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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1975-05-08, Page 17sauner Wl igka ll► " vuuea». > ee t► .. tomit 4efe • derate 44 'read kr,PAPS lI► c,14 00, "410 40 , of. M western 01044in, IlriAkders each .a. umml,. every week in The Listowel Banner, The Wingham Adnan c. � d t Forest Colfederciti by 'Wenger Oros. 'J it 1 In a fast moving world full of violence, emotional and physical strain, the majority of people manage to find an escape from it all. In many cases this escape takes the forth of a hobby. The dictionary defines the term hobby as. a favorite pursuit or pastime and for. Mrs. Clayton Brigham of Elmwood this pas- time is making stuffed animals. "I've been making stuffed ani- mals all my days. When I was a kid I, was always dressing dolls," said Mrs, Brigham. "I think that everybody should have a hobby, and .that's mine." Mrs. Brigham's front room would be Disneyland -for a .dun pieceof fur I had l in u Y - y � a � � child. It is a menagerie of ,stuffed holm and made a li+ � arijmals . eusbions - tedd bears,sold tickets on it and they.,wore lions, furry flowers, furry tissue sold out." box covers and what she refers to When the lion made sucks h „� as ". eatures!' which area mix-hit,Mrs, Brigham an tern' �r � � .� t. ..n, ture of pipe cleaners and furr, 'mere of hem. and, today s lex s. Approximately a year ago she three sizes, small, inmedium .a 0 took on a slightly different pro- large. The Lions Club uses: them sect., for door, prizes, gifts foregut The Lions Club. started up in speakers and prizes .jor t Elmwood `about .a year ago in dances: She doesn't know, o ' ,y March, As a gimmick I took a other Lions Club which lips thing quite like it. A few clubs from other areas have ordered a lion for a mascot but for nothing else. "I make quite a. .few of them now, but strictly for pleasure It is not a moneymaking hobby and I don't want it to be," she said. When asked how long it would take her to make the largest lion she has, Mrs. Brigham said that if she kept at it steadily for one day she could complete one. She can make two or three of the , small ones in a day 'quite easily. "I don't work, op the animals every day. Some days I don't feel like it so •I don't. That is the way a hobby should be. Work on it when you want to," she said. ' Mrs. Brigham noted that many people have trked to make the stuffed animals or tackled other hobbies and they force ahem - selves into it, ,only to becdtne frustrated. "When this happens the craft ceases to be a hobby and becomes a chore. If this is the case, then this hobby • is not for that person." Mrs. - Brigham gives demon- strations of her work, not to try to sell it but to interest more -women and girls to become involved: She stresses the fact that people need a hobby and she is willing to help them alongif they want it. She is presently teaching two neighbor- hood girls and she is • quite pleased with their progress. • "I : know so many. women who are bored and fed;. With things, innr .,to , Iwo:* least little ament What they really need is something to occupy their time, something 1 t) GRANDFATHER CLOCK—George Woods of Mount Forest stands beside the grandfather clock he made in his spare time last winter. He obtained most ofthe necessary material in Waterloo and had the clock face imported from Germany. CUCKOO --This cuckoo clock is a replica of a home in Switzerland. Mr. and Mrs. Woods purchased it there as a souvenir to add to his collection. they enjoy doing," she said. Finding the proper material for the animals was- a big problem in the beginning. The stuffinghad to he of a certain quality and stan d rd. Mrs. Brigham finally found a place to buy her synthetic and washable filler and her fur, in El- mira. Recently a place opened in Owen Sound which carries her materials and is much closer to her. Her Own Ideas Mrs. Brigham makes up most of her ideas or gets them out of magazines. She originally started with a pattern for the lion but ended up making changes until it came out just the way she wanted it. Her "creatures" and furry flowers she attributes to "just a little bit of imagination". She would rather create her own ideas than- follow a pattern. "When making the teddy bears, l` ususlly start by following pattern -but they always end: up Pe with some special to.. of My own ant each one comes out dif- Aferently," she said. When the