Sending Gigantic Midcentury Teddy Hugs To You!

Steiffgal's got news. Really big news! Super-humongous news! A brand new cub has joined her hug, and she couldn't be more excited or pleased. But this isn't just any Ted, he's really in a class all to himself. Come learn more about this bouncing bundle of joy and what makes him so interesting from the design and historical perspectives.

This big, beautiful bear is of course a huge Teddy baby. He measures 40 inches or 100 cm tall. He is solidly stuffed with excelsior and weighs a whopping 16 pounds. He is five ways jointed and made from glowing, long shaggy blonde mohair. His inset facial muzzle and the tops of his flat toddler feet are made from shorter matching blonde mohair. His nose and claws are hand embroidered in brown. He has a smiling, open, peach colored felt lined mouth and a touch of tan airbrushing to give his face a bit more definition. The same peach colored felt lines his paw pads. His eyes are oversized, brown and black pupil style. And he wears a blue leather color that is decorated with a bell and 16 raised script style buttons. His working growler is activated by a metal pull string and loop on his back.

The Teddy Baby pattern is a legacy one for Steiff. It debuted in 1929; pre-World War II, Teddy Baby was made in 9, 12, 13, 15, 20, 22, 25, 30, 35, 38, 40, 45, and 65cm sizes. It is interesting to note that Teddy Baby was one of the very first items Steiff started producing when the factory in Germany opened after the war. Due to limited supplies and logistical complications, he was made in artificial silk plush in 1948. Then, once supplies and operations were back in order, he was produced in blonde or brown mohair in 9, 22, 28, 30, and 40 cm in the identical pattern made before the war. All sizes over 9 cm came with a leather collar with a bell. Teddy Baby remained in the Steiff line from 1949 to 1957, although due to his popularity with collectors, has been replicated many times in numerous limited edition series. Here above you can see a variety of early postwar standard line Teddy baby bears ranging from 9 to 40 cm. 

So... what's the history behind this larger than life version? He's only had one family, so Steiffgal was able to get the entire scoop on him from his original owners. Here's what she learned. This bear was purchased in about 1950 from Macy's on 34th Street in New York City. The woman who Steiffgal purchased this bear from was a little girl at the time and accompanied her father to the store to pick out a special present for her mother. Their mom loved Teddy bears, so of course Steiff would be a perfect fit for this mission. The two walked into Macy's toy department and saw him there... and it was love at first sight! They bought the bear right away for $100 at the time. Today, $100 in 1950 dollars has the buying power of almost $1,100 today! A pretty penny both then and now. Mom loved the bear, and treated him like a prince - bringing him out once a year to add to the family's Christmas celebrations. 

Size defies in a number of ways when it comes to this Ted. Clearly, he is not from the standard line, which topped out at 65 cm early postwar. Steiff did make a display, or studio sized brown mohair Teddy baby in 60 inches or 150 cm in the mid-1960s. You can see the 1967 catalog page promoting this bear above. And, he's not a "one of a kind" as other almost identical one was sold at auction a few years back. It is Steiffgal's suspicion that this bear in this size may have been produced in very low numbers for "special" or high profile customers around 1950. This was exactly the timing in which Steiff was trying to regain its worldwide distribution, reputation, and visibility right after WWII. As such, it is possible that the company produced these "monumental" sized and styled bears to catch the eye, attention, and wallets of affluent midcentury consumers. And what better place than Macy's in NYC to make that happen!?

Finally, Steiffgal can't emphasize enough the power of a good scrub when it comes to welcoming a new vintage friend into your hug. Yes, this Ted is GORGEOUS and his original family took extra loving care of him. However, he's been around almost 70 years without a bath... so that's the first thing Steiffgal did when she got him home. Over the course of two hours, he went from totally handsome to POSITIVELY GLOWING with the help of a dozen white washcloths, a light cleaning solution, and lots of elbow grease. You can see his "before" and "after" cleaning photos here on the left.   

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this huge Teddy baby has brought you enormous joy today.

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