Sue Pearson's

This is Fredbear sitting in the snow in my garden. He arrived at my home two years ago. He had been the childhood companion of a lovely lady, Joan Merritt.

Joan and Fred used to visit Hugglets show together a few years ago, Fred wearing his sailor suit and carrying a small black umbrella. She would always come and talk to me and because she was elderly she worried about who would care for Fred when she passed away, and therefore asked me if I would adopt him when the time came.

Having forgotten about him I was surprised when he arrived in a parcel accompanied by a letter from Joan’s niece saying her Aunt had instructed her to pass the bear on to me for safe keeping. He arrived wearing the sailor suit also a pair of pyjamas and another jacket.

Fred is an early German bear from around 1915, and is a great character, and settled in well with my other bears.

Pricey is one of my most beloved bears, I’ve had him for over 30 years now and could never part with him. He was one of the first bears I ever bought, I found him sitting at the back of a junk shop. When I asked the owner ‘How much is that lovely bear?’ he answered, sucking air in through his teeth ‘Oooh, Madam, now he is pricey’ and that’s how he got his name!

Pricey is a Farnell from about 1914. When I got him home I noticed he had a rather fierce expression, probably from sitting at the back of a junk shop for too many years! So I had his mouthing stitching altered, and now he has a lovely smile that greets me everytime I walk past him as he sits on his old childs chair on my landing. And if he’s lucky, he sometimes gets a hug too!