• 1/2 metre of mohair
• Strong thread to match, for fixing eyes and closing seams
• Ultrasuede for paw pads
• 3 x 45mm hardboard joint sets for arm and head (including the self locking nuts and bolts)
• 2 x 50mm hardboard joint sets for legs (including the self locking nuts and bolts)
• 2 plain nuts for the head joint
• 1 pair of 11mm black glass eyes
• Black perle cotton for nose
• Polyester filling
• Plastic pellets
• 1/4” (5mm) seam allowance is included in the pattern pieces

1. Read and familiarise yourself with all the instructions before you start. Trace or photocopy the pattern pieces, pasting them onto cardboard. Check the pile direction of the mohair marking the back with an arrow in the pile direction. On the reverse side arrange your pattern pieces and draw around all of them, transferring markings such as openings and joint holes. Make sure you have all the pieces, and that they have been reversed where necessary before cutting out. Using sharp scissors cut out pieces cutting the backing only, not the mohair pile. Next cut out the paw and footpads from the ultrasuede. Carefully trim the pile away from all the seam allowances. I find this very important as it gives lovely neat seams.

2. Stitch the top and bottom darts in both body pieces. With right sides together, pin then stitch from E right round to D, leaving a small opening at the top dart area for the head and in the back for jointing and stuffing. Using an awl make a small hole in the body where marked for the legs, leave the holes for the arm joints at this stage. Sew the paw pads to the inside arms F to G. pin and stitch the inner arm to the outer arm leaving open where marked, for turning and stuffing.

3. Fold the leg in half right sides together, then pin and stitch the pieces leaving the opening where marked for turning and stuffing. Leave the foot pad open too. Make sure you have a joint mark on the opposite sides of each pair so that you have a right leg and a left leg.

4. Fold the ultrasuede footpad in half and mark on the wrong side of the centre points of the toe and heel. Pin the foot pad into place easing it in gently and aligning the toe and heel points as you go. When you are happy tack into place and finally hand sew using very small back stitches and extra strong thread. Using an awl make a small hole on the inner leg where marked for the joint, then turn right sides out.

5. With right sides together, pin and stitch the ears around the curved edge only, turn right sides out, and oversew the straight edges together. To make the head, with right sides together sew under the chin seam, from neck to nose A to B. I stitch this seam twice for extra strength. Pin the head gusset into place easing it in gently and matching A at the nose and C at the neck opening, then tack this seam into place. I then hand stitch using very small stitches and extra strong thread from the top of the head around the nose area and back to the top of the head on the other side. Machine stitch the remainder of both the seams from the top of the head down to the neck opening. Leave the neck open between B and C. Turn right sides out.

6. Stuff the head firmly paying particular attention to the nose area - it makes embroidering the nose easier. Using strong doubled thread run a gathering stitch around the open neck edge. Assemble the head joint as follows - fit a plain washer to the bolt and super glue in to place. Next fit the hardboard disk and glue to the washer. Once dry insert the joint into the head, then pull up gathered stitches tightly and tie off passing the threads back through the head to secure.

7. Trim your nose area and using a long piece of black perle, embroider the nose. I usually put two or three layers of vertical stitching starting from the middle to one side and then from the middle to the other side and then back across the whole nose again. I also outline the finished nose with perle thread. Leave inserting the mouth until later.

8. Mark the desired eye positions with glass headed pins and make a small hole with the awl. I like to place them just outside the gusset seam. Cut a long length of strong thread, double it and attach the eye to the centre of the threads. Trim the ends of the threads to leave four ends. Thread these ends into a long doll makers’ needle and pass it diagonally down through the eye position and exiting on the opposite side of the head next to the joint. Pull the eye into the head, then make the eyehole bigger with your awl if you need to so that the wire of the eye sits down into the head, but do not tie off at this stage. Repeat with the other eye. Check that the eyes are level, and balanced with the nose.

9. Re-thread two threads onto the needle, pass back through the same hole and out of the head again approximately 2/3mm from the first threads. Pull each eye down tightly and knot several times, then sew the ends back into the head to lose them. Now is the time to trim your teddy’s face back to the desired length, remembering to remove a small amount at a time. It will not re-grow if you remove too much! Now the face is trimmed you can mark the shape and position of the mouth with pins and embroider using the same perle thread as the nose, once finished carefully trim away any excess fur from the mouth line. His ears can now be pinned and then ladder stitched into place.

10. Now attach the head to the body by passing the neck bolt through the top of the body, add a hardboard disc followed by a plain washer then the first plain nut. Tighten this nut firmly then add the second plain nut and tighten again holding the first nut still as you do so. Finish off with a drop of superglue between the last nut and the bolt.

11. Next attach his legs where marked doing the nut and bolt joints up firmly. Find the markings for his arms, they may need to be moved slightly so that your teddy’s arms are not sitting too high. When happy with the positioning, attach the arms to the body, once again doing the nut and bolt joints up firmly

12. Stuff each limb firmly and close all the seams with ladder stitch. To finish, stuff the body with a little polyester filling around all the joint areas and his neck and chest area and then fill his tummy with the pellets. Add more polyester to stop the pellets coming out as you close up his back using ladder stitch. Now is the time to embroider the claws onto Thomas’ paw pads, if you wish. Finally give him a good brush all over, add a large flamboyant ribbon and give Thomas a big hug.

Thomas is a cute curly-haired hugster waiting to be hugged. Thomas was designed by Lynette and Paul Littlejohn and his pattern has been reproduced with Lynette's permission. For more details about L J Bears call 01590 676 517 (UK) or visit the website www.ljbears.co.uk