Hold Everything And Check Out This Unusual Steiff Poodle PJ Bag!

Care to noodle a most mysterious poodle? Then check out this delightful Steiff Snobby - in the form of a pajama bag! This mohair marvel appeared out of nowhere on an online auction, and Steiffgal had no idea this pattern even existed. She studied her listing closely, first suspecting she was "mommy made" or even a "Frankenstein" item - made of bits and pieces of other items sewn together to make a "new" item. But a careful check of the photos detailing her construction and materials - including her zipper pull, belly lining, and seaming - confirmed she truly was all original. Cue the happy dance!

This nifty napper measures about 23 inches long, is lying flat on her belly, and unjointed. She is in the form of Steiff's legacy, mid-1950s Snobby poodle. Her arms, legs, beard and forehead are made from very long, soft grey mohair while her body, feet, tail, ears, and face are made from shorter matching grey mohair. Her face is detailed with lovely tricolored glass pupil eyes, a black hand embroidered nose and mouth, and a round, red felt tongue. On her belly, she has a long, silver colored zipper; when you pull it open, her hollow belly is lined in a lovely grey colored silken material. This pajama bag retains its raised script button in ear as its Steiff ID. She is in great, clean condition with little or no playwear to her at all. 

Pajama bag Snobby is clearly part of the Steiff Snobby poodle family tree. This classic Snobby pattern made its debut in 1953 as a full bodied, standing pup and appeared in the line through 1974 in 10, 14, 22, 35, and 43 cm. The design proved so popular that it was soon being produced in a number of novelties, including a riding toy, a puppet, and as a soft, curled up resting animal, among others However, Steiffgal cannot find reference anywhere to a standard line Steiff Snobby pajama bag.

However, there is precedence for sleepers like this. Steiff produced a fantastic, beautifully rendered mohair pajama bag as an exclusive for F.A.O. Schwarz from 1962 - 1972 in the form of a walrus. Like this Snobby, the walrus also has an identical zipper down its belly and a silk lined interior. And Steiffgal has a similarly constructed and also undocumented large black and white mohair Cockie Cocker Spaniel pajama bag, as well as a mohair lying tiger pajama bag. She does know through the original owner of the Cockie bag that he was purchased at F.A.O Schwarz as well in the late 1960s or early 1970s. This hints that Pajama bag Snobby might have been produced in a very small edition size for F.A.O. Schwarz, or another upscale toy retailer, during this time frame as well.

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on this Steiff Snobby pajama bag has added a little zip to your day.

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.

It's A Dream Come True With This Amazing And Adorable Steiff Pajama Bag

Hold everything! Well, that's exactly what this rarity was designed to do.  Check out this Steiff pajama bag designed after one of the company's most beloved dog patterns of the time. Steiffgal is certain you'll be experiencing puppy love at first sight!

This darling doggie has a great bedside manner. She is 60 cm (measured from the tip of her nose to her toes) long, lying, unjointed, and made from black and white mohair. Her head and the tips of each of her paws are softly stuffed. She has dramatic and floppy ears made from extra long mohair. Her back paw pads are made from short white mohair that has been stenciled with puppy-footprints on them. Her face comes to life with black and brown glass pupil eyes backed in white felt; a black, hand-embroidered nose; floppy jowls; and an open, pink velvet lined mouth. Her pert tail is surrounded by a black mohair patch. Her belly is soft and unstuffed, and hollow like a bag. It is lined is teal blue silk, and closes with a 28 cm metal zipper. She retains original red silk ribbon and her illegible yellow ear tag and raised script button as her IDs. 

This functional friends refuses to unzip the answers to a few mysteries about her. A very similar item, called Zipper Cockie, appears in Pfeiffer's Sortiment book and a pristine, like new example was sold by Teddy Dorado as part of that company's summer auction in 2014. That auction highlight is pictured here on the left and the photo is from Teddy Dorado. The article number on the Teddy Dorado version is identical to that listed in the Sortiment book - 0330,06 - and has relatively aligning measurements. The zipper on those examples is at the crotch of the animal, and the bag appears to be lined in simple cotton fabric. This standard line Zipper Cockie pajama bag was produced in 30 cm in 1964 only. Steiffgal's version has its zipper down the belly of the dog, and the lining bag is made from silk. Steiffgal's version is also proportionally larger overall than the Teddy Dorado and Sortiment examples, and has a much more detailed mouth structure.

