It's Giveaway time again!

Hi Everyone!

I realised a few weeks ago  that I was coming up to my 500th bear!  I can't believe I have made so many over the last 7 years!

Co-incidentally I am also up to more than 500 likers on my facebook page so I thought it must be time for a giveaway!

I started a new poll a couple of days ago and (due to the fact that I'm a bit sick and rather foggy) I didn't think to let you all know on here!  The giveaway is being run through facebook, so if you aren't already a 'liker' please join up to my page and have your vote!

What we are going to do is that you all are going to help me design my 500th bear, and then all those who vote at all stages will be entered into the draw to win the resulting bear!

So the first stage is that we have to decide what colour this bear is going to be.  Pop over to the page, check out the album of colour samples and then vote in the poll for your favourite!  I've had a few people who have had problems finding the poll, no idea why that is, so we won't do it that way next time but for now, please try and get a vote into the poll as that is how I will be storing everyones names!

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=842602768#!/pages/Little-Handfuls-Mini-Bears/366699465692

I will leave each stage up for vote for a week, the next stage will be posted and I will let you all know when it's ready! :o)

This should be so much fun, we have already had over 40 votes!  Imagine winning a bear you had a hand in designing!!

:o)

Some new friends to meet!

Hi Everyone!

I'm finally updating again!  Sorry it's been so long.  Between the day job and trying to catch up on orders after the shows I got a bit swamped!  I do have a few new friends to show off to you though!



This is Bianca!  She is felted from a gorgeous strawberry and cream merino fibre!
It's just wonderful to touch!

I gave her little rusty red coloured toes and nose which just set her off nicely!  I even had a go at mini knitting again and I think I did ok!

This is Barlow!  He's felted in the most glorious teal colour!  It's a bit different from any other that I had so I had to scoop it up when I saw it for sale at the show! lol  I think the lime sets it off nicely!

Aww, he has those big soulful teddy eyes!

Scruffy was created at one of the shows!  Neat fibre, has rayon in it and was just right for a scruffy little doggie.  This pup is currently travelling around Switzerland with my lovely friend Veronika!

Scruffy has been the start of rather a dogpile, I have a few others to make in his likeness and strangely enough they are all turning out really tiny!  Bit fiddly when it comes to the 4 legs! lol

Well I hope you liked the newbies!  I've made a couple of other things lately but you will have to wait to see those! :o)  I hope to update the adoptions page again soon too and I will pop a note on here when that is done!

Happy crafting and thanks for stopping by!

Show's over and latest work!

Hi Everyone!  I hope you have been enjoying a productive few weeks since I last posted pics!  I've been madly felting away, even though none of my new work made it to either of the shows, I was just having fun anyway! :o)  Anything I make during show time I don't have time to tag and photograph so they just have to wait until next time!

The shows went well, it's always fun hanging out for a whole weekend with friends creating furry little creatures.  During the 3 day show I almost finished 3 creations, the last one just needed a face! :o)  2 have already been given away!

I was thoroughly enjoying making the little girl below though, and was glad she didn't get completed in time to be sold as I wouldn't have gotten to spend any time with her at all!  Helen is felted from 2 wools I blended together myself.  One is a gorgeous silk fibre I imported from Living Felt and the other is a natural NZ corriedale, so soft and fine I could hardly believe it was a corriedale at all! :o)

I love her crumpled trunk and big soft ears.  She has toenails and 'seams' down her body to give her a hand sewn look.  She is wearing a lovely little skirt and sits on a blanket I knitted myself!  I'm not much of a knitter but it actually does look good!  Teeny little needles and fine thread were used!

 Helen can see you down there!

She is quite big, over 4 inches tall and loves to pose with her blankie.  I'm really enjoying having cuddles with her 'cos I know she will find her new home soon, people have been asking after her already! :o)

I hope you enjoyed dropping by, if you ever want to stay in touch with me and my work more please look for us on facebook.  Little Handfuls have their own fan page so you can 'like' us and then see all the hundreds of photos in our albums!  We always love to hear from you too!

Happy crafting!

Just days until the Big Show!

Hi Everyone!

Just wanted to pop in before I get too busy and let you know where things are up to for the big craft show coming up this weekend!

