This is a teddy bear I made myself for my boyfriend for Valentine's Day. I used fake animal fur fabric and fleece to make it, along with plastic animal eyes and nose. I sewed it by hand since I don't have a sewing machine. It took me almost two weeks to finish!
I also stitched a heart and our initials on its foot.
The bear is pretty big, about 16 inches from the top of its ears to the bottom! Here it is with a 12 inch ruler for comparison (and yes, my ruler has penguins on it).
If you'd like to make your own bear for yourself or someone else, here is the website with instructions and pattern to make it: http://www.howjoyful.com/2010/05/howjoyful-bear-tutorial-and-pattern/
If you decide to make one but are having trouble figuring something out, feel free to ymail me and ask me questions! Sometimes the instructions aren't very clear, and it took me a while to figure out some of it.
