The fun of finishing bears

Welcome blog tourists and welcome back to all my regular readers. I hope you have enjoyed the blog tour - I know I have explored some fascinating blogs that were new to me.

Let me tell you a little more about the Silent Companions blog and me. I set up this blog in July 2011 to share my creations but also to do a little more than that: to share my ideas, inspirations, struggles and successes. So this blog houses the stories of my one-of-a-kind bears as well as other stories from my creative journey. 

And me? Well I make stuff. All sorts of stuff! Crafts have always been a part of my life since a very early age - something I owe to my mum who is always sewing, cross-stitching or knitting. I started making teddy bears in my teens, when I was bought a kit for a simple button jointed bear. As my enthusiasm for bear-making grew, the actual bears shrank and I now love making miniature bears. In order to clothe and decorate my miniature bears, I have explored a variety of other crafts including knitting, crochet, embroidery, wire work - all of which had to be scaled down of course!

And that brings us neatly to the subject of my blog post today.

I'd like to share the process of finishing bears. By this, I don't mean attaching limbs, eyes and ears.

I mean creating the character of the bear. Adding the embellishments that will give the bear a story, a personality and, ultimately, a name. This can be a bit of a challenge when the bear is only 5cms tall.

Most bears spend a little while in this pre-character state while they try out a few styles. They usually try out a bow first to see how they get on. Some are happy to just wear a smart bow and the embellishment stops there.

Smudge

Other bears seem to be asking for more than just a bow and so the journey begins. Bears also like to wear hats and scarves (like Harry), glasses...

...and flowers...

...in fact, any trimming that is small enough is appropriated by the bears!

Some like more complicated costumes that include wings...

...blankets (like Christopher)...

 

...and even googly headbands (Henry loves his headband)! 

Some bears can be VERY demanding! My regular readers will remember the story of Benny and how difficult it was to find the identity of this tiny bear.

 The possibilities are really endless and only limited by my imagination (and my dexterity). Each new bear gives me new challenges as it struggles to assert its character.

Arthur

Nicholas

Jack

I hope you have enjoyed your visit to the Silent Companions blog and this glimpse into my bear making world. To celebrate the blog tour stopping by, I am offering a 10% discount in my Folksy and WowThankYou shops. Just quote "blogtour" when you order and I will send you an amended invoice.

Giocolino

Meet the bears... Pip

 Pip would like to be formally introduced after his first public appearance on Tuesday. I was going to wait for the weekend but he insisted.

He tried all the name suggestions out and decided that he liked "Pip" best. 

He explained that this was largely due to the simultaneous implications of something small...

 

...and therefore cute, like me...

...and something filled with inherent possibility and wisdom (while also being a little bit magical)...

...pips! We know they do, but how do they grow? Wow! Makes my brain hurt just thinking about it...

I see I'm going to have problems with Pip. He's just a little too cute for his own good.

Earlier, since the sun was making a rare appearance, I was trying to take photos of him for his blog post while he was sitting on a bedroom chair. And all the time he looked up at me with a definite

...can't we take photos on the windowsill again?...

So I told him "bears can't sit on windowsills for too long..."

...hmmm...

"...in case they fade.You wouldn't want your nice fabric looking all washed out now, would you?"

....hmmm. 5 minutes couldn't hurt. I like to see what's going on...

So you see, I think Pip might prove to be a handful. It hasn't taken very long to get to know Pip, now he has his name: he seems to be the sort of bear who wants to be where the action is. The centre of attention.

(I haven't the heart to tell him that he'll have to be packed into a box soon to keep him clean until he is adopted!)

Whoever adopts Pip will need to be ready for the responsibility of looking after a demanding young bear. He'll need a comfortable chair, at least, but preferably the chance sit in all sorts of spots throughout your home. You'll have to be prepared to stop for a chat regularly and give him the occasional pat on the head as you walk past.

He gets on very well with other bears but would prefer to be kept out of the reach of pets...

...especially dogs (shudder) - all teeth and drool...

...and small children.

If you are interested in adopting Pip, he will be appearing in my Folksy shop very soon.

Thwarted efficiency

There are some advantages to a family member who sells patchwork fabric.

I know that for some it is hard to envisage disadvantages in this situation but imagine fabric stash multiplied many times over (the phrase "fabric everywhere" in a literal sense!) and then there's also the temptation...sigh...

Anyway, I came home from a recent visit to my parents armed with a selection of new fabrics to add to my growing collection of fat quarters...

...some new designs and some pieces with minor flaws that I can cut around but couldn't be sold (these donations are a definite advantage of the situation). 

Then I went through all my fabric and realised just how much I have...

