SASKIA

Arrival Date: 10/3/16

Size: 11"

Year: 2015, but released in 2016; LE 50 (mine is #24)

Designer: Kaycee Bears

Purchased From: Beacon's Glow

Cost: $126.95

Thoughts: I feel bad for Saskia. I really wanted her and waited months for her to finally be produced, only to be disappointed that her coloring is far more muted than her promo pictures showed. Google "Kaycee Bears Saskia" and you will see the huge difference. She's extremely cute, but my disappointment in her not being those rich browns has made me not really bond with her. I've had her up for sale for awhile, but she's not been rehomed yet. I refuse to take less than a certain price for her. She's better off on my shelf than me taking a big loss on her. 

MIX

Arrival Date: 10/17/16

Size: 11"

Year: 2016 Sweetie Shop Collection

Edition Size: 1840

Designer: Heather Lyell

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $49.95

Thoughts: I fell in love with Mix when I first saw the Sweetie Collection and snatched him right up. I like Pick, too, but I think Mix is going to stay my sole purchase from that assortment. He's a lovely yellow and so adorably tiny! I haven't cuddled him in awhile, but he was great for couch naptime. He's my mom's fave, along with Brussell.

HIDE (Rehomed)

Arrival Date: 7/27/16

Size: 11"

Year: 2016

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $75.95

Thoughts: Ah, Hide. This poor girl sat without her brother for many months! Seek was the one I initially preordered, but I ended up adding Hide on there, too. They're lovely little ferrets, though a bit too small to repeatedly seek out for cuddles.

CHOCOHOLIC (Rehomed)

Arrival Date: 7/18/16 (Rehomed 1/7/17)

Size: 22"

Year: 2015

Edition Size: 1500

Designer: Heather Lyell

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $103.95 (Retail $129.95)

Thoughts: Chocoholic I really liked from my stockist's photos, so I bought him when he was the daily special. I was blown away by his size when I opened the box. He's really huge and also very skinny. He's part of a series by Heather Lyell called the Magical Snugglies, so he's actually not stuffed very much. I was surprised I could feel the armature of his body. I was also surprised to learn that Luna is part of this range, because she's far more cuddly than Choco was. His huge size and lack of girth made him not cuddly enough for me, so he was rehomed. He's a sweet bear with a darling face, but he took up way too much room to just be a shelf-sitter.

PUMPKIN PIE

Arrival Date: 7/2/16

Size: 14"

Year: 2016

Edition Size: 2200

Designer: Heather Lyell

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $71.95

Thoughts: Pumpkin Pie was my most wanted bear from the 2016 collection. My most wanteds originally were Lazlo and Pimky, the monkeys, but they turned out to be not nearly as cute in real life, so I never bought them. Pumpkin though did not disappoint. I got really excited when I saw her popping up on ebay and I prayed that she'd make it to my stockist soon, which she did! This one jumped right out at me from the ones I had to choose from and when I took her out of the package, I just fell absolutely in love. Her coloring is so unique and beautiful. I'm a sucker for orange, but she's so much more than just orange. Pumpkin Pie's one of my top favorites. She's definitely my very favorite smaller bear. 

LUNA

Arrival Date: 6/27/16

Size: 17"

Year: 2014

Edition Size: 3000

Designer: Heather Lyell

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $29.99 (Retail $69.95)

Note: Missing necklace and tags

Thoughts: Luna was an absolute bargain on ebay, possibly because she doesn't have her necklace and I'm not sure she had her tags either, but those things didn't matter to me in the face of a $30 bear from a US seller. I love her starry sky design and her name reminds me of one of my three fave Harry Potter characters. Luna isn't super prominent in my collection, as she suffers from the long hair tickly problem like Bryony, but she certainly has a place in my hug. 

CHEQUERS

Arrival Date: 6/20/16

Size: 13"

Year: 2016

Edition Size: 2600

Designer: Heather Lyell

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $80.95

Thoughts: Chequers wasn't one of my pre-orders, but I needed him, so he became my second purchase from the 2016 collection. I think he's far cuter "in the fur" than his promo picture and I love his wispy hair. He lives on the black and white shelf with Bryony and Blog.

EDEN

Arrival Date: 5/28/16

Size: 18.5"

Year: 2012

Edition Size: 2400

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $84.50 (Retail $99.95)

Thoughts: Eden was a bit problematic at first. I loved her look from the beginning, but I really got heavily into bears because they helped me heal after a bad breakup, and there's a certain thing about Eden that reminded me of my ex. It took a few months, but I finally felt over it enough to buy her and she's just lovely. She has a slightly wobbly head, which is why she tends to sit with Oodles and Bray rather than get a lot of cuddles. Eden is my old hometown, so she's got a nice little sentimental connection.

BRUSSELL

Arrival Date: 5/28/16

Size: 15"

Year: 2013 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 1000

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: ebay

Cost: $109

Thoughts: THAT FACE. When I first saw Brussell, I didn't even think he was a CB. He's so incredibly different. I absolutely had to have him. He's a bear that's like the opposite of Howie. Howie looked like he should be small and he was bigger, while Brussell looks like he should be a good 18 or 19 inches, but is tiny. He's one of my mom's faves and he's so sweet.

DIPSY

Arrival Date: 5/14/16

Size: 15.5"

Year: 2013 Secret Collection

Edition Size: 600

Designer: Isabelle Lee

Purchased From: Bears Against MS

Cost: $63.95 after $5 gift certificate

Thoughts: I don't know what it is about Dipsy. I debated between him and Blog and ended up choosing Blog, because I'd wanted him for longer, but I couldn't go long after that without buying Dipsy. As you can tell, because their arrival dates are only two days apart. I'm not big into animal print, so Dipsy stayed under my radar for months, but then I kept seeing him and my stockist had some, so I went for it. And he's now pretty high up on my faves list. There's something about him that's just a disgruntled little curmudgeon. I've seen others say he has a sad face, but mine definitely does not. That is a bear with attitude and I adore him for it. Dipsy is the only bear who has gotten to leave the house twice. He and Oodles accompanied me to a local hotel when Mom and I had a floor leak fixed, and he, Mix and Pumpkin Pie went on vacation with us last year.