Nice weather for ducks!

The heavens opened when we reached Stratford on Saturday and as we strolled along the River Avon after unloading our car, we were every bit as wet as the ducks.  Not even torrential rain could dampen our mood though ... we were determined to make the most of our weekend away in Shakespeare's beautiful home town!

The Falcon Hotel

We've stayed in the Falcon Hotel previously, but not had the pleasure of staying in the original 16th Century part of the hotel, which is a very different experience from the modern end of the building.  This year our room had a lovely little lounge attached, which looked onto an archaelogical dig taking place at 'Nash's House' (Shakespeare's last residence) opposite.  There were Tudor beams galore, not to mention a wonderfully quirky floor, which tipped everything, bed included, towards the centre of the room - not necessarily the most comfortable night's sleep we've ever had, but atmospheric and great fun! And on Sunday morning the hotel's restaurant provided us with an excellent 'Full English' breakfast, which let's face it, is the perfect start to a busy show day!

Stuart checking out the Bard's monument in the pouring rain.

View towards Holy Trinity Church

We walked along the Riverbank in the direction of the Holy Trinity Church (where Shakespeare was christened) and from time to time the sun made a half hearted effort to shine through the clouds.

We even saw a rainbow, just as Stuart did his Mary Poppins routine!

The Holy Trinity Church across the Avon

It became clear the rain wasn't likely to ease for long enough for us to sit on the grass with a pint or two like we did last year, so we decided to take the sensible option and instead walked back through the town in search of a cosy pub!

The Guild Chapel and the Grammar School where Shakespeare was educated

Needless to say, I kept my little point 'n' shoot camera handy as we walked ... after all, there are so many picturesque sights in Stratford, it would have been a shame to miss an opportunity to snap away!  

And before long we spotted The 'Windmill Inn', which has been a designated public house for an impressive 400 years ... perfect!

"Oi, will you stop fiddling with that camera and let's get inside!"

We guzzled our beer and as the warmth of the pub gradually dried our soggy feet, decided we were hungry, so wandered towards the 14th Century 'Garrick Inn,' in search of further sustenance.

We enjoyed a tasty meal, topped off with Irish coffees in the Garrick.  All in all, a very pleasant way to spend an evening.

Sunday's 'Teddy Bear Artist Event show took place in the Civic Hall across the road from the magnficent Clock Tower.

The Clock Tower

Luckily for the exhibitors, the heavy rain didn't scare away our hardy collectors and this lovely show was a terrific success!  I spent the entire day chatting and finding new homes for my show bears. 

Having a natter with lovely Pam Howells

Eager collectors and yes, there's Gregory Gyllenship too!

I'm afraid not many of the show pics I took came out well enough to share here with you ... but don't let that stop you from visiting Stratford and the Teddy Bear Artist Event next year will you?!  I highly recommend a weekend in Stratford, whatever the weather!

'Felicity and her bun'

The icing on my Stratford cake was that my competition entry 'Felicity and her bun' won the 'Organiser's Award' at the show, which means I have been given a free stand at next year's show ... and of course, that gives me a great excuse for another weekend in lovely Stratford Upon Avon.  Now that's what I call a result!

A duck for Dad x

If you enjoyed reading this post, you might also enjoy the following:

http://allbear.blogspot.com/2008/06/summing-up-stratford-upon-avon.html

and

http://allbear.blogspot.com/2010/06/show-time-in-stratford.html

All Present and Correct!

How I did it, I'm not quite sure, but today I can announce my 'Teddy Bear Artist Event' show bears are at last, all present and correct in time for their big day out in Stratford Upon Avon ... phew!

My 2011 Stratford Collection!

  I feel as though I've done a full workout this morning ... who would have thought clambering around the lounge taking photographs could be such strenuous work?!

If you would like to join us all and meet the bears in person on Sunday, please visit http://www.teddybearartistevent.co.uk/ for full details of this very special artist bear show.

Well, the bears are made, they've had their official photo shoot, my http://www.allbear.co.uk/ website has been updated with pics ... time for a rest?  If only!  There is still much to do before Sunday's show - pricing, tagging and packing to name but a few of the remaining tasks ...

But first lunch!  All this work has given me an appetite and as the sun is shining, I'm looking forward to taking a breather while I eat an egg and tomato sandwich out in my garden ... I reckon I've earned it!

The 'Normous Nineties!

Back in the 'Normous Nineties, a magnificent decade of significant statement bears, this bearmaker was truly excited by the possibility of creating bears big enough for proper hugs; so she worked hard designing 'Big 'Uns' - bears big enough to stand out in any crowd! 

27" 'Glisten' - 1995

27" 'Timeless' - 1996

27" 'Only' - 1997

32" 'Himself' - 1998

The nineties was definitely a bear-crafting decade for celebration!  Back then there were no cries of 'I don't have room for big bears', instead collectors relished their bold proportions and more often than not, bigger really was better!

26" Black Magic - 2006

I still absolutely adore big bears, but like so many other big bear makers, have had to gradually scale down sizes to accommodate collectors' needs over the years. In fact, from memory, I think the largest bear I made during the past decade, was 'Black Magic' and he was a mere 26"!

8" 'Titch' - 2011

And last week, something I never imagined could happen, did actually happen ... I found myself sewing a little 8" bear!

23" Nat - my largest bear so far in 2011

The magnificent big guys of the nineties will always be dear to my heart and there's no way I'll ever completely let them go - after all, once a big bear maker, always a big bear maker!  But it is fun to try new things and of course, unless you are lucky enough to own a mansion, collecting space in homes does fill up pretty fast, so I guess a few little 'uns, mixed in with slightly less enormous 'Big 'Uns', will hopefully be a positive step forward for this bearmaker in 2011!

A Century of the Teddy Bear

Any teddy bear designer worth their salt will tell you how important it is to understand the history of the teddy bear and his part in our lives.  So although it isn't a bear crafting manual, I would like to recommend a beautiful history of the teddy bear book, first published in hardback in 1997.

'A Century of the Teddy Bear' by Constance King

I think 'A Century of the Teddy Bear" by Constance King is a very special book indeed.  As the flyleaf says, it "gives us a fascinating insight into the world of Teddy Bears, linked with social history, wartime, royalty and individual owners."  This book not only contains wonderful photographs of bears throughout the decades, it also covers their history incisively and in my humble opinion, is an absolutely fascinating historical insight into the hertitage of our much loved teddy bears!

If you would like a copy of your own, you may strike luck with Amazon.com ... I checked today and there are still a few second hand copies available at reasonable prices.  Having said that, the 'new' copies advertised are very expensive indeed!

False modesty? Not me!

Okay, I won't hide behind false modesty ... I confess it is impossible not to feel a little thrill of pride upon opening a teddy publication, flicking through and finding my work included in a featured entitled 'Leaders of the pack'! 

'The Teddy Bear Annual' is a classy magazine, lovingly edited by Kathy Martin, authoress, editor and our leading UK expert on all things teddy bear.

The Teddy Bear Annual 2011 Spring/Summer edition

If you haven't purchased your copy yet, you really are missing a treat!  This mag is bursting with 74 pages of beautiful bears and fascinating, well-written articles covering all aspects of teddy bear collecting.

 

To see a preview of this lovely publication, please visit: http://www.collectors-club-of-great-britain.co.uk/magazines/default.asp?magazine=5

The Teddy Bear Annual' is priced at only £5.95 with free delivery in the UK. Go on, treat yourself, you know you want to!

By the way, if it makes it easier for you, the magazine is also available to order through Amazon.

Too little too late?

I must admit to feeling a little bogged down this week.  The Stratford show is looming large on the 12th June and as my next shop order has been pulled forward at short notice too, it doesn't feel as though I'm doing justice to anything right now.  Hopefully by the middle of next week, my basket of bits will magically have become lovely new bears and I will be able to relax a bit!

Ah well, at least I do have a few new bears ready for the show ...

21" Hector

21" Ophelia

16" Toby

23" Felicity

And although I haven't photographed him yet, I also finished a little bear yesterday ... mind you, at only 8" he's not exactly going to help fill my table is he?!

Walking the walk ...

As you may or may not know, I am the person behind 'The Guild of Master Bearcrafters' (www.masterbearcrafters.ning.com) an internet group I set up a couple of years ago, to help professional bearcrafters promote and progress the concept of 'artist bear'.  With that aim in mind, I recently challenged willing members to explore new styles of bearcraft and incorporate at least one bear crafting technique hitherto alien to their work.

