Background
The teddy bear, which was created around the turn of the century, is a common sight in the lives of most individuals born in this century. As a result of our fascination with real bears, toy bears emerged. In a shrine where the Cult of the Bear worshipped for more than 50,000 years, Neanderthal hunters gathered the skulls of a huge brown bear that had since gone extinct. The bear continues to represent stalwartness, bravery, and perseverance in modern culture. Bears are very similar to humans in many ways; they are protective of their young, can stand on their hind legs, and like a good hug. Bears have been referred to as the “clowns of the woods” due to their humorous antics, such as dancing, sitting on their haunches, and rolling over onto their backs.
The bear Bruin was a common fixture in medieval literature. Folkloric bears in Russia eventually became the cartoon character Mishka. After becoming the official mascot and collector toy of the 1980 Summer Olympics, Mishka was introduced to the rest of the globe. Since the teddy bear’s inception, Winnie-the-Pooh, Paddington Bear, Big Teddy and Little Teddy (characters in a sequence of books by H. C. Craddock), Yogi and Boo-Boo Bear, Smokey, and Sesame Street’s Fozzie bear have become much-loved pals and toys from the bear kingdom. According to psychologists, the bond we share with teddies is “transitional” because they serve as secret confidants for youngsters as they wean themselves off of parental dependence.
History
The teddy bear made its debut at about the same time on two distinct continents. In 1903, Margarete Steiff opened a factory run by her family in Giengen, Germany to make felt stuffed animals. When she and her nephew Richard Stieff went to the Stuttgart Zoo, he suggested they create a bear based on his sketches.
Margarete was concerned that a teddy bear could be too frightening for her little son, so she gave him a cute small nose and a slumped back so he would look more like a real bear. She drew a pattern for a bear with articulated limbs onto the fabric scrap pile, allowing it to sit, stand, and wiggle its head, arms, and legs. It was packed with excelsior (wood shavings used as packing material) and included a shoe-button nose, embroidered eyes, and other details. At a fair in Leipzig, Germany, Richard’s bear caught the eye of an American toy buyer, who instantly placed an order for three thousand plush animals. Since then, the German Steiff factory has been cranking out thousands of bears per day, all based on Margarete’s original design.
At the same time, Theodore Roosevelt became well-known in the United States for his efforts to preserve the country’s natural resources. Attempting to hunt down a brown bear as part of a diplomatic mission to settle a boundary dispute between Louisiana and Mississippi, he was ultimately unsuccessful. Not wanting to disappoint the President, the hosts set out to secure a bear. Still, this cub was a baby, and the President would never kill an animal that hadn’t been hunted ethically. A political cartoon by Clifford Berryman appeared in the New York Evening World on November 16, 1902, showing the spectacled president cuddling a lovable bear that he had refused to shoot.
Raw Materials
Mohair “fur,” a fabric often used for upholstery, was used to create the first teddy bears, which were then outfitted with black leather shoe-button eyes and stuffed with excelsior. Glass eyes were commonly used in the 1920s, but like button eyes, they could be readily removed. It was in 1948 when Wendy Boston of Boston, Massachusetts, received a patent for a molded nylon screw-on eye. In the 1950s, these were replaced with plastic eyes secured to the inside of the cloth with grommets or washers and mounted on stems. As early as the 1960s, these protective eyes had become the industry norm.
Images of holiday attire for teddy bears were published in the Ladies Home Journal in December 1907. Teddy bear photographs from a Ladies’ Home Journal article on how to outfit them for Christmas, December 1907. In America, the teddy bear fad was at its height during the years 1906-1908, the same years that President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt was in power. People of all ages, from babies to adults, were “teddy bear mad” all over the country. While numerous standard teddy bears were being made at this time by factories in the US and elsewhere, many more out-of-the-ordinary teddy bears were appearing on store shelves. Among these is the “Laughing Roosevelt Bear,” which was made to mimic the president’s famous grin. When turned upside down and right side up, a self-whistling bear whistled. When you touched a button on an “Electric Eye” bear’s stomach, its eyes lit up. Many more products, from automotive accessories to infant rattles to jigsaw puzzles to postcards to hot water bottle covers, included teddy bears throughout this period. And in 1907, John W. Bratton wrote the music for what would become known as “The Teddy Bear Two-Step” and “The Teddy Bear’s Picnic.” Some teddy bear fans liked giving their stuffed animals a more human touch by dressing them up in doll-like outfits. The images above depict a set of clothing for teddy bears that would make a great handmade Christmas present for kids. The 15-cent pattern was available in three sizes to accommodate bears from 12 and 20 inches in height. The article that accompanied these images made the bold claim, “Even the crossest teddy bear would be thrilled if he discovered this wonderful set of clothes in his Christmas stocking!”
Donna R. Braden
Articulated bears have also undergone some design changes. Disks and cotter pins (twistable fasteners) were used in the earlier designs to attach the arms, legs, and heads to the torso, which had to be securely packed to support the pins. The first discs were crafted from wood and covered in leather to safeguard the fur. Currently, plastic discs are being used as a substitute by businesses that employ this method, but the production is still largely. Costs a lot of money to make a teddy bear. The arms of teddy bears created in the 1940s were often made separately and then sewn into the bear’s torso seams and legs. The free stuffing at the joints allowed the bears to bend without having to be articulated.
