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For artists and collectors sponsored by Intercal...your mohair supplier and Johnna's Mohair Store
1st Picture- Allyzon and myself.
2nd - Abbigail- A project group with African woman in the Cape making these material bears, with detailed embroidery/crazy patchwork on the bears. Outstanding work, they just need to learn few bear making tips.
3. Background picture with the Epic Bike tent.
4. Cape Coloured Band- very musical men who always play at functions. Any Oz and NZ who follow the cricket will always see them in the Newlands stand playing at the cricket matches.
5.Farm dog, who joined in the fun. Eventually he landed up at the food stall, and it was amusing to watch him watching the food. The kids enjoyed him too.
6.Another picture with the mountains in the background.
7. These two little girls had been given money buy their grandfather, to go and buy a bear. They decided on a fred-i-bear each.
8.Pancakes- Yummy- served with sugar and cinnamon. Allyzon , is a weight watcher's lecturer, we sent her to buy pancakes, while standing in the queue she bumped into some of her members, who wanted to know what she was doing there, she said the more she explained that she was buying for someone else the more stupid she felt.
Every year on the 1st of May this show is hosted on the above mentioned wine farm in Cape Town, South Africa.
It is held outdoors so the weather plays an important part.
My son Dale called me on the Sunday morning and said Ma, bring warm clothes it is freezing 
So in went boots, and warm jackets. I landed in Cape Town with the wind blowing gale force and did not hold out much hope for the bear show. Fortunatley the wind must blown itself out, as Monday morning, the sun was shining.
I just love the buzz when setting up at a show, be it local or international. From the picture you will see I was under the Epic bike tent. They sponsor my son in his mountain bike racing.Having the tent , was super and if I do more local events I will get my own with bears all over it. At this show I was also playing Mrs Shopkeeper, as I had taken mohair to sell. Dale looked at some of the pieces and said- you must be joking , who is going to buy a small piece like that- well just about every piece sold.
My bears also sold, and one that Irene had made (85% of the making) also sold, and could have sold over and over. Irene is the person who helps me, and through the bear making has been able to survive, as bear making has given her hope, as well as paid for her chronic medication.
All in all it was a great day, wine all around, of course, bears finding new homes. Collector bears is still a very new market in South Africa and the new collector is horrified at the prices. The organiser has various competitions during the day for the public, i.e. the oldest bear, the bear with the biggest head, shortest arms, person with the biggest collection etc.. By doing this, it educates people about bears.
Personally I think it is a good idea, as bear artists are growing much faster then bear collectors, so more and more people have to be introduced to Teddy Bear collecting. This way also gets the public more involved with the shows,as I said educates them a bit more about teddy bears and involves the whole family.
Lynette
Sounds like it was a fun show......Did the bears get to taste the wine? Hope not, they probably aren't used to it and it would make them very silly I'm sure. :crackup: 
Thanks for the pictures!
pandamac
Some bears were seen sneaking away into the vinyards !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lynette
Past Time BearsGreat report, Lynette! How wonderful to see a show in Africa . . . that's just super!
Flying Fur StudiosSSooo cool! I hope it was a big success!
Thanks alot for the pics. Next best thing to being there.....
Baird'sBears :clap: Thanks, Lynette!
What a wonderful show and a beautiful spot!
I loooove S. African Wine, one of my sons-in-law is a mountain biker, and the bears look fantastic 
Eileen
Bumpkin BearsLynette, thank you for sharing these lovely photos, what a fantastic event it looks It brought back happy memories for me when I visited South Africa many years ago with my Grandmother, I love the old winehouses, the architecture is so beautiful and then set against the backdrop of the mountains - just perfect
Hugs
Catherine
x
Catherine, it is a lovely setting, especially with all the lovely old oak trees and buildings. I am sure they could tell some good stories.
I love the Cape, and think we will eventually settle down there one day. I would love to get a house with a sea view,my sister has one across the road from the beach, and has both the sea and the mountains around her.
Lynette
Bumpkin BearsLynette, I'm not surprised you'd like to settle in the Cape. I had a relative with an appartment that had a balcony looking out over the ocean, perfect spot to start the day with breakfast... I have such happy memories of South Africa. Whereabouts do you live, near to the Cape?
Catherine
x
Catherine, I live inland, about 1000miles from the Cape, in Johannesburg, where all the gold orginally was mined. My parents were orginally from the Eastern Cape, Cape Town is the Western Cape, so I suppose you can say I have the sea air in me. My brother settled in Oz, but he is not far from the ocean either.
Presently I live on a hillside with a view, but no ocean !!!!!!night time is especially nice thou, as you have all these twinkling nights both in the skies and on the ground, and I never ever feel alone.
Lynette
Lynette,
Thanks for your report and pictures. I enjoyed reading it. Is Cape Town the city with Table Mountain? One of my friends used to live there and she always talked about that mountain.
Chrissie,
yes, Cape Town has Table Mountain. You can get to the top with a cable car, or if you are energetic climb.Easy and difficult walks to take.
When the South Easter wind blows it brings up a lot of cloud and they refer to this as a tablecloth covering the mountain. The mountain is not high enough thou to have any snow. Breathtaking views from the top with the warm Indian Ocean on the one side and the cold Atlantic ocean on the other side, although to be honest the sea to me is almost equally as cold.
Fynbos a particular plant , a small bush with small flowers abounds on table mountain and is a protective plant only found in the Western Cape.
Lynette
