Oz-some Teddy Bear Artist Guild

April Meeting - Making Faces

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 14:12:00 +0000

No, this does not mean we'll sit around making goofy expressions at each other. At least, no more than we do in a usual meeting.

Tonight's meeting, we'll demonstrate and discuss making bear faces: inserting eyes, attaching ears, sewing noses, needlesculpting, and all the other little bits and pieces that give bears and "bear friends" their personality. Bring any in-progress heads or finished bears you'd like to work on, demonstrate with, or (hopefully in the case of someone else's bear) ask "how was this done?" about.

The meeting is at the usual time and place: 7 to 9 pm at the downtown Senior Services building, behind Seneca Park on 200 South Walnut. Whether you make, collect, or just own a vintage bear you're curious about, come visit us.

Learn to make teddy bears!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 18:06:00 +0000

If you've ever wanted to learn how to make teddy bears, now's your chance.

The next few monthly meetings of the Oz-some Teddy Bear Artist Guild will be dedicated to demonstrations and work-alongs for basic teddy bear construction. Many of the techniques are applicable to non-jointed plush animals or soft dolls as well, so even if you're not a teddy bear fan, there's something for you. We have some new members as well as longtime members who want a refresher, so there will be something for any skill level.

The February meeting—Tuesday, February 3, 7 pm—will cover pattern selection, marking, layout and cutting. We'll need:

Patterns. We'll have free patterns available, or you can bring your own (there are many available on the web, such as here or here).
Fabric. We'll also have a limited supply of fabrics—if you bring your own, it's much better to choose an upholstery suede or other woven fabric than a knit faux fur. If you do choose a knit make sure it's one with minimal stretch, and be prepared for a little extra challenge.
Scissors. If you don't bring anything else, bring your favorite pair of scissors—ideally, one pair for paper and one for fabric. We'll have extras, but you can never have enough.
Tailor's chalk, marking pens or marking pencils, for marking patterns. Yes, we'll have extras of these too.

The March meeting will cover pinning, sewing, and joint assembly. Hand sewing is covered, so if you don't have a machine (or you don't think your machine can handle pile fabrics) don't worry. April will cover head features—eyes, noses, mouths, and ears. May will be our "overflow" meeting for any topics that need more coverage, as well as extras like embellishing, making tags, and so on.

If you're new, an RSVP is nice but not necessary—if fifty people are planning to show up, we'd like to have a little advance notice, but we can always handle a few unexpected visitors. Drop a line in the comments, or call Lorrie Smith at 755-3775. Or just show up—we meet at the Downtown Senior Center in Delano.

Christmas Party

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 22:33:00 +0000

The annual Christmas party will be this Tuesday, December 2. There is no meeting at the Senior Center this month!

Instead, we'll meet at 6:30 for dinner at the west side Home Town Buffet, 6820 W. Central. Cost is $11.19; pay at the front counter as usual and tell them you're with the Oz-some Teddy Bear group, since I believe we'll have a private room again this year.

We'll have a gift exchange—if you've drawn a name and you're not coming, or you're coming and you haven't got a name, call or email ~~Lorrie Smith~~ (Lorrie has the flu… call or email Karen, silver at silverseams.com, instead) and let her know. Our spending limit is around $15-20.

Although it's not a regular meeting, we'll still have a Show'n'Share, so bring any recent purchases/creations. Guests are welcome (if you're bringing a crowd, let ~~Lorrie~~ me know, but usually there's plenty of extra seating).

Hope to see you there!

Folding tea bags

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:24:00 +0000

Whodathunkit? The class on tea bag folding was a great success. We all made cards, but there was much talk of bear tags and accessories, so I think we can look forward to seeing folded paper (and perhaps Ultrasuede) adorning future bears. It's difficult to tell in some of these pictures, but many of the papers used involved teddy bears and pandas, along with floral and holiday designs.

November OsTBAG Meeting

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:03:00 +0000

Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 4th is the next meeting, 7 pm at the Senior Center.

Our progam this month includes:

Janice (Karen's MIL) will be teaching a class on "tea-bag folding"—she'll bring all the supplies, and we'll make greeting cards (or teddy tags, if you prefer).
Planning next year's calendar and possible workshops.
Ed will bring one of his bears to this meeting to auction off, with the proceeds to go to the Humane Society for their new building costs.
Show'n'Share—show off any items you've made or purchased.

