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South AustraliaHi All,
Yet another question:
How do I make a Teddy stand unaided?
I have just finished a Teddy and I put glass beads in his feet and his tummy but he refuses to stand.
PennsylvaniaI think a Bear needs to be designed so his feet are directly under his center of gravity if he wants to stand on his own. Putting weights in his feet is okay but his body weight also needs to be centered over his feet, too.
No matter what position a Bear (or a person) stands in, the same amount of his body mass must be in front of his center of gravity as behind. For example, if you bend over at the waist, your head goes forward but your bum goes backward. As long as you stay in balance, you can stand upright.
Now, let's imagine that, as you bend over, your backside bumps into an invisible wall and your rear end can't move backward any farther. You will fall over, forward.
The next time you think of it, look at a person standing still from the side view. You should notice that his legs and spine curve so as to keep the body in balance over the center of gravity. If you design a Bear with legs and back that are as straight as a board, he will not have his mass properly centered and will fall over.
When you design your Bear, make it so his legs have just a little bit of bend in them and make his back have a slight curve. His bum will be a little bit behind his feet and his belly will be a little bit in front. His arms, instead of being "board straight" will be a little bit curved, set with the shoulders slightly back and the hands slightly forward.
In human anatomy the parts of the body are shifted forward and backward only by a few centimeters to maintain balance. If a body part moves only a centimeter, other parts of the body must also move in opposition to keep the person balanced. If body parts can not shift the way they need to, the person will have to struggle to stand. If they get too far out of balance, he will fall over.
See if you can find an anatomical diagram of the human body to study and see how a person's body is arranged in order to stand upright. Then, see if you can use what you learned to create a Bear who can stand on his own.
If you already have a Bear who you want to make stand on his own, maybe putting some weight in his bum and/or in his tummy might make him balance. Otherwise, you might need to wait until you can design a new Bear who can stand on his own without help.
Sheree,
yes, you have to find the right balance for your bear, and also flat feet help. In my experience, it's also important that the legs are firmly stuffed, otherwise they might bend a little and loose the bear balance. Sometimes you can find the balance for your bear also moving his arms so that the weight is correctly set to let him stand....I don't know if I have explained well what I mean...
Good luck for the next one! 
TC Folk OriginalsI make all of my bears to stand on their own. I also like them to be able to "move" in order to show a particular theme. In other words, if my bear is portraying a baseball player, he must be able to hold the ball and bat and still be able to stand. US Bears is absolutely correct - there must be a center of gravity. I imagine a string that is running from the ground up to the top of the head, dividing the bear in half. There must be as much head, body, legs and arms in front of the string as in the back. I also use wire armatures in the legs and arms as well as bagged BBs in the feet and tummy. The BBs must be evenly distributed in the foot and centered over the joints in the tummy. I use the complete one limb at a time and then joint to the un-stuffed body method because I can better tell what needs to be done to make him/her stand. Hope this helps and that I haven't babbled on too much!!!!
PennsylvaniaI found a diagram for you:
'
The red line in the diagram runs from the place where the man's feet touch the ground up through his center of gravity.
Notice how half of his body (mass) is in front of the red line and half is behind.
Look at the third man on the right. See how, when he bends over, his head goes forward but his bum goes back?
No matter how the man moves, half of his mass must be in front and half must be in back.
If his body is not in balance, he will have to use his muscles to steady himself but, if he goes too far out of balance, he still fall over.
Bears don't have muscles. They have fluff. That means that they can't right themselves. You have to design the Bear to be self-righting.
I'm not an expert in how to do that but Thelma's advice sounds right. Putting shot in his tummy then adjusting him as you build him seems like the best way to make a self-supporting Bear.