The results are rolling in now and I must say, I am delighted with the commitment our Guild challengees have shown to this project!  I have been a somewhat shamed by my own limited efforts after being compromised by a lack of available design time when a shop order was suddenly pulled forward, but nonetheless, I did manage to have a go at a couple of things I haven't tried before.  There's no point talking the talk, if you're not prepared to walk the walk eh?!

I haven't made a truly contemporary bear in a noticeable while, so opted to tackle a tricky open-mouthed bear with bendy legs and hugging arms; however as these elements weren't entirely new to me, I also decided to introduce eyelashes for the first time and to create pulled toes, which I nervously shaded ... one false move and I was terrified I would ruin my new bear!

Spurred on by my fellow challengees' enthusiasm for the challenge, I decided to squeeze in one last element to complete my 'Something old, something new' design, by creating a prim style rabbit companion - another first for me.

And here is my finished Guild challenge piece:  'Felicity finds her bun'!

It's hard not to be inspired by other artists' enthusiasm for a project, but I am particularly grateful to my Guild friends for this push ... they don't know this, but my laughing bears were always Dad's favourites and I haven't felt able to make one since he died last Autumn. 

Thank you all for being such an inspirational force xxx

Guild member Tami Eveslage created two fabulous bears for this challenge!  Please visit Tami's blog to read all about her approach to the challenge:  

http://insidemystudio.blogspot.com/2011/05/something-old-something-new.html

Bouncy, busy, buzzy-ness!

When we moved my workroom into my son's old bedroom after he flew the nest earlier this year, we were left with one empty bedroom and a six year old keen to 'sleepover' at Grandad's house ... cue Stuart's paintbrush!

Our new 'Grandson friendly' guestroom!

This weekend was the young man's first official houseguest visit and I am happy to report, there were absolutely no collywobbles, in fact he settled in perfectly and we all had a lovely time.

Gardening with Grandad

I must admit, now that my own children are grown-up and independent, I absolutely loved having our home noisy and full of bouncy, busy, buzzy-ness again.  Come again soon young 'un!

A Prim Dolly Doodle Dangle Bun!

I've been working on a special 'Something old, something new'

challenge project for the 'Guild of Master Bearcrafters' (www.masterbearcrafters.ning.com) recently and although I'm not quite ready to share the finished bear with you just yet (soon I promise!) I can at least show you a peek of the 'Something old' part of the challenge ...

I had so much fun making this daft little dingly dangly, prim style rabbit from an oddment of leftover mohair ... now I feel a basket of scrappy dappy buns coming on!

What lies beyond ...

Driving home after a visit to the cinema at the Dockside complex in Chatham on Saturday night, I noticed a signpost to 'Riverside Country Park'.  My geography is hopeless, but even I know the 'Medway Towns' are sited along the River Medway - however, my sleepy little post 'Pirates-of-the-Carribean' head briefly pondered how an entire 'Country Park' could possibly have been squeezed into such a heavily urbanised area.  So after lunch yesterday afternoon, Stuart and I drove back along the A2 to satisfy my curiosity ...

We turned right at the 'Honourable Pilot' pub in Gillingham, then took a couple more turns and in the blink of an eye, the townscape vanished and we were pleasantly surprised to be driving past horses grazing peacefully in green pastures.  (In fact, Stuart confessed to driving to nearby Gillingham football stadium every week throughout the footie season for the past thirty years, without ever realising how different the landscape was just along the road!)

View towards Kingsnorth Power Station

Once parked, we climbed wooden steps and there before us lay the Medway Estuary with a view of the Kingsnorth Power Station contrasting dramatically against the horizon.

Across marshland, towards Motney Hill

We were buffeted by sea salty gusts along the estuary pathway towards Motney Hill and then followed the coastal path along the Saxon Shore Way.  For me, part of the charm of this walk was not only the outstanding beauty of the area, but also old boats, long since abandoned, now claimed by Mother Nature and woven into her landscape.

