On a night like this . . .

I send to you -

smart bear writes

Hi out there . that lady over in the chair . . . wait a sec - now downstairs - now upstairs

anyway, her. gave me the chance to take over this blog only for today she said beecause she is bizzy

bizzy as a bee. bizzy as a ant. bizzy as a bee. did I say that already?

you see , we all are going for a ride. yippee. I love to ride. I love to go places. And we are going to ride very soon, I think. I havent had a chanse to ask because she is bizzy. bizzy as a bee.

anyways, I ask her if I could help and she said to find sumthin to do and stay out of the way. then I ask her if I could write on her blog and she said, yes yes whatever so long as I stay where she wont step on me.

typing is almost as hard as writing because my paws are almost too big to hit the right keey sometimes. but I think it is fun to tell you what is happening here. last niight my friendz and me got our pictures made. they dont mind the pictures but they dont like to wait their turn. so we play gamz and make funny faces at each other. cracks me up – they are a riot hope I spelled that right.

I am a very smart bear and I have watched what she does. she takes her camera and stretches herself in funny ways and takes pictures. I found her camera and so I took some pictures of my friends. I thought you would like to see them.

I dont no how to type on picktures so I just wrote what they are. those funny guys wouldnt stay still.

here are the picturz.

   

 

 

 

oh, its time for me to say so long.  i have to go. if i don't go now, i wont get a window seet and i like to count cowz when we ride.  see u later.

When X Marks the Spot

Suppose that I have a map - a treasure map to be more precise. The map shows where treasure can be found. The spot on the map showing where to dig for the treasure is marked with an “X”. I am looking at this crazy treasure map and I am seeing some funny looking X’s there. They all kind of look like teddy bears to me. I must be imagining things. Time to get my glasses adjusted. Is it just me or do you see them too?

Silver Anniversary Giveaway #4

Today, October 25th I am happy to announce my next giveaway! As many of you know, I have been celebrating my Silver Anniversary with giveaways. This will be my last one for the year. It is my way of thanking the best bear fans around for your support and enthusiasm. So, let’s get on with it, shall we?

While it seems a bit early to think about Christmas since Halloween has yet to arrive, I want to make certain that I will be able to send this special teddy to the winner in time for the holidays. And I want to give everyone as much time as possible to enter their name in the drawing.

Let me introduce you to my newest teddy, Noelle Kringle.

Noelle is one-of-a-kind, fully jointed, and 6.5” tall from head to toe. She is made from curly mohair, including some that has been hand dyed for the occasion.

The colors I chose are off white, honey tan, and hand dyed red mohair while her inset face is made from honey tan viscose.

Her feet paw pads are from matching wool felt while her mittens are created from Christmas green wool felt. They are embroidered with a silver snowflake design.

Her black glass eyes and hand embroidered nose are typical features in my work.

Her green wool felt collar is also embroidered with silver thread and accented with silver jingle bells.

Noelle is freestanding and is polyfill stuffed with a small amount of both glass beads and stainless steel beads in her feet for stability.

Here’s how to enter:

- Leave a comment on this post and I will enter your name in my Silver Anniversary Giveaway #4. All comments will be private and unpublished. You do not have to have a blog to enter.

- IMPORTANT! Please leave your name and email address as part of your comment so I can contact you if your name is drawn. This info is for the purpose of the giveaway only and will not be sold, traded or given away.

- Please let me know if you have entered my previous giveaways and I will enter your name an additional time for each of my giveaways you entered before. I will confirm the information through my records.

- If you have a blog and you post a link to this one about my giveaway, I will enter your name in the drawing an additional 5 times. Please let me know once you have posted it on your blog.

- I will take comments until 6pm EST (Eastern Standard Time – New York City time) on November 24th. On November 25th, a name will be drawn randomly from all those who entered. (We will be using a random number generator to insure fairness.) I will post the winner’s first name or initials only and state/country in a new post on that day. Here in the USA, that is the day before Thanksgiving.

- Noelle Kringle will be mailed via USPS and has plans to arrive in time to celebrate the Christmas holiday in her new home.

Thank you so much for stopping by to meet Noelle. The best of luck to all of you!

Metaphorically Speaking

Imagine this glass ball as a representative of what goes into a teacup.

Imagine this is a teacup into which I put my ideas for the things I would like to create/complete for my upcoming show in – oh – let’s say – a week.

This is what it would look like metaphorically speaking.

Imagine this is a teacup of time that I have left to create all the ideas from the first teacup.

This is what it would look like metaphorically speaking.

Still I would rather it be this way than the other way around.

That would really drive me crazy.

Confession of the Wife of a State Fair Fan

Honestly, I had no idea

when I took these few photos

for a college photography assignment

all those years ago

that this guy, my future husband, who has not changed a bit (he-reads-my-blog-you-know) was a State Fair Fanatic.

