Teddy Bear Academy is almost ready! We’ve set the date of JULY 15th. The free video has been “filmed” and edited. Now to work on the first 2 premium videos. A little bit more work on the actual site and we are ready to rock!
Author: Laura Lynn
How to Download and Print your Teddy Bear Class Pattern
Not sure how to get the pattern for your class downloaded? Here is a quick video explaining the process:
More Tools for Making Teddy Bears
When you are ready to add to or upgrade your bear making tool box, here is what I use. I will provide links to where you can buy them online if you cannot find them locally.
Scissors – I prefer the 5″ Fiskar’s Soft Touch Micro Tip scissors. They are much easier on my hands and if used ONLY for fabric, stay very sharp. You can find them on Amazon here: Fiskars 5 Inch Titanium Micro-Tip Easy Action Scissors (12-71777097J)
AWL: I like using an awl instead of a sharpened chopstick. You use the awl to insert the glass eyes into your bear and to help insert the teddy bear joints. Here is one on Amazon: Clover Straight Tailors Awl
Needles: Most of my needles I get from my local fabric shop, but I use a set of specialty needle that I love using to insert the bears’ eyes. They are heavy duty C.S. Osborne upholstery needles. If you cannot find them with your bear making supply shop, you can find them on Amazon: C.S. Osborne Straight Round Point Upholstery Needle Kit
Cotter Pin Turner (or Cotter Key) You can make teddy bears without one of these tools. You can turn your cotter pins with a needle nose pliers instead. But I do find it easier to use a cotter pin turner. I have both the regular size and the mini size. I tend to use use the mini cotter pin turner quite often. I also use it to help stuff my bears. I had a hard time finding this tool on either Amazon or eBay, but it is most certainly available at the online teddy bear supply shops!
Alligator clips instead of pins: I used to use pins to hold my mohair fabric pieces together while I sewed. Then I discovered alligator clips! They are so much faster to use. They don’t pucker my fabric like the pins did. An added bonus is that they don’t put pin sized holes in my fabric! I originally found them at Radio Shack. I had to ask at the counter as they were not out on the shelves. Recently I’ve been buying them online at eBay (link). I prefer the type with teeth.
Slicker Brush: I bought a clean small dog slicker brush that I use just for my bears. I highly recommend one for bear makers and collectors alike!
Curved Embroidery Scissors: Every bear maker will develop their favorite method of trimming faces. I find that a pair of small curved embroidery scissors are a great help! I use Gingher’s 4″ curved embroidery scissors available on Amazon: Gingher 4 Inch Curved Embroidery Scissors (01-005273)
Tweezers: I highly recommend getting a set of tweezers to keep in your bear making kit. They are just wonderful for pulling out stray mohair from around the eyes or the rest of the face. I use them on every bear!
White Gelly Roll Pens: These are awesome for tracing patterns onto the back of very dark colored teddy bear fabric. Not all gelly roll pens are created equal though! I tried many from the local shops around my home, but finally found some that work great for me on Amazon. You can find those here: Sakura 37488 3-Piece Gelly Roll Blister Card Medium Point Gel Ink Pen Set, White
Battery Operated Mustache Trimmer: This makes trimming the fur away from your seam allowances a breeze! I do go through a few AA batteries, so if that is a concern, you may want to consider the regular electric variety. I had trouble with the cord getting in the way so I use the battery operated type. I also use it to help me trim bear muzzles. Here it is on Amazon: Conair Beard and Mustache Trimmer
What tools do I need to Make a Teddy Bear?
Full transcript below:
Hi I’m Laura Lynn from Teddy Bear Academy.net where you can take online teddy bear making classes from the comfort of your own home.
In this week’s free video, I’m going to go over the basic tools you need to make teddy bears.
You don’t need a lot of fancy tools to make teddy bears. In fact you don’t even need a sewing machine. So I’d like to show you some of the very basic tools that you need to make teddy bears.
- First, you do need some needles. These were all straight when I bought them. They became bent with use.
- I use this needle – it’s a quilter’s basting needle for my hand sewing. I chose this one because it is very skinny so it doesn’t make large holes in the fabric. The head on the needle (the eye of the needle) is also thin which helps prevent large holes in the fabric. But it is still large enough so that I can still thread the needle easily. If I’m out of these needles, I will use a Size 7 Quilter’s basting needle.
- This is a 3″ soft sculpture needle. I use this for stitching my bears’ noses.
- This is a 5″ doll needle. I often use this for inserting the eyes. Occasionally I’ll use it for sinking threads. Sometimes I’ll use it for stitching the bears’ noses as well. So those are the three basic needles I use to sew my bears.
- You also need some pins to hold your fabric together as you are stitching.
- A pair of needle nose pliers comes in very handy for grabbing the needle when you are having a hard time getting that needle through the fabric, or through the bear’s nose when you are trying to stitch that nose. I also use them for closing up my joints inside my bears. I us these all the time.
- You do need a very sharp pair of scissors that you use ONLY for bear making or other fabric. I personally like a shorter blade length because then I have more control over it so I don’t chop the mohair or other fur.
- A black Sharpie. I usually use this fine tip one, but sometimes I’ll use the regular size Sharpie. I use this for tracing the pattern pieces onto my fabric.
- A chopstick with a rounded end, or a new pencil eraser. I use these as stuffing tools for my bears.
- For making the holes for the joints and eyes of my bears I use an awl. But if you don’t have an awl, you can use a barbecue skewer or you an sharpen the end of a chopstick.
And that’s it! Those are all of the tools that you absolutely need to make beautiful teddy bears!
Get your FREE eBook: How to Make Teddy Bears which includes 7 free patterns when you sign up for my bear making tips newsletter here: https://teddybearacademy.net/teddy-bear-making-instructions/
Teddy Bear Making Suppliers Worldwide
We have a list of bear making suppliers all over the world below. You can also find what you need to make bears on eBay: Bear Making Supplies on eBay
Teddy Bear Suppliers in the USA
Teddy Bear Suppliers in Canada
http://www.bearsandbedtime.com/
ShamrockRoseTeddyBearSupplies.org
Teddy Bear Suppliers in the UK
www.MohairBearMakingSupplies.co.uk
Teddy Bear Suppliers in Germany
http://www.baerenstuebchen.de/
Teddy Bear Making Suppliers in Italy
Teddy Bear Suppliers in the Netherlands
Teddy Bear Suppliers in Australia
Teddy Bear Suppliers in South Africa
Teddy Bear Suppliers in Singapore
Teddy Bear Suppliers in Japan
What is the Best Teddy Bear Making Fabric?
What is the Best Teddy Bear Making Fabric?
You can use the faux fur that you find at fabric shops.
.
You can use fabric called mohair that the original teddy bears were made from.
.
You can use a beautiful imported synthetic.
.
You can use a piece of loved ones clothing like a T-shirt, uniform, sweater or robe for a nice memory bear.
And you can make a beautiful memory bear out of an old fur coat.
.
So many choices! What is the best teddy bear making fabric to use? That really depends upon a number of things.
Let me explain them in the next article here: