| A really great present to get for your own child | | | | stuff a teddy with almost anything you want. |
| or a relative's is a teddy bear that you've made | | | | Avoid man-made materials and stick to the |
| yourself. Basic teddies are actually surprisingly | | | | natural stuff and you shouldn't go far wrong. |
| easy to make, but you're free to put as little or | | | | When it comes to making the eyes and the nose, |
| as much effort in as you want. If you spend a | | | | plastic buttons will do, but the best material to use |
| long time on it, you can make a teddy to rival | | | | is glass beads. Two black glass beads will give |
| anything put out by the big teddy manufacturers. | | | | your teddy beautiful, friendly eyes, and they don't |
| Although there are many fabrics and methods | | | | even cost all that much from most craft stores. |
| you can use to make a teddy, probably the best | | | | To finish the teddy off, you can tie a silk bow |
| is knitting with yarn. It is easy to find yarn in a | | | | around its body or its hair, to make it look like a |
| very good teddy-like shade of brown, and teddy | | | | really pretty present. Fix it in place with a few |
| knitting patterns are readily available all over the | | | | threads so it can't come untied, and it can |
| Internet - search for 'teddy knitting' to find whole | | | | become a permanent feature of the teddy. |
| sites devoted to knitting teddies and other soft | | | | One warning, though: making teddies can be very |
| animal toys. | | | | addictive! Once you've made your first one, it's |
| Once you have the pattern, you need to find a | | | | tempting to just keep on going. But then, there's |
| good stuffing for the teddy. Cotton wool is an | | | | nothing wrong with that, is there? |
| easy to find, cheap and soft material, but you can | | | | |