The Teddy Bear Nurse
Location not stated
Daniel East, restoring vintage bears and soft toys alongside a shop of rescued ones looking for homes. Bad nose damage, a chopped-off leg, a client's thirty-year-old something that was not a bear for once. He writes openly about there being levels to restoration, and about coming back from a sickness break. Enquiries go through Facebook Messenger only.
Getting hold of them
They work from their own form, so start there.
If it gets lost
Not stated
This is a blank on their page, not an answer from them. We have never asked anybody in this trade the question. Of the 185 businesses we have read, 4 have written anything down about losing an item: 2 say it is insured, 2 say the risk is yours. The other 181 are silent, and silence is not a policy either way.
If you would rather not have to phrase it
“Before I send it, can I ask what happens if it gets lost or damaged while it’s with you? I’m not trying to catch you out, it just can’t be replaced. Whatever the answer is, could you put it in an email so I’ve got it in writing?”
“No, we don’t cover it” is a fine answer to get. It tells you to insure the post yourself for the full amount, both ways.
Nobody has told us who covers the outward leg. Ask, because that is the half people forget.
If it is lost or damaged
Their website does not say what happens if your item is lost or damaged while they have it.
Ask before you post anything you could not replace. Only four of the businesses we hold publish an answer to this.
What they take on
- Full restoration and rebuilds
- Mending and seams
- Restuffing
- Cleaning on its own
- Fur restoration, de-matting and pile lifting
- Eyes and noses
- Joints
Works in mohair.
What they won’t do
The part every other directory leaves out. None of this is a criticism. It is how you avoid three wasted weeks.
- Doesn't say whether you can bring it in person
Their exact words on what they refuse
Quoted from their own pages, unedited, because a paraphrase of a refusal is the kind of thing you find out was wrong three weeks in.
- “If you would like to get your bear or soft toy restored by us please contact us through Facebook Messenger by clicking on the button below.”
Getting it there
- Takes work by post
- Doesn’t say whether you can bring it in
- Comes back standard
Money
- Quotes from photographs, for a fee
Anything else they say
- Trading as The Teddy Bear Nurse, operated by Daniel East.
- Sells restored vintage bears from 45 pounds up to 180 for a 1950s Steiff, which is a useful benchmark for what a restored bear is actually worth.
- Messenger-only contact is a real barrier for anybody who does not use Facebook, and it is the only way in.