Showing posts with label new bear. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new bear. Show all posts

Monday, 30 March 2026

A Spring posy


The Bearmaker and Primrose teddy bear


When I was a small girl, there was a low gate at the end of our garden and sometimes Dad would take us through that gate to play in the woods beyond. Even now I see the bluebells and primroses in my mind's eye, soft colour and delicate blooms spread like a dainty pastel carpet over muddy banks.  In those days of childhood innocence, my sister and I would pick posies of woodland flowers, clutching them proudly as we took them home muddy footed, for Mum to keep in a glass milk bottle on the kitchen windowsill. They were the happy days of childhood, days when the woods were full of magic and adventures.

Fast forward more than half a century and I don't mind telling you, one of my favourite walks of the year is still through the woods in Spring. A twisty stroll among nodding bluebells, shy primroses and tree branches bursting with tiny new green leaves, brings with it a beautiful peace ... one that can only be truly gifted by Mother Nature.

These days I preserve precious childhood memories through my creativity, weaving the beauty of those first spring flowers into my teddy bear designs to share with collectors, so that they too, can feel the gift of a timeless Spring, bursting with beauty and hope for the future.

Monday, 9 March 2026

Guardian of Childhood Memories

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Those who have followed my teddy bears since the mid 90's, will best know me for creating large, traditional teddy bears with soulful faces.  


I love these stately bears, protectors of our teddy bear heritage, guardians of our childhood memories ... and I am so proud to continue to make them for collectors around the world, thirty years after creating my very first traditional teddy bears.

If you would like to know more about my latest big bear Noah, please visit him by visiting my website: www.allbearbypaula.com

Thank you!

Wednesday, 16 April 2025

Apple Blossom Serenity

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Spring is such a lovely time in the UK. The blossom trees are an absolute picture in their beautiful pastel shades. It is the perfect season to be inspired by nature and for creating pretty pastel teddy girls. 'Apple Blossom' is my latest teddy bear, a vision in peachy pinks and pale apple green, with a tiny hint of lilac... capturing a moment of sweet teddy bear serenity.

Friday, 9 August 2024

Lilas Rose

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Lilas Rose

Now and again it is fun to create a unique teddy bear in a more unusual colour. I was recently asked to make a special pink teddy girl for a collector, so rather than repeat any shades I have previously used in my bear-making, I decided to hand dye a piece of mohair and discover a unique shade of pink. 14" 'Lilas-Rose' teddy is the resulting bear... a wonderful confection of soft pink shades... and a lovely memory of our magnificent summer roses this year!

Thursday, 18 April 2024

Camellia-Rose


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It is several years since I last used my dye pot to create a teddy bear but last week, I remembered just how much fun it was...


I had a beautiful piece of ivory mohair in my box but it wasn't quite hitting the high notes for me to want to start making a teddy bear, so I decided to use some beautiful silk dyes to mix up a little teddy bear magic! After mixing my dye, I hung the mohair to dry in my garden near the camellia plant my dad gave me for my birthday, about thirty years ago. The plant, originally in a heavy ceramic pot, was eventually transported to our new home and transplanted to the garden about seventeen years ago. It settled into the flowerbed perfectly and has since grown huge over the years, bearing the most stunning pink blooms in April. The colour of my mohair was the colour of the Dad's camellia blooms, which made me smile and inspired me to create my Camellia-Rose teddy bear last week.

Happily, Camellia-Rose was adopted shortly after I popped her onto my website and she will be flying out to America to meet her new owner this week.

I am feeling inspired to create my own palette of pretty teddy bears over the coming summer months, so have ordered a lovely selection of dyes and am looking forward to sharing the results on my website!

Tuesday, 9 April 2024

Teddy Bear Gold

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After a pretty Spring full of pastel teddy bears, Treacle teddy bear's mohair has been calling my inner traditional teddy bear maker...


For me, there is always something very special about finding the perfect gold mohair, so when I spotted just such a fabric on one of my supplier's websites recently, I couldn't resist ordering half a metre to see if might live up to my expectations for a perfect teddy bear fur ... and luckily, it did! 

