Finished!!!!

Pattern: "Aviator Bear " from Debbie Bliss "Teddy Bears"
Yarn: Red Heart Supersaver worsted weight yarn in 3 shades of brown
Needles: Size 2 & 3
Size: Completed bear is about 20" tall standing, and about 12" sitting
Well, he is finally completed. I finished his goggles and his scarf today. I think if I had knit just on this 1 project, it would have taken me about 2 weeks. Maybe a little less. He was also completed ENTIRELY from items I had in my stash. Yarn, zipper, and teddy eyes. Well, I did have to go buy a tapestry needle, but I did have all the knitting needles on hand.

When I bought this book, I was soooo excited to make a bear. All of the clothes were adorable! I had great visions of making a bear, and then making ALL the clothes in the book to fit it. Hey! Maybe I'd even sell them at a craft fair or something! I pictured a cute little trunk from Hobby Lobby or something with tiny little hangers in it with the teddy wardrobe. I don't know if that will happen in the future. I REALLY love the finished project, but it was A LOT of work. All in all, there are 13 pieces to the bear that need to be made, blocked, and sewn together. Each of those 13 pieces has between 2 and 6 yarn ends to weave in. All, in all, there are a total of 31 pieces in this bear and his outfit. Debbie bliss has a fondness for darts, so you'll knit a section, then cut your yarn, knit the mirror section, then knit across both sections. OR you will knit happily across all stitches for a while, then only go half way across work up a bit on only half the stitches, cut your yarn, work the mirrored section and keep going. This leaves a hole in the center of your knitting that later needs to be sewn up. My question is, can these darts be accomplished without so much finishing being required? Can't one just make increases or decreases in there instead of cutting the darn yarn or making a hole that later needs to be sewn up?! This is not even mentioning the fact that the book doesn't have any diagrams, and just the vaguest of directions on assembly. I love the patterns, but Debbie... You're a lazy pattern writer.

I must say though, that my seaming skills have improved tremendously. Take a look at the picture of the pants. There's a seam running right down the middle. I dare you to find it.

My bear is much bigger than the ones in the book. She called for DK weight yarn, and I used Worsted weight yarn. I'm fairly new to real yarn and wasn't exactly sure what the difference in DK weight and worsted is. I figured it didn't really matter, as my other teddy bear book actually suggests you change needle sizes and yarn sizes to change bear sizes. Just make sure you use the same brand of yarn for the entire project so that the clothes fit.

Now that this bear is done, I plan to knit a sock. Yes, a nice, quick, easy sock while I wait for the Olympics to start on Friday. Maybe here in a month or so, I'll feel the need to make another bear that will actually stay in our house.