Christmas is 'Up'

We put the decorations up last Sunday (or should I say 'I'!). I found it slightly a chore, having three rooms on the go, but of course once it was done I loved it! There's something about anything that twinkles, be it stars, fairylights or whatever, thats gets me mesmerized.

The lounge in the vicarage isn't exactly cozy at 26 feet x 16 feet, so the tree and the garland on the mantlepiece has really warmed it up.

You'll notice that the tree has fewer ornaments on the bottom and anyone with cats will know why! Baubles make great balls to chase round the room.

Anyway, I shall now retire and tend to the scarf I am knitting, which Robert says will soon be able to wrap itself around the house.

Keep warm everyone. Its icy here!

Needing a Giggle.....read on

I came across this while blog surfing. You know what it's like, you go from one to another, until you can't remember where you came from.

Anyway, these Student Bloopers will give you a giggle or a belly laugh, depending on your sense of humour. Enjoy!

Student Bloopers

Mini Merry now on Ebay

Merry is now on ebay.com. It's so hard working out the time differences when listing on the American ebay, plus trying to make the listing end at a time that pleases people both in the UK and overseas. His listing will end in America at 7pm, which means that anyone in the UK will have to stay up late if they want to put a final bid in! I think I've got that right!

I've never had great success with ebay. I've seen some really lovely bears on there that don't do well. I'm not sure why. I've had 20 'watchers' in the past yet not one bid. Then again, I've had much fewer and got bids! Oh well, fingers crossed for me!

I've decided I might enter the Golden Teddy Awards. I say 'might' because entries have to be in by the 30th December and with me being a hand sewer, it takes me much longer to create a bear than other artists who use a machine. I shall dig through my mohair and scratch my head and ponder. It's not really the time of year to be stressed is it! I shall see.

Anyway, below is the link to Merry's auction. Pop by and say 'Hi' to him and wish hime luck.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Merry-Mini-cutie-artist-bear-from-Sarahs-Bruins_W0QQitemZ300179930578QQihZ020QQcategoryZ3904QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

New Mini Merry

Please meet Merry!

With my bearmaking I tend to like a change now and again and will make a certain size for a while then want to downsize or upsize. Merry is a downsize! He sits at just under five inches. He's not your typical Christmas bear, but with his chocolate ruff with gold organza, he felt kind of Christmassy to me.

Merry will be going on ebay.com soonish. Just got to design his page.

Will pop a link on here when he's all ready to go!

My Poor Eyezies

I really am greatful for the space in the vicarage, but the study, although being large and having two windows (as do most of the rooms - how grand!), is rather lacking in natural light. It gets dark so very quickly in this room, that I feel like a mole in a hole.

I really must invest in a proper daylight lamp. At the moment I have a lamp base with a daylight bulb in (the blue ones) with no shade. I'm practically being blinded by it. My eyes seriously need testing as it is. Contacts lenses and new lenses, I see pound signs. With the lounge being so big and the television seeming like it's sat in the next county, my eyes really are feeling the strain.

Talking of eyes...........you know what it's like when you need to 'powder your nose' in the night and you don't want to switch the landing light on ? I was on my way back the other night, with freshly powdered nose when I overshot the distance to our bedroom door and walked smack bang into the next closed bedroom door.

Reminds me of the days when you had to put money in the meter for the electric. We were in total darkness and I did the same thing then. Best bit was my late father saying "Did you have your glasses on?". Alas, glasses can't make you see in the dark. Must keep eating those carrots.

Anyway, back to being a mole in that hole.

More tea Vicar?

Well after the stresses and strains of trying to find somewhere to rent at very short notice, things turned out just fine. For six months we are renting a vicarage! They are looking for a new vicar and he won't be in place until the spring.

We really are being spoilt here, five bedrooms, huuuuge lounge, dining room, study, kitchen, utility, bathroom, two toilets, big drive................ the cats have one of the bedrooms to themselves at night, the guinea pigs have another, we have one and the other two are storage! It really is a big place! If it wasn't for the fact that it is needed for the village vicar and the need for probably another £100,000 on top of our house budget, we would probably consider buying it!

It's a bit unkept in places and I've been scrubbing, weeding, un-packing, tidying etc, ever since we moved in a week ago. Bears are taking a back seat for a while!