View from 'Horrid Hill'

Our walk along the coastal path lasted about an hour before we decided to head back to the visitor centre, by which time I was wildly windswept and very much in need of an ice-cream!  Our final stroll of the afternoon, ices in hand, led us across a causeway to 'Horrid Hill' (possibly named after French prisoners were incarcerated on large ships on the island during the Napoleonic Wars) ... definitely a place with a grim history!

Wrecked on Horrid Hill!

We thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon at Riverside Country Park.  The views were interesting and the terrain not too taxing ... having said that, on an icy November's day I imagine it could be a very bleak walk!

If you would like to visit, please visit the website below for directions:

http://www.medway.gov.uk/environmentandplanning/countrysidesites/riversidecountrypark.aspx

Ever wondered ... ?

Ever wondered how to embroider a stripey nose for your bear?

I make my striped noses very simply.  No templates, no glueing, no measuring.  Just plain 'ol stitching and careful tensioning!

I always start in the centre and work out to the side ... then back to the centre and out to the other side.  My noses require two layers of stitching.  To make a stripey nose I simply use two separate coloured threads and two sewing needles and stitch one, then the other.

Alternatively, multi-coloured embroidery thread gives a great effect too!

This is a fun, simple way to give your bears even greater personality - go on, give it a go, you know you want to!

Another for the bear maker's bookshelf ...

I'm always on the lookout for good bear-crafting books to share with you and found this book quite by chance a couple of weeks ago.  It was first published in 1998, so you may have to hunt to find it and be warned, it can be on the pricey side ( my copy was about £30 on Amazon) but for anyone wanting a good solid teddy bear making reference book full of detailed instructions and with plenty of helpful photographs, this book really is a useful purchase.

The Complete Book of Teddy-Bear Making Techniques
by Alicia Merrett & Ann Stephens

The book covers in detail everything from how to design your own jointed teddy bear pattern, through to making a classic bear - in fact, it explains all aspects of traditional bear-making from cutting out, to sewing limbs, jointing, assembling fitting eyes and even sewing on those fiddly ears!  It also covers making clothes for your bear and the techniques required for making miniature bears.  As the icing on the cake, there's a lovely gallery of artist bears featured in the last chapter, giving you an opportunity to enjoy the original bear art being created back in the 1990's! 

Definitely a great book for anyone who likes to collect bear-making books and a most useful book for anyone who would like to learn how to make their very own teddy bear!

The Shabby Summer Collection

This little collection of shabby ol' bears is on its way to 'One More Bear', a lovely teddy bear shop on the Trentham Estate in Stoke on Trent. 

12.5" Pippin, 16" Merrylegs and 15" Lavendar-Lou

My bears will debut in the shop in the next day or two, so if you happen to be passing, please pop in to meet them in the fur and say 'hi' to Tracy, the proprietor of 'One More Bear'.

The Trentham Estate offers award winning gardens to enjoy, a fabulous monkey forest, eateries and a wonderful shopping village.  It really is a super day out for everyone!

A good talking to ...

It's unusual for me to have unadopted bears on shelves in my workroom, but at the moment I have three lonely souls, waiting patiently for their special someone. Naturally I can't help but wonder what is wrong with my work ... it's silly I know, but I'm sure most creative types suffer along similar lines of self-doubt.  We're only human after all.

'Bramwell'

Like everyone else, I listen to daily news bulletins full of economic doom and gloom and for a brief moment commonsense rationalises my thoughts, but then that nasty little devil of self-doubt perches on my shoulder slyly whispering in my ear, 'three bears Paula, that's not like you ... you must be doing something wrong!'

  

'Henrietta'

Well little 'Devil of self-doubt', I think it's time to tell you to hop off my shoulder and find something more constructive to do with your time.  With two major awards under my belt in 2011, two forthcoming magazine profiles and every bear bar three sold this year, perhaps those news bulletins are telling the truth, maybe our financial times really have become tougher ... and in that case, maybe my hard-earned bear crafting skills didn't vanish overnight!

'Boswell'

Let's hope the economic climate warms up soon ... after all, our bears may be a luxury, but they certainly aren't an unnecessary one!

If you are interested in adopting any of the bears shown above, please pop over to my website for their full details:

http://www.allbear.co.uk/

Thank you!

16th May Update: I'm delighted to say both Bramwell and Boswell have found lovely new owners in the past week!  Henrietta is currently still available to purchase.