Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Oh man, I wish I could adopt this bear.  I'm drooling over her description and coveting her.  Bad wubbiebear.

I wish I could feel her and bury my face in her fur.

If you really want to see him, I'll try to find someone to take his picture.  If you would like to adopt him, that would make my day.  I was going to sell him on my Etsy shop, but now I don't know if anyone would have him.  Sorry, Goofy.

Aww, he sounds adorable, or is it a she?

Well, I just won the duh award again.  I was making what was supposed to be a bear out of a fleece blanket, but instead he came out as some kind of weird looking creature that I don't even know what he is.  I'm not even sure whether I'll show him to anybody because he looks so weird.  Of course I had to name him Goofy because that's what he is.  Have any of you guys ever done this before?  What do you think I should do with him?

Lenora, the cood idea was a very comical typo that I still laugh at every time I see it, lol.

I think that would definitely draw more collectors to this site.

Hey, Becky, I hope I don't sound stupid, but how can you tell what the texture is like without feeling the bear?

For me, I just hold the bear together and try to keep it fromcrawling the best I can.  I do stab myself a lot, though, and then my husband gets to hear all my original expressions that I use instead of cussing.

Yep, some people think I'm crazy, but the bears and I know better.  I'm just crazy about my bears.

Well I cuddle my cat, but I also cuddle bears.  I guess that's okay if you can see them, but if you can't you probably wouldn't even know they were there if you didn't hug them.  I just feel so bad for a bear that just sits on a shelf.  My poor Retro was scarred for life because he spent his whole life that way.  Arcto cries at the thought of not being held and cuddled.

Becky's bears are wonderful and so full of love.  I guess they come by it honestly because Becky is a great lady.

I'm just curious about the different perspectives on bears from makers and collectors.  Do you think your bears should be displayed and just looked at or do you think they are friends to be cuddled and hugged?  I know I'm kind of weird, but I know people who sit their bears on a shelf and hardly ever pick them up.  I may be crazy, but I feel so bad for those bears that it makes me cry.  When I got my Retro, I could tell that his previous owner was a collector who put him on a shelf.  It didn't look like he had been hugged very much at all and I felt so bad for him.  It was like he said to me, "Please hug me.  I have so much love to give."  Also, for some reason I have a phobia of putting my bears in glass cases.  I don't know why.  I heard that it protects the bears, but when I think about getting a glass case for my bears my skin crawls. 

For those of you who put your bears behind glass, I'm not criticizing.  I'm just curious to hear your opinion.

I slept with Red last night and it was a lot more comfortable with the tag gone.

Glad to hear that.  The tag just came off and the bear and I both sighed with relief.

I have a bear made by Elize Fouche of African Bear Company and he's got a laminated tag hanging around his neck with his name and all the details, such as when he was made, when I got him, and that sort of thing.  I'm pretty new to artist bears, but usually on my regular bears, the tags come off as soon as I figure out whether they're collector bears.  I've heard that you should keep the tags on collector bears, but I'm afraid it's going to fall off or get bent because I sleep with him and hold him a lot.  One of my other artist bears had a tag that was like a little booklet with her and I put it in a drawer so it would be safe.  Should I do that for this bear?  What do you suggest?

Hi, I'm Jessie, the human mom of Arcto from the blog.  I would love to read your story.  I don't use Amazon very much, but I'll try and I can definitely have Arcto review it on his blog.  BTW, you got me excited when you said you were looking for arctophiles.  I would love to read it.

Sorry.  I know I'm awful.

Here's a dorky question.  How would you compare Zoro's texture with Arcto or Red, the one I told you about who feels kind of rough?

I'm really glad you guys like him.  That was the fifth bear I ever made.  I don't know whether I'll use those eyes very much anymore.  I've also used buttons and now I have some of the safety eyes, which are awesome.

Hey Becky, since he has two colors, are there two different textures going on in the fur or is it the same?  Can you describe his texture for me?  Is it the same as what Joanie feels like?  BTW, Joanie, Arcto, and all the rest of my bears and plushies send their love.

Love sponge, can I steal that, Becky?

I like the plastic eyes.  Those puppies ain't coming off, no way no how.  (Bad grammar was used deliberately for humorous effect.)

I appreciate that, Joan.

I'm thinking about maybe trying this pattern, but I much prefer fuzzy faux fur to mohair, so that's what I use, and I also prefer just fiberfill rather than the hard stuff.  I'm all about texture.  Is this okay to do it this way?  Also, what kind of joints would you recommend for someone with no vision where I don't have to use a lot of tools?  Can you find all this stuff at fabric stores or craft stores?  I have trouble shopping online, especially for fabric because I like to feel it before I buy it.