Fall Steiff Event 2014

Article by Charlie Dale

Dick Franz (standing), Charla and Don Keehn,

Sorry for the huge delay from the actual event to the actual posting this, as I was very ill for three  and half weeks from right before Halloween until now.  My hope had been to post this right after the event to keep the Steiff momentum going.  So, I'm sorry this is so late; but do hope you enjoy the post and pictures.


We may have had showers early in the morning, and we may have had chilly weather but did that deter Steiff collector's?  No it didn't.  With an estimated 50 collectors in attendance the conversations were lively, spirited and, of course, about our beloved Steiff.  Part of Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe cleared the floor to set up the Fall Steiff display, as well as the projector that was going to be used for Dick Franz's presentation.

Speaking of Dick, he arrived snappily dressed as always.  In head to toe black, Dick wore a tan wool blazer that set off his look.  While Jeanne wore a pair of crisp black slacks and a black and white print top that truly complimented Dick's ensemble.

Guests started arriving at 10 when the store opened, many with their cherished Steiff collectibles in hand to be either appraised or signed by Dick, while some did both with their "forever friends".  It was certainly nice to see the older Steiff pieces, some of which I haven't seen in ages.  I lucked out and even grabbed a few hugs from these "forever friends" as well as from customers.



Carol Ewing with her "forever friend"

Without the Steiff collectors there would have been no event, and I am unbelievably thankful to the customers who make my business what it is.  I also have to thank Steiff for the incredible line of products they sent for the display as well as the door prizes.



Speaking of door prizes I should mention the winners.  Angie Salisbury of Stow, Ohio who won Cookie Bear  #682254.  Shane Dale of Welshfield, Ohio won Baby Bear #237089 and Charla Keehn of North Royalton won teddy bear Jane.

Dick's presentation started at 11, with most of the estimated 50 customers in attendance, which was about our esteemed Appolonia "Margarete" Steiff. 

For those who were not available to attend her is the information that was presented.

Margarete was born in  Giengen, Germany on July 24, 1847.  She was the third of four children.  Her father Friedrich, was a master builder and her mother Maria, ran the household and supported her husband in his work.  Margarete was a very lively, well-built child and led a carefree life until she became ill with polio at the age of 1 1/2.  She was destined never to walk and was to be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of her life.

Her mother, above all, found this very difficult to bear.  She would have to care for her daughter for as long as she lived.  Her daughter would never be able to take on the role of housewife and mother and, at the time, it seemed as though she had absolutely no prospects for the future.

Colleen Rodenburg, and baby Jackson

The apparently helpless Margarete had other ideas, however, and was full of the joys of life.  She radiated a positive aura and her convivial, cheerful nature made her very popular.  She always wanted to be involved in whatever was going on outdoors, regardless of the weather, and was always asking members of her household and friends to carry her outside -- even during the winter months.

When Margarete was due to start school she was accompanied by the neighbors' children and her sisters, and a lady who lived near the school who carried Margarete up the stairs.  She enjoyed school very much and her work soon proved to be above average.  Margarete was a creative inventor of new games.  She was always having new ideas and organized games in such a way that she could take part.

In doing this, one of Margarete's natural gifts became evident, one that was to help her a great deal in the years to come. She had a way of telling people what had to be done in a manner that made them want to do what she said.  Margarete looked after young children while their mothers were working. She loved closeness and little ones.  She noted the following aspect of this in her daily reminiscences "It was also an important duty for me as I did not have to crochet at the same time, because I was usually required to do such and such amount."
 

