The Bear's Blog

Ugh- Computers

I got a special project off to Fons & Porter last week (more details on that later :o), and I have been trying to wrap up my Hugs and Holly book to get it off to the printer.  This project kept getting delayed, and delayed, and delayed.  I actually almost lost the whole thing a week and a half ago.  I had all of my working files on a hard drive to take between my desktop computer and laptop, and one day I couldn't open or even see any of my files on that hard drive anymore.  Panic!  I'm FAIRLY good at computers and figuring out problems, but this one had me baffled and, I'll just say it, a little freaked.  I tried MANY things, researched on-line, and finally found this software to try.  I purchased it, downloaded it, and found some hope.  With this software I could actually see the files sitting there... waiting and wanting to be used, but I couldn't quite reach them.  I was VERY pleasantly surprised when I emailed the company, not expecting a reply for at least a few days if at all, and they emailed me back within the hour!  We did some back and forth and within 24 hours I had copied my files to my computer AND backed up to another new hard drive.  Phew!  Much relief and many hours of "re-work" saved.

I'm telling you all of this for two reasons.  One, to let you know the Hugs and Holly book is in the works... it will be here soon!  And two, I know computer problems happen to all of us, and if you ever have a problem, you might try this company.  I'm always leery of these things.  You research on the internet trying to find a solution, and taking chances on things not knowing if they will work or if you can even trust they will do what they say.  This software and company had several reviews on reputable sites that I felt I could trust, but the best part was their customer service.  They were right on the problem and helped me every step of the way until it was solved.  Their name is Active@, and the software of theirs that helped me was called Active@ File Recovery.  Here's a link to some of their products Active Software

So I'm happy to say, I'm back to work on the book.  I guess I better go do it now...  I wish you a happy day and NO computer problems :o)

Kelly

 

 

 

 

Who's Who?

After convincing them it must be done, and waiting for that day when no sweats were worn and there was no fly-away hair, I finally got pictures of my co-workers to put on the website.  The info is neatly tucked away on our "About Us" page, so I thought I would blog it and put it on Facebook so everyone would know "who's who."  Here it is...

 Other Members of The Bear!

 

This is Karol (aka my mother-in-law) and one of our office guards, Ren.  If you have received an order from The Bear, chances are the pattern was packaged by Karol, the order was boxed, weighed, and shipped by Karol!  And chances are, it was probably sniffed by Ren :o)






This is Megan.  If you have called here or received an email from "service@thewoodenbear.com," that was Megan!  She joined us in 2010, and provided great relief for me, as she took over the accounting duties, phone calls, customer service emails, and also lends her expertise in marketing and so many other areas. 


So now you know, that when you receive your order from The Wooden Bear, it wasn't packaged in some huge warehouse by several people down an assembly line, but simply put together with much love and care by some simple folks from our simple home.

Hope you enjoy your WB products as much as we love making them :o)

Treats in progress...

Here's one of the projects I have going on... this is the Kelly's Sweet Treats line of fabric through Red Rooster.  It is being ordered by shops now to ship in May.  Here are just a couple of the projects I'm working on for the book...

These fabrics are really fun!  I liked how the little girl's apron came out, cupcake pocket and all :o)

Here's a little book cover for a "composition" book.  I found the composition books at Wal-Mart for less than $1, and I love them because the front and back cover are heavy, durable cardboard, so it gave the notebook super stability.  I use mine all of the time.  It's where I keep notes on conversations, emails I have concerning projects, things I have done daily, or ideas for fabric lines and patterns.  It's where I organize all of my scattered thoughts!  The little one is my grocery pad/coupon organizer.  I made both with these SUPER STRONG square magnetic bag closures.  If the magnets get anywhere close to each other, the attraction is so strong they just grab each other and fasten so easily.  Another neat feature is that you just sew around the edge of the magnet.  There is a little "ditch" provided, so your needle just seems to fall right where it should.  No special needle is required.  I'll post more info and pics on those later.  You definitely need to see them in action :o)

Here are the swatches from the line so you can see them up close...

 

by Kelly Mueller Delivers to shops May/June 2012. Cupcakes, cookies, muffins and more! Who can resist such temptations? Kelly Mueller's delightful artwork is just perfect for a theme with such home-style warmth. The collection offers a new craft panel similar to the one introduced with Hugs and Holly. This one contains starter blocks to make several types of dish cozies, a trimmed tea towel, oven pads, teapot cozy and gift tags/labels. Kelly's easy and clear instructions are printed on the panel making it easy for anyone to complete the projects. The small, patch print is not only charming but oh-so-usable! Cut along separator lines to create multi-patch blocks of four, nine, sixteen or twenty motifs! The print can also be cut effectively as borders or sashing. The layout ensures that you'll be able to cut it both horizontally and vertically with the same results. The larger scale, patch print uses a random layout making it perfect not only for quilt backing but also for tablecloths or placemats, napkins, aprons, kitchen curtains, chair cushions and more! The collection also includes a balanced assortment of coordinate prints that will work well for these same types of projects. Plus, the three tonal patterns provide a complete range of color and value. 11 patterns/25 skus Style #4129 Pattern #22184-MULI1 Style #4129 Pattern #22186-MULI1 Style #4129 Pattern #22187-PIN1 Style #4129 Pattern #22187-MUL1 Style #4129 Pattern #22187-DKBRO1 Style #4129 Pattern #22187-BLU1 Style #4129 Pattern #22187-WIN1 Style #4129 Pattern #22188-GOL1 Style #4129 Pattern #22188-RED1 Style #4129 Pattern #22189-LTBLU1 Style #4129 Pattern #22189-GOL1 Style #4129 Pattern #22189-RED1 Style #4129 Pattern #22190-PIN1 Style #4129 Pattern #22190-LTBLU1 Style #4129 Pattern #22190-GOL1 Style #4129 Pattern #22191-BEI1 Style #4129 Pattern #22191-LTGRE1 Style #4129 Pattern #22191-DKBLU1 Style #4129 Pattern #22191-DKGRE1 Style #4129 Pattern #22191-WIN1 Style #4129 Pattern #22192-MUL1 Style #4129 Pattern #22732-GRE1 Style #4129 Pattern #22732-BRO1 Style #4129 Pattern #22733-GOL1

To see complete collection click here.

