Bear essentials

I am about to do the first bear making workshop with Sandy Young (another bear-maker). It's going to be a three week course run at Mother Goose on the 7th/14th/21st October from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost will be £75 per person plus materials and the bears range from contemporary to heritage, plain and jointed depending on your ability. It's suitable for beginners and more experienced sewers alike. Call Mother Goose on 01453 298725 for more information and to book. Workshops will be limited to 6 people so there will be plenty of one to one tuition. You'll also be required to do some 'homework'! Below are Gus the Grizzly, Arthur and Oliver - all traditional jointed bears.

Sea of pom poms

I'm starting to feel a certain numbness in my thumbs (RSI?) due to all the pom pom making that's been going on. I've made roughly 175 so I'm guessing I'm almost a third of the way through making a rug - it has to be packed really tightly to achieve the effect I'm after! Check this website for my inspiration: http://www.myk-berlin.com/
Steffi (http://www.mothergooseonline.co.uk/) ordered me some hessian backing so now I've GOT to finish it. This is an amazing way to use up all those odds and ends of wool I have left after knitting projects or following visits to charity shops where I pick up all sorts of yarns. It doesn't matter if it's wool or acrylic, 4-ply, double or Aran, just use what you've got. To make really firm pom poms overfill the pom pom makers, then tape the ends together with masking tape so they don't 'ping' open when you snip the yarn. Tie them with fine string (it's stronger than yarn and doesn't snap) using a surgeon's knot (add an extra twist when tying the first loop to form a double overhand knot) and leaving the two 'tails' to attach to the backing. I'll report back when I'm further along with the project....watch this space!