Collecting Plush Soft Toy Stuffed Bears

The teddy bear is an icon of childhood.

One of the classic childrens toys that is instantly recognisable, it has the magical power to take us back to where we started, to provide comfort with safe memories.

Our parents bought them for us, we buy them for our children.

Many people even in the age of adulthood can remember their bear, the special one. Brown Bear, Big Bear, Boofle, Lemmy - whatever the name we gave it, might be one of the few fading early memories of those simpler times.

Mine was called Blue Bear, because it was blue - things are so much more straightforward in childhood. It wasn't a Steiff or one of those rather hard unforgiving bears, but a soft, falling apart, ear missing bear with the power to ease a toothache or fight off the evils of the dark.

The general shabbiness of a bear is in direct proportion to the amount it is loved. This is not a child's toy to be placed on a shelf or in a box. It is to go to bed with, to hug, to gradually wear down into a soft familiar shape that shows how much you care for it.

Now of course, as a grown up collector it's possible to acquire lots of bear plush toys,although sadly none of them will ever quite match the affection felt for that original favourite and much loved bear.

Why does a bear have this ability to soothe and comfort us?

Is there something about the animal that has special powers?

The bear in nature is large and strong - maybe it has some of the appeal of an adult to a child, but in animal form.

It's a creature you could depend upon to protect you, to be your friend.

Maybe it's just a bear thing...

No Wiki required for this. We all know them. Here's a brief list.

• Rupert Bear.
• WWF Panda.
• Pudsey Bear.
• Paddington Bear.
• Winnie the Pooh. My favourite. Read them to your children. If you only ever buy them one book, buy the original Pooh stories.
• Barney Bear.
• Yogi Bear.

If I've missed an important one please let me know. My point is that they are scattered throughout our experience, a connection with our childhood and in some cases, a friend for life.

Written by AA Milne in the 1920's about a boy named Christopher Robin (his son) and his stuffed toy collection, these are beautiful, gentle and amusing stories.

I loved reading them as a child and treasure the time spent reading them to my own children much later.

I'm going to let you into a secret here.

The book "House At Pooh Corner" finishes with Christopher Robin going to school and saying good bye. There's a paragraph right at the very end that always makes me cry (I just checked) no matter when or where I read it.

These are stories from an earlier innocent time - perfect for small children and large adults. Easy to read and engaging - any young child will be captivated by the tales of Pooh, his friends and their adventures together.

These famous bear toys started in the 1900's.

They have a reputation as the highest quality stuffed toy available, and the highest price of course!

Rare ones are much prized by serious (and rich) collectors and can be quite valuable.

Although I wouldn't suggest trying to collect Steiff's - well I certainly couldn't afford to - they do make a nice one off piece, a sense of owning something very special indeed.

They also can make a rather super gift for a christening, perhaps for a grandchild - as the Steiff is something that will be treasured. Indeed there are many cases of the older Steiff bears being treated as a family heirloom, and passed down through the generations.

Steiff also do a range of less expensive items.

These bears are priced a bit (a lot) higher than their non Steiff plush soft toy equivalents but that's what being the number one name in bear manufacturing allows.

I never thought about collecting these before, but the more I look at them the more I am tempted.

The classic teddy bear look certainly does have an appeal.

And then there's TY bears of course.

The famous beanie babies but just bears, a reasonable way to build a soft plush toy teddy bear collection at a sensible price.

The one I have chosen to show you is from the Classic range - I think they look pretty good and pretty collectable too!

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