Sears Build A Winnie the Pooh Bear: Hundred Acre Wood Works

Once upon a time, there was a retail giant called Sears.  Sears was well known for selling hardware and appliances.  But there was also a softer side to Sears.  In 1965, Sears began an alliance with Disney to exclusively sell Winnie the Pooh merchandise.  In the 1970s and 1980s, Pooh and his friends were essentially mascots for the children's section of Sears.  Among the clothing and toys sold at Sears were Bucilla Stitchery Kits.  If produced, these were probably the best looking plush representations of the characters that Sears designed.

The kits were not simply patterns.  They contained the materials to make the characters.  While they were sort of early versions of the Build A Bear concept, these look to be a lot more work, and curiously, some include wooden dowels.  So they were not exactly cuddly plush toys.  They were craft projects.

Winnie the Pooh seems to be the easiest of these kits to find.  Pooh's kit includes a Chenille Bee--these Bees are pretty common even today in craft stores.  And a cuddly wooden stick.

Eeyore is also a kit that seems to be easy to find.  Eeyore is made using a denim material.

Eeyore features printed eyes, nostrils, and other facial features.  They did the main detail work for you on these projects.

Eeyore doesn't include a wooden dowel rod.

Stuffing is also not included with these kits.  I can't remember if Sears sold stuffing.

Kanga and Roo are kind of difficult to find, and are generally a bit more expensive.

Kanga and Roo seem to be made of the same thick, furry material as the Winnie the Pooh project.

No Wooden dowel for Kanga and Roo.  This project seems like a lot of work, considering it is two characters.

The toughest character to find in this series is Tigger.

This project is my favorite by far, and easily the best Tigger item Sears ever did.

Tigger is made from a chic Tiger print material.  Perfect for a Jersey Shore housewife's coat, or a toy tiger!

Like Pooh, the towering, tall Tigger requires a wooden dowel rod for his construction.

I'm not sure if there were any more characters in this set, but so far I've only encountered these four.

The Wizarding World Of Winnie The Pooh

Winnie the Pooh and his British pals will soon find a new home at "The Wizarding World of Winnie the Pooh," a new theme park planned for Walt Disney World in Florida.

Guests will be able to explore the restaurants and shops at Pigletsmeade Village (don't forget to drop by Owl's Post Office!). Visitors will also have the opportunity to take a Journey through the Forbidden Hundred Acre Woods. Here they will battle characters from "The Wind in the Willows" on "Mr. Toad's Really Wild Ride."



Spend the night at Pigletwarts Castle, a luxury hotel featuring interactive experiences and high-tech special effects! Pigletwarts Castle will be located on a mountain overlooking the rest of the park.


There's more exciting news for the Downtown Disney shopping district at Walt Disney World, too! Winnie the Pooh and friends recently started appearing as guest stars in the Cirque du Soleil show, "La Nouba."



The characters have proven to be so popular that Cirque du Soleil is planning a brand new show called "La Poohba."


Walt Disney Pictures is currently filming a re-make of Davy Crockett, starring Winnie the Pooh.


Didn't Davy Crockett kill a bear when he was three years old? Awkward!

Winnie the Pooh was smart enough to have a "Plan B" for times when he could not get acting work. Not many people know this, but Winnie the Pooh spent years studying in medical school.

Here is a rare photo of Winnie the Pooh, OB/GYN.



Dr. Pooh has delivered thousands of Steiff Teddy Bears over the years.

Like many professionals, Pooh has a wild side. When he turned 40, he got a Harley Davidson motorcycle.



Tigger and Pooh started a biker gang called "The Hundred Acre Hooligans."


One day, Christopher Robin introduced his animal friends to the music of Christopher Cross. Pooh was so taken with the song "Sailing" that it inspired him to try recreational boating.



Pooh and Eeyore enjoy frequent trips to the ocean, even though the tags sewn on to their bodies clearly state "DO NOT IMMERSE TOY IN WATER."


If you find yourself in Honolulu, Hawaii, be sure to visit "Pooh Pooh Platters," a great dining location that the silly old bear opened in 1991.



