For those people who are not interested in bears or have a different animal in mind, I can make just about any animal.

I literally have hundreds of patterns from over 40 years of sewing. If you want a cat, a bunny, a dog or some other animal, let me know what you are looking for. If I don't have a picture of one that I've actually made, I can email pictures from the patterns I have available. I have even created my own patterns for animal characters described in stories.

Prices can vary depending on the complexity and size of the animal. As a basic guide:

Fabric animals run between $65-$95
Faux Fur animals run between $85-$110
Real fur animals run between $110-$180

If you are interested in having an heirloom fur or fabric piece turned into a soft animal to commemorate your memories, you can contact me to discuss the fur/fabric you want used and to make a reservation.

Contact Information

Phone: 937-231-5025
Email: Liane@fairygodmothercreations.com

Reservations need to be made in advance because this is a hobby I work on them in my spare time in evenings and weekends) and the price simply does not cover the actual amount of time I put into each animal.

For some reason, AOL doesn't always allow my emails through. If you have emailed me and don't receive a response within 24 hours, it means I either didn't get your email, or my response did not make it to you. You can also call me at 937-231-5025 during normal work hours (this is my real job phone number at Ohio Valley Marketing but feel free to leave a message if I'm not there when you call and I will call you back).

Recent Projects

Here are some of the projects I've had the opportunity to work on. Unfortunately, I only recently started really offering animals other than bears so, although I've made hundreds of animals over the years, I have limited photos of client work. You can see more photos of the variety of animals I've made on my Animal Gallery Page here, or by following the link after these stories.

Soft, Furry Pony This beautiful little guy is made of muskrat with black mink hooves and raccoon fur mane and tail. He stands about 16" tall is about 17" long and has shoe button eyes. It takes quite a bit of fur to make a horse. I chose to put a brocade saddle blanket on him and gold trim reigns.

Plaid Memory Bunny Lisa sent me two of her late father's shirts to make into a bunny for her mother. I used a combination of the two shirts to give contrast to the tummy, muzzle, ears and paw pads. The ears are wired so they can be positioned--otherwise they would have just flopped down. Liane, We got it and I gave it to my Mom yesterday. He’s very cute and my Mom loves him.Thanks so much!! Lisa

Whimsical Cats Erica had two of her late mother's sun dresses. She contacted me wanting cats instead of bears. In an email exchange, I let her know what patterns I had available for cats. She chose an old primitive pattern with very whimsical cats. The fabric from the dresses was colorful wtih a tropic feel to it. Getting the colors to work well together was quite a challenge and made for four very bright, whimiscal cats full of character. Liane, I just receved the cats.  I absolutely LOVE them!  They are quirky and have so much personality.  My Mother would've loved them.  I originally wanted to go with the Memory Bears, but noticed you had other pattern designs.  I found one of the cat patterns and instantly fell in love.  My Mom was a vivacious, kind-hearted, cat loving woman and these Memory Cats are the perfect tribute to her.  My stepfather and sister will adore them.  Thanks for making my Mother's essence live on  :) Thank you, Erica

Ok, Not Bears But Bunnies Hi Liane, They are absolutely adorable.  I love the one you did for me using the natural pieces.  Mom is going to be so happy! Cathy

Mink Makes Great Bunnies Bonnie sent me her mink coat to have two 16" bunnies made for her daughters. The pocket lining was a light pink velvet so I used it for the ear pads and noses. I used the coat lining material for the paw and foot pads. Bonnie also had me put her daughters' initials on a foot. My bunnies have arrived!!! They are SO cute. I love the way you wrapped them, just like a gift. I can't wait to give them to my girls on Easter. Thanks again. I will keep your web site on my favorites Bonnie

Ruth's Dragons My niece likes to write and she publishes some of her writing at Fictionpress.com. One of the projects she has going is a series of 52 poems (each 52 words long) about dragons. It is a cute series and inspired me to try and create a couple of her dragons. Banana by Ruth Park: “In the jungle there lived a bright yellow dragon with brown spots. He called himself Banana and hung around with a wild boar and one crazy jaguar. The three of them could often be found experimenting with the many hallucinogens one finds in the jungle. That is, until the cottage cheese incident.” Death Fang by Ruth Park “He was the most feared dragon in all the land, but with a name like Death Fang it was kind of expected. He was huge with glossy black scales and a glare that could melt steel. You can imagine the surprise when they found him wearing a pink feather boa and lipstick.”

You can see more projects on my Gallery Pages Click Here to See More Pictures

How much fur/fabric does it take to make an animal?

With stuffed animals, it depends a lot on what kind of animal you want. If you want something with the same overall characteristics and proportion of a bear, then the bear chart works. If you want something of a different proportion (like a four-legged standing animal) then I need more available fur in larger segments to work wtih. I can usually get the following:

Will My Fur Work Well?:
So far, I've been able to work with any fur that has come my way. However, different fur does handle differently.Here are some of the common furs I've worked with so far:

• Mink, Muskrat, Beaver, Squirrel, Weasle, Sable, Ermine, Opposum, Badger and Persian Lamb all make beautiful animals and I can make just about any size animal from these fur types if there is enough fur.

• Rabbit has very thin hide so I have to treat it a bit more and it tends to shed over the years. However, it does make very cute animals.

• Mouton and Seal These furs have a very thick hide. The final animals are beautiful, but it is nearly impossible to work with anything under 16" in size.

• Fox, Silver Fox and Raccoon all tend to have very thin hide with long pile fur. However, most coats with this fur are made of strips of fur between strips of leather or suede--which gives added strength to the fur. This works well for coats, but when making smaller items--like bears--the strips of leather WILL show. I try to place the pattern pieces so that none of the seams land on leather strips, but this means there is more waste. If you want me to reduce or eliminate the leather strips, I can do so but there is a $50 up-charge to your total order because it is time consuming to do so. I have to cut the strips off and re-bind the fur pieces together. The fur from these animals is so long, it works best on animals 16" or larger.