Next month's meeting will be the Christmas dinner/party. Dec. 2 at 6:30, at the Home Town Buffet on West Central. (A more detailed announcement will be made after the November meeting.) Everyone's name is in the gift exchange, so if you don't have your victi…er, recipient's name, or if you won't be able to participate, contact Lorrie Smith. Spending limit is around $15.

October Meeting - Halloween Party!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 22:52:00 +0000

Better late then never?

The annual Fall/Halloween Party is tonight, 7-9 pm, at the Senior Center..

All you need to bring beside yourself is:

Finger Food
Halloween (or Fall) Decoration (to help decorate the Senior Center)
Halloween or Fall Decorated Bear if you have one.
Optional: Dress up if you'd like to!

Plates, napkins, plastic ware, cups & drink will be provided.

Lorrie, Joy, and Lori will try to be at the Senior Center at 6:30 to start decorating for the party. Anyone that wants to come and help, please do.

Business:

Talk about the KC Bear show & GBW auction from last month.
Show & Share.
Talk about the St. Peters Arts & Craft Fair- Schulte, Ks -- October 11 (Saturday).
We need a program for the November meeting, since Lori can not attend that night and she has already covered that planned program at last months' meeting.
Discuss the Christmas Dinner for December 2.
Draw names for the Christmas Gift exchange. If you are not able to come to the October meeting, Lorrie will draw a name for you and call you later with the person's name. If you do not think you will be able to come to the Christmas Dinner, please let Lorrie know so she can take your name out of the drawing or we can make other arrangements for your gift to be at the dinner for the gift exchange.

August Meeting - Swap Meet

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 14:24:00 +0000

The August meeting will be at the usual time and place - the Senior Center, at 7 pm. Lori's pendant/ornament project has been postponed, so we're improvising this month.

Work-Along - Bring a project (bear or otherwise) to work on, or just plan to come and chat.
Swap Meet - Doing your fall cleaning? Bring your surplus bear, doll, and craft items for a garage sale/swap meet.
Show'n'Share - As usual, bring anything you've bought or made to show and tell us. It's been two months since we've met, so there should be plenty. (And that's just from Lorrie...)
Business - The Cessna show is upon us already, so we'll need to talk about it, the KC show next month, the St. Peter's show in Schulte, and any other shows members plan to attend.
Future meetings - We need to decide locations for the Halloween and Christmas parties, and while we're at it we'll start discussing meeting themes and workshops for the next year.

Hope to see you there.

Teddy Bear Picnic 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Wed, 28 May 2008 19:24:00 +0000

The June 3 "meeting" is our annual Teddy Bear Picnic. Once again, the official start time has been moved up to 6:30 (though you can arrive earlier or later).

It's at the same place as last year, and very little has changed other than there's a Wal-Mart in addition to the traffic light at 53rd and Meridian now. The fact that 53rd is under construction hasn't changed, except in the location of the construction (it's currently closed just west of Broadway), so if you're getting off I-135 that's something to be aware of - you may be better off taking 235/K-96 west to Meridian or Ridge.

Guests are welcome, and do not need to feel obligated to bring anything. This is a great meeting to get to know us... it's just an informal potluck.

Member business:
Who's bringing what:

Meat: Karen (fancy hot dogs), Andy (hot wings), Joy (brats), Ed (hot dog buns, catsup, mustard & BBQ sauce)
Deviled Eggs: Earlene
Fruits/Veggies: Andy (veg tray), Joy (fruit), Lorrie (7 Layer Salad)
Complex Carbs: Angi (pasta salad), Lori C. (pot. casserole), Larry (cheese & crackers)
Simple Carbs: Karen (no-sugar-added strawberry-rhubarb pie), Sherian (?), Joy (?)
Beverages: ~~Karen~~ Janice (ice), Cottie (pop)
Misc: Lorrie (plates, napkins, cups & plastic ware)

Dues:

Guild's yearly dues are $12 (due last month)
Good Bear Den dues are $14 ($4 for Bear-O's)

Member garage sale

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 19 May 2008 01:10:00 +0000

Guildmember Cottie Black is having a garage sale ~~this weekend (May 22-24),~~ including plenty of bear and bearmaking stuff (accessories, coats-for-recycling, and so forth): Cottie reports, "There is so much stuff, my garage is bursting at the seams!"

The sale is at 867 N. Valleyview.

Update: Due to the death of a close friend, Cottie has postponed the sale.

May meeting recap

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 19 May 2008 00:42:00 +0000

Some of the members absent from the May meeting requested some pictures from it. Click through for larger versions (and explanations, such as they are).

The request included the phrase "if there are any that aren't X-rated."

