Teddy Talk: Creating, Collecting, Connecting

Congratulations.  That is wonderful.

I finally got a Teddy Ruxpin after twenty years of wanting him.  He needs to be restored because he's missing his lower jaw and one of his eyes is poked in.  It looks like he got into a fight, lol.  I'm sending him to a restorer because I'm afraid to try to fix him.  He probably wouldn't look like Teddy Ruxpin when I got done with him, so I'm sending him to somebody who knows what they're doing and won't be using the braille method.

Do any of you guys have Teddy Ruxpin?  What do you guys think of him?  I notice that he's not as popular with bear collectors as he is with 80s toy lovers.  I'm both, so I love Teddy.

Are any other TT-ers going to be there?

Becky, I love your bears.  I wish she could come live with me.

Is anyone else going to this show on March 24?  I'm so excited about it and I'm counting down the days.  I think it will be mmore dolls than bears, but there will be one bear artist there and I think they may have some older bears.  I hope I can bring somebody home with me.

What kind of theme?  I would like to do this, but my teddies are usually traditional, or sort of anyway.

Vista and dayfus drayfus or just drayfus are my favorite ones,, lol.  I hate evil fabric.

I've been getting kind of curious about Johan's origins.  Does anybody have any suggestions about where this dude came from?  Here's some clues.  He has cardboard in his feet.  His paw and foot pads feel like leather, and Becky Chase thinks they are like an oil cloth, I can't remember what that other word is that she told me.  His body is stuffed with wood wool, but his arms, legs, and head seem to have polyfill, but it could be something else.  The head is four pieces rather than the usual three.  Becky thinks he was given a new head.  He definitely has a new nose and eyes because they're plastic.  I have no idea whether there were claws because that's hard to see.  There is a place for a label in his back that was taken off.

You mean you leave the opening in the top???  I think I would probably invent some new bad words if I tried that one.  Hats off to you.

There's nothig wrong with child safe bears.  I think we need more child safe artist bears.

Could it be a basic teddy bear or does it need to be something complicated?  Could it be a bear like Pablo?  Lenora knows who I'm talking about and I'll post a pic as soon as I can get the blasted thing taken.  For here, not the comp.

I don't weight my flatties because they're child safe, but both of my jointed bears have been weighted with gravel.  They're heavy, but they are still squuzzable.  I don't do hard bears.  My favorite bear is light as a feather, though, although Lenora made him a little heavier than he used to be because she gave him more stuffing.

I'm definitely not ready yet, but maybe someday I'll be brave enough to try it.  I just hate pictures, especially when I can't click the stupid camera without somebody aiming me.

I've only done two jointed bears so far, but I attached the limbs and then stuffed them.  On the first bear I did like that I USED NUTS AND BOLTS WITH THE HARD DISKS AND I was taught to use one tool to hold the screw in place, but that was a pain in the rear.  On the second jointed bear, who is still in progress, I glued the screw to the disk so it wouldn't turn.  I figured that doing joints is such a pain that if I can make my life a little easier, I'll do it.  I'm seriously considering going back to child safe bears, not necessarily flatties, but with safety joints and eyeballs.  I actually think I'm going to make a flattie pretty soon, though, so I can relax.

That makes me afraid to try it because if they saw the pics I take, they'd laugh at me.

Becky, that is too groovy.  Congrats.  Joanie sends her love.  She would also like to know if she is in the picture.

I hope I don't sound stupid, but do you send the bear or just the pics?

Squuz him for me, or at least the best you can squuz him.

Aww, poor little bear.

I also collect dolls and I know that some doll collectors take one doll's head off and put it on another body.  I guess you could do the same with the bears, but I think that's kind of creepy.  I hope I'm not hitting any bad chords with that comment.

Aww.  I know I would still love him.

Lenora, what is your little bear's name?

Well Lenora, I could throw a ball at you for not describing, but I guess I won't because I've squuzzed her before.  Kidding.  Are you going to put her on our other board?  Bearlove.

Cool stories behind the bears.  Can you describe them?  Also, are the bears made for the mommies or to be given to the babies?

Well I can't see them of course, but it seems like usually we are our own worst critics.  I'd have to feel them in order to know, but they are probably very cool.