Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Wow, Shelli your Willy Wonka bear is just scrumdiddlyumptiousI think you have done a great job, it's a real razztwizzling, whoppsy-whiffling fizzwinkle of a bear!

I live in a small town in Buckinghamshire, England and we have the Roald Dahl hands–on museum for children at The Buckinghamshire County Museum.  At the museum you can discover Willy Wonka's inventions,
Go inside the Giant Peach ,Crawl along Fantastic Mr. Fox's tunnel and Ride in the Great Glass Elevator plus lots of other scrummy things for kids. Roald Dahl lived in a village not far from here so his works are often celebrated locally.

Jane.

Hi Sue Ann,
Wow! The bears are wonderful. I love their cute faces and your photography is really good. As for the question about double neck joints, I love them. I have used these often on my bears as the poses that you can get with the bear are great. Once you get into the swing of doing double neck joints then it will be much quicker for you to do them. The sculpted toes are really effective and add a touch of realism and in my opinion look great. I know both of these features are time consuming but for the effect that they give I feel well worth doing. I just love the fur which you made Briscoe out of could you tell me what it is please!

Jane.

Hi everyone,
I too need a big hug!
I've miss you all since Thursday! I was rushed into hospital on Thursday night with terrible pains in my abdomen. I've had this seven times before so I knew what was coming. I now have to have my gallbladder removed. The operation couldn't be done straight away as I have an infection in the gallbladder. I came home last night with a bag full of different medications to take and I have to rest at home for a week or so. I am on the waiting list for the operation and I wondered if any of you have had this done and can tell me about it.

Jane

Thanks Penny! My husband has often said he was slim until I started feeding him and he doesn't even eat cake.
For all you chocolate lovers here is what my friend's daughter does first she gets a huge bar of Cadbury's chocolate melts it down in the microwave, then she proceeds to eat it with........ chips!
For you girls over the pond that is thick cut potatoes deep fried in oil, not what we call crisps. The more sane of use eat chips with fish, not this girl and she's a slim size 10 which is around a size 6 in the USA sizes. I can't stand the girl............................no she's lovely really, I am just so jealous that she can eat like that and stay so skinny.

Now about that Aussie Mud cake, please post the recipe for us all to have. I fancy making one for the weekend. That's if this wretched hot weather cools down a little.

Jane

Awwww! Ain't that nice were all loved. I agree this place is a great place to learn about bears and their needs plus a great place to have friends help out with all kind of worries.

Love yer all!

Jane

After reading through the messages I've gathered that some of you are somewhat partial to the brown nectar so I am posting this for you. It is a recipe for the most delectable, moist, scrumptious, yummy chocolate cake!
You will have to convert the measurements to suit you USA girls but don't let it put you off...this is chocolate heaven!

Ultimate Chocolate Cake

Ingredients
200g/ 8oz good-quality dark chocolate (60% cocoa solids)
200g/ 8oz butter, cut into pieces
I tbsp instant coffee granules
85g/ 3oz self-raising flour
85g/ 3oz plain flour
¼ tsp bicarbonate of sugar
200g/ 7oz light muscovado sugar
200g/ 7oz golden caster sugar
25g/ 1oz cocoa powder
3 medium eggs
75ml buttermilk (5tbsp)
Grated chocolate curls to decorate
FOR THE GANACHE
200g/ 8oz good-quality dark chocolate
284ml carton double cream
2tbsp golden caster sugar

Method
1.    Butter two 20cm round sandwich cake tins and line the bases. Preheat the oven to fan 140C/ conventional 160C/ gas 3. Break the chocolate in pieces into a medium, heavy-based pan. Tip in the butter, then mix the coffee granules into 125ml/4fl oz cold water and pour into the pan. Warm through over a low heat just until everything is melted – don’t overheat.
2.    While the chocolate is melting, mix the two flours, bicarbonate of soda, sugars and cocoa in a big bowl mixing with your hands to get rid of any lumps. Beat the eggs in a bowl and stir in the buttermilk.
3.    Now pour the melted chocolate mixture and the egg mixture into the flour mixture, stirring just until everything is well blended and you have smooth, quite runny consistency. Pour this into the tins (any surplus can be baked as muffins – just reduce the cooking time) and bake for 1 hour 25 – 1 hour 30 minutes – if you push a skewer through the centre it should come out clean and the top should feel firm (don’t worry if it cracks a bit). Leave to cool in the tin, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4.    Make the ganache: chop the chocolate into small pieces and tip into a bowl. Pour the cream into a pan, add the sugar, then heat until it is about to boil. Take off the heat and pour it over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.
5.    Sandwich the cake layers together with a little of the ganache. Pour the rest over the cake letting it fall down the sides and smoothing to cover with a palette knife. Decorate with grated chocolate or a pile of chocolate curls. This cake keeps moist and gooey for 3-4 days.

