Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Jenny
I speak for many ..We love you and hope, pray, you start feeling better soon.  It can be so hard, I truly know.
Do take care.  You are in our thoughts and hearts.  :hug:

I agree with the above mentioned.  All really wonderful books! :dance:
Another great book is: A Bear of My Own, by Rotraud Ilisch.
     

Hi Claudia!   Senf is really adorable!   

Hi Natascha
Winnetou and Iltschi are amazing!  ..and the amount of work you put into making them.
They are wonderful, as is their story!!!

My Christmas list consists of many bear..
parts!!! :dance:  From mohair to disc joints to glass eyes.  And an Ott Lite!
I've been a fairly good girl this year, so maybe Santa will bring at least a few of the items on my ever growing list. 

Peace on Earth is first on my list.   But that's a tall order, especially the way things look at present.    Still  ..wouldn't it be wonderful! 

Oh Melissa
What a wonderful site!!!
You put so much work into getting it up and running, and it really shows.
I just joined!  I don't have a website though, or even a blog.  I'm still selling just locally..
And I'm still computer dumb. 

Again, fantastic site!!!  :dance:

Hi Christina
Bastian is a real cutie.  He looks so snuggily! 
Just adorable! 

Okay, um, Wow!  Oscar has character!  Lots of character!!!
I love character, and I love Oscar!!!
He made me smile, and giggle.  :crackup:

I'm thankful for a great many things.   In particular:
I thank God every night for the day He gave me, and for life itself.
I thank my dear wonderful husband for standing by me through very tough emotional times.  For his patience, his understanding, and most of all for his unconditional love.  Without him, I simply wouldn't be here.

It's good for the soul to be thankful.
What are you thankful for!

Happy Thansgiving, everyone!!! 

I buy my alligator clips at Radio Shack.  I've also found them at Home Depot.
Yup, they're the kind electricians use.  I like the ones with the rubber handles, easier on the fingers.  And I remove the screws that come in them. 
They should be sold in the sewing department.  They'd sell like hotcakes!  :lol:

PS
I just snapped a pix of the little ones I use, since they're sitting right next to me. 
They measure about 1 3/8 inches.

I've never even heard of a walking foot.   
But now I'm way curious.  I need to investigate.

Thanks to TT, I use alligator clips.  Always!  They are wonderful!!!  I have 3 different sizes and tons of each. 
I couldn't live without them.

Is this site great, or what!!!  :dance:

If I may..
I just want to say
this thread is wonderful!!! 
It was such a great idea and I hope it continues, and grows.
If it really catches on (as I'm sure it will), maybe a new "Misfits" category can be added to the index???  So they'd be easier to find. Just a thought. 
We all have them.  Some more than others ..like me! :crackup:
When I feel well enough, I hope to join in.

    Laura  :rose:

PS ..Daphne, thanks for getting this thread started! 

Ebay has gone above and beyond nasty-crazy!     
I'm not sure if this has changed, but a while back I wanted to open another ebay account.  I already had two, which I opened way back when ebay was young.  But I thought I'd open a third, just because I was really bored that day. 
Well, they denied a third account to me saying one (actually two) were already in my name.  I tried using my husband's name, it was denied as well ..since we both have the same last name and home address.  I knew you couldn't open a new account using an email address that's already being used on an existing account, so I used another of my email addresses.  Apparently, that wasn't enough.
I don't know if this is still the case.  But I'm pretty sure you still can't use an already being used email address.
But who knows ..Ebay keeps changing the rules! 

The shipping fee DSR is the killer, I agree with everyone there.  Mine is 4.6 and I've always shipped the cheapest way, and quoted exact shipping (nothing added for the box, the tape, the packing materials, the drive to the Post Office, etc).  Up front and clearly shown in my auctions.  And I still get a low score for shipping!!!!

A gal I buy from occasionally has NEVER charged for shipping.  Always clearly marked as FREE SHIPPING in her auctions.  She packs well, ships fast, and her items are great.  She has 100% positive feedback.  However ..her shipping DSR is 4.8!!!  Do buyers not pay attention?  Her shipping is FREE!  How much better can it get?
I just don't understand..  :doh:

Oh, that's brilliant!  Thanks for a good laugh. :crackup:

Hi  Joanne
If I lay the head on a diagonal ..the stripes will go diagonally across the head.  I guess that wouldn't be as bad as having the nap going every which way..
which makes for a Jekyll and Hyde teddy.  :crackup:

I'll see what that looks like.
Thanks for you input! 

