THREE O'CLOCK THOUGHTS

What's happened to the WEATHER?

Well according to the Met Office weren't we supposed to be having a blisteringly hot summer...barbecues every night and great tans ? Well ,today I put the central heating on and had a bowl of soup for dinner because I can't get warm!!!

Now the Met Office say they are revising their prediction for a hot summer...they say it will be 'unsettled'. You know what I reckon they should stick to the old maxim...if in doubt say nothing. I remember Michael Fish in 1987 telling us the weather would be a bit unsettled and we had a hurricane that night. Nothing on a huge scale but big enough to blow down trees and bring the country to a standstill. 

Still...I did get on well today..I managed to stuff two bear heads and am well on the way to finishing a sweet little scruffy bear. So at least the wet weather isn't slowing productivity down too much!!!

I have faux fur for sale...

Just in case you are interested I have just listed a load of bits of faux fur for sale on eBay.co.uk...there are various pieces..all luxury knitted back fabrics which are easily lined to make bears...some people just use it unlined but I am a creature of habit and always line knitted fabric. Get in touch with me if you are interested in the auctions...I'll send you the links...there are too many to list here.

The big clean up!!

It's seven years since I started creating the Three O'clock Bears and today I am finally sorting out the glory hole I call my 'bear room'...or ROOMS as it's become.

Wish me luck...I'm going in...............

And finally....

...here is LITTLE SHIVERS...who I think is very sweet. Iam delighted with how he turned out. He is starting on eBay this evening ( SUNDAY 26th July) for 7 days with no reserve this time.Here is the link  if you'd like to see more.

Polar bear nearly done....

I worked on him most of today...he still needs tweaking...shading...some stuffing in places..a little needle sculpting but so far so good!!

Yasmin's auction finishing tomorrow

Just in case you're interested Yasmin, my beautiful girl bear is on eBay till tomorrow night at 9.30pm UK time. She has a reserve of $650 (£395) and she will be shipped free of charge.So if you haven't seen her yet you still have time to pay her a visit!!

All mod cons....

Did you know that you can now join my mailing list directly on my website without  even having to contact me? You can then find out all about new bears that are up for adoption and get first chance at adopting them before the get released for general sale.

If you haven't heard from me in the last month and you think you are already on my mailing list,  either let me know or re-join my list by clicking the button on my website. I have transfered all my names over to the new software but as you may well know, I am not exactly a whizz on the 'puter front. So do get in touch if you haven't had a newsletter from me this week and you think you should be on my list.

Next step of my polar bear project.

This bear is different to the last polar bear I made. Last time I built him round a wire frame...but this one is jointed. Would you believe I studied Lizzie...our Cocker Spaniel to try to 'learn' how the joint must sit on the torso ...am keeping evrything crossed, including my eyes, that it works. I don't want a taxidermy piece...I always aim a t a whimsical piece...but it mustn't look like a teddy on all fours. I try to capture the 'essence' of a polar bear. I am not seriously into creating realism...mother nature is too good for me to compete..and whatever I do it won't look 'real' so I aim at a Three O'clock Polar Bear.

Here's a photo of my next stage. As you can see I finished the head ( one version is in the bin)...there or thereabouts...I can always find something to tweak...and now I am onto the paw pads. I did two in 12 hours yesterday...that's dedication...they have 3 layers and take me ages...I think they look good!

My newest project

Here is the project I am working on right now...a polar bear. He's been around for a week or so while I work things out in my head. I have decided against an open mouth this time because although I have done a bear or two with teeth in the past...it's a pet hate of mine as nearly always, unless the artist is REALLY good at it they can end up looking like a couple of Tic Tacs stuck in ...so until I can think of a great foolproof method of making teeth that look good without looking scary then the Three O'clock Bears will remain toothless!

You can see from this pile of stuff a little of how I end up with my design..and ultimately my pattern. I tend to start by researching, looking at pictures, in the internet, books etc. From this I draw shapes, take ideas and finally draw a tentative pattern...which ...if it fits together I then make in card-board. I will often cut out the pattern shapes from scraps and then see if they go together properly before I jump in and make the piece. So I am at that stage now....I've just stitched him out of proper mohair and he does work...but you never really know ...that's part of the fun!!

Watch this space!!!

A gorgeous girlie bear on eBay!!!

Here's YASMIN...she's my latest adorable girl bear who is on eBay now. Here's her link if you'd like to see more pictures!!