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Ginger . . . thanks so much for your input. Those suggestions will help. And thank you for your compliment - you're very thoughtful! Yes, to echo Shelli, your bears were some of the first ones I connected to when I started reading the bear magazines . . . always with SUCH sweet faces! It's a pleasure and honor to have you on the board - welcome! 
Ditto, Shelli . . . very well said!
Hi, Danni . . . welcome to the Intercal board . . . it's great to have you. I don't have an airbrush, either. I do my shading with a permanent pen/marker, as Judi suggested. In order to get rid of the sharp edge of color, I use a blender marker to blend the color into the fabric. You can use more than one color . . . I've used as many as 3 - 4 to achieve the color I'm after. Happy shading!
You know, I'd like to know how collectors got started. WHY do people collect things??
If one collects dolls or teddies, I guess it might be an attempt at going back to a simpler time . . . childhood. If it's stamps, matchbook covers, coins, etc. - I don't know. Anybody want to comment??
Welcome from me, too, Gail. Yep, I think the Bears For Sale Forum is a wonderful addition to this board!
VERY good suggestions, Winney . . . I really appreciate them. As I am working on a standing bear right now, I will try them out!
Hello everybody . . . and welcome, welcome to all the new members! It's wonderful to have you join us. I just want to throw this subject into the discussion pot. When I first started making "stand-up" bears, I cut a piece of heavy cardboard slightly smaller than the foot pad. After the pad was sewn to the leg, I inserted the cardboard, then started stuffing the foot, leg, etc. I discovered that, while it flattened out the bottom of the foot, the hard edges of the cardboard showed when the bear was positioned to sit. Didn't care for that, so I have started filling the foot (about up to the ankle) with either the tiny steel beads or tiny glass beads. That works, but I really have to . . . . . uh, for lack of a gentler way to put it . . . . "slam" my bear down (standing position) so that the beads redistribute for a flatter paw. Hoo boy . . . that sounds downright violent!! Anybody have a better way to make a bear stand on its own? Thanks for suggestions.
Hiya, Shelli . . . Nancy Tillberg's book 101 Bears To Make has a good section on how to make that kind of paw. I hope I spelled Nancy's name right and got the correct name of the book . . . I'm pulling that info up out of my old, old brain. WAY to much crawling around up there! 
Oh boy, Shelli . . . you may regret offering. You could get so many takers that you end up forsaking the bears for graphic design!
Hey, Shelli . . . just noticed your new avatar! Wonderful!
Oh definitely, Judi . . . I give my discovery of teddy bears in 1996 LARGE credit for literally saving my life! They are tremendously therapeutic and comforting - I can't imagine life now without them. We REALLY need to work hard at preserving and promoting the teddy bear (the stated goal of The Theodore Society) so that the generations coming after us aren't deprived of teddy comfort!
You know, Judi, I don't think someone with diabetes looks any different from someone who doesn't have it!! I can't think of why ANYONE would say that to a person . . . grrr . . . bad manners! 
In my opinion, you are a gorgeous, talented lady who happens to have a disease that doesn't hold her back. Hooray for you!!
Well . . . it can't get more eloquently explained than that, Shelli and Judi! Very well said!
I have a real problem participating in more than 4 or so shows a year. If I sell a lot at a one show (:D), then I have a hard time replacing inventory by the time the next show comes around (:(). So, it's difficult for me to sign up for some shows waaaaaaayy in advance because I have no idea if I'll have enough bears to take. I create VERY slowly, so it takes awhile for me to get a good stock of bears made. Sigh. Any thoughts??
ME, ME . . . I'll go first!!! For me it HAS to be creating the facial expression!! It's the part of the bear/friend that first catches the interest of potential adopters. There seems to be an immediate "connection" or "bonding" that happens when one looks into the face of a particular bear. The bear "speaks". As artists, most of us have observed this phenomenon at shows and it's a huge thrill if it's your bear they are connecting with. It's what got me hooked on teddy bears back in 1996 . . . a major turning point in my life!!
What a hoot! Yes, I've been told my bears look like me - or - I look like my bears (whatever)! 
My feeling is that after a bear maker starts designing his/her own patterns and develops a personal "look/style", the bears will certainly start revealing the individual artist's personality. I think an artist bear expresses the life experiences of the artist somehow in a "magical" way. Eeeekkk . . . I'm getting a bit esoteric here. 
Anyway, I do believe bears can and do look like their creators - just like dogs can resemble their owners sometimes! Judi, add some of your delightful bears to the "for sale" forum. I don't want to be the only one. 
WOOHOO!! Glad to have you aboard, Judi and welcome! Let's all have a bunch of fun here!
