Beach Bears

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Holiday Treasures

Each year collectors anxiously

await the unveiling of Berta's

yearly Christmas scene, or if

they are very fortunate, there

will be two. 

Each sought-after creation

is rich with detailed crocheted

components, depicting

scenes from Berta's childhood

Christmases, and perhaps

those of the lucky buyer's

as well. 

Typically, the scenes portray activities such as tree

decorating, receiving toys,

sharing, helping,  all within

the nostalgic feeling of "the

good old days".

Expanding the Horizon

Berta is delighted with the

"Oohs" and "Aahs" and

amazed looks that often

come from collectors, yet

she is even more gratified

when someone shows her

the results of using one

of her patterns. 

"It is one of my heart's

desire to promote crochet

among all artists, as an

art form for soft-sculpture." 

She is always ready and

willing to answer questions

for people who are using

her patterns and even

provides a Gallery on her

website of work done by

other artists, using her

patterns.

Learn to Have Fun!

Berta sums up the most

important advice she not

only tells beginning artists,

but also tries to reinforce

to others AND herself,

"Always have fun in what

you do!"

"If you don't enjoy what

you do..if you create only

for the money...then

creating itself, will probably

be a big disappointment

to you."

"Never give up too quickly,

"advises Berta further,"

and do not expect high

prices right from the start. 

Begin by selling lower

until your bears earn

respect from collectors."

"If you decide you want

to sell the bears you make,

do not sell them unless you

are content with the way

they have turned out." 

Berta believes too many

beginning artists make the

mistake of thinking, "Oh well,

he is my first and the next

will be better, so I will

simply try to see if he sells."

In that case, says Berta,

"It is better not to sell

at all if you are not

completely satisfied with

the bear you have made."

"After a few more bears,

you will look back and you

see how much you have

improved!"

"Then, you wil be happy

you did not sell that first

one with which you were

not so happy with the

outcome."

Berta tells beginners there

are no shortcuts, "Start at

the start and build up your

levels.  Don't skip any,

because you learn from

each level and it will help

you to get better."

"For me, I still have not

reached the highest level.

I think I never will, because

I always try to get better -

to improve with every bear,

each bear is a provocation,

a challenge to myself. 

I feel if it isn't a challenge

anymore, the lustre is gone

and I have to find something

else to do."

No worries, ThReAdTeD fans;

Berta sums up her statement

by assuring "I don't think the

time to find something else,

will happen any time soon.

I love crocheting, and making

my bears and I think my bears

show this."

Miscellaneous Items

Just when you think Berta

is out of ideas, she comes

up with more!

ThreAdTeDs™ LittleBits

Collector Cards, designed

by her son Bas Hesen, are

another specialty item

she offers.

The front of the card has

photos of one of her bears, illustrating a LittleBits

design.

The back of each card 

features easy-to-follow

instructions for a LittleBits

pattern.  The cards are

made to last indefinitely,

laminated between plastic

protectors.

AND... something else new

and different! ThReAdTeDs

Chenille Art. 

Berta designed these cute

little animals to be created

with one bend, cut, and

molding of chenille stems.

They are firmly made, not

like the chenille animals

we know from the past.

Of course, because they

are Berta's, they receive

a crocheted thread collar,

or something made from

thread to go with them,

so they can proudly wear

the name, ThReAdTeD™.

Heartfelt Emotions

When asked about the

people who made a definite

impact on her life, Berta

expresses her love and

appreciation for two very

special people. 

One is her sister, whom

she misses greatly since

her passing ten years ago,

and whom she wishes she

could have gifted with one

of her bears. 

The other is well-known

needle felting and bear

artist, Bobbie Ripperger,

a patient mentor who

strengthened Berta

with friendship, tips/

technical advice and

encouragement she

needed to make her

own decisions. 

"I attach extreme importance

to Bobbie Ripperger, a great

bear maker and artist with

lots more experience in the

creative arts and life. Her

friendship and advice has

always been of great value

to me."

"I was very unsure about

several things in the teddy

bear world when  I first

started."

"I had no experience and

early on, I asked her a lot

of questions and needed

advice.  She was always

honest even when she knew

I might not like the answer." 

"That is what I respected so

much about her, the honesty

and the advice how to do

things."

"Bobbie showed me how

to think about and explore

other possibilities - examine

new ways to think about

things. She never made

a decision for me or tried

to sway me in my decisions,

but simply advised me in

a way which helped me

make decisions myself."

"Being confident enough

to make my own decisions

by examining all the possible solutions, made me a

stronger person."

Berta hopes that, like her

role model, Bobbie, she will

bring be able to bring the

same kind of encouragement

to others.  

What she doesn't know, is

that in her own way, she

already is!

Analyzing the Market

Asked to assess today's

teddy bear market,

Berta responds, "I think

the teddy bear market

is searching - since there

is a lot of competition."

"It is difficult for a new

artist to get recognized.

It is not bad to have

competition, though,

because it keeps all

of us artists awake."

Availability

You can find Berta's

bears on her website, www.threadteds.com,

and on Ebay under the

seller name: threadteds. 

For several years now,

she has exhibited and

sold her work at shows

in Europe and the USA. 

Most Importantly

Step by step, Berta is

accomplishing her mission

of love -- that of returning

the once respected art

of crocheting once more

to the place of honor it

once held and deserves

again!

Isn't She Lovely

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Blue Flip-Flop

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Dito

A finalist in Teddy Bear Review's

Pattern Challenge.  Made from

alpaca wool thread, 3.5" tall,

fully jointed, rattle of perle cotton,

tiny roses from tatting thread.

A photo of Dito was also published

in Teddy Bear Review.

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Workshop Kits

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

White Bear

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Glossy, Lipstick Bear

Glossy loves traveling with you in her lipstick tube. 

Twist tube down and Voila! Glossy disappears! Twist

it the other way and she rises right out of the tube!

She can even come out of her tubeand play separately. 

Just under an inch tall, crocheted from silk sewing

thread, fully jointed, little glass eyes.  She comes

with her own heart shaped pillow !

Splash

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Cradle Me

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Tuffie

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Tommy & Tomo

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Sabat

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Bigfoot cRoFeLt

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Honey's little Present

Honey is a bigger Flip-Flop

design, 6" tall, fully jointed, 

made from wonderful wool-blend

thread similar to sparse mohair,

hat is of Micro Fibre Fun fabric.

The little primitive bear is

sewn from ultra suede. 

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Gold & Silver Bears

These shiny bears, made from gold and silver metalic thread

you can display or wear as a pin! The bears are between 2 and

3 inches tall.

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Sabat

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Flip-Flop

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Pip

ThReAdTeDs
Berta Hesen-Minten

Wee-Crumble (L), Wee-Nee (M), & Wee-Wobble (R)

Finally! The long-awaited arrival of Berta's famous

Jut & Jul's family.  Not just one, but three new thread

animal bear cubs and each one is so precious!

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