Introducing Piccolino!

I'm delighted to introduce you to Piccolino. I created this sweet bear from three of my favorite Schulte mohairs in blond, red, and wedgwood blue. Piccolino stands about 14 and 1/4 inches (36.2 cm) tall.

UPDATE: Piccolino was adopted during the show!

Piccolino is my preview bear for the upcoming Teddies Worldwide online show. You can visit the site now to see all the preview bears and vote for your three favorites. If Piccolino is one of your favorite bears, he would love your vote.

New Avenue Crew will have five bears available for adoption during the online teddy bear show, which will be held on this website: Teddies Worldwide. The show starts Friday, March 17, at 12 noon eastern (New York) time, and it runs through 8 p.m. Sunday, March 19. Because it's all online, you can even shop in your pajamas if you like!

I hope you have enjoyed meeting Piccolino!

I'm so excited that New Avenue Crew will be participating in the ONLINE Teddies Worldwide Teddy Bear Extravaganza Show March 17-19, 2017.

I've been hard at work on my first two bears for the show, and I love them already! You'll be able to see preview pictures and vote for your favorite bears starting Friday, March 3. Then the show starts on Friday, March 17. I hope you will drop in and visit all the wonderful bears!

I have been part of two Teddies Worldwide shows before in November 2010 and March 2011. You might remember a couple of my bears from those shows. The little brown bear is Mullins, and the large light green and ivory bear is Sprout. They are both adopted.

Only 6 Hours Left in the Blooming Bear Show!

It has been a lovely show so far. There are so many beautiful bears! Two of my Crew members are still available for adoption:

Kalinka

Malinka

These sweet sisters are both 13.5 inches (34.3 cm) tall. They are both so wonderful to hug and carry around. My sister came over yesterday and bonded with them in real life, especially with Kalinka.

To see more about Kalinka and Malinka, pop on over to the Blooming Bear Show at http://www.teddiesworldwide.com/ and look for Debora Hoffmann, New Avenue Crew. See you there!

It's Showtime!

Ladies and gentlemen, the biggest online bear show has started! Click here or on the banner above to visit the website. Be sure to look for Sprout (below) and my name, Debora Hoffmann, New Avenue Crew. There are three spring-themed Crew members available for adoption. Enjoy the show!

It's Almost Showtime!

The Blooming Bear Show starts tomorrow, Saturday, March 12. I am excited to show you the three sweet bears I've been working so hard on! To see my Crew members and the bears by 74 other talented artists from 12 countries, click on the website link. Today, you'll see the preview photos. Tomorrow, the photos or names will be live links to each artist's creations. Look for Sprout (below) and my name, Debora Hoffmann, New Avenue Crew!

Sneak Preview for the Blooming Bear Show

I am so excited to introduce you to cuddly Sprout, a bear with lovely light green and ivory mohair! He is one of the three spring-themed Crew members who I will be offering for adoption during the online Teddies Worldwide Blooming Bear Show coming up March 12 and 13. (To see the other artists' sneak peeks of their bears, visit the show website. How fun to see creations by 75 international artists in one place.)

I've been working hard on creating my bears these last few months, and I can't wait to share them with you during the show. Less than two weeks to go now! I hope you'll visit the Blooming Bear Show--did I mention it's all online?--and maybe you'll even find a cuddly friend or two!

Show Preview on Tuesday

I've been working diligently on my bears for the upcoming online Blooming Bear Show...and it's been hard to not share them with you! (We're to keep our bears under wraps until the show opens on March 12.) But on Tuesday, March 1, I'll be able to show you a preview of one of my bears. Can't wait! And the other artists in the show will also have a preview photo of their creations to share on the show website.

I'm off to finish sewing on an ear. Ta-ta for now!

I've Fallen Off the Face of the Earth!

I've been quiet here on the blog lately, but I haven't really fallen off the face of the earth. I am just working hard on my bears for the upcoming online Teddies Worldwide Blooming Bear Show happening March 12 and 13. Did I mention that it's online? Yes, you can visit in your pajamas, if you like! I would love for you all to visit me here in the New Avenue Crew studio, but since we live in such diverse places around the world, visiting online is the next best thing.

Speaking of visiting online...from all around the world...I love seeing where you all come from. There's a fancy free gadget that will do just that for your own site: Google Analytics. I live here in Colorado, and it's a thrill to see visitors coming from as far away as Brazil, India, and Russia, as well as from here in the States and in Canada, the UK, the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Ukraine, Israel, Singapore--what fun!

So what am I making? I am not able to show them to you yet, but I can tell you a few things about them. I'm creating three bears with a spring theme for the show. It has been nice to think of spring and its warmer weather, new growth, and lovely pastel colors during these cold winter months. Spring is definitely something to look forward to! Today I'm working on stuffing, and then I hope to start trimming one of the bear's faces so I can start to see him emerge from all that fur. It is always fun (and a little nerve-racking) to work on a bear's face. With a trim here and a stitch there, a face and a personality slowly come to "life."

