Tour de Yorkshire

Wilfra Cakes For Bua And Truffle McFurry

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by Miki de Goodaboom

You saw it probably, Ann La Mar recently baked Wilfra cakes from Ripon and shared them with us here. They looked gorgeous!

Truffle wanted to try them and Ann was so kind to send him some. Under the pretext too of needing help by the quality control.

Truffy invited his cousin Bua to share them with him, as Bua was with us as we visited Ripon during our Tour Of Yorkshire in September 2016. We were delighted to see him again and to share Ann’s cakes and apple with him. Bua looks always a bit sad, but he is not sad. He is originally a German bear, and he tends to think too much, and always gets that expression on his face when he thinks…

You might wonder how we do it… but we, The Urso Majors, have invented another kind of internet, where we can send each other not only words, but also food, drinks, bears, etc… It works fantastically! But it is not a world wide web, it works only between Planet Goodaboom and Planet Boomerann’.

Wilfra Cakes For Bua And Truffle McFurry S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

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Winnie Wimbledon In Thirsk

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By Ann La Mar

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom, partly based on a photograph by Ann la Mar)

I first saw Winnie on the Internet, she was so cute and had such a sweet face. We, the other bears and I decided we would like her to come and live with us on Planet Boomerann. She lived on the south coast of England so arrangements were made for her travel to Yorkshire.

We waited and waited, days became weeks and still Winnie didn’t arrive. I checked with the lady at her previous home but she hadn’t gone back there. By this time we were very worried. I knew Winnie had been to that place called ‘ the Royal Mail sorting office’ full of conveyer belts and big baskets of mail. I think poor Winnie had been dispatched to Wimbledon in London. This would have made her happy because she had big dreams of becoming a tennis champion.
We were so sad and downhearted that Winnie was lost that Miki and Truffle decided to look for her. Some weeks later a surprise package arrived and to our delight there was Winnie. Miki and Truffle had found her and sent her home from her adventures. We were over the moon.

Winnie has settled into Yorkshire life but she is always up to mischief with her brothers and sisters so I thought it would be a good idea that she had a hobby. I decided to take her to Thirsk to visit the yarn bombers display. These ladies as so clever knitting amazing things to decorate their town. Winnie loved sitting on the bollard with the Yorkshire rose and a background to match her dress. She was very high up, her ‘head in the clouds’ needless to say not one stitch of knitting has been done!

 

Little Addition by Miki de Goodaboom

While I was painting Winnie sitting on that lovely bench knitted by the Yarnbombers from Thirsk, in North Yorkshire, a little bear with a blue bow came around. He looked at Winnie, looked at the free place next to her and then asked her if he might sit there next to her.

“Of course you may!’, she said in a quite posh way. “I am Winnie Wimbledon… and who are you?”
“Hello Winnie… I am BlueBow, and I come from Richmond.”
“From Richmond? It is quite a distance! Have you come walking, all alone?”
“No, there are others like me, we came in a bus to see the Yarnbombers decorations!”

And they went on and on and on… Teddy bears have always so much to tell each other!

Winnie Wimbledon In Thirsk S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

 

Modelling For The Yorkshire Cap

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

Auntie Ann asked me if I could model for the Yorkshire cap, and how much it would cost. Well, she asked my Mom, because I am under age. We said yes, and it costs nothing of course, you don’t make family pay when you help them. I was so proud to be asked!

For the modelling my Mom asked me to stand straight and look serious. I can’t stand straight, my legs are too wobbly, I have got no bones inside of them. But without the bones, I am very elastic, I can sit and cross my legs, that looks cool too.

So here I am, with the Yorkshire cap on my head and a matching bow around my neck. I had to squeeze my ears under the cap, so that you know, in case you wonder where they have gone.

I am glad the modelling is finished, it was so hot under the cap. That is tough in our Andalusian desert! Now that I have had a bit of Yorkshire on top of my head, I feel a bit more like a Yorkshire guy, just missing the whippet pet!

 

Bye for now, take care!

xxx

Truffle Modelling For A Yorkshire Cap S

(Prints of all sorts are available. Click on the painting to go to Miki de Goodaboom’s shop online)

The Urso Majors

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By Miki de Goodaboom

Well, I guess it is time to introduce “The Urso Majors”:

  • Ann La Mar, Yorkshire girl, reporter at Goteddy , cook, writer, and much more…
  • Truffle McFurry, Teddy from over the moon, traveller and writer and supporter of all Teddy bears around the world
  • me, Miki de Goodaboom, French artist, mathematician and writer

We three have visited together many places in North Yorkshire during September 2016. The result is a series of illustrated books written by us and illustrated by me..

The first volume is set to be published in ebook form very soon.

We will keep you updated!

01 Ann Truffle and Miki S

 

 

 

Prince Gulliver And Princess Lily

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By Miki de Goodaboom (Text and Illustration)

In September 2016, Truffle, my partner Kevin and me flew from Alicante (Spain) to Manchester (England). Truffle and me were going on a tour of North Yorkshire with Ann la Mar: a painting trip and a teddy bear trip. We had in mind to adopt some of the bears we would find on our way.

Well, we didn’t need to wait long. On the catalogue of the Easyjet plane, we saw that they had 2 bears for sale, Prince Gulliver and Princess Lily. I didn’t doubt one minute: they had to go back to Spain with us.