It may seem strange to non-teddy bear people, to learn that the discovery of a particular mohair can be an exciting moment for someone, but I am certain all teddy bear creators have their own special preferences and mine has always been luxurious, richly coloured and traditionally gold. I have created many types of teddy bear over the years and have always enjoyed exploring alternative design, fabric and colour but my heart remains true to the traditional teddy bear and I never lose the desire to recreate him in my own sweet way, with the perfect mohair..

Collectors the world over have loved the classic proportions and natural shades of traditional teddy bears for over a century and continue to do so today. Treacle was adopted as soon as he made his appearance on my website yesterday and happily, he will be heading off to meet his new owner this week. 

Wednesday, 14 February 2024

Steadfast and true


Henry 16"


When I was first introduced to the world of artist bears way back in the 1990's, the bears that always captured my heart were soulful, traditional gold teddy bears. I loved them then and love now.

Steadfast and true.
In my eyes, they embody childhood and will never grow old.

This is my latest traditional bear, a lovely 16" fellow called Henry.
I hope he makes you smile. 🙂


Update: Henry has been adopted.

Friday, 25 August 2023

The sound of silence

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After a much needed change of scenery, I was able to add a lovely new traditional teddy bear to my website yesterday, aptly named 'Devon'...



My husband and I headed to Devon recently with our three dogs in the car, on the rainiest of August days. It was hard to believe it was mid Summer as the rain hammered heaven's hardest on our windscreen but fortunately, when we did eventually arrive at our holiday cottage about six soggy doggy hours later, the sun finally shone and my son and his family had already safely arrived and started unpacking. The scenery overlooking Dartmoor was absolutely beautiful, so we were eager to unpack the car, take the dogs and Grandchildren to the large meadow across the road for a good run ... and launch ourselves into full holiday mode, at last!

We spent a wonderful week exploring Dartmoor and Cornwall as a family. It was hard work but much fun. The dogs swam in the sea at Padstow and the children paddled and rock-pooled in Boscastle Harbour, traversing the scarily high bridge strung between the clifftops of Tintagel, in search of a statue of King Arthur at the castle ruins.

We walked miles with our dogs, meeting wild ponies, long horned cattle and sheep on Dartmoor, then listening to the sound of absolute silence far out on the moors. One evening we supped mugs of hot chocolate and ate marshmallows in the darkness by Harford Bridge while bats swooped around us and another day, we drove along barely used farm tracks lined with gorse and deep dark forest, to find the most beautiful hidden reservoir at the end of our white-knuckle ride ... and we all ate more pasties and ice-creams than were probably good for any self-respecting waistline!

It was a lovely week, full of laughter and family fun with my son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren but also full of happy summer holiday memories of my own children excitedly exploring Boscastle and Tintagel when we were still a young family just starting out in life, many years ago. It was very special to revisit some of the special places we had always enjoyed, with my Grandchildren this summer.

Many waters have since flowed beneath the harbour bridge you see in the photograph above... but over more than thirty years later, I can still picture my children posing there for photos snapped on my little Olympus point 'n shoot camera, hoping to be bought an ice-cream and taken to visit the gift shops further along the path, after scrambling over rocky cliff paths. They were such happy times. It is lovely to see my son now cementing his own special childhood memories by sharing them with his wife and children. Life it seems, always comes full circle. 

Monday, 17 July 2023

Huxley Bear

Huxley Bear


I made this 14" alpaca teddy bear last week and when he was finished, knitted him a smart vest top to wear. Then I spotted a pair of teddy bear spectacles in my box of accessories so thought I would add them, just for fun, fully intending to remove them after a moment or two but 'Huxley Bear' liked his new specs so much he asked to keep them on. He says he can now see clearly and even better, share storybooks just as soon as he finds his special person to read with...

I wonder what they will read together? Maybe Paddington, Winnie-the-Pooh or Rupert Bear? Or perhaps, Huxley Bear will prove to be an adventuring kind of bear... so maybe Treasure Island, The Famous Five, or my old favourite, Peter Pan? 

Whatever they choose to read, I do hope Huxley Bear and his new owner will share many special stories together.

Tuesday, 24 January 2023

A flying start

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A FLYING START

2023 is off to a flying start, but aside from the rather dashing Albert teddy bear I introduced at the start of the year, I am aware my website has had little to show for it!

There is plenty of bear-making activity happening behind scenes but nothing quite ready to share...