I've had so much prep to do, most of the bears were finished weeks ago, but I still had 26 little bears to tag and price.  I also had to buy backdrops, paint displays and decide who goes and who stays!  I find that really hard as I just want to take everyone, but a crowded table doesn't do anyone any favours I have found!  The more bears that are on the table the less they stand out and show their full potential! :o)

So along with doing all those things I have been updating my Little Handfuls website.  I discovered it has been 2 years since I last updated it!  Wow, that went by fast!  So we are about to upload the new pages and lovely new photos tonight, that's Tues evening GMT so if it's after that when you read this go and check it out!!  I would love to say I will remember to drop by and tell you when it's live but I don't think  I will have time!  http://www.mylittlehandfuls.com/

Anyway, I just can't do a post without showing you a new bear, so this is Wisteria, she is sister to Primula who I showed you a couple of weeks ago (she should be there if you scroll down).  I really like this style of bear, their faces are so sweet and fine featured.

Primula is needle  felted from Living Felts merino tops which are in such gorgeous colours this year, you gotta go check them out! http://www.livingfelt.com/



 Isn't she sweet?  It's such a lovely warm purple!

Just look at that face and tell me you're not smitten! :o)

Ok, it's back to the many lists of jobs to do for me!  Guess I can tick off 'post on blog' now huh? lol  I so wish I could meet you all at the show, they say it's a small world but sometimes I could handle it being a bit smaller!

Love to all and happy crafting!

Liza

Big Show Coming Up!

Hi Everyone!

Just wanted to pop in and let you know that things are pretty busy here at the Little Handfuls studio!  Lots of new bears, but also a big show coming up in just 2 weeks!  I wish I could meet you all there, but it's here in little 'ole New Zealand and I know most of you aren't! :o)

Those who are, pop down to the Dunkleys show on 1 - 3 July at the Claudelands Event Centre (lovely new building!!) I would love to meet you and share my little creations with you!

Then, later in the month I am lucky enough to have been selected for the Teddies Worldwide online show starting 15 July, so you can ALL come to that one!  I will let you know more info closer to the  time!

For now, here are a few bears that will be at the shows!

 Butternut is needle felted in merino with felted Vest and Hat!    Carlton holds a Lily!

 Flicker is felted from merino/silk, love her gorgeous wings!

 George is a more traditional bear, love the scarf!  Primula has flowers on her paws to match the one by her ear!

Two new friends to meet!

Hi Everyone! Thanks for dropping by again! :o)

Today I wanted to show off two of my new bears, I've made so many lately and just havent had the time to show them all off to you!

So here is Kirby! He is needle felted from gorgeous merino/silk fibre by Ashfords. It's lovely to work with, and the colours are amazing! I really like how he turned out.

His face is a little different, I like the innocent look he has

And his feet have little insteps, quite a neat shape!

Mindy is felted from a lovely soft mauve merino. I set it off with a gorgeous burgandy thread and hairband ribbon.

She is such a lovely sweet little bear, I hope she finds a special home!

I have a lot of other bears waiting for new homes at the moment, but mostly because I have a big show coming up. I intend to fill up my adoptions page mid July after the show is done, so my apologys for not having much on there at the moment!

Happy crafting everyone!

Time for a new Little Handful

Hi Everyone! I'm pleased to introduce you to the newest furry little member of the Little Handfuls Hug. This is Dink! He is needle felted from a gorgeous bright hand dyed romney wool with soft sable coloured muzzle, ears and paws! He has the sweetest big eyes and complimentary hand stitching in a maroon colour for his nose and other accents!

I tried something different with his paws, I'm really pleased with how they turned out!

Just look at that lovely big nose and those sweet, innocent looking eyes!
He's just a handful of beary happiness!

I hope you enjoyed meeting my new friend. He will be heading for the big show coming up here in July, along with all my very best bears! So for those of you who are lucky enough to visit Hamilton on the first weekend of July, I can't wait to meet you and show you my work in person! Just pop along to the Dunkleys show 1 - 3 July 2011.

Meet my newest little darling, Clarabell

Hi Everyone!

I finally get to show you my new bears, Clarabell is needle felted from Merino/silk fibre which I then brushed up, bit by bit, to make this soft, curly finish! She is wearing a little handmade dress which I put together for her, and I then decided she needed a little friend, so I created her teddy Tom!

Tom is made from the same fibre as Clara, and in the same style but I didn't brush his fur!

Just look at that little face!

She looks so cute cuddling her teddy!

Tom is made from a lighter colour a you can see.

Sitting in a sunbeam.

She is such a sweet little handful, and already sold I'm afraid. But I do have plans to make more bears of this style, I have already made her little brother Billy and I will show him soon!

Hope you enjoyed meeting Clara and Tom!

Meet my gorgeous little friend Dylan!

