Liz also has her own collection of teddy bears. Most of the bears in her hug are gifts and some came from bear swaps. "Each and every one has great sentimental value with regards to whom designed them and where they came from". Then there are a couple of bears from the Ganz "Cottage Collectible" range by international bear artist Lorraine Chein. Liz remarks: "These synthetic, factory manufactured bears are very different from my own designs, but each has a whimsical look about it which definitely sets her bears apart from others. I find when paging through the international bear magazines, I can now pick her bears out of a bunch without even looking at the caption. Yes, these bears and bunnies are very different to my own designs as they are more traditional and yet I find them very appealing". Liz's pride and joy of her collection, however, are the two bears designed and made by none other than her favourite artist, Lisa Durbach.
The bear scene in South Africa, from Liz's point of view, has grown rapidly over the past couple of years and there are more and more talented bear artist making their debut. "In recent years, South Africa's teddy bear industry has exploded in popularity, and many of our country's talented artists have established themselves as world-renowned bear artists".
I asked Liz what her long term plans were for herself and her bears and where she sees herself in 5 years time. She replied: "Hopefully childless and spending loads of quality time with my hubby. Bears in 5 years timeYes, still creating and making bears. I can't see myself without at least one bear in production at any given time, now or ever".
Old habits die hard and Liz still finds herself unable to resist buying bear kits by other artists, however, she exclaims that she enjoys making her own bears more. "I definitely spend more time and attention to detail with my own creations", Liz adds. She sees her style of bear as contemporary or even 'wacky'. "I think the 'wackier' the bear, the happier I am in creating him, hence the recently name change from Walker Bears to "Wacky" Walker bears ", she laughs.
From time to time Liz comes up with more traditional designs, but her bears, for the most part, have consistent traits. Some of the dominant features of her bears are the long muzzles, large noses, big feet and droopy tummies. "I think with my bears you either like the style or it doesn't appeal at all. My techniques are evolving all the time, and I hope my designs will do the same" Liz says.
Liz's greatest inspiration comes from fellow South African bear artist, Lisa Durbach. About three years ago Liz had the pleasure of meeting Lisa in person and has been awe struck by her incredible designs, wonderful use of mohair and colour combinations ever since. "She is a truly remarkable artist, one I will always admire".
I asked Liz whether or not she thinks her bears represent her personality, to which she replied: "I have always been considered a little different, sometimes a little odd and have tried to conform without much success. None the less, I pride myself in having my own sense of style as an individual. So, yes, maybe my bears do represent my personality."
Liz, presently full-time mum and part-time bear artist, is a qualified optometric dispenser, interior decorator and reflexologist. Liz admits to having dabbled in all three of these fields throughout her working career. Her last 'nine to five job' as she puts it, was when working alongside her late husband David in their own advertising agency. Liz recalls that it was around this time that her interest in bears was sparked by her daughter's fascination with mohair bears. Emily, only 5 years old at the time, insisted on having her own mohair bear. Liz's own interest in mohair bears grew and she eventually bought a bear kit for an eight centimetre mohair bear by South African bear artist Eunice Beaton. This is when the bug really bit. Emily is now the proud owner of Liz's first bear and although this poor guy is very shy and hides amongst the other bears in Emily's hug, as his arms are on back to front, he remains Emily's favourite bear.
Liz recently became a mum of 4 after marrying
Rodney in November 2000. Liz has two children by
late husband David, who passed away three years
ago and Rodney has two teenagers of his own.
After David passed away, Liz sold their large
family home and bought a smaller 3-bedroom
simplex for herself and her two children. Little
did Liz know that this small three bedroom simplex
would soon be overrun by herself, Rodney, 15 year
old James and Oliver, 13 year old Mark, 12 year old Emily, 4 cats and 2 Yorkshire Terriers.
Liz admits that living with limited space was a huge adjustment for all of them and although it is a bit of a 'tight squeeze' at the moment, she is thankful for Rodney's support of her bear habit. The children have their moments of complaining about pins and bear bits in the couch or mohair spread out all over the dining table, but they too have accepted Liz's trail of bear fluff and stuff which she tends to leave all over the house.
Looking back at her earlier bears, Liz admits that she wants to cringe when looking at them now. On the other hand she is constantly amazed by the fact that irrespective of what a bear looks like, or how well he is made, there is always someone willing to love him with all their heart.
Liz started designing her own bears about four years ago, but found herself overcome with frustration. She had all these weird, wonderful and wacky ideas burning inside, yearning to come out and manifest themselves in her creations, but "everyone wanted a plain old traditional ted" she says. Liz, however, kept experimenting and soon grew confident enough to realise that the bears she preferred making were the ones that had "heaps of character". Over the past four years she feels that she has improved tremendously in her attention to detail, her bear's noses and face sculpting. She says: "Once I began designing my own bears, I began to have a vision of what I wanted a bear to look like, and worked hard to achieve this with each new design". Liz reckons that she has made hundreds, maybe thousands of bears to date. At one stage she kept strict record of every bear she made, but over time has become just to busy to keep this up.
Liz prefers working with mohair. She finds natural fibre much easier to work with and as mohair has become readily available in South Africa, much easier to obtain. She has also been experimenting with various dyeing techniques, as she believes this adds a whole new dimension to creating bears. As far as inserts are concerned, Liz prefers using either suede or German wool felt. Over the years Liz has made bears of all sizes, from a 4-foot panda to a diminutive 2.5 cm mini bear, however, most of her bears range between 10 and 20 centimetres in size.
A few words of advice from Liz for new bear makers
"You CAN make a teddy bear! These guys are actually very easy to make. Never be scared to ask for advice - we are all learning all the time as new techniques are developed along the way. Take classes or join sewing mornings, it still amazes me after all my years of bear making how much I learn with each new class I take. It's amazing how much we learn from you the beginner's as well. There are no fixed rules and no right or wrong way to make a bear try your hand at it and BEWARE! Once the bug bites there is no turning back my friend."
Some earlier Walker Bears
These two bears are of Liz's earlier, more traditional designs.
For Liz, each new creation is an achievement in itself, watching a design on paper materialise in the fur brings with it an immense sense of joy. Liz was very proud when one of her patterns recently featured in a local craft magazine. "As I am evolving with new designs and techniques, I still find it embarrassing when a new bear or pattern is accepted with enthusiasm by the collectors/makers here in South Africa" Liz admits.
At present Liz's bears are only available directly from Liz herself. Some of her bears can be viewed and are available for adoption from the South African Bears website. Liz frequently exhibits at bear shows countrywide and has several bears on display at shops in Durban. She also offers bears in pattern and kit form, which can be obtained directly from her or from selected supply outlets in Durban.
This little bear is one of Liz's more recent designs.
This little Walker Bear is available in pattern and kit form.
Another more recent Walker Bears.
When looking at adopting a new bear, Liz finds that 'it's all in the eyes'. "Some bears just talk to me" she says. Then there is also the very important 'all over appeal' and attention to detail.