Lions Club has fan auction, Mrs. Brigham, donates her cushions and animals. Many times they have thanked her for her contribution and the said it provides for the club. At Christmastime, Mrs. Brig- ham -has many more animals and crafts. She delights in giving them away to relatives and friends as gifts. Mr. Brigham, also gets in on the fun. He is now retired and quite -often be helps stuff the f irry creatures1 an art his wife says he has become very good at. Mrs. Brigham is very particu- lar about her -work. Work which she displays or sells must be as perfect as, she can -get it. "I've seen so many hobby shows where the craftsarenot done well at all. Eyes on the stuffed toys are crooked and I just don't think this is right at all," she said. As well as the animals, Mrs. Brigham does other sewing. She makes many of her Clothes and this year she made two Bore coats on -which the owners re- ceived many compliments. "It takes a lo`of' patience and creativity to make some of these things but .I certainly find it a pleasure," she said. • 0--0-0 ..,Makes Family Crests knights, swords and 'chivalry ba alvv�a Yban res .o Alhter lVli rrow►een int oaf Hahb er, so he decided to put this interest to use constructively. With the aid of a book on heraldry and -research of . his own, Mr. Morrow started to make family crests. Mr. Morrow started his hobby this past Christmas. He is a. pub- lic school teacher and . he attri- butes his start in this hobby to a project he had his students com- plete in school. • "I had the. kids working on pro- jects dealing with Medieval Soci- ety. Many of the kids sent away for their family crests and that's how I got the idea," he said. Mr. Morrow explained that most families have a coat -of - arms and a crest. Only about 10 per cent have a motto which was originally a battle cry. • Mr. Morrow explained that the original idea of a family coat -of - arms and crest dates back to the 12th century. When any army went out to battle most of the leaders wore grey armour. It was difficult for the followers to de- tect their leaders so the ,leaders began to paint their coats -of- arms on their shields and armour. This became hard to see as well and as time went on, the great leaders had a crest put on top of their helmets. The crests were made in the form of a sol- dier, bust or ostrich feathers. To- day these crests are drawn on top of the family coat -of -arms. Mr. Morrow has made 25 crests since Christmas. "It's not a thing w.. that has caught on quickly, Wit.1 am gradually being asked to makemore and mere," he said, Mr. Morrow is starting to` keep a personal file of all{the crests he has completed or' come acres while doing research. •He has the crests of approxmtately25 to 30 families, He explained' that while looking for a, family crest .it is necessary to realize that' the family name could have been al- tered a bit .over .the years, "The name Fisher Was `origi- nally Fischer," he said. ,lEach family name "has a meaning behind it as well -and often it is hard to detect after many changes have been made to it." The name Fisher grigi :nilly meant one who fishes. It is quite obviousdeSpitg spelling'. Mr, orr+c i , , " Pe; has A.: �' the years ;huut `meal g' easy.todeteryt' If who aiv'ea' 'by the >! Mr. Morrow is - bobby is th ' times "At the momt 'ob ssed.with something It,ll,'never , • with bec+ause cb d ferent aid, represents ate .. ,pieee'of bi ry."they;are all v fferenf .mid nteresst said. `a The i�d ,,`ci makes are' ma They! shape of A!' leas : � n ,• 4 OLD.FATHER TIME—This clock is a replica of a foliot clock first manufactured in 1320. The clock is completely made of wood and only has one hand. It is just one of the clocks in George Woods' collection. CREATURES—Mrs. Brigham sits in the middle of the menagerie of stuffed animals and furry "creatures" she has designed and made. On the table to her right Is her collection of ,animals made from fur and pipe cleaners. Around her feet sit her stuffed lions and she is holding a lion pillow she thought up one day and later produced. • • WORKING HARD—Almer Morrow of Hanover concen- trates on painting the details on the family crest on which he is working. Each crest takes approxinhatelyefive hours to complete. . ROAR—Mrs. Clayton Brigham of Elmwood shows the stuffed lions she makes for the local Lions CIub.»Behind her are some of the other crafts she makes including cushions and teddy bears.