Benjamin Blue

Benjamin Blue is a wee little 4 inch ted made by one of my favorite artists, Peng Peng. She even made his teeny tiny outfit and dashing red scarf!

BB is so small, he can fit in the palm of your hand or slip easily into a pocket. I frequently sneak him with me into meetings that way, as it's just comforting having him along.

Miniature Dime Store Teddy Bear

Spotted at a recent toy show in a tray of miscellaneous smalls was this miniature teddy bear, just 3 inches tall. Bears like these were made in Japan from the 1930s-50s, and sold in dime stores and penny candy shops. They're not stuffed in the traditional way. Instead their velveteen fabric is glued over a molded composition or cardboard body. They have tiny glass eyes and bead noses, and often still retain their original ribbons when found.

Gold is the most frequently seen color; this brown one is a rarity. 

Mr. Cranberrie

Meet  Mr.Cranberrie,  a wee little four inch ted made by bear artist extraordinaire Peng Peng. (She made his tiny outfit, too!) This very Christmasy-looking bear was, in fact, a holiday gift this year.

For a sense of just how small he is, 

Mr. C. is pictured sitting on a dollhouse porch. 

Miniature Teddy Bear by Schuco, 1920s

My smallest Christmas gift this year was one of my very favorites. This tiny two and a half inch tall bear was made in Germany by the Schuco company in the 1920s.

Schuco was a major manufacturer of tin and mechanical toys, and their early teddy bears reflect this history. Instead of being stuffed in the usual way, these tiny teds have an internal metal framework over which the mohair was affixed. The earliest of these bears had delicate felt paws, a feature that was quickly discontinued. They came in a wide range of colors, from standard gold to vivid violet. Their structure made them fragile and their size made them easily lost, both of which make them rare bears today, very desirable even in this worn condition.

Here he is with his long lost siblings,
who have lived in my collection for several years.

A Little Antique Teddy Bear

I know I've claimed to have found the cutest teddy bear ever a few times before, but a new claimant always seems to come along...

He has such a sweet little smile!

10 inches tall, American circa 1909, made by Ideal.

Patchy & Purple Peng Peng Bears

The miniature teds made by Chicago-based artist Peng Peng always amaze me. These two are done in one of my favorite styles, "stick bears" with giant heads on teeny, stick thin bodies, just 5 and 1/4 inches tall.

It was obviously love at first sight for these two.

The black and white bear features tie-dyed mohair, and sports a pair of handmade orange overalls.

His  purple friend wears a fabulous, tiny dress sewn from vintage fabrics.

A Bare Bear

I adore old teddy bears, the older and more worn, the better. A much loved bear silently speaks volumes about its long life. I feel very strongly that bears who have performed so many faithful years of companionable service deserve a comfortable retirement.

My latest such bear is this little 8 inch ted, circa the 1930s. She has lost every single strand of her mohair to moths, except for a very endearing little patch at the top of her head. Her nose and mouth have long since been kissed away, but her tiny glass eyes are, amazingly, still intact. She is without doubt one of the most worn bears I've ever purchased, but I think she is also one of the most characterful.

"Please take me home and give me some clothes," 

she seems to be saying.

The bear as found, bare and forlorn.

See? No mohair, nowhere.

After rummaging through a box of doll clothes assembled for just such emergencies, I outfitted the bear in a vintage polka dotted dress and added a pink ribbon. 

Stylin'.

Ta-da! Here she is in her lovely 1950s tin toy kitchen. If she could still smile, you would see that she is very happy.

A Halloweeny Peng Peng Bear

Just in time for Halloween came my latest Peng Peng bear: Mr. Eightball, 4 inches of hand-dyed black licorice colored mohair, green glass eyes, and mischievous grin. (I added the tiny vintage jack o' lantern, and made the hat and bow tie...can you tell the hat was once the thumb of my left glove?)

Mr. Eightball and Jack hang out on the front porch.