Fabrics are one of the modern era’s most diverse materials. Synthetic plushies that mimic the look and feel of real fur have become very popular. Bears in the past were typically crafted from mohair, a blend of Angora (goat’s wool), sheep’s wool, rayon, and silk. Today’s plush can be made from a wide variety of materials, including natural and synthetic ones like wool, silk, rayon, nylon, and others. Velvet and velveteen (cotton velvet as opposed to velvet made from silk or synthetics) are well-liked for their plushness and variety of color options. Bears in the present day still love their iconic faux fur fabrics. In contrast to plush, faux fur has a knitted rather than woven base, making it lightweight and flexible; the fiber can be shaped to remove luster and closely mimic actual fur with blended colors. Teddy bears can also be made from real fur, though fur bears are more fragile and should be handled with care. You can also find the fundamentals on materials like corduroy, denim, calico, terry cloth, and velour. They are handpicked to ensure diversity in the resulting products, such as the soft terry fabric bears for infants and the rugged denim bears for cowboys. Both real and faux leather or suede can be used to make a lovely pair of teddy bear paws. These and other parts or even whole bears can be made out of felt, but be warned that felt is not particularly durable. To a similar extent, knitted or crocheted teddy bears have stretchy fabric. Materials like glue, VelcroTM, plastic and metal eye assembly, and embroidery floss for noses and other characteristics round out the list. To make longer-lasting and cuddlier toys, the polyester filling has replaced the traditional wood shavings used to stuff teddy bears. A large variety of fabrics, ribbons, fasteners, and decorations (such as eyeglasses for a Teddy Roosevelt bear) may be needed if the manufactured bears are dressed or adorned.
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Design
An artist versed in toy design and production sketches the initial concept for the next generation of teddy bears. The pattern for the bear is drawn from a sketch or mental image of the finished product. After assembling the pattern pieces, the first bear is tested for “character defects.” If the bear can’t sit properly because of the design, or if the prototype just doesn’t look cute or special enough, the pattern is redrawn, the forms of the pieces are altered, or new materials are utilized to create a new version of the prototype. It could take several iterations to get the design just right before it’s ready for mass production. Assuming a sufficient number of units will be sold to justify production, designers may take into account current trends and news stories while conceptualizing new products. One California bear manufacturer, for instance, markets plush bears designed to look like the bruin seen on the state flag.
The Manufacturing
Process
Upon final approval, the sketch is turned into a blueprint, from which paper patterns are cut. We cut out the designs and pin them to the fabric. The plush may be layered with the design placed on top, and a cutter with a blade similar to a band saw is used to cut off numerous pieces all at once. Workers in rows sit in front of their industrial sewing machines. Each person is in charge of a different type of bear. First, he or she will put together the smaller components, such as the face’s eyes and grommet attachments. There are holes in the bears’ seams and a huge slit in the rear since they are inside out. To finish, the bears are turned right side out and sent off to be stuffed. A worker can generate anywhere from 35 to 45 baby bears in a day, but only 8 to 9 larger bears, depending on the species.
We stuff the bear that has been sewn. Tightly packed bales of polyester fiber weighing 500 lb (227 kg) are what the manufacturer prefers to buy. The fiber has a dual density with a very thin fiber and a thicker, slightly wavy fiber; these fibers work together to create the ideal packing quality for stuffed animals. Due to its dense packing, polyester is fluffed by tossing it in batches into a picker, a barrel lined with spikes. Air then blows the fluffed material into a stuffing machine. The machines haven’t changed much since they were employed to stuff flight jackets for the US Navy and Army Air Force during World War H. The stuffing is blown into the bear via a thin tube using air pressure. The filling can be sent to different areas of the bear depending on the operator’s manipulations. The filling machine’s puffs can be adjusted with the press of a foot pedal. For instance, if the bear needs a firm nose, it may take two pedal presses to pump enough stuffing from the machine’s nozzle. The body should be soft while the head, feet, and paws should be sturdy. The “hug test” is a reliable method for the operator to assess the bears’ cuddliness and ensure consistent quality.
A second worker, the “bear surgeon,” then closes the incision in the stuffed animal’s back. The entire bear is then given a bath and a haircut. The “hair” gets caught in the seams because the plush fabric was stitched inside out, and this must be removed before the seams can be worn. The seams are fluffed using an electric wire brush, and the bear is blown through a series of air jets to brush the fur and remove loose fur. Before being packaged for transit and sale, the bear receives its finishing touches including costumes, ribbons, and accessories.
Quality Control
Although teddy bears are manufactured in large quantities, a great deal of care must be taken in their design and creation. The workers who cut the fabric, sew the bears together, operate the stuffing machines, and dress, groom, and operate on the bears all take tremendous satisfaction in their work since they know the bears will bring joy to their owners for many years. Producing the bears by hand allows for thorough quality control checks at each stage of manufacturing, preventing defects from making it to the packing stage.
Byproducts/Waste
Production of teddy bears generates no waste, although other varieties of stuffed animals and dolls are used as co-products. To avoid wasting fabric, patterns for little stuffed animals are occasionally made to fit in the spaces between the bear segments. Most of the waste from making bears consists of fabric scraps and excess stuffing, neither of which can be reused or recycled. In the beer industry, safety is of the utmost importance. Due to the inherent dangers of working with electrical equipment, fabric cutters, sewing machines, and wire brushes are all fitted with safety features like as emergency shutoffs and guards to prevent accidents. To avoid breathing in the floating dust, operators cover their mouths and nostrils with masks. There are additional operations that necessitate the use of safety eyewear.
The Future
Teddy bears have a picnic in their future. Character bears to miniature, beanbag-like, affordable, and collectible replicas of this much-loved critter have emerged as new interpretations of this species, following trends in movies, television, and toy fashion. In February 1995, Magellan T. Bear, a teddy bear from Elk Creek Elementary School in Pine, Colorado, served as an ambassador for the school on a NASA mission. Although teddy bears are most typically associated with their popularity among children, they are also highly sought after by adult collectors who wish to expand upon their childhood companions by purchasing rare or limited edition teddies. Even when our lives become more and more reliant on electronic devices, teddy bears can transport us back to our simpler times and provide an endless supply of warm hugs.
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