How to Make a Tear Bear

Tear Bears are fuzzy, handmade teddy bear paper piecing that are so cute you will want to hug them. With sparkly eyes, fuzzy limbs and adorable clothes, these bears make sweet page accents for any occasion. Their limbs are poseable so they can be positioned in a variety of ways. Whether hugging a photo, using a fishing pole or dressing up in adorable hats and boas, these tear bears are addictive to make and decorate.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Chalk
• Lightbox
• Black pen
• Water pen or cotton swab
• Quick drying glue
• Brown mulberry paper
• Toothbrush
• Black cardstock
• White paper
• White pen

1. Select a piece of light brown mulberry paper, which is a handmade paper with fibers in it. When torn, the edges remain fuzzy.

2. Draw a pattern for your tear bear on a white sheet of paper. It should include one large pear shape for the torso, one medium round circle for the head, four medium rounded rectangles for the arms and legs, five small ovals for the hands, feet and muzzle, and two small half circles for the ear. These can be sized up or down for a small, medium or large bear.

3. Place your mulberry paper over the pattern sheet.

4. Trace a line around one pattern image, using a water pen or a wet cotton swab. You should be able to see the pattern paper through the mulberry paper. If you cannot see the pattern, use a light box to help illuminate the image.

5. Tear on the wet line to remove the shape from the mulberry paper. Repeat this process until you have torn out all 13 body parts.

6. Stipple the edges of the body parts with a toothbrush to help them appear fuzzy.

7. Apply chalk to the edges of the body parts. Make sure the paper is dry first. A slightly lighter color of brown is best. Use pink chalk on the cheeks.

8. Assemble your bear. The hands and feet should lay on top of the arms and legs. The ears should be behind the head and the muzzle should be near the bottom of the face.

9. Glue the body pieces together using quick drying glue.

10. Cut out two small circles for the eye and one small oval for the nose from black cardstock.

11. Glue the eyes over the muzzle and glue the nose in the top center of the muzzle. Using a white pen, add three small white dots on each piece as the sparkle in their eyes and the wetness of their nose.

12. Draw a black line down the muzzle from the nose for the mouth and add two eyebrows.

Tips & Warnings

• Assemble your body parts in various positions before gluing. You can adjust the bears to be sitting, standing, laying down or doing cartwheels, depending on the position of their bodies.

• Adorn the bear with a ribbon bow for a girl or hat for a boy. You can also add clothes, shoes and accessories to match the page.