Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Thank you so much.  That last image is so awesome too!  And thanks for the inof about GIMP.  I am going to look into it.  I want to have fun with my images...no more be a scaredy cat of my computer.      

Carolyn I feel exactly the same way....and I too,  want to take the plunge.  I'll be following this post closely for lots of advice on how to start.  I LOVE what Chloe and Mel did with my photo.      I am totally inspired.

AH Chloe and Mel THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH! :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:        WOW, that is soooo cool!   I love the effects , and Mel that forest is so mystical.  Thank you  Thank You both very much.
Do you have any suggestions for user friendly programs?  I'd like to get something compatible with a Mac computer. 

Yes, I love this fairy stuff an I must learn to use photoshop or some other photo program.

Oh, now I am very inspired.  

I would be ever so grateful is someone could, and would, photoshop this picture for me with some kind of glowing sphere coming from my hand. Something soft and glowing....kind of mystical??? Maybe some little twinkly lights. 

Rigth now I am only using a Mac computer and have almost no editing capabilities.  I need to get a program installed into my pc...(which is another story ).any suggestions  would be very welcome.
I really want to learn some photo shop stuff.

Only do this if it is is not too much trouble.  I really want to send this to my dad.

THANK YOU :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:  :hug:

Thanks Andrea, Shane and Steven.  :hug:   I'll post more photos, larger ones when I can.  I also have some pictures of the airbrushing process with this big boy.  I took a lot of pictures but I can;t post them just yet.
I also had to keep reminding my son, " Please don't rhe the tiger."

How fun Chloe.  I too cannot get enough cheesy Halloween music.  We danced to Michael Jackson's "Thriller".  That is the best H song in my opinion.  It's prefect.  

CUTE! :dance:

If I could elaborate just a bit on what "Just US bears " posted about the meaning of Halloween

The word "Hallow" means 'Saint' and the evening before All Saints Day was "All Hallow's Eve".  Over time it was merged together to create Halloween.  There is a fantastic program on the History Channel on Cable TV about the origin of this spooky Holiday which is where I learned this alomg with a bunch of other stuff like what was mentioned in Just Us Bears post.  Interesting stuff.

Dorothy, nice spooky photo.  Love that fun side, don't you :dance:  :dance:  :dance:  :dance:

Awesome pix Bobbie.    Did yo have fun playing with your camera as well as your "grandies"?  I like that word.  I am going to star using it when I talk to my mom about her grandchildren.  "Okay Mom, the Grandies are coming over now."   Not to be confused with grundies.

Thanks everyone/  We had so much fun.  I love this holiday.

Chloe you make one sweet innocent-looking "Alice in Wonderland".  Did you go tp a party?

Melanie, you make a beautiful witch.  I love to see "grown-ups" get involved in Halloween and show their fun side.  I bet that made you day really fun. :dance:

Gee Karen, can't imagine wht you would be a black cat.     :dance:  :dance:  :dance:   I'd love to see that.  Maybe next year?  or do you have pictures from years past?

PS...
okay, I want to share a sneak peek at Sabre:

Ah BEAUTIFUL!!! Thanks Sue Ann, yes I must have missed this when you first posted it.  Awe, thanks so much for thinking of me.

I just LOVE tigers.    I have been collecting photos of tigers in all positions and angles.  I want to create my dream tiger and I am getting closer.  I have a large tiger that I finished last week but have not posted yet.  He's about the size of a 6 or 9 month old.

I'll be saving this picture. :hug:   Thank you so much for thinking of me.      

AWE.  I wanna bath too.      

We had warm weather weather too last night...for a change.  However trick-or-treating in Luxemburg takes place the Sunday before Halloween every year.  So last Sunday was cold a rainy but we still took the kids out for a quick go around my mom's block.  It's so much fun.

Hi.  My hubby and I went to a Halloween party last night sponsored by a local radio station.
I was a Unicorn and he wa a Jester.  We won tickets to see the Christmas Spectacular featuring the Rockettes.  I think we are going to give the tickets to my mom as she really wants to see this show.

Anyway, I wanted to share a few pictures.

There were some really funny costumes.  Five guys dressed up as Italian sausages.  There was a girl dressed up a black evening dress with a beauty pageant sash which read: "Miss Diagnosed"  and a care accident vicim...pretty gory.  There were also a few...eh-hem...stupid and primeval "man" costumes....that only a guy woudl think is funny.

We had a great time.  This is the only time of year when people can go out and be silly and get away with it.
My children dressed up as a bride ghoul, a fireman, and a leopard.

Oh...and I made spider snacks for Joey's kindergarten class.

Did anyone else dress up?

Congratulation Julie.  They are lovely. :clap:  :clap:  :clap:

It's hard to pick a favorite, isn't it?  I like so many and I am not even going to look at some of the bears many of you mentioned becasue looking leads to buying for me.   and Christmas is around the corner.....along with my son's Birthday.

Hhhhmmm makes me wonder...is it okay to buy yourself a Christmas present?  I could use another ...'eh hem...bear.    I have my eye on a beauty at Witney Bears.  Talk about eye candy.

I know what you mean Laurie.  I love the older style Steiff and would love to see them make more of those today.    I recently bought/adopted a Steiff bear called Corduroy.  Remember that story of the bear in green corduroy overalls who lost one of his buttons?  Steiff did a really nice job with this bear.  I love him.   

I think the most  a Steiff auctioned ofr was soemthing around $175,000.000 .  Isn'tt that amazing?  Yep, I need to win the lottery too.

Oh my gosh Bren!  That freaked me out!!!!                That's really funny.

I have been told I that my bears look like me (and I hope that is a compliment and not that I am hairy and have a long nose).  I think perhaps we put so much of our inner selves into our work that our essence is captured in our bears and other critters.      

Ah, what a find, Deb.  I have seen older Cheekies go really high at auction.  Where do you work where you are able to hug your bear?  Do you sneak him in?

..... Hermann Mickey Mouse doll?  I also collect Mickey dolls and I saw a Hermann mohair Mickey in a magazine but have not been able to locate where I can get one.  I have google searched and done periodic searches on ebay without any luck.  Just thought maybe one of you might know.

Thank you!!            

.......manufactured bear company?

I am totally nuts about Merrythought bears.  Especailly Cheeky and Punkinhead bears.  I can't seem to get enough of these goofy little teddies.

I have some other really nice manufactured bears from other companies but I think Merrythought is my most favorite.

What about the rest of you?   Not artist bears, manufactured bears.

Cute!   I was thinking ferret or raccoon.  Awfully sweet.

Tami I am glad to hear you survived your root canal.  I had two of those when I broke two teeth after an insulin reaction.  It wasn't as bad as I thought. :hug:

Hi Gail... for my two cents:

I do armature a couple of different ways.  For my recent Koda bear I used loc-line with "Y" joints for the rear leg attachments an "X" joint of the arm attachments as this bear is a non-jointed bear.

For loc-line with jointed bears you can attach the loc-line to the joint .....there is a post with photos on how to do this in the TT Library that I put together a few years ago. 

Sometimes I use wire.  When I use wire I wrap it in strips of batting.  This way the wire will stay put much better when positioning arms and legs.

  I just finished a life-sized approx 9 to 11- month old tiger...he is huge.  I used 10 gauge fencing wire and apoxie sculpt to reinforce connections of the spine, arm , and leg wires, where the wires cross. He is so sturdy with this wire.  I hope this makes sense.  I'll post a picture when I can.