...from Russia...with love & bear hugs

...when we were in Tallinn, Estonia this summer, 

I found a bear shop. 

Pretty unexpected.

I was stunned. Here we are on a walking tour in this incredible Medieval walled city...cobblestone streets, amazing old buildings...

and there is this little, tiny toy store... 

It was like finding a bit of magic.

I could not recall another time that I stumbled across something so wonderful...the bears...and yes dolls too, that were for sale were incredible. 

So well made, so very fresh and different...

I wish I could tell you the name of the shop but there was no sign...and the owner spoke no English and me, no Estonian...

But we certainly shared love of beautiful things.

 I left the shop that day with two incredible teddies and a plan to hunt up some of the incredible teds that were coming out of Estonia, Latvia and Russia... 

Please join me in saying welcome to talented 

Olga Fomenko

the newest of our Earth Angels artists...

After months of research, translation, 

major battles with customs in Germany and Russia and more exotic tales...(truly...I was not sure these cuties would make it at several points...)

Olga's incredible teds arrived...well most of them!

...there are three lost somewhere between Russia and the US and we hope that they might make it at some point!

That said, those that did arrive 

(and thanks to my German friend for the help!) are utterly amazing and well worth the wait...

I love her style and we are thrilled to celebrate it... her craftsmanship is amazing, she even makes the shoes for her bears and their faces are a combination of painting and needle sculpting that make such a dear impression...

You can see them all HERE..

Thanks Olga... it is an honor to work with you!

xoxox

Jen

hello Monday...hello NICE NEWS ON NIC!

...hello Monday posts are something I have been doing for some time now linking up with my friend Lisa Leonard and her fab-u-lous blog...feel free to leave your BLOG link in a comment...
how about some hellos...

Hello Monday....it's a great thing to be able to share nice news on a friend.

Nicole Bowen -- my longtime gal pal and featured Earth Angels' Artist has just been featured in PRIMS....thanks to the editors for allowing me to interview Nicole and photo her work for this piece on her...
 

hello Monday and THANKS NEW WEEK! 

It's great to celebrate Nic and her singularly charming soft-sculpture style...  

It was wonderful to take a more careful look at her work with her guiding me through the process and then sharing that with readers...she is one talented lady with the most festive of imaginations!

hello sweet pink kitty

 here piggy piggy piggy

hello hello hello

 hello sweet cheep

and hello Tux the Cat...one of these little fellas was underneath the tree for Charlotte this past Christmas! She loves him!

hello all you talented, creative souls out there...do you read PRIMS?

please consider browsing through an issue if you don't already... 

hello to good press for good friends...

you can read more of the pieces I have done on our artists or my home, etc...

on the press pages of the site... 

hello to all of you and hope it's a wonderful week for you...

xxoo Jen

 

Welcome to Fun Town! JODY's BOOK!!!!

I am so excited about this....

my friend and Earth Angels' artist, Jody Battaglia has just announced the 

long-awaited release of her first book...

"Welcome to Fun Town"!

I am totally thrilled that Jody has been able to see this very personal project through to completion...

it has been many years and innumerable hours in work..

.and --given the sneak peek I have had of the proof -- was well worth the wait!

Her book features a charming cast of her hand-sewn toys...and we meet characters as wee Ginny (second from left) explores Fun Town and encounters its residents.  Jody has photographed her characters like this one upon backdrops she's also made...

I hope you'll consider joining Jody among the streets, shops and places of Fun Town...we'll be shipping her book free all month long....

just order with code JODYFUN at checkout. The book is 104 pages and $30, and yes, it's totally loaded with full color photos and it's on quality paper!

We will be shipping the book at the end of November, as soon as it arrives in from the printer!

 

You can also, take a peek at Jody's latest toys here...

She's created some of the characters from the book 

AND some wonderful new exclusives just for Earth Angels...

like Chloe Cupcake...

 ...and Silly Snoozil...

These and all her wonderful creations are also shipping free 

(domestic/standard shipping) 

with code JODYFUN at checkout...

Thanks Jody for including me in your journey to Fun Town!

You know I owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude...

I would not be in business without you!

xxoo Jen

drumroll please....it's HARVEST MOON!

WOO HOO to Valerie Weberpal of Harvest Moon

....she's October's"Feature Artist"

We are so proud to Celebrate Her Style!!!

Thanks to Valerie for sharing her talents...

I love the way she upcycles wools and fun textiles into her

 pillow-like softies & critters...

and her fab skirts, too (shop them at the FAIR)!!

New original creations have arrived...

see the site!

