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Posts: 11Hi Guys
I hope someone can help, (inexperienced bearmaker here) I love to knit and would l like to start making knit wear for my bears in the future.
Any suggestions where I can get some knitting patterns etc, apologies if I have posted this in the wrong area.
Barbs
Baird'sBears
Hi Barbs! 
I haven't met you before, but you're probably as good a knitter (probably better) than anyone here--you could design your own patterns, and they'd work better than published ones.
I've got a book by Sandra Polley called The Knitted Teddy Bear-- its full of great knitted clothing and not-so-great knitted bears.
The problem is that the clothing only fits the knitted bears, so you'd need to alter the patterns anyway.
Let me know what kind of knitted wear you're thinking of, and I'll send you a scanned sample or two!
Wild Thyme OriginalsHi Barbs! Well.... I 'm a crochet gal myself.... but I know that there are so many things going on in the world of miniature knitting! I know that there are many folks who do take non-copyright knitted baby patterns and then just use a very fine thread/yarn (like acrylic punch yarn) and the teeny tiney needles to achieve a miniature scale without even adjusting the pattern much, if at all. Here's a site I found with a fast search...
http://www.buttercupminiatures.co.uk/mini_bears.htm
We'd love to see your results! :hug: 
Oh, and a big warm welcome to teddy talk!
Kim Basta
Wild Thyme Originals
Melbourne, AustraliaBarbs,
Both my Mum and I have made knits for bears but have never used a pattern. Just work the size from the wool's tension guide (x amount of sts to the inch).
Incorporate fairisle or stripes as required.
Hope this helps.
Hugs,
Posts: 8,574 
dilu
PaHi Barb,
Debbie Bliss also has a knit teddybear book out with some cute outfits but again, they are made to fit her bears, but if you can get it at the library it has some cute ideas in it to check out.
:hug: Kathleen
Posts: 11thanks guys will have a look out for the Debbie Bliss book and have a get the knitting needles out and try out some ideas.
Barbs
Bears by JodiWelcome Barb, when you get it down let us know. I make 5 inchers mostly and I would love to buy some sweaters. But Remember...
:dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance:
Jodi Falk
Creative Design Studio (RKR4CDS)Hi Barbs,
As Sandi wrote, knitting for each individual bear couldn't be simpler. You must always knit a gauge swatch, approx 4" x 4" in the sts (stockinette, cabled, color-changing across the row, etc) in the yarn you intend to use. LIGHTLY steam the swatch and allow to dry flat.
Never let the iron touch the fabric or steam too much - better to do it in 2 sessions for front & back, if needed to get it uncurled.
Measure in a few places to average out the number of sts and rows in an inch.
Use these as your measurements. Multiply this number (for sts and for rows) times the number of inches your bear is around and long, remembering to add some for ease. No Stuffed Sausages look here!
Measure your finished bear: around middle, neckline opening thickness of arms/wrists, total length needed. Remember that most patts for dolls, toys and even bears don't make wide enough necklines and sleeve width and bears are usually out-of-proportion that way. The finished sweater is likely to look rather stubby in length vs width but if done to each bear's own measurements it'll fit like the custom sweater/dress/pants that it is, rather than struggling to force a head & limbs through too-narrow openings & sleeves.
Allow at least 1" additional # of sts for minis and 2" - 4" for larger bears, for ease in WIDTH - more if your bear has long pile/nap. It's not necessary to add ease in length.
You can transfer your patt directions ('X' number of sts across times 'X' number of rows) to graph paper: use the special knitter's graph paper (knit sts are wider than they are tall so square graphs aren't proportional) or write the directions out longhand.
Many free instructions to create your own:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=kn … gle+Search
Easiest shaping is a T shape, knit all in one piece, front hem up the front to sleeves, increase each side for sleeve length, take off (BO or place on holders if ribbed later) neckline, continue knitting down the back the same # of rows to complete the sleeves, BO sleeve length sts back to body sts and knit to bottom edge. Like 2 Ts put together across the top of the T's crossbar but no shoulder seam there.
Be sure to use a soft or loose cast on & bind off!
And when measuring the bear, allow the arms to be in its seated position - if the arms swing forward, position them like that. Then take the measurement of wrist-to-wrist: along the arm, over the back near the neckline to the other wrist. This gives a better fir.
In ease of construction, after the all-in-one T shape comes the same thing but knitting the sleeves separate from the body and sewing in place before sewing the side seams wrist to bottom hem.This can be a pullover or cardigan.
Raglans fit best though because they eliminate all of that extra fabric in the arm pit from the previous style.
Hope that's sparked some ideas for proceeding. patterns are expensive and not likely to give any one bear a good fit. It's always better to knit the exact # of sts & rows for each bear.
Lightly steam before and after sewing the seams.
If you have trouble figuring this out, I'll be happy to write out the directions after you measure your bear and finish the swatch.
