Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

I really hadn't thought about it, since I was thinking primarily of trading. What do you think would be reasonable?

Oh, cash would definitely be acceptable! 

Sorry to take so many pictures, but I wanted to show him from all angles.

Is anyone interested in doing a bear trade? I've got a HUGE 48-inch lying (on his stomach) brown bear with somewhat shaggy plush fur, sewn paw pads and soft claws, who needs a new home. He's factory-made. He'd make a great bed-sitter or snuggle companion for someone who likes very large bears. Unfortunately, he's just too big for me! I'll post pictures this evening, if anyone is interested. He would be shipped parcel post, since he'll need a very big box.  For trade, I'd consider snuggly factory-made bears, 20-30 inches, claws are always nice. 

hey, I know that bear, too!  He looks much better now! Fantastic job! 

Ooh, that is handy! Thanks!

I was thinking of burning a little piece in a clean ashtray. If it's art silk, will it melt and turn hard?

Actually, I couldn't really tell whether it was mohair or silk plush (having never seen silk plush "in person" before). For all I know, it could ery well be the latter. The seller described it as "wool," aand seeing how smooth and shiny it was originally made me lean toward mohair. I'll try a little fabric softener on the ears, after I wash them. 

I've been carefully handwashing my antique mohair bear pieces, and while the two that I've done so far have come out beautifully fluffy, and aren't matted anymore, the fur isn't any less frizzy/fuzzy. I can tell from the areas near the seams that it was originally very shiny, and smoother. I know that doll hair (modern and vintage, though not mohair) can be de-frizzed and softened with steam treatment and "conditioning" with fabric softener. Is there a similar way to de-frizz mohair?

Here are the photos, showing his internal structure, replaced into his excelsior torso with his head on top, and the beautiful color of his mohair. Weird, huh? I tried to get a picture of his "insides" standing up, to show how his legs would have swung, but my batteries died. His leg pads were so worn, there was no more fur left and the material underneath was dried and stiff. I plan to make him some new ones out of leather.

Well, he certainly had a lot of metal in him!  The poor guy's arm joints (disc jointed, cotter pins) were so rusted that they didn't move at all anymore and the rust had stained the backing as well as some of the fur itself. His legs were rod-jointed, but not like the Steiff bear. I'll post pictures of the mechanism later today. I'll have to research rod-jointed bears to try to get an idea of his country of origin and time period. The seller said that he was from England, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was German. I don't jnow how the seller could stand to part with him, she seemed so attached. She sent me an email last night, saying that she hoped he would have a good home and that I would love him.
His fur was originally the most gorgeous bright yellow, long and soft, and a lot straighter than it is now. He must have had a lot of hugs. surprisingly, the excelsior came out in nice bear-shaped pieces, so I might be able to put it back, if I'm very careful and a little clever.  While I have him apart, I'm going to make a muslin pattern of him to preserve. That would be all right, wouldn't it, if I used part of it in the future? I forgot to vacuum him before I took him apart, so I'll go over his pieces later today.

Thanks, Peter.  "Mr. Snuggles" is just a working title- I don't think I'll actually end up calling him that. Actually, I was thinking before you posted that he looks a lot like a "Peter." 

My Christmas present from my father arrived today (I picked it out myself on ebay), a lovely old bear, from England according to the seller, but he's got one strange feature that I've never seen before.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Large-antique-t … true&rt=nc

Do you see how in the first picture his legs look like they're the swing type? Well, in the bottom front of his torso is something big and metal, with two little metal loops sticking out, like they're supposed to be connected to the legs. They've made holes in his skin near where his legs join the body, so I want to open him up and take the metal out, and I'll take some pictures of the mechanism. Has anyone ever heard of a bear jointed like this? He almost looks like he's supposed to be some sort of walker. He's very firmly stuffed with excelsior- do you think I'll have any chance of managing to get all of it back into him the way it is now, or is it better to stuff him with wool? His fur is really fuzzy and sort of matted deep down, like he needs a nice brushing, and he's surprisingly dirty, so I'm dying to give him a bath. I'm nervous about cleaning him, though, because I don't know for sure what he's made of. It doesn't feel like mohair or wool, because it's so fuzzy, but he might feel different once he's clean. Would you handwash his unstuffed pieces, or surface wash him?

I've seen the sleeping brown bear by Avanti quite a bit lately- it was all I could do not to buy him, but I'm in the middle of making a sleeping bear myself, and just couldn't bring myself to do it.