Now every year I hear a countdown

of the months, weeks, and days until the fair opens

when we will go and see the sights including

amazing cake decorations,

the games of skill (or chance),

and the colorful lights.

We will enjoy all the fair things

that happen only once a year

before we have to start the countdown

all over again.  And you can be sure we will.

Going through some older photos . . .

I came across one of this piece called Bloom.

The inspiration came from the paper on the outside.  I liked it so much that I decided that I must use it for something.  So I used it to cover this box.

These little watering cans are one of the details that I love and nearly drove me crazy.  Not only did they have to be the right size, they needed to be color coordinated.  So I painted them.  They sit on a shelf that is incorporated into the inside design.  It has to make some sort of sense.

In this detail photo you can see the watering cans through the picket fence but your eye goes to the blooming tulips in the pots.

Here is a view of the box opened.  One of the quotes reads:  For every blade of grass there is an angel whispering, grow, grow.  from The Talmud  Love that.

My goal was to make it look as if someone were watering the flower which I hope I accomplished with the filaments coming out of the watering can.  I cannot remember exactly how I did that.  The mind is a funny thing.

The flower bear's head needed to matching the flower in hue and in gradation.  That was not very difficult but making the bear a size to fit in the pot while still being a whole and complete bear that could be removed was an interesting project.

Why is it when you work on something that nearly drives you crazy, drains your brain and tests your patience is the very type of thing that once it is finished you cannot wait until you have another stretch of time to delve into something similar again?

We interrupt this blog for the following announcement -

Firstly, if you came by for the Halloween party, it is the post below.  You can click here to visit if you like.

Now let me put my broom away.  I have just returned from travelling all over this country and a few others for the Halloween festivities yesterday.  It was quite a trip and I am ready to sit a spell.  (Oh, forgive the pun.  It is a leftover from all the ghoulish good times.)  Whew!  Anyway . . . on with this post.

Way, way back when I started writing here, I wanted to have a gathering with all kinds of creative souls. Having just dusted the cobwebs from the Halloween celebration hosted yesterday by A Fanciful Twist, I feel like it is none too soon to put my long pondered plan into place. What is it? I am so glad you asked. It’s a tea, but not just any tea. It’s a Christmas Tea - A Christmas Tea for all the Toys.

And you are invited. Yes, you who have visited, followed, commented, read, deciphered, returned, helped, and played along with me in this space. And not only you but your friends too. I want you all to join me with your own version of something that says Christmas or tea or Christmas tea. Hopefully, some of you bear artists out there wll be happy to share some Christmas and holiday teddies and their friends. I know you guys are just oozing with creativity.  It a gathering not only for bear artists, but artists and other creative types of all kinds.  I know you are out there in blog land.  Remember, I have just been all over the world visiting with some of you.

And it’s not only for bears, of course. There are all kinds of toys out there that would love to come to a Christmas tea. A book that I return to often that inspires me is Tasha Tudor’s The Dolls’ Christmas. I can envision all sorts of things – artwork, table settings, Christmas trees, gifts and ribbons and bows and bears and dolls . . . Why I think I’ve got SugarPLUMs dancing in my head!

To explain this tea party, I’ve written a very few simple instructions.

#1 – Leave a comment below that you would like to be listed as a tea partier. Please include a link to your blog. I will have a list on my sidebar with links back to those who will be participating.

#2 – Share the details of the Christmas tea on your blog and link back to my blog or this post. Here is a Christmas tea button that is available for you to use.

#3 – On the day of the tea, December 5, 2009 be sure to post your version of a Christmas Tea for all the Toys and link back to bearbits so your guests can navigate to the other tea parties. (You can even write your post ahead of time and schedule its publication if you think you might not have enough time as the holidays approach.)

Then all you have left to do is Enjoy. Enjoy visiting the other blogs, the other bears, and the other toys. It’s a time to celebrate! Can you have too much fun?

If you would like, here is a large version of the button that you are more than welcome to use on your blog.

Boy, it sure feels good to put my feet up.  Using them for brakes on the broom can wear a girl out!  Now we return you to your regularly scheduled blog.

The Halloween Party

It’s time! It’s time! It’s time for the festivities to begin. This Halloween party is hosted by A Fanciful Twist. When you have finished celebrating with us, head over to the other parties. The addresses can be found here. Now let the party begin.

The moon is out. Just in time.

The lawn is decorated with a carved jack o’ lantern and a solitary pumpkin.

The door is decorated for Halloween.

Mr. Skeleton is a little afraid. Who knows what will knock on his door this All Hallows Eve?

Is that a knock I hear? Oh no! It’s too scary! Whatever you do, don’t open the door!

Be brave, Mr. Skeleton. He has his hand on the knob. No! Don’t do it! Egads!

Oh. It’s only a little Trick-or-Treater.

He’s dressed up like a clown and he has his bucket for his treats.

If I were you, Mr. Skeleton, I think I’d put some candy in there. You wouldn’t want him to trick you!