Announcing...the Weekly Bear project at Teddy Forest

Here in Teddy Forest, I have decided to make one ATC with a bear on it each week and upload it to this blog. Hopefully, this will help me commit to blogging more regularly about bears (my favourite animal!), spread the word about how awesome bears are (real and teddy), and help me practice new artistic techniques.

If you would like to trade your ATCs for any of my Weekly Bears, please contact me through www.atcsforall.com, username "smallgirl".

Here is "Sebastian, the Hitchhiker" my first Weekly Bear ATC!


Sebastian, the hitchhiker by smallgirl
Weekly Bear #1

 Wish me luck with this :)

To begin 2013...finally

Happy New Year from Teddy Forest! It's already shaping up to be a pretty creative year, I hope! I figured out the photo issue: basically, my version of Blogger won't allow uploads from a computer anymore (so annoying).

I ended 2012 with creating a lot of ATCs and needlefelting this Cuban tody for my mom.

Cuban tody designed and needlefelted by smallgirl

Although I'm not much for resolutions, this year I hope to...

1. Finish needlefelting this Fantastic Mr. Fox.

2. Host an ATC swap
These birds were created for a Whimsical Bird Swap

3. See more birds!

Finally, I have a special project that will be the subject for my next post. Hint: it has to do with bears.
What are your hopes for 2013?

2013 begins with technical difficulties

Ms Funky Fish by smallgirl

Happy New Year! I've got lots of fun stuff to showcase here in Teddy Forest, but for whatever reason nothing will upload from my computer :( When I click the image icon on Blogger and go to Upload, nothing comes up except a message that says "You can upload JPG, GIF, or PNG files." No, actually, I really can't. So, I leave you with Ms. Funky Fish ATC, which is available for trade now at atcsforall.com.

West Coast Creature Feature- Beautiful Barrow's Goldeneye



Barrow's goldeneye by smallgirl-apologies for the blurriness-it was raining

Walking in the rain by the sea is more fun than it sounds. One of my favourite winter activities is birding along the seashore, mostly to observe these guys.

Barrow's goldeneye overwinter on the West Coast. It brings me such pleasure to go down to the sea and observe them, swimming and hunting in huge rafts. You can identify this threatened species from common goldeneye by looking at the patch on the male's cheek: if it is a crescent (as opposed to a coin) you are looking at Barrow's goldeneye.

A simple thing that people can do to protect Barrow's goldeneye overwintering on the coast is to not run their dogs down the beach, or into the water, as it takes a lot of precious energy for the birds to get up and fly away.

Happy birding!

DIY-Hootie the Adorable Felt Owl Ornament

Teddy Forest Owl by smallgirl

Okay...so this is a lovely Teddy Forest Christmas ornament...but Christmas was two days ago. However, owls look nice around the house anytime, so I decided to post anyways.

Supplies:
Felt in a colour of your choice (we used Ecofi, felt that is made from recycled plastic bottles, but wool is still the most eco-friendly choice)
Scrap felt for feet and beak
Scrap of cotton or flannel fabric for belly
Scrap of ribbon or twine for hanger
Sequins for eyes
Glitter glue for the wings
Polyfil or scraps for stuffing

Tools:
Scissors
Sewing needle and thread
Stuffing stick/chop stick

What to do:
1. Cut two of the following body pattern from the felt. Add the marks in on the wrong sides.

2. On the right side of one of the body pieces, sew on sequin eyes, beak, and belly
3. On the wrong side of the second cut piece sew or glue your ribbon hanger
4. Sew the two pieces together, wrong sides facing, from A to B (you won't be able to see them once you sew both sides). Note that there is no turning involved, so your stitches will show.
5. Stuff from the opening in the tail, using a chopstick to help move the stuffing.
6. Sew the tail hole closed.
7. Draw on the wings with glitter glue.

Voila! You have a gorgeous owl!


by smallgirl

*This tutorial is for personal home use only, not for resale, manufacture, etc, and was created by smallgirl

After a long hiatus...a few ATCs to show

Hi! I have not been spending as much time in Teddy Forest as I would have liked in recent weeks, but I hope to share more of Teddy Forest with you soon, especially as I will be posting a fun tutorial soon (hopefully this weekend).

In the meantime, here are some owl ATCs I have made recently...

Airmail Owl by smallgirl

Pink faced Owl by smallgirl

Poetry Owl by smallgirl

Professor Hoot by smallgirl

I've been enamoured by owls since observing a beautiful barn owl hunt in the field near my home. Hint for my upcoming tutorial: it is also owl related.

Have a nice day!

West Coast Creature Feature-The Funny American Coot

American Coot, by smallgirl-really sad I couldn't get a better view of the funny feet

Here on the West Coast, the American Coot is a year-round resident, although I have noticed an increase in coots in fall and winter, probably as they migrate here from somewhere else. I think these birds are super funny for a couple of reasons. First, they have these enormous green feet that look more like dinosaur feet and don't really resemble typical water bird feet at all. Also, they make this really funny honking sound something between a sneeze and hoot. Finally, they have such ruby red eyes and black feathers, that they look a little mischevious. Anyways, I'm a huge fan of the cute coot, and I hope you will be too!

Happy 92nd Birthday to Rupert Bear!

Here in Teddy Forest, we wish to wish Rupert Bear a very happy 92nd birthday! May he endure in the hearts of children everywhere and continue to evolve with the times. Below are some excerpts from Rupert Annuals in the Teddy Forest Library. Rupert Bear is a registered trademark of Express Newspapers and Edgemont Publishing.

Rupert, on your birthday we hope you have a lovely party...


Alfred Bestall illustration from Rupert Annual 1956



Opening page from Rupert Annual 1954

And we wish you...



1952 Annual, painted by Alfred Bestall

We also wish Vicky, Twinkle, and everyone else at Lovejoy Bears a wonderful first birthday!!

So, a hearty "Happy Birthday" to Rupert and Lovejoy Bears!

Vintage Children's Books- Old Bear Stories by Jane Hissey

Blaugh. I am super sick right now and had to take the day off work, which sucks, because I love my job. Plus, my poor sister and Dad have come down with it too. Here are some things to cheer myself up:


Little Bear and Hoot from Hoot, by Jane Hissey

 The bears in Teddy Forest find Jane Hissey's realistic drawings of teddy bears and other vintage animals very charming! I find myself looking to these books sometimes when I want to sew or needlefelt a new animal.


Bramwell Brown from Hoot, by Jane Hissey.
It is my goal to one day make a miniature Bramwell Brown from corduroy for Teddy Forest, but I haven't designed a pattern yet.



Little Bear from Hoot, by Jane Hissey



I picked up Hoot at a charity sale at the local library. So, support a library this week :) Happy reading!

My ATC collection is growing thanks to awesome AFA artists!

ATCs are such an addictive hobby!! Here are just a few of the cards I've traded for in the past month:

Rabbits are one of my favourite animals. "Benny the Rabbit" is a beautiful ATC handpainted by Australian artist Lyndell.
I searched for a blue tit when I was in the UK, but never did get to see one. This pretty birdie from Wil, a fibre artist in the Netherlands, is the next best thing. Visit her here: http://wilopiooguta.blogspot.com

Oscar Wilde is one of my favourite literary people, and here "But some of us are looking at the stars" is Utah artist Cynthia's fabulous interpretation. Cynthia also made the pretty butterfly card.

The fabulous "Disco Yeti" from Ontario artist Renée.

"God Smiled" is a wonderful and uplifting Noah's Ark card from Cat in Ohio.

Check out the ATCs page on this blog and visit www.atcsforall.com