Overcoming limitations: 1856 - 1877

Margarete was strictly kept at home, which is the reason why she particularly enjoyed the summer of 1856. She was staying in Ludwigsburg with the family of Dr. Werner, a pediatrician, and had a great deal more freedom of movement there. She was completely integrated into the family, had lessons and didn't suffer from homesickness at all.    Following an unsuccessful operation on her legs, Margarete went to a health resort in Wildbad. She enjoyed the health cure tremendously and matured in mind and soul, but her physical condition did not improve. She traveled backwards and forwards between Ludwigsburg and Wildbad, finally returning to Giengen in the November of 1856.  Margarete had a lot to catch up on at school after her summer absence but, being a cheerful and ambitious person, she soon brought herself up to the required level. This statement certainly gives the impression that Margarete's mother didn't spoil her. The next thing that Margarete wanted to do was to attend a sewing school. Her father objected to this initially wishing to prevent her from being disappointed if she was unsuccessful. She asserted herself, though, and showed her parents once again that they had underestimated her. Although she took much longer to get the work done and frequently had to ask her sisters to help her, she became a perfect seamstress after a few years. Margarete was always trying to overcome her limitations. She was also up to learning to play the zither. Eventually, she could play so well that she was able to give lessons herself. Margarete spent some of her time staying with other families while sewing dowry articles. Her aunt, Appolonia Hähnle, was the first person for whom she did this and she later worked for town clergyman Gross. When she was around 17 years old, Margarete realized that she was never going to be healed. She knew that she was going to have to come to terms with her illness in order to find peace of mind and her real way in life. Margarete's father, Friedrich Steiff, modified his house in 1874 and, among other things, converted a study the first floor into a dressmaker's workshop. Paula, Baby Justin, and Shane Dale Together with her sisters, Marie and Pauline, she began to perform sewing work at home. The workshop became well known and the girls were the first people in Giengen to buy their own sewing machine. Margarete was unable to turn the wheel with her right hand, so the machine was turned round: she used her left hand to drive the machine and guided the fabric with her right hand. The list of customers grew longer and longer. Although Margarete also made up-to-date dresses, she much preferred sewing clothes for children. Pauline married in 1870, followed by Marie in 1873. Margarete started traveling around the country in the summer of that year, always staying with friends or relatives. Her first journeys took her to Geislingen, Heidenheim and Gerstetten; later to Neckarsulm, Stuttgart, Hochberg; Ludwigsburg and Augsburg at greater intervals and, much later, to Hörbranz and Lindau. Clothes and felt animals: 1877 - 1894 Margarete was still working in her parents' house. At the instigation of Adolf Glatz - a manufacturer at the local felt factory who married into the family - she set up a felt business and took on her first assistants. Wilhelm Adolf Glatz (1841-1916), a titled distinguished businessman, originally worked in the Völter paper factory in Gerschweiler and married one of the sisters of felt manufacturer Hans Hähnle in 1871. Adolf Glatz helped Margarete Steiff in both word and deed and encouraged her to set up her own business. He supported Margarete, financially as well, of course,as much as he could for several years. Felt was transformed into ladies petticoats (for Ch. Siegle in Stuttgart and the retail trade) and children's coats.The sales figures increased continuously and the sewing workshop turned into a little factory. Over the years, Margarete's brother, Fritz, became father to six sons, with whom Margarete shared very close relationships. They often visited her at home and in the workshop. Margarete radiated tremendous optimism and affection for people. She had a very special way of dealing with children, watching them carefully and responding tactfully and with humor. This tact and sensitivity also manifested themselves in the atmosphere that prevailed in the workshop. There was no feeling of boss and employees--- Margarete was interested in the fates of every one of her seamstresses and helped where she could

The pictures at the left are of the surprise cake made by Charlie Dale just for this event.  Yellow cake, with white buttercream icing while the teddy bear and border were chocolate icing.   Teddy's bowtie was a light green color. A small handmade paper "Steiff" tag was teddy's ear and was a "001", which added to the fun. 

Do hope that all of our guests enjoyed Dick Franz's talk that day, grabbed plenty of edible goodies and ordered or bought everything Steiff their hearts desired.

Looking forward to the Spring Event when Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe get to see all of you all over again.





Dick Franz, , Charla and Don Keehn

Jeannie, Sherry Graham, Linda Keillor



The crowd anticipating Dick Franz's speech

Some Basic Steiff History

by: Charlie Dale
March 11, 2014

I've decided to provide some background information on the history of the Steiff history, based on the fact that Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe is having their annual Steiff Spring event coming at the end of the month.  I also felt that a basic history lesson in where Steiff started might be of some interest to the followers of this new blog and Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe.

Steiff is a German-based plush toy company known for its excellent, high quality stuffed toys.  It began in 1880 by Margarete Steiff, who was later assisted by her brother Fritz.  Margaret, a polio victim learned to sew with one hand and despite her infirmity, she was able to build an internationally successful company that thrives to this day.

The toys began as elephants, and were originally a design Steiff found in a magazine and sold as pincushions to her friends.  However, children began playing with them, and in the years following she went on to design many other successful animal-themed toys for children, such as dogs, cats and pigs.  She designed and made of the prototypes herself.

The company's success lies in its lack of willingness to compromise on quality.  Every item is still handmade using century-old manufacturing techniques in their factory of Giegen, Germany.

