Steiff's Tiniest Teddies Are A Big Deal Indeed!

It's funny with Steiff - in many cases, the smaller an item is, the more appeal it seems to have!  Almost every collector would have to agree that this is especially true when it comes to the company's smallest Teddy bears.  These teeny-tiny treasures are like potato chips (or fill in your most favorite goodie here) and you can't have just one - or two - or three!  Steiffgal particularly loves Steiff's 10 cm and smaller bears, as they take up very little space to display, look great posed with other Steiff animals and dolls, and usually have very distinctive - and endearing - expressions.  Here are a few uber-favorite petite treats from her collection and the stories behind them.

Face it, you can't resist this adorable cub either!  This little fellow is called Brimfield, because he was purchased at the Brimfield Antique Fair in Brimfield, MA a few years ago.  He is 10 cm, fully jointed, and made from white mohair.  His nose and mouth are hand embroidered in brown, and his eyes are tiny black buttons.  He does not have any IDs, but is suspected to have a birth date in the 1960's due to his chunkier proportions.   His face truly is as presented - a little crooked - or perhaps a little pensive, depending on what's on his mind.  

Brimfield's pachyderm pal is also made by Steiff.  He is an almost flat, printed blue elephant made out of velour.  He is identical on both sides, and wears a great red headdress and matching blanket.  He measures only 5 cm long and 4 cm tall and has his original Steiff tag, but no button.  This elephant started out life with two other siblings as Steiff's Elephant Pram Toy, a hanging plaything for a baby's stroller or crib.  Steiff's Elephant Pram Toy was made from 1982 through 1985; the company also made a similar themed toy made from printed ducks in the same time frame.

You don't need a Mensa IQ to recognize this next fine fellow as pure genius! Here we have Smarty Pants, named for his big, big head. Steiffgal purchased SP at auction; he was one of several fine treasures in the lot. SP is 10 cm, fully jointed, and made from gold colored mohair. His nose and mouth are hand embroidered in black, and his eyes are tiny black buttons. He has all of his IDs, including his red imprinted chest tag, raised script button, and early and fully legible ear tag reading 5310, dating him to the very early 1950's. He is sort of perfect in every quirky way.

SP likes to horse around with a little wooden rocking pony from F.A.O. Schwarz. The toy itself is beautifully detailed and finished with high gloss paints and stains. It measures about 7 cm long and 7 cm tall. One side reads "100 yrs in Toys 1862-1962" and the other side has the famous F.A.O. Schwarz bell logo printed in gold. The bottom has the word "Germany" printed in black letters. This piece was produced for the toy retailer in honor of the company's centennial, and probably sold through F.A.O.'s world-famous dollhouse department.  

Oh baby! Collectors everywhere will recognize this pouty pal as an early Steiff Teddy Baby. Steiffgal purchased him many years ago on eBay for a song. This Ted is 9 cm tall and fully jointed. His feet and muzzle are made from blond velvet and his body, limbs, and head are made from blond mohair. He has a black hand stitched nose and mouth, and tiny black and brown glass pupil eyes. He retains bits and pieces of his red ear tag and his long trailing "F" style button - dating him in the late 1920's or early 1930's. He has a distinctly old fashioned look to him; he does more closely resemble an older gentleman than a baby.

Bird's the word with Teddy Baby's fine feathered friend. This bitty bird is Steiff's 4 cm woolen miniature Finch bird. He is made from red, black, white, brown, and black Nomotta wool. His beak is made from grey felt and his tail feathers are made from brown felt. He stands upon two darling, bronze colored metal legs and feet.  Finch retains his ankle bracelet style button and tag. This pattern was produced prewar in 4 and 8 cm from 1933 to 1943 overall. This particular Finch was made from 1937 through 1943.

Now its time to hold everything and check out these two adorable pre-war brothers. Isn't it nice how well they play together? Both are 10 cm, fully jointed, and have black bead eyes. The one on the left, Honey Baby, is made from a dark gold colored mohair and has a black nose and mouth. Pip, on the right, is made from white mohair and has a brown nose and mouth. Both were purchased at auctions, several years apart. Honey Baby and Pip retain their long trailing "F" buttons as their Steiff ID. Given their general appearance and proportions, Honey Baby is probably from the 1920's or early 1930's; Pip may date from the 19-teens onward.  

