in junior high, my aunt and grandma created these little bears. They’re made of felt and are about 5 inches tall. They have moveable arms & legs. They were “discovered” at a flea market in Canton, TX called First Monday (a great flea market, BTW) and soon these little bears were selling in boutiques across the nation.
I remember helping with little jobs. My grandma lived next door & I would rush over each day to see if they needed me to do anything. I’d help cut out felt pieces, cut tiny strips of toilet paper & roll the strips to make tiny TP rolls for the bag lady’s shopping bag. My favorite job was making the tiny ribbon roses.
To make the ribbon roses, we used a sewing needle that had the top of the eye broken off. I’m not sure if it was manufactured this way or if my aunt or grandma broke it off. I’d start the ribbon with a tiny dot of tacky glue on the end of a toothpick. Then twist the ribbon, place a dot of glue, twist, dot of glue, twist, dot.. until a tiny ribbon rose was created. I’d make tons of these little roses for the bear creations and sometimes I’d make the tiny ribbon leaves that complemented the roses. The leaves were not as much fun as the roses, though.
I’m not sure how many different designs/costumes they came up with during the time they made these bears. I remember a Scarlet O’Hara bear, a bride & groom, Little Bo Peep (in one of the pics), a cowboy, a clown bear on a carousel horse that was handpainted by my mom & displayed in a glass dome. Once when I was in Atlanta, I saw a display of the little bears in a little boutique. It was kind of surreal.. knowing that I’d probably made some of the little ribbon roses that were in that shop.
Today, when I look at these little bears displayed throughout my home, I am transported back to those few summers when the days were filled with ribbon, fingers sticky from glue, felt bears strewn all about, stories and laughter from my aunt & grandma.
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