Linda Ellen Brown-Trinckes - Beariety Bears

A Bear For Her Son

By Pam North

Like many artists, Linda Ellen Brown-Trinckes is multi-dimensional in her talents. Besides being a singer/songwriter and part of a duo called Our Time, with her talented musician husband, John, she has professionally exhibited and sold artwork since 1983, and has been making bears and soft sculpture for 30 years. “I started in California, but I now live in Florida. I hand-stitch my creations from my own original designs. I make vintage-style bears, character bears,  slender fashion bears. and also little animals, all ranging from 2.5 inches to 30 inches tall. As for materials, I mostly use mohair or alpaca, with cotter pin/wooden disc joints. Some, like my fashion bears, also have wire armatures to bend at elbows and knees. I hand-embroider the noses, and use glass or boot button eyes, and I love to use vintage lace and antique doll and baby clothes with my creations, as well as unusual little trinkets as accessories. Sometimes I hand-stitch a little vest or collar for a bear. I chose the name Beariety Bears because I make a variety of bear styles, and also bunnies and many other animals.” All of her bears are hand-stitched from her own original patterns. “I never make the same thing twice, so each is truly one of a kind,” she explained. “My other artistic endeavors include oil painting, sculpting art dolls from polymer clay, and singing/song writing. Everything is inspirational to me, whether it’s music, poetry, or life in general”
Her first experience in bear-making was the result of a shopping trip with her 4-year-old son, who spied a Steiff bear in a store window, and wanted it for his very own. Unfortunately, the bear’s price tag was slightly prohibitive for her budget, so she promised to make him a bear. The pattern she subsequently picked up at a fabric store was not styled like the Steiff, however, and even after she made some  modifications, the resulting finished toy did not meet either her or her son’s expectations. After relegating the unsuccessful project to a dresser drawer, she later was surprised to discover that her son had changed his mind and rescued the bear, dressing it in his pajama top and adopting it as his companion. 
A second attempt at making a bear resulted in its sale to a friend, and Brown-Trinckes was on her way to enjoying a new passion in her life. Her artistic efforts bring her immense satisfaction, and she added, “I love the collectors I have met through the years.” She plans to travel and share her art as much as possible in the future.
Currently, Brown-Trinckes’ upcoming plans and goals include getting ready for the Quinlan Doll and Bear show in Philadelphia this May (at which she and her husband also will be performing musically on the Saturday morning before the show); IDTS in Asheville, NC this June; and Hugglets in London, England (for which she was invited to show her bears) this September. She and her husband have released a CD with 13 of their original teddy bear songs, and a coffee table book with her teddy bear poems (which were set to music on the CD) and large color pictures of her bears and dolls.

Contact Information:
Linda Ellen Brown-Trinckes  - Beariety Bears
brownlindaellen@gmail.com
www.trinckesmusic.com  www.ourtime7.com
(352) 854-1856