...so after a small promise, to myself (and my other half!) that I would use some of the hoard to actually make some bears, I set to work.

I wanted to experiment with a more efficient system of working. I thought about the time it takes to work progressively through the stages of bear making. I thought about the time wasted getting equipment out and putting it away multiple times.

So I decided to try to work conveyor belt style.

I chose a few fabrics, got the ironing board out and ironed them, then started pinning the pattern pieces in place. Then I cut the pieces out, removed the pins and started on another piece of fabric. I repeated this until I had the pieces cut for nine bears. 

By this time, I was thoroughly sick of standing at the ironing board and my fingers hurt from pushing pins through card and fabric. Plus it took AGES! I always forget how long this stage takes!

So I moved on and started getting the pieces ready to sew. I matched and pinned the pieces ready for the first round of sewing. It was a lot of pieces. So many that I ran out of pins.

Time to get the sewing machine out. Hooray! And to my astonishment, I was finished in an hour and a half! Having done all the preparation work, all I had to do was sit and sew. It was amazing!

Then it was time for the second round of pinning and sewing - completed in another hour. I began to think that perhaps this conveyor belt thing had its merits after all.

And then I hit a snag. 

I wonder if you can guess? If you've read my bear posts before then you might be able to....

... let me give you a clue. What are my least favourite parts to work on? 

You've got it - foot-pads! 

I had left myself with eighteen foot pads to sew.

By hand.

Plus the noses (although the rest of the head can be done on the machine, I always sew the nose part of the head gusset into place by hand for better shaping). Nine noses.

So I turned and stuffed the completed bodies and arms instead.

And then the excuses started. 

"Well I don't have enough buttons to make nine bears anyway"

So I ordered some buttons and waited for them to arrive.

And finally I realised I didn't really have an excuse any more. So I gritted my teeth and, grumbling and complaining, I forced myself to get on with making just one of the bears. I sewed the nose (which I grudgingly have to admit took about 15 minutes!) and then used the machine for the rest of the head. 

Then I pinned the first foot pad and started to sew.  About half an hour later, I moved onto the second leg. And then that too was completed. 

I had been procrastinating for two weeks over a job that took me less than an hour and a half to complete! 

And would have been much quicker if I hadn't been fighting myself the whole way!

Sometimes I am my own worst enemy!

Anyway, I could now get on with the fun part: turning, stuffing, closing seams, jointing and adding eyes, nose and ears. 

The bits that create and cement character. 

The tasks that bring the bear to life.

And here he is...

Am I pleased? With the bear - a definite yes.

With myself? Sigh - one day I will learn that the things I put off are generally not that epic. That I allow them to appear bigger than they really are so that I can pretend that I don't have time. That I always feel far better when I get on with something than when I leave tasks hanging over me. 

So much for efficiency! I have completed one bear in three weeks. Oh well.

Who's next?

 

I would have said that I don't have enough eyes for another bear but my wonderful mum has taken that excuse away by finding some amazing vintage boot buttons at a French craft show this weekend (you can see the photo on her blog) so all I have to do is wait for them to arrive! So exciting!

I think I'll go with this bear next: the head is already done.

What part of projects do you procrastinate over the most? Have you ever been surprised by the time a long-put-off-project actually took to complete?

Work in Progress Wednesday

In an effort to get myself back to blogging more regularly, I am going to start showing more of the things that I have been working on. 

This week has been busy with craft fair preparation, as well as other bits and pieces, but I have also been making another bear. Recently, I have been feeling inspired to make large fabric bears: they are about 11in tall when standing so much bigger than my usual itty bitty creations!

The first I made was this one,...

...quickly followed by these two.

They are all made from Moda flannel fabric and thread jointed with large buttons forming external joints. They have black glass eyes and hand embroidered noses. They were great fun to make and my newly refurbished sewing machine made the whole process much quicker.

I took them all to a craft fair at the weekend and sold the bear with the red bow. The others I have listed in my WowThankYou shop.

So my "Work in Progress" this week is my fourth large fabric bear. I managed to leave myself a rather macabre scene when I stopped working last night:

 

...a slightly disturbing vision for first thing in the morning! I was so carried away yesterday with stuffing and jointing, that I completely forgot that I hadn't sewn the head yet. I usually leave the footpads until last (the bit I dislike most about making bears), so this was a very unusual occurrence.

Today then, I have slowly completed the bear: I have sewn, turned and stuffed the head; added eyes; embroidered a nose; positioned, pinned and secured two ears; closed the head and secured it firmly to the body. 

I sat back and looked at the completed bear...

 

... then, with a sigh, I unpicked the nose and did it again.