I have a couple of shirts from my late husband and would like something for each of my grandchildren. How can you use them to create five animals the same? I can use quilting and patchwork techniques that incorporate the different fabrics into each animal. This bear uses a quilting pierpoint star on the belly, embroidered initials on the foot and patchwork from a couple of garments.

How do I know if my fur will work? Most fur that still has its original lining in good shape tends to be useable. Furiers use lining fabrics that allow the hide to keep its oils. Vintage fur can get dried out over time though--actually, it is the hide that gets dried out. If the hide is too dry, the needle holes from sewing act like perforation instead of binding.

For thicker hide like mink, muskrat, wolf, beaver you can test the fur. If you peel back a bit of lining on your garment to expose the hide, try and poke your finger through the hide (preferrably not on a seam--though some fur is made up of nothing but seams). If it takes a lot of effort to tear, or if the hide simply doesn't tear, your fur is probably going to do well in the sewing process. If the fur tears easily or acts like paper once there is a little hole (as long as it isn't along a seam) then it is pretty dried out.

For thin hide like rabbit and silver fox, this test won't work because the hide will poke through even if it is in good condition. The best thing to do is send me the fur so I can assess it.

There are things I can do to re-inforce most hide (in fact, I rarely have to send a garment back). If you are unsure, you can send the fur to me along with your order. If the fur simply won't work, I'll ship it back along with your returned payment minuse the cost to ship the garment back.

Is there any option for fur that is dried out? Yes, there may be. If your fur is in bad shape but you want me to try and use it, I have a process I've developed that has made it possible to use every fur that has been sent to me so far. However, there are no guarantees so I will only attempt it with the following understanding 1.) If it simply won't work after I've tried, I will return all but $20 of your money. 2.)It requires me to cut the fur in order to create an animal arm and leg. I use a process I've developed but I won't know if the fur will split at the seam until I turn and stuff a sewn piece or two. If the test does not work and you want the fur returned, I will also charge ($15) to ship it back at that point.

Do you use the garment lining? Yes, if the garment has lining material that can be used for paw pads and ear pads as well as noses sometimes, I will use it if at all possible. I will try to use it to make accents like a scarf or bow. If the lining is just too old (old satin degrades to the point that it simply tears easily), I use satin scraps from my own supplies. If there is a special embroidery element, I try to work it into a scarf when possible.

What kind of eyes do you use? I use standard acrylic safety bear eyes for my basic bears. The acrylic eyes are more affordable, long-lasting and look good. They are also more secure so don't represent a choking hazzard for little ones. If someone wants glass eyes, I will use glass eyes. They take a special order and do cost a bit more ($10 per bear) and they ARE NOT for bears being given to little children. Although they are securely applied, glass eyes are attached to a wire that can break if enough twisting and pressure is put on them--making them a potential choking hazzard. If someone wants an old fashioned folk-art look, I use buttons for eyes. If you are interested in glass eyes or button eyes, please mention it when you place your order.

How much time do you put into each animal? Normally, each animal takes 6-12 hours depending on the type and size and the condition of the materials. There are some preliminary things I have to do to the fur or fabric to make sure it will hold up to the sewing. With some garments it can take nearly an hour just to propperly remove the lining. The higher quality the garment, the more difficult to get the lining off. I often have to adapt my patterns to work with the fabric/fur nap as well and this can literally take hours of switching the pattern pieces around when I'm trying to get several items from a single garment. In addition, the joints take time to apply and have to have the right amount of tension. And, of course, there is a lot of hand sewing involved.

How long can I expect to wait before my animal arrives? I tell people that an average order takes about two to three weeks from the day I receive the materials to the day I ship it out. Sometimes I will turn an order around faster though. It really depends on how many animals I'm trying to make from the materials and what I have going on. Since this is a hobby, I use my evenings and weekend time. I try not to work every evening or my family feels neglected. I do try to email updates along the way. Starting in mid September, Christmas reservations tend to keep me pretty busy through to Christmas so I highly recommend planning ahead if you are wanting these as Christmas gifts.

What happens to the extra fur? Most of the time, there isn't much in the way of extra fur. Very few people have only wanted one item from the fur they have sent me so I'm frantically working to get the number of animals they want from the fur. However, occasionally there is a little fur left over. Unless the person who sent it specifically requests to have it back, I will keep it and use it to augment other projects--or use when I want to do a test run on a new pattern or approach (I have a growing collection of prototype animal heads :) ). If I've collected enough extra fur to make a something, I'll sometimes create a sample of an animal I want to offer but have not actually had an order for, but it doesn't happen very often. There isn't much of a market for people who want to purchase stuffed animals specifically made from real fur and there is a segment of the population that is offended by what I do so I can't just make a real fur animal to give to a charity auction. The people coming to this site are looking for someone to help them turn their heirloom fur into items that they can treasure and share so it is a more personal service rather than a manufacturing process.

How should I send my garment? Pack it into as small a box you can fit it in. I'd prefer not to receive garment bags or cases that need to be returned. If you are concerned about protecting it from moisture, put it into a plastic garbage bag. It will not be in the mail very long--and I remove it from the box when it arrives.

I have an old fur coat I don't want, do you take donations? Yes, if you have an old fur coat you don't want I will take it off your hands. I'm not in the market for buying fur but will happily reimburse your shipping costs. Most of the people coming to this web site want bears made from THEIR fur and very few people are simply looking for a pre-made bear made of real fur so it isn't usually worth it for me to spend money on fur to make bears from. If you have the energy, you might be able to sell your fur on Ebay.