Sox - an experiment

I have just finished Sox.  He is a large bear cub made from Shulte mohair and alpaca.  I usually make most of my bears from alpaca, but have restricted it here to the cream fur on his muzzle, ear linings, chest stripe and feet.  The golden mohair is really soft and silky to the touch.  He has the usual double-neck joint, but I have used cashmere instead of leather for his toes.  His toes have been pulled, as usual for my bears.  He is soft and cuddly, designed to sit.

Blossom - large black bear cub

I am  now properly into bear making mode.  I have just finished Blossom, a black bear cub.  She is large for me...all of 19 inches.  She is made with the most beautiful Shulte alpaca.  It is really soft and smooth for alpaca.  It is very dark brown, almost black at the tips while the undercoat is a slightly lighter reddish-brown.  This gives a very natural appearance.  Her muzzle is a short Shulte alpaca that has been lightly shaded.  Blossom has 6 joints, including a double-neck joint and leather pads and paws with pulled toes.  I have given her lovely, realistic large ears.  I have posted a couple of pictures as well as the photo I used as a source.  I have not tried to copy the photo, but just to capture the essence of the bear cub.

Hugs

Sue

Source photo

Buddy and Filbert at Play

have finally got around to photographing Buddy.  Everything has been in chaos for the past week as I have been moving my bear-making equipment from the dining room to the back bedroom.  Our dining room has been restored to its original use and the back bedroom is now a bear friendly zone.

Buddy is a 13" open-mouthed bear cub made from my favourite tipped alpaca.  Unfortunately, I only have a few scraps left and don't know if I will be able to source any more.  The fur has a lovely, dense, soft feel to it and is shinier than most alpacas.  It is a dream to work with.  Back to Buddy...his arms and legs are wired for extra posing possibilities.  He can stand unaided.  His paws are made from black leather and his toes have been pulled.  His mouth is also made from black leather.  His tongue is made from ultrasuede that has been hand-painted.

I couldn't resist photographing him with Filbert...although, from his expression, I'm not sure Filbert appreciated Buddy's hugs!

Hope you like him!!

Back from Derbyshire

We have returned from our summer holiday in Derbyshire.  The weather was mainly cloudy, but this didn't spoil our enjoyment of this lovely county.  We visited Arkwright's Cromford Mill again.  Last visit was in 2001 and it was great to see the further restoration to the first mill.  The Industrial Revolution was the first History topic I remember studying at school, so has always fascinated me (satanic mills,etc...)

We walked along the Cromford Canal (used to move raw and finished cotton) from the mill site to the steam powered pumping station that was used to lift water from the river to the canal.  This was a lovely, peaceful walk with lots of ducks, moorhens with their young to see along the way as well as a cafe half way along for a break and welcome cup of tea.

Mike is very keen on trams, old buses etc., so we twice visited the Crich National Tram Collection and travelled on a variety of trams, some over 100 years old.  They also sold the most wonderful icecream...not good for the waistline!

There was also a lovely woodland walk full of wonderful wooden sculptures.  My favourite is below.

We also visited Poole's Cavern at  Buxton.  The guide was absolutely brilliant and this made the visit really enjoyable.

Now I'm back home, I am in the process of completing a little brown bear, Buddy.  Will post photos when he is finished.