Uh-oh! Has anyone seen Luau Piglet?!? He was here earlier, with an apple in his mouth...

Don't Be Crabby, Winnie The Pooh!

Did you know that Winnie the Pooh used to be the mascot for Joe's Crab Shack restaurants? Walt Disney World is home to the Rainforest Cafe, T-Rex Cafe, and the Yak & Yeti Restaurant, all owned by Landry's Restaurants, which also owned Joe's Crab Shack. When Landry's sold Joe's Crab Shack in 2006, Pooh had to hang up his giant crab costume. I'm pretty sure that's what happened.

Pooh was temporarily without a seafood product to pitch. Luckily, the folks at Gorton's quickly offered Pooh the chance to play the Gorton's Fisherman. I bet you thought Pooh's favorite food was honey (or is that "hunny?") but you'd be wrong. Pooh just loves his fish sticks!



Pooh would later reprise his Fisherman persona in the film, "I Know What You Did Last Summer 5", which went straight to video.

When Gorton's decided to bring back its human Fisherman, Pooh was available to sell more frozen foods. Happily, the folks at Eskimo Pie were interested in signing on both Pooh and Piglet to be their spokes-characters.


Pooh enjoyed the role so much that he decided to take a break from acting and move to Alaska.

He rented a cabin in Juneau and befriended Grizzly Adams and Gentle Ben.



Pooh had suddenly become an accomplished hunter, and was known to get in fights with some of the deadliest grizzlies in the wilderness.

Winnie the Pooh's new image attracted the interest of Brawny Paper Towels, which featured Pooh on product packages and specially printed Limited Edition paper towels.



Pooh is a Lumberjack, and he's okay!

Winnie the Pooh was suddenly very much in demand. He soon became the story editor and mascot for Ranger Rick Magazine. At the same time, he also auditioned for Julie Taymor's new project, "Bullwinkle: The Musical."



Pooh did not last very long at Ranger Rick Magazine (he was really only knowledgeable about the lives of stuffed animals, and "was not believable as a raccoon."). Julie Taymor's Bullwinkle project was sadly shelved during its workshop.

Pooh was more fit than ever, and wanted to compete in the Slalom at the Winter Olympics.


Unfortunately, Pooh got stressed out, started over-eating, and quickly gained weight. He ended his career as Slalom Pooh after constantly falling, getting tired easily, and crashing into trees and people.

However, he did encourage his pals Piglet and Tigger to compete in the Bobsled Races in the Winter Olympics.




Tigger and Piglet ended up winning the Gold Medal. They also won a trip to Disneyland (so they basically won a trip home).

Be sure to check out Pooh's stint as an Elvis impersonator and find out about his Super Hero alter-ego!

The Many Outrageous Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh

When most folks hear about "Classic Pooh," they typically don't imagine a gray-haired Winnie the Pooh dressed in a suit. But at the height of the bean bag craze at the Disney Store and Catalog (around 2002 to 2005) the gang from the Hundred Acre Woods had to expand their horizons and go where they had never gone before.

Pooh became an intimidating Super Hero! What was Pooh's power? He could control the world's bees, and could make them sting his foes! Pooh's catch-phrase was "Oh, Bee-have!" (yes, he got permission from Austin Powers). Piglet was enlisted to become Super Pooh's sidekick.


Piglet was given growth hormones, and as pigs tend to do, he got huge!

Winnie the Pooh had already established a Beatles cover band, so naturally the quartet assumed the identity of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.


They hope you enjoyed their show!

When an asteroid threatened to destroy Earth, Pooh and his crew decided to become astronauts.

Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck and Aerosmith destroyed the asteroid before Pooh and his friends completed Space Camp training.

Pooh later moved to Chicago, Illinois to perform with the Blues Brothers.



Pooh adored the Blustery City. I mean, the Windy City. He also appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show, did guest appearances with Bozo the Clown (he even helped set up the buckets for The Grand Prize Game), and was a reporter for WGN News.