I am currently working on a group of traditional teddy bears for The Bear Shop in Norwich and will be finishing the final bear this week. I also have a big bear in progress, to share on my website shortly. Last week I received a fabulous piece of gold mohair for a very special birthday order and am very much looking forward to starting work in time for my collector's big day.

I also received another piece of the beautiful blue mohair I created Wynter teddy from at the tail end of last year and plan to use it to create a completely different style of bear from Wynter. The mohair was such a pretty blue I couldn't resist ordering it again when I saw it was available!

Lastly for now, I should receive a parcel of Harris Tweed in the next few days ... it is definitely time for some of my Tweedy Teds to make a return this year, as they were a little too quiet in 2022!

I think I made my very first teddy bear from a child's kit in 1992 and after making a couple of mohair teddy bears also from kits, attempted to design my own bears in 1994. I plucked up courage to begin selling a few locally in 1996. I would never have dreamed that almost thirty years later, my teddy bears would be living all around the world and I would be excited about yet another year of teddy bear making! 

Wednesday, 26 January 2022

Cherish

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CHERISH.. THE LOVE

A simple red heart says so much doesn't it? A teddy bear made with love, a gift given with love, a hug shared with love..

This teddy bear put me in mind of an old pop song called 'Cherish the love', by Kool & the Gang (and now playing in my head!) ... 

'Cherish the love we have, we should cherish the life we live
Cherish the love, cherish the life, cherish the love
Cherish the love we have, for as long as we both shall live
Cherish the love, cherish the life, cherish the love

Cherish the love
Cherish the life'

A verse with a positive message all those years ago (mid 80's I think)... and it occurs to me that after two years of pandemic heartache, these lyrics could easily apply to today too...

Thursday, 2 September 2021

Seaside Follies

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SEASIDE FOLLIES

I recently received an intriguing request to create this 21" commemorative teddy bear. He celebrates the life of my collector's Great Grandfather 'Jack Bellamy', a successful music hall act and Pierrot clown in the early 1900's. My collector emailed a blurry black and white photograph for me to work from and as a nod to Jack Bellamy's original Pierrot costume, included a request for pom-poms to be included in the design of his tribute teddy bear.

Pierrot troupes were a feature of almost every seaside town in the first half of the 1900's, raising funds and morale during the war years. They were obliged to be 'smart, charming and available at all times' and ready to entertain with music, dance and comedy, whatever the weather!  Many of our legendary British comedians such as Arthur Askey, Lesley Crowther and Max Miller, began their comedic careers as Pierrot Clowns, providing charming family fun at the seaside until the 1950's/60's, when overseas travel and foreign holidays became more accessible to British families and the Pierrots' heyday came to an end.

For a more detailed glimpse into the world of the 'Seaside Follies' Pierrot troupes, please visit www.seasidefollies.co.uk

Wednesday, 17 March 2021

With love from me to you

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WITH LOVE FROM ME TO YOU

I wonder, what style of teddy bear do you like best? It's a tricky question, I know! There are so many wonderful teddy bears available online these days, it must be very hard to choose that one special teddy bear...

Since the start of the pandemic I have stayed home and shopped online. I learned that I don't actually need shops in my life and a good photograph will suffice in most cases when choosing what to buy. I don't miss stuffy changing rooms, queues or busy car parks and I certainly don't miss being hustled and bustled in busy stores. No, online shopping suits me just fine these days. I even managed to order a lovely new rose for my garden last week ...(although, if I'm honest, I did feel a twinge of nostalgia for mooching along rows of roses at the garden centre, umming and aahing over which would be my perfect choice).  I suppose one day I may rediscover the urge to visit a shop, but until then I am content to scroll, click and wait patiently for my deliveries.

I think in the case of teddy bears, choosing a companion bear from a photograph must be quite a trepiditious affair. Teddy bears are by nature a cuddlesome purchase so when buying online, a sense of touch is swapped for sight ... and imagination. It becomes ever more important to trust your bear maker when buying online. Thankfully, the wonder of the internet provides us with opportunities to 'chat' ...in fact probably more so now than at an actual teddy bear show where time was always so limited!