I don't usually eat chocolate cake but this one broke the mold and now I can be caught in the kitchen with sticky paws.
BIG TIP: Keep away from the bears they will gobble it all up and who's going to buy gooey teddies anyhow!

No seriously don't get any near your teddies as this will cling tight and have you noshing on the mohair to get every drop of chocolate as every bit is to be savoured and devoured.

Jane

OOOOOOOOOOOH! Louise can I borrow Garnet I have some lovely curtain fabric to make up? He's an absolute star helping you with the sewing. Well done Garnet, it's a shame more guys can't be like you. I couldn't even get my husband to thread a needle and even if I threaded it for him he would just sit there and not know what to do with it.

Jane

Shelli,  Babbo is wonderful! My son just walk passed me and came back to see the picture. His comment was "Wow! I really like that one look at it's lovely eyes." I agree with David, Baboo does have lovely eyes.
I don't really have any regrets on selling one of my bears but I do regret running off to the bathroom at my very first show only to get back to find that Sarah, my daughter had made my very first show sale. I didn't get to see who bought the bear or to sign the adoption certificate and hand it to the buyer. So somewhere the is a Doodlebear without an adoption certificate gone into the wide, wide world...that's the one I'll always miss.
Jane

Awwwww Judi your children are beautiful! Now I see where you get all the inspiration for the lovely faces on your bears. I love kids hence me having five of my own. They are all grown up now....
Hayley you are so sweet you have a friend here who's sending you a huge big hug  
You said I don't look old enough to have a 23 year old daughter, well my kids are David 20, Sarah 23, Simon 26, Eve 28 and Mark 35 next month. Thanks for the big, big compliment you lovely girl!!!!!!!!!

Jane.

Wow Louise, a handsome unattached male...does he have a passport? I have a beautiful unattached 23 year old daughter. She cooks, cleans is tidy and extreamly clever and she is studying to be a doctor.

Jane.

Well done Louise. I love it when a customer returns it's a real compliment to you and your work.
After arriving home from selling at a fair at Alexandra Palace in London last year I checked my email to find an email from one of the bears I had sold at the bear fair. No I'm not crazy it was definitely signed by my bear, he told me how happy he was at the hotel where he was staying and that his new daddy loved him very much and would be flying off to the States with him the following day. Three days later I had another email from the bear showing  photographs of him at his new home in New York. He was sitting with his new bear family, which was huge. I received an email Christmas card and a Mother's day card from the bear. I don't know if I will hear from him again but his new daddy said he hopes to be able to fly over to London again in October to this year's show so who knows he may have a new brother or sister before long.

Reading this through I'm not quite sure who's the dafter...me or the daddy!

Jane.

I had a lady ask for layaway, which I offer. She made the first payment and then emailed me saying she had fallen on hard times and couldn't pay for the bears. I didn't pursue her for the money as it was only a very small inexpensive bear and not worth the problem of chasing her for such a small amount. I did however keep the first deposit as it was stated to her that the deposit is non-refundable.  I have been messed around by another customer who wanted a particular bear. Firstly she had asked for me to use a special type of box for the bear, so I bought the box which was quite expensive seeing as the bear is 27 inches tall. I packaged the bear all up with his birth certificate filled in with her name and date of purchase. I took it into town to the main post office to get it weighed so I could get the exact type postage cost that she had asked for. During all this I was not feeling too well but as she had wanted the bear for a gift I carried on getting the information for her. Once home I emailed the lady with all the information and she emailed back saying she would pay me that evening by Paypal. By seven thirty I had been admitted into hospital where I stayed for six days. During this time my daughter Sarah had checked my email and Paypal account but there was nothing from the customer. When I was home from hospital I wrote to her and finally got a reply from her saying she refuses to pay such high charges for postage. This is a large bear and in a much heavier box than I would usually use for my bears , but it was only because she had requested the box in the first place. I wrote back explaining the reason that the charge was higher than it would usually be in my normal box. I received a nasty email saying that I am not fit to be selling bears as I am ripping off my customers with over inflated postage costs...go figure!
I still have the bear and the heavy box which I now use for storing things in.

