arctophile – Moby and Puddle

Posy Is Pretty In Pink

Little Posy is my latest fluffy pink bear and was made especially for a special bear collector who wanted a pink bear with roses. I think that Posy ticks both of those boxes.

Posy is created from a very soft fluffy faux fur, fleece and felt. I got the chance to experiment with Posy and she is the first bear that I have created who has decorated paws, I drew a little rose pattern on her paw pads and on her ears too. I think it gives her a little more uniqueness and character, hopefully her forever family will agree.

Once I had created Posy I then made her some roses but she told me that she liked a bit of bling so I added a little sparkle on her nose and on the rose at the top of her head. Posy is much happier now that she has some sparkle.

I loved painting Posy because watercolour loose florals are one of the things that I paint when I want to relax and have a good time. I think that Posy would love to walk through a rose garden. The daffodils are in full bloom right now and hopefully it wont be too long before the roses bloom too.

Pink bears are always some of the most fun to make, sometimes they come out as very gentle characters and sometimes they come out a little sassy, I think that Posy falls somewhere in the middle, she is as delicate as a rose but I get the sense that she could have a few thorns if not handled properly.

I am delighted with how Posy came out, she is a darling and I think she will be very happy in her forever home, I am excited to hear about what she gets up to! If you would like to adopt one of my bears you can see which ones are available now by popping over to my Folksy shop.

Thank you for reading my blog,

Samantha x

March 28, 2023March 28, 2023 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bear, artist teddy bears, felt roses, handmade bear, Moby and puddle, pink teddy bear, posy, Samantha webb, teddy bear, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection

Oleander

Oleander looks like she is made from candy floss, her faux fur is the longest, fluffiest fur that I have ever sewn with and it was not easy but I am so happy that I persevered because look at that little face!

Oleander has sparkly green eyes, a pastel rainbow over sized bow and gorgeous little toes that have been needle sculpted from fleece. Oleander is named after a beautiful pink and purple flower, I call her Andie for short after Andie from the movie Pretty In Pink which I have always loved. She can sit or stand, move her arms and her neck, she likes to shimmy her fluffy fur!

I had such a lot of fun painting this bear, how on earth does she manage to be so bright and also so pastel all at the same time? She is a mystery to me and I could not love her more!

Oleander is chilling out waiting for a forever home, she doesn’t mind waiting, its almost spring and she will wait in the sunshine! If you would like to adopt her please pop over to my Folksy shop and see if she is still available, she is one of a kind and will not be repeated.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog,

Samantha x

February 28, 2023February 28, 2023 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bear, handmade bear, Moby and puddle, oleander, pretty in pink, Samantha webb, teddy bear

Harry Potter Needs Bears

I promise I am working on some new bears, two of which will be available to purchase later this month. But this weekend our family visited Harry Potter Studio Tours in London to celebrate my mums 60th birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM! It was well worth the 7 hour drive it took to get there and I would recommend any fan visit if they can.

Me and Lilly Webbling with the birthday girl!

We had a truly magical time, seeing how all of the sets, creatures and characters were bought to life by artists and craftspeople setting a literal stage for the actors to feel like the magic was real. It was awe inspiring on every level. Moby and Puddle has seen my try my hands at many crafts before settling firmly on teddy bears but seeing the work of such incredible artists and imagining just a fraction of the time it must of taken to create such intricate details is quite honestly mind blowing. In fact even if you aren’t a big potter fan but just a fan of crafts in general then I think you would get a lot out of it.

I have come back from the experience feeling motivated to create even more intricate bears and to dedicate just as much of my time to making them perfect. I want my creations to be of a level that makes people say ‘woah, they were made by hand?’ and to know that I have created something that will be loved for a long long time. I feel inspired and cannot wait to get to my sewing!!!

I would also like to try and make a little bear version of a mandrake because how cute would that be? They really were adorable!

As we were walking around I did find myself thinking … ‘but where are the bears?’ There are no teddies taken to Hogwarts, you can’t tell me that none of the students have a teddy to take with them when they are going to be away from home all that time? Everyone needs a hug sometimes and often only a teddy will do! Those poor students!

Besides teddies though Hogwarts is placed in the highlands of Scotland, okay I admit that wild bears went extinct around 450AD in Scotland however I can’t help but feel that the laws of nature don’t really apply to The Forbidden Forest so unless otherwise proven different I from now on will believe that there must be bears hiding deep in the depths of the forest. Would it really of hurt them to stick a bear in? for old time’s sake?

