Nikolai

Here is my new bear - Nikolai. Apologies for the photos - he was terrible in front of the camera. When I couldn't get a good picture the first time, I started changing the settings, and once I'd started I wasn't sure where I was - I just kept pressing buttons until something worked.

Disgracefully untechnical.

For some reason, that spot right in the middle of his forehead, kept going a sort of bright, neon white colour.

Anyway he is, of course, a polar bear - a little one, just 10.5 inches tall when he's sitting. I was trying out a design to give a much rounder, chubbier face. It worked - and I like the fact that he does actually have a chin (or chins) which most of my bears seem to lack. Perhaps because of the added chins though, his natural posture is to look up.

I've had this happen with a couple of bears, and although they are perfectly sweet that way, it causes problems when I'm trying to display them on the shelves at the Art & Craft Centre. Either, they go on one of the prime eye-level shelves - and look out over everybodys' heads - or they go on a lower shelf and become accessible to children.

He will lean forward to meet your eye though, when at eye level.

Anyway, he will be on the website soon.