Jane

Yikes! That is frightening to think that someone can get so caught up with buying from ebay.
Hayley I will never get that addicted to buying although I do love a good bargan. I need all of my space for bears and gollys. :)

Jane.

Fantastic little girl, I just love her...Skipper that is, she is so cute what a lovely expression comes with just wobble jointing her head. I have been wobble joining all my new cubs and I just love the poses that can me set to take photographs. Well done Sue Ann she's lovely.

Jane.

Hi Dilu, I just love your little golly...you're so versatile in your designs with the little gollykins!
Hugs,
Jane

Oh Winney, some people are so horrible...still they must have thought your work was worth stealing so in a kiss butt way I suppose it was a compliment. Please post some pictures of the costumed bears which you've made I'm sure we would all love to see them.
Have a great day.

Jane.

Hi Meg, welcome!
You will love it hear. sorry I can't help with the question of Teddy bear clubs in the North Carolina area as I am the UK and boy is it hot here today I keep getting covered in mohair fluff that won't brush off!

BIG BEAR HUGS
From a very hot Jane.

With a ten roomed house I still sit with my sewing in the dinning room. I have the most beautiful view over the garden. I just sit with the large patio windows wide open (weather permitting) and sew. I don't have a work room but I do however take up many a space with my huge storage boxes full of mohair etc. I work from my son's baby table which is the lower part of his high chair (he's 20 now) If I decide to sew in the lounge room then the table is easily moved and I can work wherever I wish. I use the dinining table to mark out the fabric but other than that it's back to the baby table. I fine the plastic style drawers a great asset and can wheel them to where I'm working.
Jane.
P.S I have just found the bear head that my little dog Lucy ran off with, She had put it in my son's bedroom...little sweetheart!!!

Those goats were given a very suitable name, don't you agree...nasty little * * * * * *
Still sound like they have redeemed themselves if they guard the flock from coyotes or dogs.

Jane.

I didn't like to say Shelli but Eileens quite right when she said about the fan dance.

Heavens above, I don't know what made me dream that part but hey we all seemed to enjoy it.
Yes I'm sure there must have been loads more of us there at Sue Ann's house only they got a little lost in my dreamland. Glad you all enjoyed the fantasy.
Thanks so much for the lovely comments on my Mikado bears. I really enjoyed making them and their costumes. The wooden shoes took ages to make as I sanded pieces of wood into shape before I could paint them. The costumes were a challenge as I had only ever seen pictures of Kimonos and I had no idea about the obi (belts) or how to tie them and form the bow at the back of the costume. I really enjoyed making the costumes but I didn't enjoy using invisible thread which I found the best as matching threads to the materials didn't look so good as the stitches spoiled the look. I love making the decorations for the head. I spent ages threading tiny glass beads and flowers and forming the headdresses but I was pleased with the end result. The fans are made from folded paper on which I printed Japanese patterns. All three bears took me around six weeks to complete as I made everything by hand. 

Jane

Hi Hayley,
Wow that program sound just awesome, please tell us what it is and how to get it, my son would love it.
Thanks.
Jane.

Please send some of the pixie dust over to me please Shelli. I would love to go to Japan as well. I have a friend, Toshiko who live in Tokyo I could visit her and then we could all meet up with Marie and go to the Teddy Bear museum.
Marie do you know of Hiro and Michi Takahashi from Fairy Chuckle. I met them on two occasions whilst at shows in London, they are lovely people and make beautiful bears.

Jane.

I feel so sorry to think that some people can take time to be unkind to a truly amazing artist like yourself Judi. Chin up and a big smile!  We love to hear from you and your help to us is just precious. I find you a truly wonderful and kind lady and we would miss you so much if you didn't participate in Teddy Talk. Your cyber buddies love you!

Jane.

Hi Marion...we love you too!!!!!!!!! don't stay away toooooooo long we love to hear from you!

Jane.

I hope all this has not put any would be Ebay sellers from selling their work via Ebay. I know people can be a real pain reporting slight discrepancies that we have made but all and all Ebay is a great resource for us all to buy and sell through. Thanks for the tip I did not realise that I was breaking rules with my bear photographs as they have all have my url printed across the bottom I guess I am lucky that you have made me aware of my mistake. I will be sure not to add the url in the future.

Thanks all!

Jane.