  

 

And then it was finished. The darker nose is better; it stands out from the fabric. At the moment, the bear is sporting a lace bow: that may change, but no bear wants to appear in public completely naked.

This bear is made from a cotton print from Moda (from the Rural Jardin range by French General) and the colour is... green...blue...greeny-blue with a floral motif. 

I'm quite pleased with him...

...her...

....it...

I can't decide! I suppose it doesn't really matter.

Anyway, that is what I have been working on today. I hope you like it!

What have you been working on today? I'd love to see what you've been doing.

Linked with Handmade Monday

30 Days of Creativity - Days 16 and 17

As you may have noticed, I didn't get the bear finished on Friday. Or yesterday either, if I'm honest.

The setback of the wrong joints completely put me off the whole idea. I hate making mistakes. It irritates me beyond measure. I don't mind mistakes that happen while I'm learning something new - those are a natural part of the learning process. But mistakes that happen because I wasn't concentrating, was trying to rush or simply wasn't in the right frame of mind infuriate me. 

I knew it would be a little while before I could face working on the bear again.

So I spent Saturday procrastinating instead. 

In a creative way of course!

I made bread: a loaf and some rolls. Our bread machine is broken so I made it by hand - more labour intensive but just as tasty. I made some oat and raisin cupcakes. I made some paneer (indian cheese) and a spinach curry to put it in. I omitted to take photos of any of these creations before eating the loaf; filling and freezing the rolls; freezing the cakes; and eating the curry!

And I made a gingerbread man. I have plenty of time to photograph him, since he is inedible. 

I have plans for this little fellow, but more of that in another post.

Today I determined to overcome the annoyance and frustration and forced myself back to complete the bear. Grudgingly, I restuffed the limbs and closed the turning/stuffing holes. Feeling slightly less grumpy, I attached the limbs to the body and tightened the joints. I stuffed the body with only a few muttered comments and closed the final seam. 

At this point I confess to breathing a sigh of relief and started to put the whole sorry experience behind me.

Ears, eyes and nose followed quickly after that change in attitude and, after a good brush, the little chap was ready for his photo shoot. 

And here he is...

 ... I say "he" because they usually are, but I can't quite make up my mind.

I am sooooo glad this bear is finished and none the worse for the traumatic joint experience. 

I will have to make sure I take my time and concentrate properly on the next one.

What do you do when a project goes wrong? Do you find it easy to just unpick and carry on?

30 Days of Creativity - Days 11, 12, 13, 14 and probably 15 (sigh)

Wow! 

This week's gone so fast! 

And, to be honest, I don't seem to have achieved much.

I started the week with the best intentions, a deadline of sorts and what seemed like plenty of time.

I was hoping to show you a completed teddy bear today, but more of that later.

So what have I been up to this week? Well, let me show you.

Day 11 (Monday) went pretty well. In the time I had allotted myself, I managed to prepare a piece of sparse 5mm German mohair fabric, mark out the pieces and cut them out.

This bit always takes longer than I expect. You have to be really careful not to cut the hair while cutting the backing fabric. Bald bears don't look so good.

Day 12 (Tuesday) also went well. I pinned all the pieces ready for sewing.

 

This makes life so much easier, even on such small pieces. It's very easy to match the pieces up incorrectly and end up with a crooked arm or a mishapen head. 

Although the sewing thread does love to get caught around the pins.

Which is infuriating.

Anyway, I started sewing on Tuesday and by 

Day 13 (Wednesday) I had finished sewing all the pieces. Even the dreaded foot pads.

You would not believe how hard it was for me to leave all these pieces sewn but not turned! I love the turning stage (apart from the ears) as this is the point when all the hard work begins to resemble something.

Day 14 (Thursday) started off fine, as it was turning time. I am always amazed at how quick and easy this is with larger bears. With the tiny bears it's excruciatingly frustrating but these pieces were very simple. 

I added the cotter pin joints and got started on the stuffing. I closed up all the turning holes and the bear was ready to assemble. I gave the pieces a brush to free all the hair trapped in the seams.

At this point, it started to go wrong. I attached the head to the body and tried to attach the limbs. And then I noticed a problem. 

The joints didn't fit inside the body. 

There just wasn't room for the discs to lie side-by-side inside the tummy.

I'd used the wrong size joints. 

This left me feeling utterly deflated. I knew I would have to go back a stage and undo most of the work I had done that day.

I made myself undo, unpick and un-stuff so I could change the joints...

...and then I had to walk away - before I did something I would regret.

So on day 15 (Friday) I return to the poor bear today having had a clear reminder of the saying "More haste, less speed". This is definitely a creative process that I should not attempt to hurry.

Hopefully, barring any further disasters, I should have a completed bear to show this evening.