Creating memory bears for others

Paula Rodgers is trying to help people hold onto a memory.

She has started a new business venture creating memory bears. So far she has made two from clothes at Frenchy’s, to give people an idea of what they would look like and get the word out.

The custom teddy bears would be made from the clothes of someone who has passed, or a child who is all grown up.

“There is a lot of sentiment in memory bears, quilts and dolls,” says Rodgers.

Clothes are often threaded with familiarity. Certain pieces can be tied to a particular memory, or just attached to the basic idea of someone.

She got the idea to make memory bears when she came across them on Pinterest. She thought they were a great idea and remembered how impactful similar creations she had made years prior had been.

Rodgers and her husband have both been married before. When they got together they cleaned out his house to run a business out of it.

While cleaning she found some fabric that used to belong to his first wife, who passed away from cancer.

She took the fabric and made dolls for each one of his kids.

Similarly, her daughter-inlaw lost both her parents to cancer, so Rodgers made her three girls a memory quilt using their grandparent’s clothes.

“To this day they make a point in saying they will curl up on the bed with their children and say ‘This is what my mommy wore.' 'This is what my daddy wore’ and the grandkids are associating the grandparents with that quilt.”

Rodgers has been sewing for a long time. When she was a child her mother taught her and her two sisters how to sew, crochet, embroider and knit.

She used to make and sell a lot of fabric dolls. She recorded who bought each doll with a sample of the fabric so there would be no two dolls out there with the same dress.

“I thoroughly enjoyed doing dolls, time was nothing when I was working on a doll,” she says.

As for the memory bears, one bear can be made from an XL men's shirt, but three pieces of material would allow the bear to have more of a patchwork look.

A bear made from baby clothes would require around six sleepers because they are so small.

Rodgers is hoping to have a website up and running soon, and to add more information to her Facebook Page Ladybug Dolls. For now, people can message her on that page.