Maybe I am clutching at straws but really, they could of given one of the characters a bear patronus, that would of been so magical!! Or have a bear animagus, that would give you quite the advantage in the battle of Hogwarts? So many wasted opportunities!

I am only joking (sort of), I have had a wonderful weekend, we all did. I am facing work this weekend fired up and ready to put as much pride into my work as the people who worked tirelessly to create the artefacts and niknaks that would be seen on the screens for mere moments. Look out for some new bears very soon!!!

Let me know what your Hogwarts house is, mine is Hufflepuff, maybe I should make a badger!

Thank you for reading,

Samantha Webb.

February 7, 2023 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, handmade bear, harry potter, harry potter studios tour, Moby and puddle, Samantha webb, scottish bears, studio tour, teddy bear artist

2022 A Year Of Bears

I have been much quieter on social media in 2022 than in previous years and have even had some messages to ask if Moby and Puddle is still going, I promise you that it is going strong and I am still loving creating my bears and a few other little bits they just take me a little longer these days, I think that makes them even more special though.

These are the beautiful bears that I have created this year.

13 might be unlucky for some but I think that since currently 11 of these bears have new families I am very lucky indeed. 13 new bears in 2022, I wonder how many will be created in 2023? I have lots and lots of new ideas and I am hoping to make some beautiful new bears for you to adopt.

You can always find my available bears in my Folksy shop too.

Which one is your favourite?

Thank you for reading my blog, have a wonderful New Year,

Samantha

December 27, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: 2022 bears, arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bear, artist teddy bears, Moby and puddle, Samantha webb, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection, year in review Leave a comment

Bernard My Biggest Bear

Bernard was made around 7 years ago, he is my biggest bear and was quite a challenge especially as I wanted to keep him as close to my smaller bears as possible which meant hand sewing him in the same way. Bernard has been to fairs with me and was with me in my small shop on Plymouth Barbican when I had it. He has been somewhat of a mascot for Moby and Puddle in much the way that Muddle in now but he is so large that he is much harder to pose and photograph but he is a lot of fun too!

Bernard has spent the last few years sat in my reading nook in my bedroom happily watching the world go by and have a little cuddle from time to time. This Christmas I decided that it was time to dust off his old Santa suit and give him the TLC that he so desperately needed.

In the time since I first created Bernard I have created quite a few more bears and have become more confident in making them too, so his freshen up has included an updated nose, some work around his eyes and even embroidered eyebrows! His paws have been given a new colour so that the stand out more and he just looks a lot fresher and happier to me!

Bernard will spend the Christmas season dressed as Santa beneath my tree before retiring back to his favourite place besides my reading nook. Bernard has never been available for sale and is too special to me to put him up for adoption but I would love to create another big bear. The biggest hurdle being that bears this big take a crazy amount of time to create which means that the adoption fee has to reflect that.

Bernard as a pirate for Plymouth pirate day.

For the time being Bernard is proud to be the biggest of all Moby and Puddle bears!

Which outfit do you like the most? Perhaps he needs another one soon?

Thank you for reading my blog post, I wish you all a beary merry Christmas,

Samantha x

December 21, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist teddy bears, barnaby, christmas bear, christmas makeover, handmade bear, handsewn giant bear, Moby and puddle, my biggest handmade bear, Samantha webb, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection Leave a comment

Rubear and Little Snow

I put a call out on my Facebook page for Christmas bears, I really wanted to make a themed bear but with the current climate being what it is, I could not afford to buy lots of faux fur unless I was sure the bear would be adopted. After a good chat with one of my amazing customers we decided on a reindeer bear with a snow bear sidekick. I sketched up an initial idea and then got to work. I was so excited to try making little antlers and shopping for little Christmas bells to make the bears perfect. They really helped get me in the spirit of the season and I hope that you like them too!

This is Rubear and Little Snow, Rubear is a cute bear who has dressed up as a reindeer to make a little snow bear. They are the best of friends and are inseparable.

Little Snow is a tiny fluffy little bear with little twig style arms, a needle felted orange nose, glass eyes and embroidered ‘coal’ buttons, he is a really sweet little bear who has a matching bow with Rubear.

Rubear has glittery eyes and glitter accenting his lovely red nose. He is incredibly soft and snuggly with the thickest and longest faux fur plush. Rubear loves reindeers and made himself little twig antlers.

These two have a lot of festive fun planned. They are going to decorate the tree, make sugar cookies and go carolling. They have a whole list of Christmas movies to watch and a constant cacophony of Christmas songs played on loud non stop! The Christmas spirit is contagious whenever these two are near.

