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All Bear Dec 10, 2007

Paula, yes he has had his nose re stitched. Right under his left arm, a very small piece seems to be sticking out. I am not sure if it is cotton use to sew him up or the fragments of a label. It almost looks like someone has restitched this are as the stitching is not as smooth as the rest of the seam.

I am going to go and get a magnifying glass and take a better look. Also going to investigate his paw pads. He has 5 claws on the paw pads. None are on his arm pads but you can a small piece of black embroidery thread.
Although he has been restored I think he still needs a professional re storer to get him shipshape.

Forgot , his ears are firmly sewn on with a thick double thread and no markings of them originally been sewn together with the head as a one piece.

Thanks for all the info Paula, I appreciate it.

Lynette

Hi Lynette,

It sounds as though there may be fragments of his label sticking out from his side seem in view of what you've said ... it would certainly be fun to take a magnifying glass to investigate further!  Sometimes the remains of the labels are hard to see.  With regard to the claw detailing, I seem to recall reading somewhere that most Chiltern bears tend to have four stitched claws but this is dependent on their size - it may be that your bear's claws have since been restitched.  I would think the small piece of embroidery thread you can see is probably from the original claw stitching.

Regarding the ears, if you look at my photos you will see what I mean about the ear placement ... it may be however, that your bear was an exception to the general rule of stitching the ears into the facial seam, or that he has another reason for having his ears sewn on separate to the head sewing.

When handling an unrestored Chiltern, the main characteristics for me that really shout 'Chiltern' are the shape of the bear's limbs .. these bears have short one piece arms with small paw pads, they have drumstick legs, often with cardboard lined feet.  Their heads tend to sag a little onto their chest as a result of the kapok stuffing around the neck area settling over the years under the weight of their quite large heads ... this is a lovely feature!  They have a little 'crunch' around their joints and in the middle of their tummies, as a result of the excelsior which is packed inside to protect the joints and the growler.  Unlike many of our artist bears, generally speaking Chiltern teddy bears are very light to lift as kapok is such a light filler.  Post war Chilterns of lesser quality may be packed with alternative fillers which might make them a little heavier to lift.  The original Chiltern faces are very endearing with their big glass eyes, either brown, amber or clear, placed wide on that gorgeous slightly overly large, head.  I think they look full of wisdom!

If you were to have your bear restored to as near his original state as possible, it may enhance his monetary value - Chiltern teddy bears are very sought after.  At the moment, he strikes me as a lovely bear, but I'm a little confused about his identity due to the restoration.  I may well be wrong though as I certainly don't have a professional interest, I just have a love of Chiltern bears which has spanned many years.  I'm sure Dot Bird would be able to suggest the best course of action.  :)

Postscript:  Lynette, I've just been hunting (I love these vintage bear mysteries!) and I found these pictures of a 1920's cone nosed Chad Valley bear and a 1930's Chad Valley bear ... more food for thought!  The ear and eye placement look very similar to your bear don't they?!  Although the way the legs are positioned on your bear is more similar to the Chiltern, but that could be because of the restuffing.  I would say the arm shaping on your bear is very Chiltern, but both bear designs Chiltern and Chad Valley, have very similar body styles so I might be wrong ... Curioser and curioser!!