© 2012 Red Rooster Fabrics. WHOLESALE ONLY

I'll let you know when the book of projects is on its way!

 

'Til next Christmas, festive friends

Finally put away our Christmas stuff today.  I know, it seems quite late, and I usually dont' take this long.  But, we were photographing for our Hugs and Holly book this past week, so I left everything up until we were done... just in case.  This time I am trying to photograph everything myself.  It's a little scary.  I always photograph for my patterns, but for my previous books, I used Lori Nordstrom here in Winterset to do my photographing.  She's has been VERY busy, so I decided it might be time to finally take the plunge and do it myself.  We'll see how everything comes out... cross your fingers for me ;o)

So, Goodbye 'til next Christmas precious handmade ornaments.  Goodbye Christmoose Carolers. 

But everyday I shall celebrate the true meaning of Christmas ;o)

 

 

Win a Hand-Picked Basket!

We finally have our new website up and running!  We are hoping that this format is easier for you to navigate, and products and prices are clear and distinguishable. 

With this new site, we are also able to provide a gateway for our wholesale customers to view and purchase at our wholesale rates.  Just click on the Wholesale link on our home page for more information.

 

 

 

To celebrate the launch of our new website, we are giving away a custom-picked gift basket, and YOU do the pickin’! You get to choose 1 WB Book, 1 WB $8 Pattern, 1 WB Little Quilts^2, 1 WB Patternlet, 1 Tea Towel, 1 Notepad, 1 Button Pack, and you get one Tweet Others fabric fat quarter pack (designed by the Bear)! If you make a purchase between now and September 9th, you are automatically entered into our drawing. You can also enter by making a comment to this blog entry! (You may do both and DOUBLE your chances!)

 

 

 

 

In the bag

I took a day off this weekend to make myself a new purse.  It took me a good four or five hours just to decide what features I wanted it to have, and then write up the measurements and cutting directions, but then making it seemed so fast.  I'm really into the messenger bag style... I like not having to hold the purse straps on my shoulder, or constantly having to pull them back up.  My husband and boys and I went on vacation last year, and I decided that this time I was NOT going to carry a big purse around everywhere we went.  So, I actually just wore my khaki capris with all of the pockets and just took the necessities.  It was so liberating!  I've found it very hard to go back since, so messenger bags have been just the right thing.

 

I made the ties on the side with elastic in one half of each one, so if I needed to stuff something large into the bag, it will stretch open without having to untie the sides.  Hopefully it's not too much.

 

I made a zipper pocket on the inside to hold all of the REALLY important stuff.  I loved the fabrics, too.  I think they were all Moda- the polka dot was a great punch of color.

 

Christmas... again.

When you design patterns and fabric, you always have to be thinking ahead.  We just celebrated Christmas 2010, and here I am thinking about Christmas 2012!  I got the opportunity to design my first Christmas fabric line, which I am very excited about.  It was probably fairly easy to wrap my mind around this line, since we just spent a month or more admiring the decorations, the lights, the whole festive spirit associated with Christmas, but sometimes, it's not so easy.  Sometimes I sit here, in my shorts and sandals, dreading the 90+ degree heat outside, trying to dream up sketches for those cold-weather characters we love so much.  Fall and winter are definitely my favorite themes, and fall is probably my favorite season.  I love wearing jeans with my favorite warm, cuddly sweatshirt, and flopping around in my "work" slippers (a perk of working from home :o).  But, preparing for those months can't wait until those months arrive... it has to be done way in advance.  The Christmas line will be showing at the Fall 2011 Quilt Market (for all of you shops out there!), and will start shipping to stores next spring.  It seems like oh-so-far-away.  Just to give you a sneak peek, here's one of my characters...

 
Now I'm off to work on my next fun project... I'll give you more details next blog! 

From One Project, to Another, to Another!

I've been busy, busy, busy!  I have the Happy Haunters book off to the printer after MANY proofreads between myself and Karol.  She is a retired English teacher, so we had that book CAREFULLY scrutinized :o)

One thing that I wanted to do in the book was make it full color.  That allowed me to put the finished, color picture of each project next to the instructions.  This way, you don't have to flip through the book to find the picture as you're reading the instructions.  I think it came out great, and hopefully so will you!

With that big load off my shoulders, I have the June, July, and August Little Quilts Squared finished and I'm working today on September.  I already have the October quilt finished (the one that appeared in last year's Fons & Porter Love of Quilting magazine), so that will complete a year's worth of quilts!  I also plan to add a couple of special occasion Little Quilts.  These should be wrapped up within the next week, to rush off to the printer.  I know, it's getting so close to June already- I'm moving as fast as my schedule will allow!  Hang in there!

June Bugs!

 
July Blooms!

August Fun in the Sun!

I'll keep you posted :o)  
 

It's a Brainstorm

I sat down to do some brainstorming with Karol (my mother-in-law) today. I needed to come up with ideas for the final Little Quilts Squared series and ideas for a new quilt-of-the-month series for next year (more exciting details to come later- when the secret is being let out :o) We came up with a lot of good ideas and a hefty list of things for me to sit down and sketch- one of my favorite things to do!