I used to love watching collectors reaching for my bears at teddy bear shows. It was always a privilege to witness those first few seconds in person, when a bear caught the eye of a collector and the collector couldn't resist picking him up for a cuddle. Nowadays of course, that precious moment happens after a teddy bear has already been purchased, packed into his box for travel to a distant horizon and safely delivered to a new owner after I have wished him a safe journey. Times have changed but fundamentally, the process of falling in love with a special bear does still happen... a teddy bear catches the eye of a collector across the internet, rather than across a crowded show room and when he (or she!) arrives at their door, I like to imagine the box being carefully opened and the same joy on the new owner's as they reach inside to hug their bear for the very first time ... 

I may not be able to share smiles and conversation in person with collectors these days, but my bears will always share them on my behalf, wherever they travel in the world ... with love, from me to you.

Friday, 14 February 2020

A many splendoured thing

On this Valentine's Day..

13" Love

A sweet little pink bear, to celebrate that thing called 'Love'.

:-)


Monday, 10 February 2020

A wild weekend..

On this lovely sunny (if windy!) morning, it is time to introduce a new 15" bear ... I would like you to meet Dorian.

Dorian is a lovely pastel bear, created from beautiful dense Schulte mohair ... and best of all, he is very huggable!

Available from my website:


15" Dorian

What a weekend it has been for walking dogs. Storm Ciara swept across Great Britain yesterday, creating high waves and havoc as she raged through the country. I managed to take Polly and Betty out for a short walk in the morning, but standing upright was quite a struggle at times! By the time the storm took a real hold, we were back home with our drawbridge pulled firmly up ... definitely a Sunday for catching up with episodes of 'The Crown' on Netflix and my knitting.

It's still pretty windy out there today, but a little less dangerous now, thank goodness!

:-)

Friday, 31 January 2020

Making a splash!

I think January has to be the bleakest month of the year with its short, dark days...



 It seems to drain the colour from everything!

14" Merriweather

Hopefully the bear I have just finished will help put that right, by adding a very welcome splash of teddy colour to our dreary Winter days...

So, if, like me, you too are craving a little colour in your world, please pop over to my website to meet my latest teddy bear 'Merriweather'!


I hope he makes you smile while we wait for Spring to arrive.

:-)

Update: Merriweather has now been adopted!

Monday, 20 January 2020

Be mine?

This dashing fellow is currently en route to Germany to share a Valentine's Day hug or two, with his new owner...

17" Romeo

 Gute Reise Romeo!

:-)

Monday, 6 January 2020

Little Bear Blue

And of course, a new year should always herald a new teddy bear...

Little Bear Blue 14"

'Little Bear Blue' is my very first bear of 2020. He is a 14" mohair teddy, in the most beautiful sky blue Schulte mohair. Let's hope he brings us blue skies and sunshine throughout this new year!

For the teddy bear fans among you, 'Little Bear Blue' is now available for adoption from my website:


Wishing you all a very Happy New Year and a year of hugs and smiles ahead!

:-)

Update: Little Bear Blue has now been adopted.

Monday, 18 November 2019

Bigger Hugs!

I recently began putting an annual portfolio of teddy bears together and as I sorted through photographs of my 2019 bears, it dawned on me, there have been fewer big bears this year, which, I must admit, was something of a surprise to me.

20" Brandysnap

Years ago, most of my designs were substantial, truly 'hug me' teddy bears, the kind of bears who demanded their own armchairs. I have always been well known for creating big bears and of course, still love to make them but am aware that such teddies take up considerable space and so many collections nowadays are feeling the squeeze after years of loyal teddy bear collecting.

It has been refreshing to work on medium and small sized teddy bears this year, but I would hate for my 'big 'uns' to become the dinosaurs of the bear world, only to be found in storybooks and imagination!  There are so few bear artists still making proper big teddy bears that I am very reluctant to let mine go.  So, as we roll towards Christmas Day, I plan to include at least one or two 'bears of stature' on my website, because as you may already know, bigger bears give bigger hugs!

Hopefully there will be a collector or two, with a cosy corner waiting in their collection, for just such a special teddy bear.


:-)

Monday, 4 November 2019

Juniper

A new little bear to share ...

12" Juniper

This isn't the official website photograph, but it's so cute, I couldn't resist sharing it here. It was taken on my mobile 'phone in my living room on Saturday evening, just as I finished knitting and took a moment to dress my little bear in his cosy new jumper for the first time.

It made me smile. 
I hope it makes you smile too.

:-)

Update: Juniper has been adopted.

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