I was a bit embarrassed though, not really used to but myself bears in public those days. So I asked Kevin to do it. The stewardess smiled at him, a bit ironically:

“You really want both?”

He could not resist “betraying” me.  He said

“Yes! They are  for her… she paints them!’

I felt like hiding under the seat! But the woman gave me a wonderful smile and a very nice conversation followed. From that moment, I never needed to be embarrassed again adopting teddy bears in the UK. They all love them, and it does not matter if you are a child or an adult, they understand you! Except if you are a rock star like Kevin, of course, you need to look cooler than that in public!!!

The other day Truffle tweeted the painting of our royal bears to EasyJet, and a person from the company answered at once:

“Please adopt me and take me to Andalusia too! I’m not as lovable or furry as Gulliver or Lilly but I’ll do the dishes…Robbie”

There was then a funny exchange between Robbie and Truffle.

I tell you what: that was enough to make me and Truffle love EasyJet!!!! And we will fly with them as often as we can.

And NO, Robbie hasn’t paid us to make advertising for them!  🙂

Prince Gulliver And Princess Lily S

PS: If you are interested in prints of that painting, they are available in many different sizes on paper, metal, canvas, wood, etc. Also on pillows, covers, phone cases, Tote bags, shower curtains, T-shirts, notebooks, towels etc.  Just click on the painting, it will bring you to my shop online.

Yorkie

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By Ann La Mar

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

 

While having a bear break ( like a coffee break with the calming addition of bear research) I came across a bear with the sweetest face. He immediately melted my heart.
He was on an auction site so I had to wait some days before I knew for sure he was mine.

I couldn’t wait for the postman to bring him. He was travelling from London back home to North Yorkshire where he started out. Once out of his brown paper he was the sweetest little bear ever. He has a coat of arms on his foot which says City of York. I think this is for the City Council. I guess he was made to commemorate something but I have yet to find out what. He has a tag which says Stonegate Teddy Bears, this is a wonderful bear shop in York.
I wondered if he had a name as it would have been nice to have continuity. I contacted his previous owner who told me he had no name. That is so sad. I decided to call him “Yorkie” after the chocolate bar that was once made there by Rowntree’s.
Yorkie has settled in with all his bear brothers and sisters and is much loved.

 

Yorkie S

On The Little Train At Newby Hall

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

Hallo everybody!

I haven’t written for a long long time, because we were very sad in the family and I could not come to the computer and Go Teddy, my paws could not write any more.
I am a bit better now, thank you!

When we were visiting all the famous Teddy bears in Yorkshire, we also went on the little train, Auntie Ann, my Mom Miki, my Teddy cousin Bua and me. It was wonderful!

I love trains, and I have been on 2 already before, in Portugal, and in the Pyrenees, my Mom’s big mountains in France. We all love trains in the family… we are even thinking on travelling one day from one side of Canada to the other in the train!

Love you all, take care!

Truffle McFurry

Newby Hall Little Train S

Bua And Bua

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By Truffle McFurry

(Illustration by Miki de Goodaboom)

 

Hallo everybody, here is Truffle!

I have exciting news: I have been invited to write my own article in the international magazine “Teddy Bear Times”. I will write there about our visit of the Bearhouse at Newbyhall in England. And I will illustrate it with many bear paintings by my Mom Miki de Goodaboom.

Here are Bua and Bua. One Bua, the one on the right, is Auntie’s Ann German Teddy Bua, my dear cousin. The other Bua is Gyles Brandreth’s Bua… we met him at the bear picnic. I will tell their whole story in the article. And many more! I need to write them before 🙂

Take care

Love you all

Truffle McFurry

Newby Hall Bua And Bua S

The Berry Ladies At Newby

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By Miki de Goodaboom (Text and Illustration)

These lovely ladies with the gorgeous berry hats were part of beautiful collection of tiny bears. When I say “tiny”, I mean something like between 5 and 10 cm. I had never seen such miniature bears before and I fell in love with them. As I anyway fall in love with almost all teddy bears which cross my way…  good that I have got a big heart, there is room for all of them in it… and for some humans too 🙂

These little ladies don’t look happy at all though… who knows what for they were made up like that, perhaps having to go an event they did not fancy at all… Ann La Mar means they look like going to a picnic… perhaps they don’t like a picnic at all and prefer an elegant tea afternoon in their own salon…

 

newby-hall-berry-ladies-s

Diabolino And His Nurse At Newby Hall

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By Miki de Goodaboom (Text and Illustration)

Spending most of these days, even weeks,  in  Gyles Brandreth’s Bear House at Newby Hall… I don’t know if I will ever come out again! At least artistically… there is nothing more soothing and rewarding than to paint all these gorgeous creatures.

At the Bear House there was a huge setting featuring a nursery, with loads of little Teddies playing and having fun together. One of them was so cute, sitting on his nurse’s leg… he looked so shy, and you did get the impression that he needed to be protected. The nurse really seemed up to that job, looking a bit tough. It always amazes me how each Teddy bear conveys a different character. Perhaps it is only me who sees too much in them, but when I look at them, I see their soul…

I called the cute little bear “Diabolino”… he looks like a cute little devil, despite the shyness… His ears do look a bit devilish… I love that little guy!

newby-hall-diabolino-and-nurse-s