I really hope you like Rubear and Little Snow, I have truly loved creating them.

Merry Christmas,

Samantha x

December 6, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bear, artist teddy bears, christmas bears, christmas teddies, handmade bear, Moby and puddle, reindeer bear, Samantha webb, snowbear, teddy bear, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection

Oops I FORGOT!

I love selling my bears through Folksy, they are a British run company and I’ve had nothing but a great experience selling with them. However, when you set up a listing it lasts for four months (there is a monthly option but I don’t have enough bears to make that financially viable) and then you pop over to your shop and relist those who haven’t been adopted.

In an ideal world all of the bears would quickly find forever homes but some of them take a little longer than others for their forever families to find them and that’s OK too, usually!

Now despite Folksy sending me multiple emails to remind me, I still forgot and most of my bears were not listed for a considerable amount of time, oops! They will never find forever homes if people don’t know that they are searching for families!

I promise to try and stay on top of it more! I have even written it in my planner for next time they need renewing!

I thought that since they hadn’t been shown off for a little while that now was probably a good time to remind everyone of the bears that are currently in need of new homes, they may even get them by Christmas!

Sunday is the biggest bear that I have available even though he is just a cub!

Ysabel is the only bunny that is currently looking for a forever home, she loves to put carrots on the snowmen at this time of year!

Meadow is dreaming of the first shoots of spring, he always struggles this time of year but he just needs extra hugs!

Noah doesn’t mind the cold, he has a whole lot of beautiful fur to keep him warm!

Super soft Quentin is wrapped up warm and is ready to build snowmen and have sleigh rides!! He is feeling very festive.

Pheobe is all snug and warm in her little scarf but she also comes with a blanket too so that she is extra warm for the winter season, she really doesn’t like to be cold.

Marnie truly is one of a kind and I don’t think the photos do this little woolly mammoth justice at all. She is so fluffy but has beautiful floral ears and little clay tusks, she is a beauty!

Cedric is a polar bear who is used to winter but he still likes to cuddle up by the fire and have a hot cup of cocoa.

Jellybean is a super sweet bear that is a distant descendant of the North Pole Sugar Plum fairies. He is one bear that I am surprised has been waiting so long for the perfect family because he is the sweetest little bear.

Splash is a magical narwhal who wants to find a home that believes in magic! Not just at Christmas but all year round!

Felicity is another bear who has waited a really long time to find her forever home but I am confident that the right family is out there somewhere for this heirloom fairy bear.

And finally Hallie who sings festive songs no matter the season! She has been waiting a while for a forever home and my be due for a makeover soon.

That is all the bears that are currently available, all looking for a forever home. Could you adopt one of them this winter? You can find all of their details and more photos in my Folksy shop and I promise to try and make sure it stays updated from now on!

https://folksy.com/shops/MobyAndPuddle

Thank you for reading,

Samantha Webb.

November 15, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist bears, artist teddy bear, artist teddy bears, christmas bear, folksy seller, folksy shop, folksy uk, handcrafted bear, handmade bear, heirloom bear, hug, miniature bear, Moby and puddle, Samantha webb, teddies, teddy bear, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection, teddy bear collector

June Bear For A Beautiful Princess

This little Jellybean is my best friends beautiful daughter and this week she turns one. To mark the special occasion her lovely mummy ordered a pink bear with a crown just like the one that she had for her big brothers first birthday too.

The bear that I created is named June after her great grandmother.

June has a little flower crown and is the most beautiful pink, she will live on a high shelf until she can be snuggled because my bears are not suitable for children but make great keepsakes.

June is created from the most beautiful pink faux fur and fleece. Two tones of pink felt for the crown and the flowers. Her eyes are glass and her nose is embroidered from beautiful mutli coloured pink thread. This little pink bear is weighted and has joints in her arms, legs and neck!

She also has a little felt one to hold to mark the special birthday.

I hope the little princess has the very best birthday and I am extremely lucky to have an amazing best friend who is happy to support my little business and help my family.

I think that brother and sister bear look very cute side by side and I can’t wait to see what their forever family thinks later this week.

Thank you for reading this weeks blog post,

Samantha x

November 8, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bear, artist teddy bears, june bear, Moby and puddle, pink bear, pink teddy bear, Samantha webb, teddy bear artist, teddy bear collection

Bears Make Me Smile – My Little Lego Bear Collection

I really love teddies and bears. They make me smile! When Harrison Webbling was much smaller he took a big interest in Lego as many children do. It wasn’t long before I discovered that Lego create adorable little teddy bears, where had these been all of my life? I soon began collecting them and as I want this blog to be about the love of bears not just about the ones that I create, I thought it was about time I share my little plastic hug with you all. I hope that you enjoy it!