Antique Show Find: Teddy Bear Characters

I found these three crazy character bears in the booth of one of my favorite dealers at an antique show this past summer. It was love at first sight: I couldn't leave any of them behind. From left to right: American, 13 inches, circa 1904; English, 10 inches, circa 1930s; and German, 16 inches, circa 1920s.

The ancient American bear is really unusual, with a broad, melon shaped head and a funny expression. Even with his extreme wear, there was just something really charming about him.

This is a face that has seen a lot of living.

The chubby little English ted has (the remains of) long golden blonde mohair with contrasting shaggy brown ears (original) and a cute face with a tiny pink tongue. 

 I just love this nose.

The German bear is one of the tallest and skinniest teddies I've ever seen, with long, long legs and a serious expression. He came wearing a vintage sweater with an old Audubon Society badge; apparently he's into bird-watching.

 He is exceptionally alert looking, this one.

Funny Old Bear

This quirky antique teddy bear is 12 inches tall, made from an unusual cotton batting type fabric. His features include a very strange nose, tiny eyes, and one foot pad which appears to have been put on upside down. He's odd, but adorable.

I've never seen another like him, so I can only guess as to his age and nationality...maybe American or English circa one of the World Wars? I've seen the octagonal nose once on an old English bear, and (much smaller) upward stitches also on English teds, while the side-placed ears are found on American and English varieties. This type of fabric was typically used during wartime shortages of wool, which was being used for soldiers' uniforms and so couldn't be made into mohair for bears. If anyone has a similar ted, I'd love to see him (or her) and compare notes!

This is his original nose and mouth stitching. 

It gives him rather a distinctive look and funny expression, 

especially combined with the beady little eyes.

Itty Bitty Steiff Bear

This little Steiff has lots of wear,
but it just seems to have given him even more charm.
The white ted is just 5 1/2 inches tall, circa 1920-30.

He has a totally kissable nose, yes?

He came wearing an old plaid coat that had clearly
been with him a long time, and suits him perfectly.

 Going for a walk...

Antique Teddy Bear and Photo

The value of an antique teddy bear, both financial and sentimental, increases substantially when it comes with a photo of the original owner. If the photo is of the original owner and the bear, the value is even greater.
Such duos are difficult to find, as bears and photos tend to go their separate ways over time. I was very fortunate to find a pair that remained together for almost 90 years.

The hand-colored photo of the little girl, circa the 1920s, is 15 1/2 inches tall, and still in its original frame. 

 

Her 13 inch teddy bear companion wears a rather serious expression. As I look at him, I wonder what experiences he shared with his owner over their long life together.

The two came to me from a dealer who got them at the original family's estate sale. Astoundingly, she didn't get the little girl's name: that would have been a wonderful thing to know, and may have enabled genealogical research. Whoever she was, I hope she would be happy to know that her treasured teddy is now safely settled into my sanctuary for orphaned bears.

Pink and Purple Peng Peng Bear

 

It's always a happy day when a new Peng Peng bear arrives. 

 Clearly, she agrees.

Peng Peng, one of my very favorite artists, makes unique and beautifully crafted small teds. Petunia, just 5 inches tall, features hand-dyed two-toned mohair, a tiny, stripey dress, and a fantastic face inspired by the classic British bear, Master Teddy.

 Pink and purple Petunia poses prettily...

Bloo Bear

Meet Lenny, a 7 inch ted made by UK artist Susan Johnson of Bonsall Bears. Lenny caught my eye when I saw a picture of him in a British teddy bear guide. Susan makes Lennys in a variety of colors; check them out at the Bear Garden in Surrey.

I think he may be my new cutest-bear-ever.

Lenny is feeling bloo today...

Antiquing Trip to England: Day 9, Faversham

On our way back to London the day before we left England, we stopped at one last town, Faversham. This area was inhabited in prehistoric times, and was home to a Roman settlement before becoming a thriving medieval market town.