Richard Steiff, Margarete's nephew, was responsible for developing the Steiff brand in the US and in the beginning demand has so high more than one million pieces have currently shipped to our shores.

Richard Steiff joined the company in 1897 and gave the company an enormous boost in popularity by creating the teddy bear in 1902.  In 1907, Steiff manufactured 974,000 bears, and has been increasing its output ever since.

The Steiff company motto, as styled by Margarete Steiff, is "Only the best is good enough for children."  Steiff products are subjected to meticulous testing and inspection.  They are required to be highly flame resistant and, among other things, smaller pieces such as eyes must be able to resist considerable tension, wear and tear, etc.

The most common materials used in Steiff toys are alpaca, felt, mohair and woven fabrics.  Eyes are generally made of wood or glass, and the stuffing is commonly wood shavings or polyester fibers.  A large amount of the work is done by hand, from design sketches to the airbrushed highlights.  The final touch on any Steiff toy is the trademark "button in the ear" (assuming the animal has one; in  any case they'll find a spot/hole for it).

The famed "button in the ear" was devised by Margarete's brother Franz in 1904, to keep counterfeits from being passed off as authentic Steiff toys.  It is metal and originally had the symbol of an elephant, later that was replaced by the name Steiff  The button is still used to distinguish Steiff toys from fakes.  Some special current toys have both the elephant and the name.  These types of toys are considered highly collectible.

Richard Steiff (February 7, 1877- March 30, 1939) Richard was born in Giengen, and entered his aunt's toy making enterprise in 1897.  WHile attending the Arts and Crafts (Kunstgewerbeschule) in Stuttgart, he would regularly visit the nearby Nill'scher Zoo (which was closed in 1906) and spend much of his time drawing the residents of the bear enclosure.  Is sketched were incorporated into the prototype of the toy bear he created in 1902 and code-named Steiff Bar 55 PB (where 55 equals the bear's height in centimeters; P which equalled Plusch, plush; and B equalled beweglich, moveable limbs).

At its debut at the Leipzig Toy Fair in 1903, the bear initially attracted little attention, but its fortunes were saved when an American buyer snapped up the entire lot of 100 bears and another 3,000 just before the exhibition finished.  The heyday of Steiff company thus began.  At the Saint Louis World's Fair in 1904, the Steiff's sold 12,000 bears and received the Gold Medal, which was the highest honor at the event.  The kind of toy bear they pioneered acquired the appellation "teddy" from several legends about President Theodore Roosevelt.  Steiff bears, with a small metal Steiff clip in the ear, can now be quite valuable.

Richard Steiff also  attained several other technological milestones.  He developed the Roloplan, a kind of kite, which could take aerial photographs of the Steiff factory and its surroundings in  Giengen.  The Imperial German Army expressed an interest in the Roloplan for aerial reconnaissance purposes, but abandoned such plans when it proved to be unreliably slow.

In 1903, Steiff also planned and erected a factory building of concrete and steel called the Jungfrauenaquarium (Virgins' Aquarium), which allowed all the workers inside to enjoy ample natural light, a first for its time frame.  He equipped the building with a ramp so that his aunt could reach the upper levels in her wheelchair.  Richard Steiff died at the age of 62 in Michigan.


There have been Steiff collectors fro almost as long  as the company has existed.  Early on, adults realized the high quality and exceptional value of Steiff Collectibles, so soon both adults and children were avid fans of these "toys."  There are more than two dozen quads on how to collect Steiff, but our advice is simple:  Collect what you love.  Collecting Steiff, both new and vintage, is a hobby that thousands of people around the globe enjoy.

How to identify Steiff

All Modern Steiff products and virtually all Steiff products are marked with the famous "button in the ear" trademark that identifies Steiff animals as genuine.  Through the years, it was silver colored and quite small.  Many items also include an ear tag or flag.  White tags with black type mean the piece is an exact replica of an earlier item.  White tags with red type indicate that the item is a limited edition.  Yellow tags identify that item as from Steiff's general assortment.

Other information

The Steiff range is divided into two segments: (1) collectibles and (2) toys.  While there is some overlap, most products fall into one of these two categories.  The collector range includes high quality Teddy Bears and animals made from mohair, alpaca, wool felt, cotton velvet and other natural products of valuable Woven Fur.  Now, 125 years later, this simple truth "Only the best is good enough" still guides our company in the production of both lines for collectors and children.

(Please be aware that the antique Steiff pieces pictured in this article ARE NOT available at Keillor's A Teddy Bear Shoppe, and were only used to illustrate this article.)