Steiff Stuffies

I am going to start off with a post dedicated to my two Steiff bears, Alfonzo and George.  One day when I was in high school, I found in a bookstore Teddy Bears--A complete guide to history, collecting and care by Sue Pearson.  I was totally captivated by the charm and history behind Teddy Bears and spent hours pouring over the detailed descriptions of various makers.  It was the stories and anecdotes, though, that really captured me--the personal histories of some of the bears included in the book, including one that was adopted by a Royal Air Force unit during WWII, and some beloved bears that were cherished and kept by their owners for a lifetime.  These stories are just so wistful, and make you wonder what hopes and fears, wishes and dreams were shared with these bears from long ago, what sort of tales they could tell or what their shoe button eyes have witnessed.  Antique or old things still make me feel like that.  When you hold something old, you get to tangibly touch the past, but so much is still secret, and lost in time. 

My favorite of all the famous bears with histories, however, was Alfonzo, the red Steiff bear that was the beloved companion of Princess Xenia of Russia, a gift from her father Grand Duke George Mikailovitch.  Her father was later killed during the Russian revolution, but Princess Xenia kept the bear with her until her death.

Look at his nose with all the fur worn off--probably from kisses!

Alfonzo is now on display at Teddy Bears of Whitney in the UK, still wearing his Cossack outfit that Princess Xenia had made for him.  Steiff made in the 90s a limited edition reproduction of Alfonzo that was available exclusively at Teddy Bears of Whitney, complete with Cossack outfit and bright red mohair.  I always wanted one of the reproductions, just because the original Alfonzo was such a special bear, but by then he was already long sold out.  At any rate, it was hard as a high schooler to have the funds for much of a collecting hobby of any kind.  As much as I loved Alfonzo and the idea of collecting bears, I never made it past just admiring them.  I moved to NY for a few years and every now and then, I would stop by FAO Schwarz on 5th avenue and go admire the Steiff bears they had in stock, but I still just admired because none really called out to me.  Until last year.

While browsing evil-bay, I somehow came across a listing for a reproduction Alfonzo in mint condition.  And that was it--I knew he had to come home with me.

Their little shoe button eyes have so much character!

After my Alfonzo arrived, it was love at first sight and ever since then, he has sat on my bookshelf guarding my books.  But as so often happens with dolls and toys, I could tell he wanted a friend.  I went looking on the Steiff website, and that is how George came to live with me as well.  Here they are enjoying the afternoon sitting at my cafe table.  They can't share my coffee or tea, but they're good company anyway :)

I realized I had a few more things to say about bears ~_^   I forgot to mention that recently, for Alfonzo's centennial I think,Steiff made for Teddy Bears of Whitney another limited reproduction of Alfonzo, this time distressed and aged to look like the real one does now.  I can't seem to find any pictures of that edition, but I remember seeing a few on ebay last year.  They seem to be sold out at any rate, but if you still want your own Alfonzo, a Baby Alfonzo version that is smaller (9.5 inches) is still in stock, as well as a special edition bear named after Princess Xenia. 

As much as I love Alfonzo, he's not the only bear with a history out there.  I think equally romantic or touching is the story of Polar, the bear who survived the sinking of the Titanic in his little owner's arms.  Steiff has a reproduction of Polar up for preorder on their website, and there is also a children's book about him originally written by Daisy Spedden for her son, Polar's owner Douglas.

And then of course, there is the most famous boy/bear pairing--Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh.

I just love kids and bears!

 

 The original Pooh bear was an Alpha Farnell bear Christopher Robin received for his first birthday.  Note that the real bear doesn't look much like the Pooh in the original illustrations.  As I recall, this is because the artist based his drawings on the bear that belonged to his own son, rather than Christopher Robin's bear.  Unfortunately, it seems that Christopher Robin later came to resent his father for exploiting his childhood and was made fun of by other boys at boarding school as a result of the Pooh stories :(  I haven't read the memoirs of Christopher Robin because they are out of print, but from reviews I've read, it appears that later in life he did finally come to terms with his father, the books, and being the Christopher Robin of international fame.

You can see Christopher Robin's original animals on display at the New York Public Library...well, all except poor little Roo, who was apparently lost by Christopher Robin while playing in the woods.  

I've been meaning to go see these guys!