Guess what I'm working on next...MONKEYS!

The beginning of a new design.... Sock Monkeys!

I decided to try out a sock monkey this weekend. I made one a couple of years ago from a pattern and thought it was cute, but haven't given them much thought since. Zachary's been trying to get me to make them for him because he thinks sock monkeys are cute and I like them, so I finally decided to give it a go. So, above is the materials I bought from Michael's on Thursday. I didn't have a pattern for my creation, just a crazy thought in my head and I think I'm going to keep it that way. I just cut freely into the sock to make the pieces, sewed those pieces and put him all together. This free cutting will allow for individuality in each piece that I make. I think he turned out quite fun, although he is a bit crazy with the eyes. Here is my first sock monkey, Yalo.

Hugs!
TCD

New Baby Bear!

Hello!
I haven't taken the time to do an official photo shoot lately, but I wanted to share this picture I took on my phone of my newest baby bear. His name is Kalin. He is 7" tall and made of a hand-dyed, marbled purple mohair. He has violet ultrasuede paws, feet and eyelids. He has German black glass eyes, a hand-stitched nose of black perle cotton, and sculpted fingers and toes. Kalin is fully jointed and he has a little belly button that's been hand shaded. (Kalin is available now for $70)

Have a happy weekend!
TCD

Two Brand New Designs!

Hey Everyone,
I've been busy lately with school work. For some reason, I always procrastinate when it comes to grading papers. It's probably because I want to do other things like making bears, but last week I had to sit down and grade, grade, grade to catch up. However, I had a long weekend and I was able to sit down and come up with two totally brand new designs and I would like your feedback!

In my last post I gave a hint to a secret project that I'm working on for my TBAI gallery piece. I have made the teddy bear that will soon become said gallery piece. He is much slimmer than my typical bears and I made his snout thinner as well. Here he is:

I also created a new baby design and this little guy's name is Dalton. He has a fat, four piece body with shortened limbs, a shorter, more round muzzle, and a cute belly button. Here is Dalton:

Please let me know what you think of the new designs! Do you like one more than the other? Is there anything specific that you like/don't like?

Have a great week!
TCD

Secret Project...

Hey Everyone!
My trip to Tampa was quick, but fun. I did get to relax by the pool near my grandma's on Saturday afternoon and the show was pretty good for me on Sunday. Overall it was a good trip and it was nice to get away from the cold. Unfortunately, I came back to snow, but I just have to keep in mind that Spring is officially just a month away.

Anyway, I am going to be working on a new project. I am going to start on my gallery piece for the 2011 TBAI. This year, we have the opportunity to submit our pieces to be included in a preview article for Teddy Bear and Friends and the deadline is coming up in March, so I want to make sure that I can participate in that. This year's theme for TBAI is going to be Treasures of the World and I can't give you any specific details on what I'm doing yet, but here's an idea...

I'll try to keep you updated on its progress.

Have a happy week!
TCD

Venturing out of the cold...

Hello!
I will be emerging from the cold, windy city next weekend for Teds 'n Such's first show of the year! My mom and I will be flying down to Tampa, FL to participate in Bright Star Promotions' 600th show! From what I hear, the Tampa show is fabulous and there will be 40+ artists (including myself) coming out for the day. This is my first time traveling to Florida for a show and I'm very excited. If you live in the area, hopefully you can make it! The show is taking place on Sunday, February 20th from 10:00am - 3:00pm. Click here to see the list of artists coming and for more information. You can even get tickets for early bird shopping off of the site!

Right now I have 13 1/2 + 1/2 bears for the show... What are the two halves for? Unfinished bears that I am hoping to have completed by next weekend. I am working on a fun new panda with this really interesting green marbled wool felt used on his eyelids, toes, and paws. He should be done this week. I also have another bear that I started back in the fall and I've decided to change him up a little bit. Hopefully I can find the time to finish them and get to 15 bears before the show!

