BEARHUGS (Rehomed)

Arrival Date: 5/8/21

Size: 18"

Year: 2021 Paw Store Exclusive

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: CB Direct

Cost: $129

Thoughts: I wasn't sold on Bearhugs from his appearance in the Sneaky Peeks catalog, but when he debuted on Cuddle Time, I decided to give him a test drive. I never got Wilfy, who seems very similar. I can see why some people wouldn't want both. And I sold Willamena, who was also similar in shape. But when I opened the box today, I knew this guy was staying around at least for a while. I can't say he won't be rehomed in next year's annual sale, but he's undeniably cute and worth giving some "cuddle time" to. (Har.)

MINCE PIE

Arrival Date: 5/7/21

Size: 18"

Year: 2013 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 650

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Features: Plumo, standing bear

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $70

Thoughts: I apparently really love the 2013 Secret Collection. Mince is another of those and I just got Ebenezer and Rudolph not long ago. (And Satsuma is another one!) Mince is a standing bear, which aren't my favorite things, but he was too cute not to want. He's adorable with his mottled fur and sweet face.

EBENEZER

Arrival Date: 5/4/21

Size: 20"

Year: 2013 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 600

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $132ish

Notes: No tags

Thoughts: Ah, Ebenezer. A few weeks ago, I saw this cute bear on ebay, but the photos were pretty bad, considering he's a completely different color! I thought he was gray, but he's definitely not. There's a lot of that sand, biscuit, light tan, whatever you want to call it in there. I put in a bid on him, but then I started to have issues with the seller. At first the auction had shipping for the US, but then it didn't. When I asked about it, the auction disappeared, then was put back up. The seller was very nice, but it took a bit for him to finalize the listing. So then I bid all over again. I had another person on Facebook offer me hers for a fair price, but after thinking on it, I realized it was this one particular bear's face that I loved.

I don't often do double photos in my bear catalogue here, but because he slumps, it's hard to get a good angle on his body and face, so here's the adorableness. 

I ended up winning him and was super excited. He got to the US fairly quickly, but then...sat. He left NJ on the 17th and did not reappear in Atlanta until the 29th. I was pretty worried about him! Then he got here on the 3rd and came out for delivery today...while our package hub was having some sort of crisis in which everyone's apartment number was off by 1 digit. (Ours is 107, but it was showing as 108.) I spent a good chunk of the morning dealing with the complex office and then warning the post office what was going on, but everything thankfully was fixed and he got delivered properly. Whew! 

Ebenezer is a tall, skinny guy, which is one of my favorite types. Like Oodles, Lee and Bryce. He has unusual paws that you don't see too often in CBs. The pads face the back instead of being on the sides like usual, so he can do a nice begging gesture. He reminds me a lot of Brussell, who also came out as part of the 2013 Secret Collection and has gray-tipped paws and a soft scarf...and a very similar face. Hmm. Methinks they're related. 

MOON

Arrival Date: 4/30/21

Size: 14"

Year: 2020

Designer: Alison Mills

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $81

Thoughts: Moon is one of three bears from 2020 that we still don't have in the US. She was supposed to be out in the 2nd quarter, so she's about a year late. I'm not convinced we're ever going to get her, so when I saw her on ebay from a US seller, I went for it. I may get another if she ever comes in stock. This one is cute, but there's nothing like selecting your bear's face. She's a gorgeous pale silver and I love her a lot. I'm glad I got her at last!

AURORA

Arrival Date: 4/26/21

Size: 19"

Year: 2021 Secret Collection

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: QVC

Cost: $116ish

Thoughts: Oh, beautiful Aurora! I fell in love with her when I saw her on the cover of the newest Sneaky Peeks. She's only my second bear of the 1st quarter, but what a bear. She's tall and skinny like the old Magical Snugglies and I love that. I'm not always a fan of the wispy wild fur, but it works so well on her, as does pairing the pastels with the sandy color. Usually they're with white and this is more unique. Plus, she has iridescent tinsel running through her fur, too! She's stunning. 

LARRY

Arrival Date: 4/22/21

Size: 18"

Year: 2012 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 600

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: Fellow Collector

Cost: $120

Thoughts: Ah, Larry. I fell in love with one particular Larry on ebay back in 2019, but didn't win him. I should have tried harder! I think I got Griffin instead. I know there were two from the same seller that I tried for. I saw him for sale a few times, but none really spoke to me until this guy. The collector I've been buying a lot of older bears from listed him and I thought about it for a day or so and then asked about him. This guy's got a little more sass than the kinda dippy cute one I liked on ebay, but I like his face a lot, too. He's bigger than I expected and quite wobbly, but I've gotten comfortable with the wobble. I think he looks like a raccoon a bit and he's quite soft.

RUDOLPH (Rehomed)

Arrival Date: 4/20/21 (Rehomed 7/23)

Size: 17"

Year: 2013 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 680

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: ebay 

Cost: About $70 

Thoughts: Rudolph came out alongside Satsuma, who I adore. I always liked them both, but favored Satsuma. When Rudolph came up for sale on ebay, I went for him so they could sit beside each other on my shelves. Rudolph is the same more coarse, long-pile plush as Satsuma (only Satsuma is orange). I'm not a huge fan of long-pile, but I do love these two. Rudolph is only an inch shorter, but he's less massive than Satsuma. And yes, he really is that red!

SAMANTHA (Rehomed)

Arrival Date: 4/15/21 (Rehomed 1/23)

Size: 12"

Year: 2010

Edition Size: 2,010

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: Fellow collector

Cost: $75 (Retail $54.95)

Note: No paper tags

Thoughts: Little Samantha is one bear I've had in the back of my mind for years. Not long after I first started collecting bears, I worked on writing a story involving them. Samantha and Ruby were part of the cast, playing a couple rather snobby bears. Now here we are years later and I own both Samantha and Ruby, who are basically pint-size and adorable, not snobby at all. She's a very pretty little bear, not my usual type, but she still fits in well.

PUDDING

Arrival Date: 4/6/21

Size: 18"

Year: 2010

Edition Size: 900

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: Fellow collector

Cost: $150

Thoughts: Pudding! I've wanted him for a few years, but finally got the opportunity to get one from within the US. Pudding is actually much bigger than I thought. I guess I never looked at his height before. He's an older bear and very wobble-jointed. I reinforced his neck by winding a ribbon around it tightly. I don't  mind wobbles, but I do prefer to reinforce the neck if it's very wobbly. I believe Pudding was a holiday release. He has a lovely necklace of thick red, green and gold twisted cord with a large red bell and two wooden beads in green and red. But the thing that makes him most unique is that...he sparkles! Strands of iridescent tinsel are blended into both his brown and white fur. He's also not firmly stuffed so he feels very cuddly.

NIMBUS

Arrival Date: 3/29/21

Size: 19"

Year: 2014

Edition Size: 2000

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $86

Thoughts: Nimbus also arrived today and oh, man, do I love him. I think of Nimbus in a set with Mercury (I have him) and Bobsleigh (probably won't get him). I threw in a bid on Nimbus not at all thinking of winning, but I was at work when the auction ended and I ducked into the back to watch the last few minutes. I tossed in another couple bids and I still can't believe I won for less than $100! I mean, that's less than retail even and I know this is a popular bear. He's super soft like Mercury and I rearranged things so they can sit together. He's a big chunky guy, too. A bit wobbly-jointed like a lot of the older larger bears. He's adorable!