Hi Everyone, I'm a little tardy getting these pics in. Darling little Dylan was made a few weeks ago, and I am so pleased with him! He turned out really well. The fibre I used was the same one as for Georgie further down the page, but they are both so different. I just had to use it again too, awesome fibre!

He wears a big vintage satin bow!

The wool has a mottled effect, really stunning!

Just look at those little toes! Oh so sweet!

Can I come and be your friend too? :o)

Thanks for viewing Dylan, I have a bunch more bears to show as I have been on a bit of a roll lately! But I will make you wait for them! lol Hope you enjoyed meeting Dylan and happy crafting to all!

Latest Bears!

Hi all

Thought I better get you up to date on the beary happenings here at Little Handfuls! I've had a few bears to show you, but actually getting more made lately than I have time to blog about! How unusual is that? lol So here are some of the newer bears!

Purplinkle was made for an order, she is a teeny little merino blend bear!
She turned out so sweet, very pleased with her!

Dickens is a sweet little bunny, needle felted from a gorgeous natural corriedale wool with hand dyed merino accents!

He is a little bigger than usual at 4.5 inches tall! What a sweet face!

Turquoise is just a little slip of a thing! As you can see he's only about 2 inches tall and felted from merino/silk wools! Little cutie!


I have finished another bear this week too and Im really pleased with him, but you will have to wait to see his pics! :o) Have a great week everyone!

Latest Little Handfuls for 2011

Hi All

Well I promised pics of the new work, so here is Ferdinand and the Shapees (sounds like a strange little band!).

I was given a needle felting book for christmas, all written in Japanese so I have no idea what most of it says, but they make a button jointed bear with smaller feet than my usual so I decided to try that! Result, Ferdinand. He is felted in a lovely natural Romney wool in nice creamy shades.

He has sewn on paw pads, random stitched.

He wears vintage bells around his neck

His buttons are all different, just similar size.

Then there are the Shapees - Shape Ees. I wanted to make something for the upcoming shows that could be picked up by kids or people looking for something other than bears. I decided a range of animals made around the basis of a shape would be kinda fun. So far I have a cube cat and a pyramid mouse.

Cubey Kitty turned out pretty well!
Pyramouse might get some feet or something still.

Hope you enjoyed popping by. I intend to make a bunch more things over the next few months as I won't have time to make much after that. Also, I'm expecting to do a really big show in July, right before I start studying! This is a 3 day show with thousands of visitors so I need heaps on the table! :o) Keep you posted!

Hi Everyone

Gosh I can't believe it's been so long since my last post. Problem was I worked so much at the day job over Christmas I just didn't have any interest in doing anything else. I have only just now finished my first bear in 2 mths!! I've been working on something new too, so will show you those in due course.

For now I just wanted to say, Happy New Year from myself and Zachary the Little Handfuls Mascot! We are really looking forward to a bright new year, lots of amazing things happening this year including my going into study again! This time I hope to earn my Bachelor of Teaching for Early Childhood, which is preschoolers. 3 years worth, start in July! So I may be getting even less felting done, necessary but still a bit sad.

Zachary is such a sweetie! He's all kitted out for your winter overseas, but we are still in summer here in New Zealand!

He loves his special hat, it doubles as a scarf!
Nice to have something to play with sometimes too! lol

We look forward to seeing more of you in 2011, watch this space!

Tiddles the Cat

Now who wouldn't love a sweet little kittie like this one if he came mewing at your door? :o)

Tiddles turned up smooching around the feet of some of my bears the other day and I couldn't help but take him in! He is felted from the most gorgeous mix of autumn colours!

He has cute pink toes and a big round belly
I love his little nose and whiskers!

Isn't he sweet?

I think Tiddles can stay for a while, at least until the next show which is just in a few weeks! I hope you enjoyed meeting him! :o)

A fuzzy new bear has arrived!

Hi Everyone!

Today I wanted to introduce you to a rather rare addition to the Little Handfuls Hug. Lewis is one of the very few furry bears I have ever made and he is a true one of a kind little fellow! Along with his furry coat, he is also weighted with steel shot and is larger than many of my other bears at 5 inches tall!

Lewis is felted from a gorgeous NZ dyed corriedale in dusky blue

He feels so sweet to hold!

Look at those toes! They turned out great!

He has lovely big eyes and shaded accents help give him his unique look.
My daughter Amber was home and wanted to get in on the shoot! (usually it's a dog or a cat that tries to steal the show! lol) Amber is 8 and I can say quite happily that she truly loves my little bears!