I will be doing a little photo shoot with all of the bears that I currently have available this week. I am trying to get into a feature article in a teddy bear magazine about male teddy bear artists and I need to get some photos to submit. This also means that I have some (hopefully) quality shots to share with you before I head down to Tampa, so look out for a show preview this week!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
TCD

New Bears!

Hello!
I have been quite quiet around here lately. It's not that I'm not working on bears, it's because I just haven't had a chance to take pictures. My first problem was that I had misplaced my camera. I had even started a search for a new camera when I finally found my old one. Then we had the awful blizzard here (see last post) and I just haven't been able to get these pictures going. I did take some snapshots today and they give you an idea of what I've been working on. I purposefully took them at angles and close-ups because I have yet to break out the airbrush and do the finishing details on a couple of them. I love to hear feedback, so please feel free to comment and let me know what you think.

On the left is Riley, named by one of you! (Thanks for the suggestion!) On the top right is a yet-to-be-named fairy bear. Below that one is a new anime bear and on the bottom right is my version of a 'traditional' bear (but he's still in a non-traditional color!)

Warm wishes from a cold, and again snowy, Chicago!
TCD

SNOW! The Chicago blizzard of 2011

Hi Everyone!
I just thought I'd share some fun/crazy pictures of our blizzard here that hit Tuesday night and continued through Wednesday.

I guess the snow was so bad that they couldn't use normal plows...?

I tried to squeeze into my car to start it and ended up covered in snow.

We took our dogs for a walk and the snow was piled higher than our 60 lb. dog!

We had a little time off too. It's the first time Chicago Public Schools has canceled since 1999. I took advantage of the time and worked on some new bears. I got one completed and one is on the way. I'm hoping to take some pictures this weekend and share!

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog!
Tyler

Sneak preview... and a request for help.

Working full time as a teacher takes up a lot of my time. I love my job working with children. It just seems as though I spend a lot of time planning for school lessons, activities, and grading (the end of the quarter is quickly approaching). So, when I can work on bears it just seems to take a long time. I embroider a nose one night, then sew footpads another, and eventually it all comes together. Well, I've been working on this guy for over a week now and he's almost complete. I'm really liking how he has turned out, so I wanted to share with you his face. I'm hoping that tomorrow night I will be able to put him together. He still has some finishing touches left, such as soft-sculpting claws/toes on his paws and feet and shading with the airbrush. I'll post the finished product as soon as he's ready! In the mean time, I could use some help in naming him. Do you have any suggestions?

Have a happy week!
TCD

Here it is... the elusive unicorn!

I received the unicorn horn in the mail yesterday and I promptly finished this new design! I am proud to present the first ever Teds 'n Such unicorn, Rohan.


Rohan is a 7.5" unicorn made out of an off-white mohair. He has a white plush mane and tail. His eyes are a gorgeous blue and he has cream ultrasuede eyelids on the top and bottom of the eyes. His magnificent 3" long horn was hand sculpted from clay and painted and sealed in a gold color. He is fully (5-way) jointed and he is stuffed with silky polyester fiber and steel shot for weight.

Rohan is currently available. Please contact me for information.

Please let me know what you think of him!

Best Wishes,
Tyler

Unicorn update...

A few days ago I mentioned wanting to make a unicorn. Well, I have started working on him/her. I drew out a pattern and have cut everything out. I've prepared the pieces for sewing and I've gone on to complete the head... except for one important detail. The horn. It wouldn't be a unicorn without a horn. My initial thought was to make my own horn for him/her, so I started looking around on Etsy to get ideas. After some searching, I decided that it's best to purchase a horn and I found an excellent vendor on Etsy who has actually custom-made a horn for me for this project! Below is a picture of some unicorn horn earrings that she made. The one she made for me is going to be similar, but without the earring part :)


I think that I'll have the unicorn ready later this week. I'll be sure to post pictures when he/she is finished!

Best Wishes,
Tyler