Wendy Boston UK Collectible Teddy Bears

Wendy Boston, England - Collectible Teddy Bears

 

Wendy Boston, not a well-known British brand and fairly hard-to-find; this little discussed company invented the Lock-In Safety Eye for Teddy Bears in 1948, completely changing the Teddy Bear market!

Wendy Boston originally worked as a designer for Cadbury's in Birmingham, but she began making soft toys in the 1940's. When her husband returned from his service in the RAF in 1945, he saw the enthusiastic response from friends and family for her creations so he began marketing them to local businesses and sold them quickly. Wendy set up shop with three employees. With soft toys being in very short supply due to the War, they soon had to move to larger factory premises and eventually increased to 100 employees.

In 1948 Wendy developed and patented the first Lock-In Safety Eye.

Her early bears were jointed and made from mohair sourced from Norton Weaving Ltd.

 

 

 

 

A Wendy Boston Mohair Plush Limb Jointed Teddy with an original seam label in his back "A Wendy Boston Playsafe Toy".

 

Always conscious of safety, in 1954 Wendy created the first fully washable unjointed Teddy Bear filled with foam rubber and test marketed it.

It was highly successful, and in 1955 the Washable Bear was launched on the BBC (British Broadcasting Corp) shown being washed and put through the mangle (wringer washer)!

 

In 1960 the company changed its name to Wendy Boston Playsafe Toys Ltd.  By 1964, Wendy Boston was manufacturing over 25% of British soft toy exports, Australia being one of the main markets.

 

An early fully jointed Wendy Boston Teddy Bear, the side seam label saying simply "Wendy Boston". Most labels say "A Playsafe Toy" or "A Wendy Boston Playsafe Toy" and those found on the Washable non-jointed Teddy Bears show washing instructions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In failing health and no longer able to compete with Far East imports because of the increased expense of the Playsafe production, Wendy Boston was taken over by Denys Fisher Toys (inventor of the Spirograph) in 1968.

 

Denys Fisher continued to produce Teddy Bears and soft toys under the Wendy Boston name for a few years.

 

Wendy Boston died in 1972. The factory ceased production in 1976.

 

In 1987 a replica of Peter Bull's gold mohair plush Wendy Boston Bear was produced by The House of Nisbet in two sizes.

 

To view two of these rare bears, please click here Mandicrafts.

 

Happy Hunting

 

Mandy

Mandicrafts

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