Despite their age difference, these two cubs always seem to have a ball between the two of them! Their bitty ball is made by Steiff and was purchased in the Steiff Sommer sales tent in Giengen a few years ago. It is made from tan and brown mohair and measures all of 2.5 cm in diameter. It was probably manufactured in the last 5 to 10 years as an accessory for another modern Steiff edition. 

Our last miniature highlight never leaves home without a hair out of place. That's because she doesn't have even one left on her supermodel skinny body! Here we have the totally bald yet totally terrific Mouse. Steiffgal adopted Mouse from an estate maybe a decade ago. She is 9 cm tall and fully jointed. She probably was made from white mohair, given her brown hand embroidered nose and mouth. She has particularly petite proportions, as well as the general appearance of Steiff's earliest Teds. Given her long trailing "F" button, she could date as early as 1912.  

If you think Mouse is "minnie," please consider her constant cat companion, Donna. This pretty kitty is only 2.5 cm tall and is made from printed cotton fabric.  Her tiny body is stuffed with cotton, and she wears a perfectly to scale blue ribbon and gold heart pendant. Although Donna was not made by Steiff, she has all the quality and integrity of a Steiff creation. Donna was given to Steiffgal by a good friend who specializes in making historically accurate miniature dollhouse furniture and accessories. 

Steiffgal hopes this miniature bear discussion has warmed your heart in a gigantic way.

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

Less Is More When It Comes To Steiff's Teeny Tiny Pre-War Mohair Dogs

Steiffgal’s a little short on time this week for blogging. So this is a perfect moment to introduce you to one of the most petite treats in her collection – a tiny and very early Steiff Molly Dog. Take a big look at this particularly small pup and see what makes her so interesting – and irresistible!

This happy handful is the smallest version of Steiff’s Molly the Puppy dog. She is sitting, unjointed, and just a hair over 6 cm tall from head to toe measured vertically. She is made from white and brown tipped mohair. Her wee face comes to life with brown and black glass pupil eyes, a simple black hand embroidered nose and mouth, and the pattern’s typical “folded over” style ears. And she even retains her long trailing “f” style button after all of these years. This little girl indeed is the smallest version of Molly produced (formally documented as 7 cm), and appeared in the line from 1927 through 1943. Pre-war, this sitting brown and white Molly pattern was produced overall from 1925 through 1943 in 12 sizes ranging from 7 through 80 centimeters. She was one of the very first models reintroduced post war, reappearing again in 1949 in five sizes ranging from 10 to 25 cm through 1969.

Molly the Puppy is arguably that most important dog pattern ever produced by Steiff. The 1925 introduction of Molly proved so popular that she is credited for opening the floodgates to a huge influx of Steiff dog designs. Between 1925 and 1938, close to 40 new canine species were noted in the Steiff catalogs after her debut, many reflecting her wide eyed expression, childlike proportions, and happy disposition. These included the now classic Bully the Bulldog, Charly the King Charles Spaniel, and Treff the Bloodhound, as well as some lesser-known designs including Cheerio, the laughing dog, and Putzi, a caricatured standing dog.  And despite her advanced age and location on the family tree, this Molly still enjoys a good time; she is pictured here on the left enjoying a "Strawberries and cream" iced tea drink at the Mad Hatter's Tea at the Sanderson Hotel in London. 

And what about her size – or lack of it, in this case? She is indeed tiny, so much so that Steiffgal didn’t even notice her the first time she was checking out a remarkable window display of vintage dolls and toys in the shop of a new friend. But upon a second review, there she was, and now Steiffgal can’t take her eyes off of her! (And, according to the picture to the left, Molly can't take her hungry eyes off a tiny quiche from the same Mad Hatter's Tea!) 

