Razors and Bears and Itching All Over

Goodness gracious! It seems that I have fallen out of the Land of Blog this week.  But I have been busy.  In fact, as we speak, I'm all itchy.  You know that itchy feeling you get after you've been to have your hair cut?  Well, I'm covered in it.  Covered in microscopic shavings of mohair that I can't even find because they are so tiny.  Oh well.  It's been for a good cause--I've been trying to make an authentic-like vintage bear so I have been attacking the poor thing with a razor.  I never knew how hard it is to shave mohair.  Nor did I know how quickly it goes through blades.  I've finished off 3 already this morning.

I can hear your puzzlers puzzling right now.  I know I'm supposed to be working on Toffee's pattern.  And I have been.  I've been cutting and sewing and jointing and writing and writing and writing some more.  I'm doing quite well with the pattern.  In fact, the "elephump" just needs to be stuffed and colored.  But I was getting a bit burnt out.  So when a discussion came up on the Guild of Master Bearcrafters about how one creates authentic vintage-styled bears, I was ALL ears.  Besides needing a mental health break, I decided I needed to work on a new pattern anyways and this was the perfect opportunity.

You see, I'm going to make a "Children's Classics" Challenge bear for the Teddy Bear Artist Invitational (TBAI) convention in August.  I really would like to get it done before the first deadline on March 20th.  So I really did need to work on a new pattern for the bear I'm making before the new mohair gets here tomorrow.  You see, it really does make sense...well, kind of.

Heaps of Hugs,
Cheryl

P.S.  I will show you my authentic vintage-styled bear after I've attacked it with a few more things!