Fortunately, I didn't record any of the verbal commentary, as certain members attempted to embarrass Angi in front of her boss.

Next month's meeting, June 2, is the Teddy Bear Picnic, at the same place as last year. More details will be forthcoming, though pretty much everything else is the same too, and guests are still welcome, though probably after this post we've scared them all off.

May Meeting - Ed's Teds II

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:52:00 +0000

This month's meeting, next Tuesday the 6th, is part II of Ed's Teds, continuing the coverage of Ed's Heads. Bring a bear head to work on -- and if you missed last month's meeting, don't worry, we didn't cover everything so just go with last month's instructions. If you don't have a bear head to work on, that's okay. As you can tell from the pictures below, we have a mix of demonstration and work-along.

As always, guests are welcome. Members: this month is dues for both the guild and the Good Bears den.

Ed demonstrates the finer points of painting realistic eyes:

Possibly I should have warned Ed I was about to take his picture. Here's his deer-in-headlights impression:

Ed models Andy's "fancy" reading glasses, useful when working on teeny-tiny eyes, and considerably more festive than Mag-Eyes:

We also baked Fimo noses, to be covered with leather/Ultrasuede, but somehow I failed to take pictures of any of that.

Glass Eyes Order

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 19:27:00 +0000

Ed is putting together a group order for glass eyes from Hand Glass Craft, which carries larger sizes than Intercal. If you're interested, contact him before Monday, April 7. You probably don't have to be an Oz-Some member, but if you can't pick them up in Wichita you'll need to work something out with Ed.

April Meeting - Ed's Teds I

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:27:00 +0000

(a/k/a Ed's Heads)

As promised, here are more details on tomorrow's meeting, straight from the horse's mouth:

The pattern and fur are the ones of your choice. Here are some things to consider about doing this project. First, what do you want to learn from this project? Example; applied mouth, nose technique (embroidered or leather applied), eyes, with or without lids. Bring whatever you'll need to work on these details. Finish the head to point of placing ears, eyes and nose. Stuff the head firmly with polyfil but bring some extra with you. Leave the neck opening open but bring the hardward (hardboard disk and metal hardware), long needle and dental floss, to close after checking the stuffing. You can close the head at the meeting. I will bring some black Fimo and black leather skiver to make a leather covered nose for those who want to try one, you'll also need to bring some dental floss for this. I'll also bring the convection oven for baking. For applied open mouths, be sure to bring some pink ultrasuede or real leather for the tongue. This is just a fun/learning project and I hope everyone will bring along their knowledge and tips for others. Ed

If you have any questions, email Ed at espencer @ cox.net.

And if you need a pattern, there's a bear head pattern here, with an optional appliqued mouth. I'll post a link to the complete pattern before next month.

Ed's Teds

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:03:00 +0000

The April meeting will sneak up on us (April 1, no foolin'), and it'll require a little preparation: it's the first installment of Ed's Teds.

Our own Eddie Spencer will be giving a multi-session workshop on his bearmaking process. The April session will be about heads, including but probably not limited to:

Setting eyes
Embroidering noses
Adding an open mouth
Making teeth and tongues
Needlesculpting
Airbrushing and other color techniques
Attaching ears

To participate, you'll need to bring a sewn and stuffed bear head of your choosing, so start thinking about that now. A detailed list of tools and items will be forthcoming as the meeting date gets closer.

Wichita Craft/Antique Show this Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 21:18:00 +0000

Guildmember Cottie Black will have a booth at the Westlink Church of Christ Antique and Craft Fair this Saturday, March 8th from 9 am to 4 pm. The church is at 10025 W. Central (the corner of Valleyview & Central).

Cottie will have artist, antique, Steiff, Gund, and Boyds bears, as well as many bear related items and things to display bears in - vintage & antique horses, fire trucks, etc. She will also be selling vintage fur coats & quilts.

March meeting: Crochet lessons!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 02:06:00 +0000

This time for sure, Rocky!

Next Tuesday, March 4th, will be our rescheduled crochet-lesson meeting - aside from the date, not much has changed from the previous instructions, other than that Andy has almost finished her first try at the pattern in time for last month's meeting, so this time we should have something finished to look at!

Ed will give us a outline of the next few months' meetings, too - he'll be taking us through his bear-making process, step by step.

February meeting: Cancelled!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 21:57:00 +0000

Since most members have to travel considerably more than my seven-tenths of a mile, and a cold front is bringing snow and freezing the wet roads, tonight's meeting is cancelled. The crochet lesson is tentatively rescheduled for the March meeting, though we haven't made a final decision.

