Stitch is a mischievous, rogue android from the alien race of Jumba Jookiba. He possesses high levels of computer intelligence and has a childlike personality beneath his “monster” appearance.
Use a yarn that has some loft to it, such as homespun, boucle or chenille. Don’t over-stuff the limbs. You will need the extra space to sew them into place later.
Stuffing
Stuffing is a mix of edible ingredients like herbs, bread and a binder such as egg, traditionally stuffed into the cavity of meat before it is cooked. It can also be used in a separate dish such as salad dressing.
Originally, the stuffing for stuffed animals was often made of rabbit, fox or chicken down – it was called dressing because it was placed within another food before cooking. It’s now more common to use polyester toy filling for stuffed animals but you can use cotton batting or even natural stuffing like wool, mohair or bamboo fiber (called Nature-fil by some brands).
When using natural stuffing, make sure it is not treated with fire retardants. If you are able to find it, natural wool or angora goat hair toy filling is very soft and durable. However, it is not machine washable and may shrink over time so will need to be hand washed if you want to keep it looking good.
Ears
Whether they are curved or straight, a bear’s ears can make or break his/her look. When sewing ears, it’s important to sew in gentle curves instead of straight lines for a more natural appearance.
Your thrifty find is quite a large one at 21”. He looks like an artist teddy, created from a soft plush fabric with silk inspired pads. He also has the characteristic features of early American Ideal Novelty and Toy Company teddies such as the fabric nose, that may have been re-stitched, large cupped ears, and a horizontal cord nose with mouth extension.
His ears are slightly curved and his nose is horizontally stitched with the lower septum outlined in black cord, which adds a unique touch to this sweet little guy! He may have had a hole in his right ear but it’s very hard to tell. His pads are also re-stitched to the head seam. Those were common to help stand teddies up!
Muzzle
A muzzle is a device that covers an animal’s mouth to prevent biting and eating. It can also be used to restrain a dog from barking or lunging at other dogs or people. Muzzles are not a permanent solution to behavior problems, but can help keep everyone safe while you work with an animal behaviorist or dog trainer on positive behavioral modification.
Your sweet teddy bear appears to be English and dates to the early 1920’s with a full torso, hand closed body seam in back torso, large feet, traces of vertical stitching on the ears, and big cupped ears. He has a nice leather like nose with the mouth stitching matching the eyes (iris) and is five way jointed. His pads are silk Victorian crazy quilt with embroidered initials. He is 21″ and considered a large teddy. This was a teddy made by Peacock & Co before Chad Valley acquired them. This was a very fine maker with excellent quality.
Eyes
Embroidered eyes look lovely but aren’t safe for young children because they are easy to gnaw off. You can use safety eyes instead (available from most sewing or haberdashery shops).
Eye placement is also important – for a cutesy look, eyes are often set quite wide apart and ears towards the top of the head. However, if you want to give your teddy a more country or shabby chic look, the eyes could be set closer together and the ears lower down.
If you aren’t sure what size eyes to make or aren’t confident embroidering them, try pinning a couple of small circles from dark colour paper or felt fabric onto your bear. This way you can see how the eyes will look and decide whether they are what you are after. If not, you can unpin the dummy eyes and try another pair. The circle doesn’t need to be perfect as the eye shape will be corrected by the stitching around it later.Stitch Teddys