Bubba the bunny found a good home on ebay, which I was really happy about. With Christmas just round the corner, if I can drag myself away from house chores, I might do a Christmas inspired bear!

Well I'm now off to find hedge trimmers to tackle the overgrown front hedge!

Room at the Inn?

Feeling a bit like Mary and Joseph at the moment, although I'm not 'with child' and I shan't be riding a donkey.

With the buyers of our house being late in getting their documents back, we are left with nowhere to go when we move next Wednesday 31st. We are planning to rent, but with the time left we probably will have a few days with nowhere to rest our weary heads.

If it was just us we could easily stay in a B&B and store our belongings for the few days, but three cats and two guinea pigs, I don't think so!

Oddly, I'm not as stressed as I thought I would be. Maybe I've become slightly catatonic?

Well, we have our health and we won't be sleeping under cardboard boxes, whatever the outcome. Well, this too shall come to pass and Que sera sera.

Hugs x

Bubba on Ebay

Bubba went on ebay.com yesterday evening. Thats UK time! I have a great problem working out the different time zones! His listing link is below. Fingers crossed for him!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=300163710451&Category=3904&_trksid=p3907.m29

I won't be putting any bears on ebay for a while, as we are hopefully moving at the end of the month and I don't want to cause confusion with the change of address. Our address will be changing again in six months time after this move and hopefully I can get everything sorted out in my head!

Will post with more news soon. x

.........and breathe

Well, where do I begin?

Sorting Mum out with a new care agency (won't scare you with the one she has at the moment! Grrrr), sorting Mum out full stop, packing for our move at the end of this month (Eeek!), looking for a rental property for 6 months, searching for parts for our little car and so on.

On a plus note.... Bubba will be going on ebay.com Sunday (fingers crossed). I've just finished his page for the listing. It's been such a stressful time lately, now that it's easing slightly, I'm worried I've forgotten something! Typical me. I will post a link to his listing when he goes on. It's been a long while since I've appeared on ebay and though I'm thoroughly pleased with how the little chap has turned out, it's hard to tell how he will be received. Keep all your digits crossed for me!

Sending hugs and needing hugs..........and breathe

Bunny Brightener

Sneaky peaky of Bubba my latest bunny!

I will hopefully be putting him on ebay.com at the weekend. I always have great fun making the carrots! The thought of putting him on ebay is slightly scary as along with Shelli of Potbelly Bears I haven't put any rabbits or bears on there for a looooong time. Although there is a lot of trepidation, it's also nice to see what will happen. Keep your fingers and any other available digits crossed for me and watch this space!

On another note - Mum is coming out of hospital on Monday (15th), fingers crossed for her too, that she gets on ok. I have fears I will wake up looking like Gandalf one of these mornings, from the stress of it all. Hopefully I wouldn't have the beard though. Veet anyone?

Hugs x

Tough Times

No bears or bunnies to show yet. I have one bunny who is himself completed, I'm just working on his carrots!

Its been hard to concentrate of late. We are having a tussle with social services and the hospital my Mum is currently in, as to what will be the next step when she comes out of hospital. We strongly believe she should be at home with her cats, while they feel she should be in a residential home. Apparently it seems to them that having carers in five times a day, plus district nurses twice, my Robert twice to feed the cats, plus me doing the cleaning and washing, isn't as good as being in a residential home, where I know for sure she'd be thoroughly miserable.

Anyway enough of the bureaucracy and red tape talk (nice to have a little 'vent' though!).

Well I shall absorb myself in carrots for the best part of this afternoon!

Bye for now
x

Cat Got the Cream

Alf's having a 'Duvet Day'

Focus on Felines!

As I've no beary news, other than to say I'm making another rabbit (I seem to be in rabbit mode lately!) I thought I would pop some pics of my children (the furry four legged variety) on to my blog.

Above is Alfie, out white siamese, who I think is actually a two year old child, masquerading as a cat. Highly intelligent, he knows the word 'no' and 'bedtime' (stomps off to the utility, complaining as he goes) and 'dinner'. Dinner usually makes him go at a much faster pace and he'll stand waiting for the others to arrive before he starts to eat. His manners are impeccable.

Below is Harvey. Loves cuddles and is a bit of a drooler when extremely happy. A very soppy, limpet like boy!