PS  Yup, Shane..
The pile goes one way, the stripes go another.
Goofy way to make a fur coat, if you ask me.  Don't they know one day a bear will emerge from it!  :D
Beddie-by time.   :hug:

I can't picture it working, gusset or no.  The pile still goes in two different directions..
But I'll try it tomorrow, the two piece head idea, idea.  It's late and my brain is going numb. 
:hug:

Thanks for your help, Shane & Gail!

A center seam is a great idea, Gail.  It would make lining up the stripes easier.  I'll try that.  And Shane, yes, using striped fur (esp from a coat) makes for a lot of waste. 
I love using vintage coats, even with the waste element.  The coat I'm destroying at present, I'm happy to say ..was cheap.
But I think I flubbed up my original question.    So I'll try again..

The problem I'm having is with the direction of the pile.  It goes diagonally, across the stripes.  The stripes are not well defined, so they really don't need to be lined up exactly.  The direction of the fur, pile, is what's giving me grief.  I can't get the pile direction on the two side pieces to match.  I want them both going downward and toward the front of the head.  (If that made any sense.)  I can only get one side to go in that direction. 
I kinda have the pile direction "tamed" on the gusset, but not so with the side pieces, they're stubborn ..like me.   So they need to be cut out correctly, to match.
Any ideas??? Or is this mission impossible? 

Thanks again, so so much!!! :hug:

Hi all!   
I bought a vintage faux fur coat a while back.  It has subtle but definite stripes of browns to beige to off white.   It also has about a one inch pile, maybe a bit longer, which lays in one direction.
I'm trying to cut out a 12 inch bear, but I'm having a heck of a time laying out the pattern. 
I'm starting with the head.  So I have two side pieces and a gusset.  The gusset and one side I had no trouble with.  It's the second side I can't seem to get matched up.  Either the pile direction matches up or the stripes, but never both, no matter which way I turn the pattern piece. 
Is there a way to match them up?  I hope I explained it clear enough. 
Thanks so much for any help you can offer ..or condolences, as I may not be able to make this work.
:hug:

I agree with Gail and Clare, and several others.  I use my machine as much as possible.  It's fast and my machine stitches far better than I can.  I do the head and gusset by hand, but go over the chin seam by machine, to reinforce it.  I also do the paw/foot pads by hand.
I have a great, very simple, 20 year old  Kenmore sewing machine.  It's a heavy duty model that has never had a problem, nor I with it.  I only straight stitch and occasionally zigzag, so I find a simple machine is best.
Right now I'm not doing much of either.  The meds I'm on have side effects galore.  One is blurry vision.  I can barely read what I just wrote, on my fairly large monitor.  One more month and I'll be back at it.  I miss my bear making.
Sorry for my side trip.

Thanks, Karen.  Why on earth do they hide it?  I do consider this hiding.  You have to search for it.  Why not have a quick link to the dashboard. I even went to their Help site and couldn't find a thing explaining how to find my dashboard.  Not that it's of any help to me.  Grumble Grumble.
They don't care about the little people.  And I'm a little people.  As are most of us here. 
What a shame.  I used to love eBay.
I wonder what dastardly deed they'll do next.

Hi Karen
Thanks for sharing that info.  I'm hearing so many negative things about eBay.  They are doing themselves in!
I sell, or had been selling, on eBay.  Can someone tell me how to find my dashboard.  I've looked and looked to no avail.  Where are they hiding it?
Thanks!!!

Hi Jane
You've got me smiling!

Now I'll go pass it on!!!     

Lovely little poem. Thanks!   :rose:
PS: All these pics are incredibly silly.  Love them all!!!!!!!! :crackup:

Hi Sarah
I do like Daphne, I sit on the sofa for most of the hand work.  Only difference is I sit lengthwise on the sofa with two bed pillows under my knees.  I have the coffee table pulled real close to the sofa, so all my bear necessities are close at hand.  Beside the pillows helping my aching back, they help form a nice lap and also provide a place (between my thighs) to hold my bear for nose stitching, eye attaching, and the like.  Hope that made sense. 
The only drawback is, like Daphne, sometimes I get too comfy and fall into la-la land.  :doh:

Hi All
Kindly meet Pumpkin.  Not intentionally made for Halloween, but very timely just the same.
He's 8 inches tall, standing.  He's made from a lovely faux fur and has suede paw pads.  He has a pearl cotton nose and is fully jointed. 
He resides in an antique stoneware bowl, in my kitchen.  I hope you like him.
Thanks for looking!  :hug: