Continuing the story of Pooh and Brown Bears' Treatment

Hello there Everyone!

 As promised a few days ago, here is the next installment of the recent treatment provided in the Stuffed Animal Restoration Clinic (Etsy Listing #79124185) to Pooh and Brown Bears, Forever Friends of  MrsPA-B's two sons, James and Andrew.  Both of them were taken by MrDA-B when he met at least one of his sons in London at the week-end.   We're hopeful that when the re-union(s) take place, some photographs will result and when received, MrsPA-B has said she will send them to us for use in this blog!  That should be great fun, and I'm looking forward to seeing them.

Just to refresh your memory, and because we didn't include this one in our last post, this is how Pooh Bear looked - from the front! - when he first arrived.

Once Isobel had separated all the Kapok stuffing from Pooh Bear and his limbs - which is where I left you when we were together last time - she decided to give him an overnight soak.  Not that he was in any way dusty or dirty - as some of our previous Bear patients have been - but in order to see if we could get his new coat to not look quite such a contrast to his existing one.  Before immersing him in luke-warm soap-suddy water, she removed his left eye using pliers to take off the metal safety backing, which had by this time become very rusty.

The next morning, all the bits were gathered in a towel, squeezed as dry as Isobel could get them and were then pegged out on our clothes airer to dry throughout the day.

All the remaining wetness began to gather at the bottom end of the heaviest pieces (his head and old body - which Isobel decided she would "raid" so she could patch the holes we'd discovered in his arms and legs).

 Normally, when a new coat is provided for our Patients, the old pieces are tacked on the back of the new coat.  But Pooh was originally made in such a way that this could not be done this time).  

 So, half way through the day, Isobel turned them upside down, so they looked like this:

By the next morning, things were ready for the treatment to begin.  The missing eyes were replaced with a pair of matching ones - as near in size and colour as the one that had been taken out. They are actually a little smaller than his original one, but it was either the new size, or enormous ones.  Seemingly in the intervening years, Bears' eye sizes have been re-measured!   Isobel decided the smaller ones looked better - the bigger ones would have made Pooh Bear look terribly surprised!  Then Pooh's nose was re-stitched and his eyebrows and mouth returned to his face.  The original lines for his mouth and eyebrows were easy to follow.  Then the new back of Pooh's head and new body were stitched together and his old face added on.  He then looked like this:

We were a little concerned as to how the overall look would be, but were definitely re-assured by this picture.   We feel that he looks as though he's had a new coat over his existing body - which is just the look Isobel was aiming for.  The limbs were then gathered together, the holes (which were mostly in the area where the seams had previously been attached to his old body) were patched, thus creating a  much stronger fabric with which to attach them to the body.  Then the arms and legs were all stuffed and sewn to the body.  Pooh Bear now looks like this. 

While Isobel was undoing Pooh Bear, and getting out his stuffing she discovered his original label lurking in the depths of the stuffing.  It was a little scruffy and worn at the edges, but it was clear that he had originally been made in "The Republic of Ireland" for a company called The Alresford Craft Company.  Now all ColdhamCuddlies - when we are brand new - all have a label somewhere on us before we go to our Forever Homes, so Isobel decided to applique the old label onto some white seam binding, and sew the new label on just where Pooh Bear sits down!  Thus everyone now knows where his origins are, but no one needs to receive confirmation of it - unless they look very hard!  

You'll also notice that there is a label on his left foot - that's Pooh Bear's Forever Friend, James's name tag when they were both at school.  Isobel removed that while he was being washed and dried, and re-applied it, in about the same place, when the whole treatment was complete.

Now, I'm ending for this evening.  We will wait to complete the trilogy of posts about my Friends' treatment for another evening, when hopefully we'll also be able to include pictures of the reunion of at least Pooh Bear, and maybe even Brown Bear as well.

Until then, do hope you are all having a great week - whether you are at work, at home or on holiday:  or a combination of both. 

 Good night!  Cy Bear.