These ones are known as mascot bears.

Panda Suit Guy was from the Lego Movie Minifigure series.

Rainbow Suit Guy is a series 19 Minifigure.

Lego Brownbear Minifigure was a store exclusive.

I love the ones holding bears, it is amazing that they have made so many different tiny bears.

Flower Girl was an in store exclusive.

Spooky Girl was series 12.

Sleepy Head was Series 6.

NPOP Girl was a Ninjago Movie Minifigure.

Elf is a series 11.

Rocker was from a creator fairground set (60234)

There are some amazing bears that are from TV and movies.

Fozzy Bear from The Muppets Minifigure Series, Maggie Simpson from The Simpsons Minifigure series 1, Winnie the Pooh from the Ideas set (21326) and the tiny trio are Harris, Hamish and Hubert from the Brave set (41051). Lego’s own show Chima had some amazing bear characters, I only have the two but there are more available in tribes. The little blue bear was from my favourite of all Lego shows, Lego Elves (41183) which was the first set that I had just for me and made me fall in love with Lego.

Lego Vidiyo is not something that I have really explored but I think the bears Rasp-beary DJ (minifigure series 2) and Blue-beary DJ (43111) are incredible. I am also not overly familiar with the Lego Hidden Side series but the zombie teddy is amazing (70425).

Some bears are harder to get hold of, these ones were in blind bags and you got one bear in the set but there were four colours to collect. Luckily there are some amazing lego groups and the community is generally happy to help you source the ones you are missing through sales and swaps.

Lego also make bigger bears, I only have one, a beautiful Polar bear.

Sometimes you can even get the bears on the front of the Lego magazines, I got my baby brown bear and one of these panda bears from a magazine, the other two from Lego Friends sets (41412).

Of course Lego have been creating bears for a very long time and before the ones that we get today which fit in with the whole Lego system they had ones that are a bit different. From a series called Belville, I managed to find three, I would love more of the colours some day.

Well those are my lego minifigure bears to date, I am always hoping to find more and when I was searching for an extensive guide to lego bears I could not find one so I hope that this blog post is interesting to some people. I really hope they keep creating imaginative and creative bears because they never fail to put a smile on my face and I am sure that I can fit a few more on my shelf!

Thank you for reading,

Samantha.

November 1, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, lego bears, lego collection, lego minifigure, teddy bear, teddy bear collection Leave a comment

This Bear is 108! A Story In Rhyme.

I have very imaginative and creative nieces and nephews, including these two beauties, Oscar and Toby. Oscar and Toby have a special teddy bear, Charlie Bear from the 2013 television show, Charlie Bear has been everywhere with them and seen everything, he is a little threadbare and could honestly do with a bit of plumping up but he is loved! Recently Toby quite confidently said to me, “This bear, this one is 108!” and he was adamant that this bear who has been in the family for 10 years is in actual fact 108 years old. It is impossible to spend time with children without them sparking my imagination and so the illustration and story below is for Oscar and Toby. (The illustration isn’t their bear because Charlie Bear is quite rightly protected by copyright laws). I hope you enjoy it!

THIS BEAR IS 108.

This bear has seen better days,

His fur is speckled with greys.

But I think he looks incredibly great,

When you know that this bear is 108!

This bear has learnt how to fly,

How to kick a ball high in the sky.

This bear has learnt how to skate,

He moves very gracefully for 108!

This bear has had many names,

Won and lost numerous games.

He has loved but rarely hate,

This bear’s done a lot, he’s 108!

This bear like crumble with custard,

He never eats hotdogs without mustard.

This bear will eat any and all cake,

He isn’t very fussy for 108!

This bear enjoys his winter naps.

He likes to snuggle in blankets and wraps.

This bear doesn’t mind if Spring blooms late,

He has seen it many times, around 108!

This bear still has time to make new friends,

He lives his life as though it has no end.

There are many adventures still to take,

Even for a bear who is 108!

The End.

Thank you for reading my little story of a very old bear.

Samantha.

October 18, 2022 by bysamanthawebb Tags: arctophile, artist bear, artist teddy bears, charlie bear, Moby and puddle, old bear, Samantha webb, teddy bear, teddy bear story Leave a comment