Classic Teddy Bear Designs: Heirlooms to Make & Dress

Rating:
Summary: VALUE FOR MONEY, BEGINNERS BOOK ON BEAR MAKING
Review: This would have to be the best value for money, beginners book on bear making that has been published in the last 10 or more years. The author has written this for the home sewer and doesn't assume that there is a teddy bear supplies shop just up the road where you can buy those expensive specialty items like joint sets, mohair fur, etc. Everything you need can be found at home in the sewing cupboard, at the local sewing shop or general store; eg: like buttons for joints, teddy jumpers/sweaters out of socks.

There are numerous bear patterns of various sizes; eg: dad, mum & baby; both jointed and unjointed, along with clothes patterns for just about all of them! Estelle also explains how to customise the clothes patterns for different bears and garments; eg making a shirt into a coat. I still use this book if I want to dress bears from other patterns. For example I compare the bear that I'm making with Estelles bear pattern pieces; ie leg to leg for trousers, body to body for dresses or jump suits, etc; and when I find one that is similar I use the clothes pattern that fits Estelle's bear as a base clothes pattern for the bear I am making.

The bear patterns themselves are excellent for beginners as all the bears a quite chubby (makes for great cuddling!), so are easier to sew, to turn inside out and to stuff - no narrow nooks and crannies to make for difficult stuffing. Some of the head patterns don't have a full head insert ie down to the nose, again making for easy sewing and more chance of a "nice muzzle/nose" for a beginner.

Virtually all the bears in the book are made from something other than mohair, either synthetic fur, felt, coat fabric, etc, so you get a pretty good idea of what your bear will ACTUALLY look like. Mohair is gorgeous, but is often deceptive as it is usually a woven fabric, which doesn't stretch, so if you use synthetic fur, felt or coat fabric, for example, you end up with a very different bear to the mohair one you are hoping to reproduce.

(I have a 1980ish edition of this book around which this review is written. PLEASE NOTE: there may be changes to the later edition SO the comments in the following paragraph may not be correct for this more recent edition.) Full colour books are the norm these days, so it is disappointing there aren't MORE of the gorgeous colour photos - although there are still plenty of black and white ones. There is quite alot of text, (including the usual "teddy bear" history), which comes under logical headings so it is generally easy to find info on subject. All the patterns are on pages of the book - great - no misplaced pattern inserts.

This is a value for money book - lots of bear patterns with clothes patterns and how to do's. You won't make a Stieff reproduction, but you will get lots of practise with the numerous options this book offers.