So just who is this kooky Cockie? Clearly, her pattern is designed after Steiff's beloved black and white Cockie Cocker Spaniel. Black and white Cockie was produced lying, standing, a music box, a tail-turns-head version, and as a display piece in the 1955 - 1976 overall timeframe. A 12 cm black and white Cockie from 1960 - 1976 is pictured here on the left. 

Now let's try and figure out the origins of this mysterious mutt. Steiffgal adopted this larger Cockie pajama bag from its original owner, who received it as a special gift from F.A.O. Schwarz as a child. In the 1950's through 1970's, Steiff often made "over the top" exclusives for F.A.O. Schwarz based on standard line designs - for example, a series of Dalmatians based on the Dally design, a grey alpaca Poodle based on the Snobby design, and a standing, open mouthed Beagle based on the Biggie design. Steiff produced another fantastic pajama bag as an exclusive for F.A.O. Schwarz from 1962 - 1972, a walrus which also has a zipper down its belly and a silk lined interior. All of this converges on the probability that this elaborately constructed Cocker Spaniel pajama bag may indeed have been produced in a very small edition size for F.A.O. Schwarz in the early to mid-1960's, and perhaps is undocumented. But only she knows for sure - and she's too busy counting sheep right now to talk.

Steiffgal hopes this pajama bag discussion has given you a good case of bed-head!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.

Put A Tiger In Your Tank With These Great And Unusual Steiff Postwar Tiger Designs!

Steiffgal has always had a thing for Steiff tigers. After all, who can resist their friendly/fierce personalities, delightful coloring, and the remarkable detailing that bring these big cats to life? Steiff has featured these grrr-eat wild animals in their line almost continuously since 1915, with the first cubs being made of mohair and fully jointed. Given their history and appeal, Steiffgal thought it would be fun to "catch a tiger by the tail" and check out three of the company's rarer post war examples.

Let's kick things off by sinking our teeth into this large and impressive Steiff Bengal tiger. This handsome cat is sitting, unjointed, 43 cm tall, and made from beautifully hand-airbrushed tan mohair. He has green and black pupil eyes, a pink and black shield-shaped embroidered nose, clear monofilament whiskers, and black embroidered claws. His chin, ears, and sideburns are made from long, white mohair. His most distinctive feature is his well formed and open mouth - which is lined in peach colored felt - and detailed with four large embedded wooden teeth. He is either grinning broadly or yawning; perhaps this depends on the time of the day! 

This beautiful Bengal beast was made in 14, 22, and 43 cm from 1959 through 1961 only. The medium and large ones are quite rare on the secondary market. Only the medium and large examples have wooden teeth; the smallest baby size one is toothless - perhaps Steiff thought he was still teething when he was being designed! All three sizes have impressive, long tails.

Our next tiger highlight truly has spirit - school spirit, that is! Here we have Steiff's seldom seen, 25 cm tall Steiff tiger made as a mascot for Princeton University. Smarty-pants is sitting, head jointed, and made from tan mohair that has been brought to life with realistic orange and black airbrushing. He has green and black pupil eyes "cartoon" style eyes, an early pattern pink nose outlined in black, clear monofilament whiskers, and black embroidered claws. His sideburns are made from  long, white mohair. Like his Bengal buddy, this pattern also features a prominent, well designed open mouth - which is lined in peach colored felt - and detailed with four proportionally sized, embedded wooden teeth. He has a working squeaker in his belly. When he was new, he left the factory in Giengen wearing a black and orange felt "Princeton" blanket. 

This Princeton University Prince was made in this size only in 1952 as a special edition for the United States. Other larger Steiff mascots produced in the early 1950's included a 28 cm lion for Columbia University, a 21 cm lioness for Columbia University, a 28 cm bulldog for Yale University, and a 28 cm goat for the Navy, among others. Smaller 1950's era cataloged mascots included a 14 cm bulldog for Yale University, 12 and 14 cm donkeys for the Army, as well as a 12 cm donkey wearing a "DEM" felt blanket for the US Democratic party! (To keep things balanced, Steiffgal once saw a small Steiff elephant wearing a "REP" felt blanket.  This example was probably made as special item for the US Republican party but somehow did not make it into the standard Steiff reference books or cataloging.)