Then there is Ellie (Above). A rather heavy, chunky, cuddly tabby. Very chatty, though rather monosyllabic. Likes a lap (as do they all) and makes a rather handy hot water bottle, when the evenings get nippy.

A rare shot of them all snuggled up together. The chairs now gone and the basket Ellie refuses to go in, either alone or with Harvey and Alfie. If Alfie tries to snuggles up to her, theres a lot of cat cursing from her, till she finds enough is enough and saunters off elsewhere.

This last pic is just for the 'Awwww' factor. Harvey is mostly happy to let Alfie snuggle up. Especially if Alf goes about it in slow motion with the odd freeze frame. Occasionally he'll complain, then go about giving Alfie's head a good wash (I think he was a hairdresser in a previous life).

Right, now off to cut out the pattern for the rabbit. So hopefully bear/rabbit news soonish.

Bye for now x

Happy Birthday to Me!

Yes, its my birthday today! Just four hours left of it sadly. Here is my birthday cake! I thought rather than get a birthday cake I should be expected to pick, I'd pick one I actually 'really' liked. Very scrummy too!

Alfie our white siamese enjoyed the candle blowing out ritual too, as the candles are ones that relight. I did find them slightly unnerving as they did spark a bit!

Well the caterpillar cake is almost gone. Saving the face till last (I love soft fondant icing!).

Got Kathy Martins, 'Teddy Bear - A Collectable History of the Teddy Bear', as one of my presents, which I'll enjoy reading.

Right, now off to order some birthday food!

Totally Teddies Sunday!

Above are the bears that will be coming with me to the Totally teddies fair in Loughborough tomorrow!

Although I took my time with the bears, everything else has been hectic. Maybe I wanted to get too much done! I have finished and uploaded my brand new website (yesterday). Made two stands for the bears today, which would make a carpenter cringe but they aren't too bad!

Very much looking forward to the fair. Its only my second as all the fairs seem to be sooooo far away from us! Loughborough will take us 1 hour 45 mins. Which means me getting up very early. Something I am not good at! Need to take some serious coffee with me!

Will post pics when I get home (after some recovery period!)

Doors open at 10am. £2.50 entrance fee, £2 concessions, accompanied children 16 and under FREE.

Hope to see you there!

xxx

Sneaky Peak

Thought I would let you have a peak of my latest bear that will be going with me to my next fair 'Totally Teddies' in Loughborough on the 9th September.

Really pleased with how he has turned out. It was my first time with plush. Its very soft and silky and so different to mohair! It's always nice to be able to use something different for a change. At first I thought 'not keen on plush', then when I saw how he had turned out I thought I might give it another go, which is what I am doing now!

It's also my first time doing a sculpted nose. I started to do my usual stitched nose and just couldn't get it right, so had a go with clay! I didn't want anything too fussy and I feel it works well with him.

Well........must get back to the next bear, which I am just about to cut out. Going to head to my Mums re-rehabilitation flat to do some of the sewing. She's in there getting physio after a very long stay in hospital. To say its been a worrying, stressful time is an understatement! Fingers crossed she improves.

Will hopefully post more news soon. It's been 'Mostly Mum' lately.

Cottontail

Here's Cottontail that was my entry for Teddy Bear Scene's 'Reader's Choice Awards 2007'. I doubt I have been nominated as Paula Carter of 'All Bear' has announced on her Blog that she is a nominee in the 'Bare Bears' category (well done Paula!). Cottontail was my entry for the 'Furry Friends' category and as I haven't heard anything and the magazine is out tomorrow publicising the nominees, I think I must have missed out this time. There's always next year!

Well I'm now off to get a coffee! Just finished another bear, so great time to get the kettle boiling.

Toodle pip, for now!

Long time no Blog

It's been a long while since I 'blogged' mainly because I have swapped Blog host and am just getting to grips with this new one and taking forever to decide on its style and also because I am making bears for the Totally Teddies bear fair on September 9th in Loughborough (Eeek!). Plus I'm still re-doing my website from scratch! There's also the fact we are hunting for our new home still. We've been looking for a year and our house is practically sold (Stress!). Oh and my mother's back in hospital yet again. So a lot of juggling going on lately and I'm not a juggling person! So bear with me! Will post again soon!