Ironically, really small Steiff mohair animals can be harder and more complicated to make than their larger siblings. This is because their scale requires especially careful material cutting, intricate stitching, labor intensive turning, and especially precise stuffing and finishing. There just isn’t a lot of “wiggle room” for mistakes or manufacturing variation with these tiny mohair treasures; and because they are not economically efficient to produce, their small stature usually is accompanied by a larger than expected retail price tag. As a result, Steiff created relatively few 7 cm sized pre-war era canine companions; these included Bully the Bulldog, Charly the King Spaniel (pictured here on the left with her fellow 7 cm Molly companion), a few Fox terriers including Spotty, Treff the Bloodhound, and Fellow the black and white puppy. Post war, as far as Steiffgal can tell, the only 7 cm mohair dog Steiff made was Fox the Fox terrier, who only appeared in the line in this smallest size in 1949.

Steiffgal hopes this little post on this tiny Steiff Molly adds a big smile to your day.

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

Good Things Come In Threes With Steiff's Tiny Tabby Kittens

Less is more when it comes to Steiff's amazing palm-sized pets!  And who wouldn't want to add a few petite treats to their Steiff hug? Although by nature more of a "dog person," Steiffgal recently had the the opportunity to adopt three utterly marvelous palm sized Steiff kittens into her collection.  Check out this terrific trio and see what makes them the cat's meow in so many ways!

Steiffgal is totally smitten with these tiny kittens! Here we have three of Steiff's Tabby cats.  They are standing, unjointed, and made from white mohair which has been highlighted with grey and detailed with black stripes. Their faces are brought to life with green and black slit pupil eyes, pink hand embroidered noses and mouths, and clear monofilament whiskers.  Each wears a pink or red bow and a tiny brass colored jingle bell.  Overall, postwar Tabby was made in 7, 10, 14, and 17 cm from 1949 through 1977.

Size also defies with these charming baby cats! Although they are "technically" labeled and cataloged as the 7 cm version (measured vertically from top of head to toe,) these Tabby cats actually vary from a little over 7 cm down to 6 cm.  A centimeter plus or minus doesn't sound like a big difference here, but when things are actually this small, it has a huge effect on an item's scale and appearance. 

It's never polite to ask someone's age, but in this case, it's makes for an interesting mystery!  These "triplet" cats all have their raised script buttons, yellow ear tags, and red imprinted chest tags.  This combination of IDs dates them all around 1952.  However, when it comes to Steiff, things are never quite that simple... especially when it comes to identification and detailing on items from the late 1940's and early 1950's.  There are a few very subtle differences between them that suggest that they may not all share the identical birth date!

• One Tabby has a tiny white linen "US Zone" tag sewn into his front leg seam; the others do not.  This tag measures less than 1 square cm overall and is pictured above on the left. The US Zone tag was technically used on all items produced by Steiff in the 1947 through 1953 time frame.
• One Tabby has early style, "teal green" and black slit pupil eyes, while the others have more "soda bottle green" and black slit pupil eyes; this is pictured below.
• One Tabby's ear tag reads, "Steiff (in bold script) Original 1307,0 Made in Germany" while the others both read, "Steiff (in regular print) Orig. gesch. 1307,0 Made in Germany."  Both of these styles of ear tags were used in the approximately 1952 time frame, and are pictured below.
• Each kitten has a silk ribbon; however they are not matching in color.  One ribbon is not original, but in the correct "color palate" to the others.  

So what does all this mean?  Here are two things to keep in mind...

First and foremost, it is important to remember that these sorts of vintage Steiff items were all made by hand, so slight differences in size and general appearance are to be expected.  And this truly does magnify with smaller items, where there is less "wiggle room" for differences.  Most collectors would agree that these variations only add to the appeal and charm of Steiff treasures.

Secondly, these items were made during a less than optimal production period at Steiff (circa WWII) where the company was dealing with limited supplies and resources.  During this time, it would not be unusual to use pre-war materials on post war produced items, as the company has traditionally used "what's on hand" for manufacturing and ID purposes.  For example, in this case, the blue-green eyes on one of the Tabby cats could have easily come from pre-war stock, while the Tabby herself may have been made post war.  And, to complicate things even more - given Steiff did indeed make a 7 cm grey and white striped Tabby cat from 1936 through 1943 - this Tabby could have even been made pre-war, tucked away during the war, and then buttoned, labeled, and sold postwar!   Only she knows for sure!

Steiffgal hopes this discussion on these baby kittens reminds you that good things indeed come in threes!

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