy bears, each with their own blanket! It is called 'Birthday Bears & Blankets' and each of the 12 designs represents a month of the year! What cute little bears to make and if you crochet, this is absolutely the book for you! Check it out! :<} It's in my favorites!

The Look Says It All!

No need for words to describe how she feels about that nose! :<}

"Susie" Is Finished!

Here is the finished "Susie" in all her glory. She now has her own space on the shelf in my studio with the other bears. We had quite a giggle at her nose, but it can't be helped now. She told me to wait until my eyes were better but I wanted to finish her today. Then I tried to fix it and of course that just made the irregularities even more obvious. I debated taking it all out and starting over but she said no way am I agreeing to go through all that again! :<} So she is who she is and I love her! She is a cute little thing. I did give her eyelids but have not yet done any coloring or shading as I am leaving well enough alone for today! :<}

Computer Glitz!

Wasn't able to add photos in the last post, so here they are!

Bear Update

The little bear is coming along nicely. She doesn't have her nose yet so she has a "caught-in-the-headlight" look. This is a pattern called "Love Sick" by Monica Spicer and she is a cutie! :<} I love to sew patterns that have something different or a technique that I have not tried. In this pattern stitching is done on the outside of the inside elbow :<} after it is stuffed to bend it further and I also did this on the inside of the knee of the raised leg to pull it back further. I love working in wool felt - it is the fabric of choice for me for both my cloth dolls and animals - and it is interesting to see the difference in the finished product. Especially in the bears as it allows the shape of the body to be seen more clearly. When using it in the dolls however, I also have to take in account that it makes them larger because of the thickness of the felt in comparison to a cloth fabric so the clothes patterns need to be altered. I think that I shall call this bear "Susie" as it seems to fit. The finished bear wears clothes and a hat and I will post those photos later. :<} She is a cutie and I will love having her in my studio!

Beautiful Sunny Day in Wisconsin!

The sun is out today! Yeahhhh! It is warm enough to have the windows open and the fresh air is wonderful!

This morning I had my breakfast on the small tray that was Lillian's. I was attracted to it beacause of the bright and happy strawberry design and it looked so pretty this morning I decided to take a photo. So here are some of my favorite things. My coffee, orange slices, a book and my doll and teddy bear magazines.

I will remember Lillian with every use of this lovely small tray.

Creating A Picture Trail

Today the morning was spent working on my new Picture Trail albums - re-sizing and transferring photos. It is so much fun to have this blog and now a site where my doll photos are all in one place for viewing!

In addition to working in cloth, I also sculpt using the polymer clays and PaperClay.

These are photos of my REMEMBER! doll. She is sculpted from polymer clay, has a wire body armature, a cloth body and wool roving hair. I made her as a reminder to keep my personal power to myself and not to give it away. She was quite a drama queen while she was being created and it was a struggle between what I had in mind and what she wanted to be! :<} There had to be jewelry (including a huge 'diamond' ring), glitter in her hair, etc. Once I accepted the well learned fact that I am only the labor, everything went smoothly. So every day, there she sits, reminding me with a shake of her finger to Remember! and protect the power. Her hands are purposely made larger than scale to the rest of her to call attention to them.

Check out my new picture trail to see more photos at:

http://www.picturetrail.com/photos/whimcees

Starting A New Bear

Started a new bear today. This is how far I am at this writing as I take a dinner break. It is smaller than the bears I usually choose but I think "she" will be cute when finished. She wears overalls and a hat so that should be fun! :<} Hopefully she will be finished by tomorrow evening.

Lillian's Butterfly

Lillian's butterfly now has a place in my window. I met people out in the hall during the day while I was walking, getting my mail, etc. either going to or coming from the "garage sale" in Lillian's now vacated apartment. I overheard many conversations as people exchanged stories of who had what. Overheard the daughter talking to Lillian on the phone and telling her who had chosen what items and how she had given some to different people because they were her friends and how happy other people were to have whatever. I hope that on hearing these stories that it made Lillian happy. I know the butterfly makes me happy. I sent her a card today to let her know and to wish her a good life in her new home.