Stay warm!

February meeting: Crochet lessons!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:31:00 +0000

At the ~~next~~ MARCH meeting, those of our members who know how to crochet will be teaching the rest of us. We'll be tackling (hopefully) Berta Hesen-Minten's "Strawbeary" thread bear pattern.

The pattern as written produces a bear under three inches tall, in DMC Cebelia 10 crochet cotton with a .75mm (slightly larger than a US #14 steel) crochet hook. Bring your own if you have it, but extra will be available.

I plan to bring some worsted-weight yarn and appropriate hooks - the usual guideline for thread animals (or "amigurumi" in Japanese) is to use a smaller hook than usual for the yarn weight, so that your stitches are very tight and the stuffing doesn't show through. Gauge doesn't need to be exact. I also plan to bring some simpler patterns for those of us who haven't crocheted in, um, decades.

The meeting will be ~~from 7-9 pm on Tuesday, February 5, at the Senior Center~~ cancelled due to inclement weather.

Good Bears news

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 16:53:00 +0000

The bear (pictured in the September meeting) Joy donated for the Good Bears auction at the Jubilee earned our Good Bears den twenty-nine Good Bears for distribution. (The Toledo GBW den has a picture of the Good Bear on their site.)

Thank you, Joy and GBW!

Email subscriptions available

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 20:06:00 +0000

If you keep forgetting to check here, but you don't use a feed reader (Live Bookmarks, etc.), you can now subscribe to get these articles via Feedburner. The link is in the sidebar, and will bring up a Feedburner page with instructions, or you can email me (Karen) with any questions.

There is also a separate Feedburner link for the calendar entries (which aren't part of the article feed), or you can go through Google Calendar to get more advanced options, like setting your own notifications in advance of events, so that you don't (just as an example) get a phone call from Lorrie when you're fixing dinner instead of being at the meeting you forgot about.

GBW Teddy Bear Jubilee

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 20:38:00 +0000

Mark your calendars now: the 2008 Good Bears of the World Teddy Bear Jubilee will be September 12 and 13 in Overland Park, Kansas.

January Planning Meeting

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 01:59:00 +0000

We're set up at the Senior Center for Tuesday, January 8, but we'll be in room 4 on the second floor. They have an elevator if needed.

Aside from the usual Show'N'Share, all you need to bring are ideas for the meetings throughout this year.

Oops, a scheduling mixup

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 20:34:00 +0000

None of us thought about the fact that the first Tuesday of the month was... today, January 1. The Senior Center isn't open today, so there's no meeting. Lori is checking into the possibility of a meeting next Tuesday, January 8, so watch this space.

October Meeting - Halloween Party!

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 20:35:00 +0000

The October meeting is next Tuesday, October 2 at the Senior Center. The party is at 7, and setup is at 6:30.

Lori C.: CD player, Halloween music and chopped nuts (for caramel apples)
Cottie: the caramel in a crockpot/slowcooker with serving spoon
Lorrie S.: the apples and the core/slice cutters, cups, plates, napkin, plasticware
Ed: the drinks
Angi: the ice.
Everyone else: something to eat.

Everyone is also to bring a Halloween decoration (or if you don't have one, a fall decoration will be fine), to help decorate the Senior Center.

Bring your Show'n'Share, and we will have show and tell from the KC bear show.

Hope to see you there - visitors are always welcome, and as always contact us if you have any questions.

September Meeting Recap

noreply@blogger.com (Karen in Wichita) — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:05:00 +0000

Most of the meeting was business, though some did some more felting. This time we covered resist felting, and I've nominated Angi to teach us how it's done... because on her first try she did better than I've managed. Maybe we'll have to get together during a non-meeting time and play with wool some more.

We discussed the Good Bears Kansas City show, and Joy turned over Magic, her donation to the Good Bears auction - soon as someone reminds me the artist's name, I'll put that here. My picture came out surprisingly well for an impromptu ambient-light snapshot of a black bear.

Thank you, Joy!

We also prepared for Ed's November class, and made assignments for the October meeting (the Halloween party), both of which I'll post the details of as we get closer to those dates (and as Lorrie fills me in on those details, because I was busy felting).

As an indirect result of the meeting and learning that Cottie had a bear on Bear Pile (a first for her), I've updated the website including the for sale and news areas and the guild Gallery and set up a preliminary Country Cubs website for Cottie. There are also updates to the guild information area, so if you're a guild member reading this and you don't get my email in the next day or so, drop me a line or give me a call.