Here are two of the bears I made for the November online Teddies Worldwide show: Goldenstern and Cinnamon. This is when I had finished cutting them out of the mohair fabric and assembled their parts to get a glimpse of what they would look like when they were all complete. It's fun to watch bears go from flat to fluffy.

Motivation

I must confess that I'm lacking somewhat in the motivation department of late. Maybe it's the colder winter weather. Maybe it's the days that get light so late and dark so early. Maybe it's just me.

Yesterday, I received a nice package from a friend of mine, and inside were all manner of trims and trinkets. Many of them can be adornments for my bears! I know I'll have such fun mixing and matching. Thank you so much, Anna!

So I'm still not completely motivated, but I think I'll turn off this computer and start trimming seams on the bear I finished sewing recently. I'm eager to see what she'll look like. She'll be one of my Crew members for the online Blooming Bear show coming up in March. Can't wait! (OK, I guess there's a little motivation there, after all.)

Good-Bye, 2010...Hello, 2011!

Brrr... It's a cold one out there this last day of 2010! We had our first winter snowstorm yesterday and overnight, and though it's sunny out, it's only 7 degrees (and feels like -8). They even have the freeway closed because it's so icy. My husband and I are very glad we don't need to go anywhere. We and the kids are snug here at home. I've had my morning tea, and soon I'm preparing to go sew some bear parts!

Speaking of bears, I wanted to let you know that New Avenue Crew has been accepted into the next online Teddies Worldwide bear show coming up in March! Be sure to add it to your new calendar.

Though it's winter and Christmas has just passed, I have two springtime bears in the works and a third ready to be started. Pastel colors, new spring growth, and warm breezes are on my mind.

As 2010 ends and 2011 begins, I would like to say thank you to you all for being friends of the Crew. I have enjoyed getting to know many of you over the past year! I hope to present lots of new Crew members to you next year--I have many new ideas written down, drawn out, and dancing in my head. And most of all, I pray God blesses you throughout the coming year and that you thank Him as the giver of all good things.

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow (James 1:17).

A Little More Cinnamon

Thank you all for coming out to see the online Teddies Worldwide holiday bear show last weekend. Did you enjoy the show? I very much enjoyed visiting all the lovely bears, and I've even met some new friends as a result.

I'm happy to say that sweet Cinnamon found a new mom during the show! She should be arriving at her new home anytime now.

I was inspired to create Cinnamon by my memories of the sight, smell, and taste of the delicious cinnamon apples my Grammie made each Christmas. I made Cinnamon from a new pattern I created this summer. I found that I really liked her size (13.5 inches / 34 cm); she's nice to hug and carry around. And her wavy, distressed mohair (from Teddybearmohair.com) was fun to work with. I love the beautiful red color! I adorned Cinnamon with a solid brass "petal" sleigh bell that makes a lovely tone.

I love to create classically styled bears with long muzzles, long arms, and a slight hump at the shoulders. I've already started working on my next bear from this pattern.

We will miss Cinnamon here in the New Avenue Crew studio. But knowing she'll be loved in her new home makes me happy. I will just have to make more bears!

It's Showtime!

It's finally time for the online Teddies Worldwide holiday bear show and sale! Visit the website to find the participating artists and their special bear creations. My very own sweet Cinnamon will be there with bells on!

Tomorrow Is the Time!

Tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. eastern time, the online Teddies Worldwide holiday show and sale will start! Are you ready?

Sneak Preview for the Online Teddies Wordwide Show and Sale

I am so excited to introduce sweet Cinnamon to you! She is one of the bears I will be offering for adoption during the online Teddies Worldwide holiday show and sale. (To see the other artists' sneak peeks of their bears, visit the website.)

I've been working hard on my bears and can't wait to unveil them bright and early Saturday morning. I hope you'll drop in to the show--maybe you'll find a cuddly new friend or two!

Teddy Bear Tidbit Tuesday: Show Scramble

Today on this teddy bear tidbit Tuesday, I want to give you a taste of my final 11 days before the online Teddies Worldwide show and sale opens on Saturday, November 20.

As the title of this post suggests, I am scrambling to get everything ready for the show. Many things have happened these past few weeks that have derailed my bear making, but I am determined to finish the three bears I've been creating especially for this show.

Let's back up a bit.

I signed up for the show back in September and right away started brainstorming about the bears I wanted to make. Because the show has a holiday theme, I decided I needed to get in the Christmas mood. I didn't even have to bring the holiday music CDs up from the basement; my head offered up a ready supply of Christmas carols for inspiration. I started jotting down many ideas for special bears and then thought about them for a couple of days.

The next step was to paw through my stash of fur for the perfect colors from which to create my little Crew members. Memories from Christmases past and the sights and sounds and smells of that special season filled my head and helped me select just the right mohair pieces.

Out came my patterns and scissors, and I was off and tracing, cutting, trimming, pinning, sewing, combing, turning, and stuffing. I worked on all three simultaneously, which is not usually how I make bears. Most of the time, I create one bear from start to finish before moving on to the next one. It has been kind of fun to make them at the same time and see them progress together.

