Sewing is something I really enjoy, and do almost every day. These days, it is mostly clothing and quilting, but I used to make lots of teddy bears when the children in the family were small.

Clyde is the first bear I ever made. His eyes are crooked, the ears are too big, and too low, his head is too flat, and his nose is wobbly. Despite all of that, he is still my favorite of the 25 or so bears that I have put together over the years. He is 23 years old, and holding up well. My daughter made the sweater for him when she was 14, and just learning to knit.

Below is the pattern for this bear. Has anyone else used it? I have used wool, all sorts of fake fur fabric, and even denim. Maybe I will use some of the fabric I weave to do a bear, just thought of that! The last one I made was for a new baby, so I used a soft cream colored fleece.

This pattern calls for glass eyes, and plastic joints. Both are fairly easy to find, and the eyes come in several colors. Jointed bears seem to have so much more personality than the stitched ones, and are not any harder to make.