Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Great little panda,very sweet expression .
I got a kit for Christmas to make my first panda. Hope it's not a stupid question but since there are two colours of fabric to sew together does it matter which one you match the thread to ?

She's absolutely beautiful and ooooh that wonderful nose again,I really admire your skill in that technique.

Great job,I love his aged look. I'm trying my first mini at the minute so I know how fiddley and frustrating they are,especially those tiny footpads  .

Lovely little character and Calvin looks very dapper in his bow tie.

Brilliant first bear & I love the colour.Such a thoughtful gift for your friend,I'm sure she will feel your love & support which will bring her comfort at this difficult time.
I have only made 6 bears so far but I've found with practice and great tips from this forum each one shows improved technique but now you've caught the"bug" you won't need coaxing to make more teddies.

Aaaaaaw,he's really cute and I love his knitted dungarees,lovely work.

Enchanting little creature,this is one wee mouse that I would welcome into my home  .

Beautiful big boy with lots of attitude.Love the fabric.

Very endearing expression,sweet little bear.You should be very proud of him,he looks great .

Many thanks for the very helpful responses.Unfortunately the international postage costs make it an expensive alternative filling but I like the idea of using semi-precious stones inside my teddy's tummy so I'll keep it in mind for a special gift in the future.If anyone discovers a UK supplier in the meantime I'd appreciate the info.

Wow! You've given him a real makeover,fur and all - love him and he looks years younger .
As a novice I was always mystified about needle sculpting.I would make up a teddy kit and be really disappointed that the end result didn't have the same expression or character as the photo on the kit and then I realised that the difference was due to needle sculpting and shading of facial features.I have read text and seen diagrams on the subject but nothing compares to a visual demonstration and your video tutorial was great, very detailed and easy to understand.Thank you very much for your generosity in sharing your skills.I hope you'll do one on shading and nose embroidery in the future which are both my nemesis and leave my bears looking a bit homemade but I'll keep on practicing in the meantime.

I have never used garnet to weight my teddy bears and wonder what it is like and how it compares to steel shot or glass beads.I've read that it gives a nice weighty feel but is almost undetectable from the outside.Does anyone know is it available in the UK?

Lovely little bear,I love his expression and the curly mohair.He definitely says "will someone please take me home & love me"?  You deserve to have confidence in your creations so best wishes for a quick sale  .

Really cute little fellow,shows great skill to make a mini under pressure like that.I'm sure your Mum was thrilled with such a lovely thoughtful birthday gift.

Brilliant first bear with a great nose -that's my weakness so I just have to practice,practice,practice .Now you've caught the bear making bug "there ain't no stopping you now"    .

Sheer perfection.I couldn't possibly choose between them, love every one of those big,beautiful boys.

Brilliant tutorial Francesca, very easy to understand with clear photos.I'm inexperienced and have never tried this type of nose but your clear instructions give me confidence to give it a try.
I think your tip on how to avoid trapping fur in knots is excellent, look forward to more great tutorials in the future.
Thanks very much .

Very sweet expression.I love the fabric, looks sooooo.......cuddly.

Thanks for the lovely comments folks.
Something strange has happened with my Avatars.
Apologies to Susan of Blue Valley Bears whose gorgeous bear is displayed. I'm absolutely not taking any credit for your beautiful work,don't know how your Pierrot is over my Gingernut. I'll have to report a fault to the techi guys .

This is Gingernut, named after my favourite dunkin' biscuit, donkeys love them too  .
He is my 5th bear and I made a little bee and put it in his ear and I've tried to give him a quirky expression which says "where's that buzzn' noise coming from?

Renee

Here's a link you may find useful  http://www.firstpalette.com/Craft_theme … lfhat.html

Thanks for the helpful advice and tips folks 

It's my old bug bear again, how to get that perfect nose. I would like to do an oval shape and wonder how to get those nice rounded sides (..) Is it to do with the needle entry and exit points at the left and right edges? I read a tutorial on noses that said not to move the needle entry and exit points until the area became congested with thread and that would create a nice curved "dome" shape in the middle. I'm not exactly sure what this means so any advice on how to achieve those perfect oval shaped noses, examples of which are often shown on this great forum,would be much appreciated. 
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Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, she's gorgeous with a real sweet expression. I love the colour too. :clap:  :clap:  :clap:

Aaaawh, such a beautiful bunny. I love her innocent, appealing expression but she's so realistic you better watch she doesn't eat the daisies !