Well, if this discussion hasn't put you to sleep yet, this final example should do the trick. Here we have a most unusual Steiff tiger pajama bag. He measures about 40 cm long and about 20 cm tall. He is in Steiff’s “lying” position, meaning he is curled up with his legs resting gently to his side. He has piercing green and black eyes, a pink embroidered nose, and tufts of longer mohair around his jowls. Tiger is head jointed and made from short tan mohair, which has been "tiger-ized" with careful orange and black airbrushing. Right down the middle of his back is a long metal zipper that extends from practically his neck to his tail; this hides his internal silk-lined pouch designed to  hold the sleepwear of a toddler!

As far as Steiffgal can tell, this tiger pajama bag does not appear in any of Steiff's standard reference books. It is her guess that this tired tiger is probably a modification of Steiff’s standard-line lying tiger cub, which was produced from 1953 through 1978 in 17, 28, 43, and 60 cm.  Steiffgal has also heard of other uncataloged Steiff pajama bags made from standard line designs including turtles and lions.

Steiffgal hopes this review of rare Bengals, mascots, and novelties has indeed put a tiger in YOUR tank!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more.

This Wonderful Steiff Zotty Bear Sure Knows How To Multitask!

One of the most delightful things about Steiff is how often new/old things surface in the collector's world.  Vintage items that do not appear in the standard Steiff Sortiments or other well known reference books seem to have an appeal all unto their own!  And such is truly the "case" behind this hybrid treasure!  Take a look at this note from Sergio, who writes from the Chicago area...

"Dear Steiffgal,

I have a Steiff bear but am not sure how old it is, if it is an original, or how rare/collectible it is.  I know that it's a Zotty bear, looks like a bag (has a zipper with a pouch), and has a yellow tag attached to the left year that reads "Original Steiff 2340.90 Made in Germany." 

Zotty is approximately 22 to 24 inches long. The zipper is right down the middle of his belly; his bag  is lined with satin-like material.  Any information about this bear will be greatly appreciated. 

Thank you,

Sergio"

Steiffgal's got this one in the bag.  What Sergio has here is a really nice, and somewhat unusual Steiff Zotty pajama bag.  These items were designed to be both a toy and a functional item - in this case, a cuddly bedtime-buddy who also could store children's 'jammies during the day!  From the product development perspective, this rarity is probably a modification of Steiff’s standard-line original Zotty Teddy bear, which was produced from 1951 through 1978 in 17, 18, 22, 28, 35, 43, 50, 80, and 100.  Overall, Steiff Zotty bears are famous for three things:  their happy, open mouthed expressions; their fuzzy, long mohair; and their contrasting inset bib areas.  It is very interesting to note that this Zotty does not have a peach bib; this is most likely because that would greatly complicate the insertion of the metal zipper in the chest area. This Zotty pajama bag is most likely based on the 50 cm pattern.

Here's a little pillow talk about this Zotty's background.  It is Steiffgal's best estimate that he was made in the mid 1960's - early 1970's time frame.  This is based on two other mohair pajama bags in her collection from that time frame -  a tiger pajama bag, and a walrus pajama bag.  All three of these bags have several things in common:

1. They all have large, rounded bellies as part of their design - perfect for storage.
2. They all feature a sturdy metal zipper right down the middle of the item.
3. They all are detailed with a beautifully constructed, silk lined internal pouch.
4. They are all based on very popular and beloved characters of the 1960's and 1970's.   

Steiffgal has also seen, or heard of, other 50 cm +/- sized, silk lined pajama bags made from Steiff's beloved "Slo" turtle and "Flossy" fish patterns (both which also have wonderful, large rounded bellies, too!)

Steiff has made pajama bags since the 1930's; you can read more about that by clicking here.

In terms of value, it's a very good day - or night - to find a Steiff mohair pajama bag in very good to excellent condition.  All are beloved additions to any Steiff collection or hug.  Some, like the walrus bag mentioned above, are well known and cataloged, so it is a bit easier to follow their resale prices over time.  Others, like Sergio's Zotty and Steiffgal's tiger, are not, making their value just a bit harder to estimate.  As always, something is worth what someone will pay for it.  That all being said, Steiffgal thinks that Sergio's Zotty pajama bag may value in the $300-500 range in today's market.

Steiffgal hopes this information about Steiff's mohair pajama bags has been as warm and cozy as a flannel nightgown!

Have a question about one of your Steiff treasures? Let's talk! Click here to learn more!