Dolls Bears & Collectables

“No I don’t have a favourite style or colour of bear. Even though I love ultramodern bears I find that I can’t make the same bear, be it style, size or colour, all the time. So sometimes I make a more traditional style but in bright colours.” Jenny is emphatic in her explanation of her need for brightness and fun. Jenny studied Home Economics in school and has always had a love of craft and sewing. It is this basic tuition that led her to at first alter the patterns she initially used; and then gradually move on to her own designs when she rediscovered bear making on moving to Tasmania. “I had a market stall previously selling soft toys I made. Made from synthetic fur, the animals ranged from…

Please contact Effie for a copy of the pattern. MATERIALS Drawers 2mcotton, voile or batiste fabric Lace trimmings for bottom of drawers Ribbon (for tie up at waist and legs) Corset (underclothing) 4msatin white fabric 20cm x 20cm fusible batting for centre front corset Embroidery thread (your preference in colour) 1m piping cord No. 2 Iron on interfacing 6 eyelets or snap fasteners Zipper foot Bum Roll 2mcotton fabric Polyester fibrefill Farthingale 2m of cotton fabric 1 snap fastener 9m of coiled petticoat wire 9mofsupercurvepetersham 9m of lace to go around casing on right side of skirt hoop to cover stitches of the casing Petticoat 2m of white satin fabric Lace to go around the hem line (approx 9m) Embroidery thread (colour of your choice) 1m…

MATERIALS 1Fat 1/ 4 mtr short sparse feathered mohair Small piece of matching suede or micro suede for paw and foot pads 10mm glass eyes Matching No 8 Perle Cotton Nose thread 10 x 30mm Wooden Disk 10 washers 4 bolts and 4 locknuts Either 2 split pins for neck joint to create a wobble head, or 1 T pin to create turning head. Artificial Sinew Mastex Thread 3mm Leather strapping for eye lids (optional) Sticky Black felt for nose (optional) Fray Stop Sewing Needle Scissors Sewing thread to match Polyfibre for stuffing Tacking Pins KwikGripContactAdhesive(optional) Gel pen for marking pattern on fabric Nose wax or Nose shine (optional) Pens for shading, either prisma pencils or Copic Markers (optional) Templastic or Cardboard & craft glue for Pattern Old Stocking…

MATERIALS Fat quarter of cotton for dress 40cm organza Scrap contrast embellishment fabric (flower or other ) or braid/trims of choice 15cm flesh 100% cotton Scrap of silk or other for bird 5 x pipe cleaners 110cm aluminium wire Emu feathers and other feathers 2 x buttons for joints Beads 1 packet mohair Hollowtex Fibrefil Paints and paint brushes 22cm diameter round wooden board Stuffing tools Finger turning tools Sculpting needle Felting needle Open toe foot for machine GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS Where the seam allowance of 4mm or1/ 4 inch has been allowed on pattern pieces it is shown as a broken line inside the pattern edge. Where there is no seam allowance marked it will denote a template edge. Some pattern pieces may have template sides to them and seam…

My grandmother gave me a beautiful little Russian doll for my 10th birthday that sat on my dressing table for years. I used to play with it for hours, puzzled as to how it was actually put together. You may have one yourself. But did you know that as well as being works of art and a Russian icon, the Matryoshka has a history that is as intriguing as it looks? Often called Nesting Dolls or Stacking Dolls, the Matryoshka appeared sometime during the 1890s with the common belief that its name is related indirectly to the Russian word ‘mat,’ meaning ‘mother.’ Although the word ‘matryoshka,’ stands alone and is not a derivative of the word ‘mat,’ the symbolism of the mother and family is obvious. How these dolls came…

TEDDY BEARS ARE HISTORICAL ARTIST’S CANVASES. Over the past 100 years the teddy bear has become so much more than just a cute and cuddly toy. He is intricately woven into our lives as a companion, confidant, playmate and a canvas for talented teddy bear artists to depict some of history’s most famous and colourful characters. The worlds leading bear makers including Steiff, Hermann, Deans, Russ and many others have been inspired by the lives of famous people and often create entire themes around these characters. One of the first to be immortalised by bear artists was President Theodore Roosevelt who the teddy bear inherited his name from. Many makers over the years have honoured this dignified and famous US President with wonderful creations in his image. Queens and kings…