One of Faversham's most famous landmarks is its Guildhall, first built in 1574! On the day we visited, it was hosting a plant and flower sale.

 Faversham Guildhall.

Buildings in Faversham were rich in architectural detail. Particularly eye-catching was this gargoyle, adorning the front of a stationery shop housed in an 18th century edifice.

For such an old town, Faversham was rather lacking in antique stores. Fortunately tour leaders Terry and Doris came to my rescue again and led me to a lovely one, which had an equally lovely old bear sitting in a child's wicker chair in the window. (He's not visible in the photo below, as I had already snatched him up. At lightning speed.)

 See the empty chair on the left in the window? 

That's where my latest bear had been sitting,

moments before this photo was taken.

This was a beautiful antique shop, with a wonderful, huge, old fireplace inside, and lovely soft lighting.

And here's the bear, as found, about to be wrapped 

up for the journey home:

With his purchase, I completed my teddy tour of England by finding a bear in every town. (Sometimes more than one bear!) This one was very special, though. Purchased by the shopkeepers from the original owner, he had belonged to a little girl born in 1930, who received him the year of her birth. He went through the war with her, was much loved, and it shows. He is a very characterful bear, and one of my favorites of the whole trip. Doris kindly gave me some hand knit bear sweaters she found in a charity shop, and once he had put one on, he looked much more comfortable.

 His button with its WWII slogan gives us all 

good advice for difficult times: 

keep calm and carry on! 

Today, we tried something different from our usual scones: Brown Derby, a very odd dessert comprised of a plain brown donut, refried, and served while still hot with a heap of vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, and peanuts on top. It was good!

If you look very closely, you can just see the donut on the bottom.

Finally it was time to head home, after a fabulous 10 days in England on the trip of a lifetime. My suitcases were full of great finds, while my checking account was (almost!) empty.

My carry-on bag.

A group photo at home.

Antiquing Trip to England: Day 8, Rochester

The city of Rochester was built on the site of earlier Neolithic, Celtic, and Roman settlements along the river Medway. Needless to say, it is rich in history. England's second-oldest cathedral is here, founded in 604 AD, right alongside an atmospheric ruin, a Norman castle dating to 1127.

Rochester Cathedral

This cathedral was filled with particularly beautiful and interesting doors. Here is a sampling:

An intriguing passageway in the Cathedral.

Rochester Castle, like its cousin in Lewes, suddenly pops up between two buildings in the shopping district:

 Rochester Castle

Unlike Dover Castle, which is in good repair and was used militarily until recent times, Rochester Castle is a spooky ruin, open to the elements:

A tea break with more scones was followed by a visit to a dollhouse miniatures shop, where I got a tiny tea cake stand filled with itty bitty pastries, the perfect thing to bring home to my dollhouse residents.

Real tea cakes.

Don't they both look delicious?

Not real tea cakes.

A second-hand bookshop had a wonderful surprise inside. In one corner, shelves, cabinets, and cases were filled with small items dug up from local river banks, Victorian outhouse sites and rubbish dumps, and old cellars, the places where people disposed of things in the days before trash pickup services. (The centuries-old clay pipes mentioned in an earlier post came from this riverside.) The shop had shelves and shelves full of dug up old stoneware beer bottles, Victorian quack medicine containers, and even poison bottles! I got a handful of miniature china doll heads and a dollhouse chamber pot here, all locally excavated.

Everything seen here was dug up locally. 

Note the "Poison Bottle" sign on the top middle shelf, 

and "Victorian Quack Cures" below.

Dug up dollies, all miniatures.

 A dug up dollhouse doll head and chamber pot.

Rochester had a number of antique shops, and this one turned up two wonderful vintage teddy bears well-spotted by tour leaders Terry and Doris, who pointed me to the store. (Thank you Terry and Doris!)

 I got this 1950s Chad Valley ted with lovely curly mohair,

and a characteristically goofy-looking 

Pedigree, made in Ireland.

Coming up next: Day 9, Faversham (our last day in England.)