As for Mr. Snuggles, he even looks soft in the picture; I'm itching to get ahold of him.  Right now I'm making do with an antique dog made from rex rabbit (shhh, don't tell the bears!), and while he's definitely better than nothing, I'll be happy when I've got something that's not so firmly stuffed.

I came to the shocking realization recently that none of my twenty-odd bears is really Snuggly enough. I'm still in "mourning" for my poor, dilapidated mink bear, and have been trying in vain to find a suitable replacement to sleep with. Even my alpaca bear just doesn't seem right- not big enough or squishy enough.  So I tried to make myself a bear out of mouton, but the thick leather makes him a little stiffer than I wanted. As a last resort, I turned to ebay, and found:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Teddy-Bear-30-i … true&rt=nc

He looks like he'll do the job nicely: plenty big, and nicely squishy. And not to mention the fact that he looked awfully familiar on first sight, awfully good quality, so I asked the seller and it turns out that he was made by Avanti! Merry Christmas to me!  ;)

Edited to remove ipad-generated typos.

I saw that bear!  He is nice: I love those claws and the shaggy fur! Is he jointed? I tried researching him, too when I first saw him, in hopes of finding another one, but didn't have any luck.

Oh, wow, she's gorgeous! And such a great price! I might have to treat myself for Christmas.  I think this is 3 for 3 of your bears that I've fallen head over heels for, BlackmoonBear, so it's safe to say that I admire your taste! 

Oh, wow! That polar bear is HUGE! I thought that looked familiar; I used to have a polar bear made by FineToy, bought about ten years ago, with a similar face and similar fur. I'll bet that panda is awfully nice to snuggle up with!

That has got to be the cutest panda I've ever seen! I love his smile, and his improved nose! He looks so fluffy and friendly! Did you trim his fur at all, or just brush him? Can I ask what brand he is?

I recently bought my first antique bear on ebay.    the photos showed him as a nondescript brownish-gold, pleasant enough, but not striking. Imagine my surprise when I received him today and found that the fur on the undersides of his limbs, and near his joints, is a bright, shining, reddish-orange! Similar to "cinnamon" teddies that I've seen, but not as brown. It's beautiful! In the right light, I can even see hints of it on his body. My question is this: Does the dye in antique mohair bears naturally just fade or wear off over time, or would this be a case of sunlight damage or some other improper storage? Interestingly, he retains all of his mohair, except for a small patch about the size of a thumbprint on his back, right on the edge of his growler.

Awww! Are you going to make another one and name him "Squeak?" I don't think that I'd be able to resist!

Oh, I've seen that fellow! I was really close to buying him once on ebay, but I can't find him listed now. :(

My current favorite (other than the incomparable Stearnsy bear ;), is an old handmade mink bear that I bought secondhand and refurbished. He's about 20 inches, with a sort of flat body and straight, unjointed limbs. He smelled awful when I first got him(goodness only knows here he'd been!), so I took out all of the original stuffing and aired him out. Then I modified the shape of his head a little, to cut down on its excess bulk and give him a nice pointy, perky snout, and restuffed him (much more softly) with wool. It's funny, but I didn't really take to him at first and now I'm just heartbroken because his fur is starting to develope lots of small holes in the seams of the pelts.  He's so deliciously soft and snuggly.

Awww, your pictures are fantastic, everyone! so much snuggly bear fur! Has anyone readA Hug of Bears, by Peter Bull? I might have to buy that one now.

I recently received this book from paperbackswap.com, and I LOVE it! I had no idea that there were such enthusiastic bear collectors hiding in the woodwork! I mean, buying a seat for your bear on the bus?? I love my bears, but I hardly ever admit that I sleep with one, and I'd never dream of taking one out in public! The book is full of charming bear anecdotes, and now I'm on the hunt for more books by the fantastic Peter Bull.

I just started my first small bear- not sure if it's considered a " mini," but it's a standing brown bear, about eight inches from nose to tail.  http://www.etsy.com/listing/62365305/jo … by-aerlinn  The fur is real rabbit, and I thought that it would look nice, since it's so long and sort of "shaggy," but man, does all of that fur make it tough to turn the pieces! I might have to try clipping the fur a little, because it's too long in certain places, but I love the design! I never would have thought that it would be such a simple pattern. This will definitely be the last eight-inch bear that I make! Next time, I'll enlarge all of the pieces and make a great big fellow.

Which are split down the center, or are the two side pieces just sewn together, and the shaping achieved some other way? Are there any good patterns available for center-seam heads?