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Treacle BearsOk bearey people!
I have seen that some bear artist wire their bears arms and legs so they can be posed.
How do you do this?
I am planning on creating some larger bears and dressing them etc... so it would be nice if I could pose them as well.
Any advice pretty please?
near CologneI haven't done this myself yet, but I think you could use pipecleaners that you put into your bear's arm/leg and then stuff around.
Or, you could use some (jewelry-)wire, cut it the right length to go around the outline of the arm/leg, sew it in with a whipstitch (from the future inside, I mean) and then turn around the arm/leg.
Does this make any sense? 
Treacle Bearsthank you for the advice...... I will have a play. I dont think pipecleaners will be man enough for the job as I am planning on making quite a big bear..... but jewellery wire might, perhaps I'll have a look and garden wire.... hmmmmm
near CologneYes, you're right, on a bigger bear pipecleaners woudln't work.
But you'll have to find a wire that you can bend without too much trouble or the need of pliers^^
Treacle Bearsyes quite right, I want them to bend easily and also dont want the wire to pop out or fray the fabric in anyway.....
near Cologneah, I forgot to mention: You should secure the ends of the wire, for example by forming a loop or by covering them with some kind of tape^^
Belper, DerbyshireTry
http://www.woodlandteddies.co.uk/armature.htm
Also, have a look at (I think) Edinburgh Imports website and Beary Cheap. Both I believe do the flexlimb armature, which is fixed into the joint.
cheers,
G
With my dolls when I use wire I always bend a loop into the end then wrap them with a little padding and tape it all together from end to end...no puncture for the limbs this way...
I forgot to add...I use one long wire both arms and then one long wire for both legs...
Treacle BearsThanks guys for all the tips. the link to woodlandteddies is perfect!!!! why didnt I think of that. very simple to do. will get some wire etc. and give it a go!
xxx
Tami Eveslage Original Teddy BearsHere is an old blog post where I show how I made armatures in a big (23") bear.
http://insidemystudio.blogspot.com/2008 … chive.html
The Littlest ThistleJoanne from Desertmountainbears had a great idea to use perm rollers - the foam covers the wire and pads it to protect the fur/stuffing, and come in different widths. I sometimes have to use some extra modelling wire on bigger bears, you need something pretty heavy duty for big bears.
Here's the blog article http://desertmountainbear.blogspot.com/ … upply.html She also does quite a lot of other great technique articles
Fulrfun Bearsi use copper wire from the hardware store (comes in different thicknesses) and has an insulating coating on it but it bends really easily. Then I put an electrical connector on the end to place on the joint after the washer. i always wrap some stuffing around it firmly before placing it in the bear and use extra at the paw end.
Treacle Bearsthanks again guys for all your help and advice. the 'benders' as we used to call the hair curlers as kids are a great idea! I think I may have some somewhere! If not down to superdrug to give them a try. great as they are already covered in a protective layer. I will see if they are man enough for the job.
xxx
EJ's CraftsI use the foam covered curlers that Joanne from DesertMountainBears told me about. I love them. You still need to secure the ends of the curler with electrical tape and then pad them with stuffing. Here is one of the bears I did that way.
desertmountainbearYes the rollers from the beauty supply work great for cushioning. For big bears I change out the thinner wire in them for thicker 16 gauge wire.
Joanne
I just saw this post and want to share my kind of working - hope some of you will like it too ...... I can use it for all sizes of bears just changing the largeness of file
near CologneI was wondering.. isn't it hard to stuff a miniature bear's arm with a wire in it?
Ariane
Honey Valley BearsI have a large spool of hard core wire that my husband pick up for me. It is what they would use to wire fire alarm systems or securty systems. Then I got connectors at a local electronics store along with the tool to crimp it and some wire heat seal and ready to go. I just cut the wire to the length I want and add the contector fold over the end and use the heat seal and done. Just stuff as usual. Works great in ears too.
Amber
Treacle Bearsthanks guys for all your tips!!!!
Hi Nicky
What is very good to do that job is call Aluminum Wire. It is strong but very flexible, easy to work with I used it on my dolls and bigger bears.
Hope it helps.
Gladys 
Hi is me again 
I get my wire in here . You can go and see how it looks.
http://www.DollmakersJourney.com
Hope it helps to see it and read about it in the site.
Bear hugs and Golly smiles.
Gladys
@ Ariane - yes it is quite hard to stuff a little one with wired arms, but it is so funny, when they are finished and moving their arms in different ways, my smallest one was about 9 cm with my system of wired arms
@ Gladys - I too use Aluminium wire in different sizes - this one is really the best for our work and our bears - isn't it!!!!
hugs to all of you
near Cologne@ Andrea:
Well, it seem like I should try it out on my newest one, he (or is it a she? I don't know atm) would like to be so poseable lol
Hi Adrea
Yes it comes in diferent sizes and it is wonderful to work with for sure!! I love that is so easy on your hands. I always make a little lop at the end and sometime even , if the bear is not too small , put a bit os tape. That way is not danger os braking the fabric and come out! 
Not good! I do design and make dolls, Gollies and I used it for them too.They look so cute holding things in their hands ( or paws 
) I hope soon we will see a picture of your bear Nicky. Do not forget to post a picture.
Have a wonderful weekend you all.
Bear hugs and Golly smiles.
Gladys
EJ's CraftsI use the wire in my mice but have never used it in the dolls. I will have to try that next time. I use the curlers in the bears because they are so easy to work with even though they are higher priced than the wire.
