Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Hi!! I am very NEW LOL I think I made a stuffed animal in jr High School .. But I make a lot of memory Blankets .. I am recently working on a memory blanket for my 9 year old cousin  out of my aunts clothing.. My Aunt just passed away a few months ago. And I took some of her clothes to make a blanket for my little cousin to have .  I thought it would be nice to make a matching teddy bear out of the left over clothes .. I went and got a Teady bear pattern from the craft store by my house..WELL LOL I DIDNT KNOW YOU NEED JOINTS... no craft stores around my house have them . And really didnt know what they are .... I even went to the home depot to see if I could make something like it.. I got a large washer and Im guessinbg its too small cause the head just flops over.. I found some joints I can buy online but I dont know what size to get I am making an 18" tall teady  Please any advice would be great I really want to make this teddy bear special and something she can hold and sleep with that will comfort her a little..