My favorite part of making bears came next: finishing the head. I partially stuffed all three bears' heads and then chose one to move forward with. I stuffed the chosen head all the way and then trimmed the muzzle area, paying particular attention to the area where I would be embroidering the nose with pearl cotton floss.

After the nose was complete, I sewed the mouth on and then put two black-headed pins in position for the eyes. The next step was sewing the neck joint into the head. And then it was time to put the real glass eyes in. Sinking the eyes on a bear is my favorite part of working on the head because that's when the bear's personality starts to emerge.

(Above is a photo of Juniper when I had just completed his head. I am holding on to the cotter pin neck joint that goes into the body to fasten the head to the body.)

Once the eyes were in place and tied off, I then sewed the bottoms of the ears closed and pinned them in place on the head. As I do when I position the eyes, I view the head in a mirror to check the ear placement before sewing them on.

I also enjoy shading the bear's face to give it some depth. A little here, a little there, and bear #1's head was finished. And you know what? I love this bear.

Moving on, I completed bear #2's head (another cutie!) and then stuffed both bears' paws and feet and added claws. I am now ready to move on to bear #3. And you are up to date on my progress!

There will be some new sew-in labels coming in the mail this week. I am very excited about them; my New Avenue Crew logo has been printed on Ultrasuede labels. When they arrive, I will sew one into the back seam on each of the three bears' bodies and will be able to joint their heads and limbs to their bodies, stuff them, and sew the openings closed. But can I complete all three bears in time for the show? I sure hope so! I am determined to have three sweet Christmas-inspired bears to present to you.

Remember to visit the online Teddies Worldwide show and sale website on Saturday, November 20. Look for the link to Debora Hoffmann and New Avenue Crew, because this blog is NOT where the bear show is being held. If you would like a reminder e-mail from me, you can sign up for my mailing list in the sidebar at right. I hope you'll drop in to visit me and my bears during the show, and I hope you'll like my new Crew members!

Oh, and one more teddy bear tidbit: I updated my blog header last night. What do you think?

Fun Fur Facts Friday: Pieces and Parts

In these final four weeks leading up to the big online Teddies Worldwide show and sale on November 20 and 21, I am trying to grab every spare minute I can to work on my three show bears. I am pleased with how they are coming together so far! All three are sewn, and I've been stuffing their heads and paws. So what I'm seeing now looks a lot like this:

But all three have their legs and feet sewn and turned; this photo shows what the legs and feet look like before that step. This is actually a photo of Logan when I was making him. And below, Logan is pictured with Ben (both bears have been lovingly adopted).

Where was I? Oh, yes. Pieces and parts.

Because I'm surrounded with the pieces and parts of my show bears, I thought you might like to see a teddy bear in progress. My typical bear has 19 pattern pieces that need to be sewn together. The top photo shows teddy Logan in various stages of completion. The head is stuffed, most of the pieces are sewn and turned, and the legs and feet are still awaiting attention.

What else is pictured in the photo? There are two stuffing sticks, which help with pushing the stuffing into the far reaches of the arms, legs, body, and head. There are two "ropes" of stuffing. I pull my stuffing into ropes before putting it into a bear's furry mohair "envelope" pieces. I find this helps the stuffing go into the parts more smoothly. And then there is a plastic zip-top bag for keeping all the pieces and parts together so they don't get lost. I also keep the joint disks and hardware in the bag with the bear parts, so that when the time comes, I can put all the pieces together into a sweet little bear.

Here are Ben and Logan all put together, before they were completely stuffed and finished. I kind of like their saggy look.

And so, I am enjoying having all these pieces and parts around, but I'll be quite happy when there are three little bears looking back at me, all ready for hugging and eager to appear at the show.

Showtime!

Have you ever been to a teddy bear show? It is such fun to wander the aisles looking at the sweet faces on every table, chatting with artists and bear lovers alike, holding and hugging fantastic furry creations, and falling in love with the little--or big--bear across the room.

The last show I participated in as an artist was in 2002, eight years ago. I miss bear shows! So I'm happy to announce that I will be participating in a brand-new show coming up this November, Teddies Worldwide, produced by Daphne Blau of Back Road Events. (She creates bears, too, under the Back Road Bears label. Talent!) 

And the best part? It's ONLINE. Yes, that means you can visit in your pajamas, if you prefer!

There will be 75 teddy bear artists from around the world participating in this show. This is the biggest online show to date!

I will be making three new Crew members especially for the show. The fur has been flying here in the New Avenue Crew studio! One bear is almost completely sewn, and the others are slated for sewing soon. I can't wait to work on their faces and see them come to "life"!

Please be sure to visit Teddies Worldwide for more information about the show. You can sign up for a reminder e-mail there, too. (If you like, you can sign up for my mailing list in the box in the sidebar at right, and I'll send you a reminder e-mail about the show, as well as news about New Avenue Crew and notification when I have new bears available for adoption.)

Don't miss this fabulous show featuring holiday bears by 75 international artists!

I thought you would get a kick out of this picture of me and my Crew members at the Nevada City teddy bear convention in April 2001. Enjoy!