Join Expert Instructor and Teddy Bear Art Pioneer, Ted Menten, in creating 'A BEAR WITH ATTITUDE!'
All Teddy Bears have personality -- personality just 'happens' every time one comes to life after the final stitch is in place. However, not every bear has "attitude" ... but Toots certainly does!

Meet "TOOTS" (as in Tootsie) a girl with attitude to spare!
This class will be all about creating Teddy Bear characters with distinctive personalities.
We will explore various ways to give your bear some added attitude with their
body language . Working with the TOOTS basic pattern we will have the choice to
go with paws on hips or possibly another pose of each student's choice. There
will be patterns for alternate arms included.

Ted is the master of creating bears with attitude. In his book, TEDDY'S BEARZAAR, (a spoof of the fashion magazine) he created a grand selection of bears with haughty attitudes -- tall slim bears with a variety of stances.

A fun class for both the novice bear maker and the more experienced bear-smith. This course includes:

•  Step by step instructions
•  Color photos
•  Illustrations & Diagrams
•  Access to the Agora
•  Full size Pattern for Toots by Ted Menten

Supplies for Toots

FUR: For the head you will need a square 13 x 13. The idea is to pick a fur with some style to it -- like a swirly-curly or a wavy style. Even a straight fur can be "styled" to give your bear "character" This fur should be 3/4 inch or 1 inch in length/

The body should be made from straight fur that is dense and is 3/8 inch to 1/2 inch in length.
You will need a piece 43 inches long and 12 inches high with the fur running downwards from top to bottom. You can also use a piece that is 29 inches long and 12 inches high for the legs and body. And another piece 17 inches long and 12 inches high for the arms. There will be diagrams showing exactly how to lay out the patterns.

Eyes: The original Toots has 9mm blown glass blue eyes. Since eyes often vary in size from maker to maker I have also used 10mm blown glass eyes.

Nose: The original Toots has an #3 (thick) Pearl Cotton embroidery floss nose in an Amber color.

Joints: You will be learning a different technique for jointing Toots. This involves using the brown hard wood disks and metal bolts with lock nuts with the nylon lining. This technique involves gluing the bolt into one disk with Devcon "5-Minute Epoxy" -- only this brand works every time and is available in most hardware stores and online. You will need two 1.5 inch disks for the neck. You will need four 1.5 inch disks for the arms and four 2 inch disks for the legs. You will also need a tool called a "nut driver" that matches the size of the nut you use. Sears has them online for about $6.00. The one I use is for a 11/32 nut.

Foot Pads: Toots has fur foot pads and no pads on her paws. I usually make an inside "sole" for the foot to help flatten it out. I use a piece of craft 1/8 inch "Foamie" available from craft shops.

In addition you will need Mastex upholstery thread for closing up the pieces after stuffing them. (Mastex is the recommended brand. Heavy duty carpet, button and upholstery thread may be substituted and is available at most fabric stores.)

There are many tools used to stuff bears and each bear maker usually has a favorite. I use a variety of screw drivers with the ends taped over to soften the edges.

And you'll need stuffing.

These items are optional: Dritz "Fray-Check" to protect the open edges from unraveling. Beacon "Fabri-Tac" fabric glue for various things. A small piece of felt or Ultrasuede to make "washers" for the jointing holes. Paper clamps to hold things together. Glass head pins. Many bearmakers also find many uses for medical hemostats. And I use barber's "thinning scissors" to style the face fur. And I also use Non-alcohol Spray Styling Gel to style the head and face fur.

Next Class Begins January 17, 2012

Course Duration: 30 days.
Course Fee: $60.00 USD

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