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THEM NOW

 

Thanks to Val for all she does to add her color and style to Earth Angels!

 

xxoo Jen

Hello Monday and Hello to coming full circle....with teds & Ingrid

Hello Monday...it's the summer and the schedule is out the window.

I am so loving the break from it all.

Hello new week. Hoping for a productive one!

With a bit more time to think, 

I am able to do some project work around the house and for the business.  

Looking back to move ahead can be a good thing....

Some of you know I got my start in business in 1994 

by doing a doll & bear shows...the circuit was active and so many artists were out there selling their creations.

Along the way I met and worked with so many of them.

While things in the industry have changed much...

there remains so much talent to be sought out and celebrated.

Among these at the top of her craft is Ingrid Schmid of Canada...

I sold her bears from about 2003 to 2007...

she even came down her to Warwick to attend one of my early 

Art Girls Roadshow events as a feature artist... 

...and then life and business and other things got in the way.

as it always seems to do!

And I have missed working with her and 

missed having her soft sculpture art among our offerings.

So I am utterly thrilled to welcome her back!

HELLO INGRID!

 A careful look at her work shows that she does incredible things with mohair and vintage textiles.  With inimitable style, he work speaks lovingly to old things, dainty details and exquisite finishing. 

Her love of the vintage is showcased in every creation...

It's a joy that things have come full circle...her style and talent are sure and she's a great complement to our other offerings...

(below her work is pictured with a Nicol Sayre doll)

Thanks again Ingrid for being you, and so thrilled to share what you do with the Earth Angels community of friends and aficionados...

We have some offerings on the site now (click here to see Ingrid's page) and more are coming this summer.

 

Stay tuned for more from her....

Hello Monday.

Hello to being grateful that things have come full circle.

Hello to going back to what we know to move ahead. 

It works sometimes.

Hello old friends with new ideas.

Hello happy summer days...I am in love with the lack of schedule.

hello to all of you...and hope it's a super week for you whatever you are up to.

xxoo Jen

...didya hear about the BEARHUG sale?

...didya hear? 

You can take 20% off 'til Monday on order for Teds & Softies 

created by these talented artists:

Heidi Steiner

Pat Murphy

Letty Worley

Krys Kirkpatrick 

& Valerie Weberpal

with Code BEARHUG at checkout

Yep, sale items are included too. So what are you waiting for?

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THIS SALE NOW

and don't forget the code at checkout....

a why not/ just because kinda sale...I love it.

Enjoy, why not?

 xxoo Jen

 

...the Bunnies are BACK!!

Here is the amazingly talented Krys Kirkpatrick at our recent event in Saratoga, NY...

...thanks to Krys for working with me once again...we have a business relationship that dates back to 1999, when I placed my first wholesale order with the then toy and soft sculpture studio, "Bunnies by the Bay".  Please pop over to her blog...it's a delight and a wonderful window into her world...

It's many years later and we are working together once again...for this I am a grateful girl...for her faith in me I am overwhelmed...it is truly and honor to be the exclusive retail outlet for her wonderful creations...

Wonderful new softies have arrive from Krys' Anacortes, WA studio...and it's her soft works that made me fall in love with her art in the first place.

Krys has been in the mohair again and has been lost in the dainty details she craves to convey...petite flourishes on a bunny garment, hand painted cloth, wee paintings as hang tags for her creations...really just amazingly subtle and completely darling...her style shines in all her works...(you can see all her offerings on our site...we are her exclusive reatiler...) AND EMAIL me if you'd like the details on these pieces...Paul has not yet posted them to our site...

She created a wonderful new grouping of work for her appearance at our 11th Annual Spring Fling in Saratoga, NY...

Just look at these cuties...

 I want her stripey tights!

Each softie comes with it's own wee toy...

 Meet Lilly Likes to Laugh...

This is Ginny Gingham... 

 Each little darling is done in mohair and wonderful cotton fabrics....Krys is even hand painting some of the fabrics herself, and using vintage flourishes too of course...they range in height from 10-16" and the mohair piece range in price from $125-$165 -- the soft toys from $45-$85...

 The small details are a labor of love...

Among her new creations are wonderful soft toys too...Krys is a Grandma and she knows what little ones like...

 This gentle giraffe has hand painted dots...

...ohhh and love this...Krys is working on 12 new card designs and we will be posting them to the NEW website we are working on to launch later this summer (more on that soon)

Peek at Krys' work on line...and email me at Jen@EarthAngelsToys.com if you'd like to be on the email list to be advised of new creations as they arrive and become available...

xxoo Jen
Earth Angels