Pooh, Tigger and Eeyore later joined the circus! Eeyore was not a fan of dressing up as an elephant, or Pooh's strict training process.


Not shown is Kanga as the Bearded Lady.

Pooh may be stuffed with fluff, but he's a also a stocky tough guy that is buff. He took up weightlifting when he went to Australia.


Piglet became a Judo Master in Australia, and opened a training studio called "Pork Chops."

Pooh then went to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he hoped to finally open the "Disney's America" theme park that had originally been planned for Virginia in the 1990s.



As was the case in Virginia, the locals protested, and the park wasn't built. The "Disney's America" sites later became lackluster shopping centers.

After spending so much money traveling, Pooh and Piglet temporarily became vagabonds, and hopped on trains to get around the country.



When they finally landed a new gig, they were able to travel first class again.

And what a fantastic new show they got!

Pooh, Piglet, Tigger and Eeyore put on a show that the world had always wanted to see. A Winnie the Pooh Barbershop Quartet!



Pooh and his friends now can be seen sporting their handlebar moustaches and performing musical numbers on Main Street at Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Disneyland Paris, and Hong Kong Disneyland!

Elvis Presley Winnie The Pooh And Other Characters, Too!

Do you remember that time when Winnie the Pooh decided to be an Elvis impersonator, so he got a black leather costume like the one Elvis Presley wore in his '68 Comeback TV Special? Pooh put on a highly successful concert in the Hundred Acre Woods. Kanga probably would have thrown her underwear at Winnie the Pooh while he was performing on stage, if Kanga ever wore any clothes.

At the height of the bean bag craze at the Disney Store and Disney Catalog (around years 2002 to 2005), Winnie the Pooh and his friends from the Hundred Acre Woods got themselves in to some outrageous situations. I do not own any of these bean bags, but I thought these were hilarious and outlandish.

Piglet, Eeyore and Pooh love to dress up as monsters to scare off the Heffalumps and Woozles. And everyone else.


They sure are scary here! I think this set was released when "Monsters Inc." debuted.

Pooh and his pals also performed in a Beatles cover band! It's not that hard to imagine, since they are all from the United Kingdom.



Of course, the Beatles decided to branch out as cartoon characters for a while, so it was alright with everybody.

Dr. FrankenPooh decided to make a FrankenEeyore monster, but nobody in the Hundred Acre Woods really noticed him.



Tigger did not participate in this project, because he had dressed up as Franken-Tigger years earlier!

Piglet and Tigger spent some time in school. They did not really hang out together.


Do you think Jock Tigger picked on Nerd Piglet? No way! Piglet later started his own successful business on the Internet, and Tigger is now one of his bodyguards.

Pooh stole too much honey from the bees and was sent away to live in Australia for a while. While he was there, he tried to blend in with The Outback animals.


Crikey! It's Platypus Pooh and Lizard Pooh!

Eeyore, Pooh, Piglet and Tigger later started competing in 100 Acre Wrestling Federation matches.



I think Piglet was on steroids.

Pooh also joined a 1980s hair band.


Pooh had a successful career, but developed an even more severe honey addiction while on tour. Pooh is currently working on an album with Blondie.

Tigger tried to be a Vaudeville performer.

The outfit alone got Tigger laughs when he went on stage.

After years of intense studying, Piglet and Pooh got jobs at the Hundred Acre Woods University.


Winnie the Pooh, what did they do to you? I think I had a few teachers that looked like this in school.

Stay tuned for more wild and wacky Winnie the Pooh!

Franken-Tigger Lives!

Luckily, the world did not come to an end in the year 2000, because it gave the Disney Catalog the chance to release a wild Winnie the Pooh Halloween line of merchandise.

Remember that chapter in A.A. Milne's "The House at Pooh Corner" when Christopher Robin made monster versions of all his friends? I don't either, but Winnie the Pooh was very popular at the Disney Store and Catalog at this time, and the Disney merchandise folks were very clever.

Here we see Tigger as Franken-Tigger. This incredible 14" tall decoration "dances and speaks four Halloween greetings." Batteries not included---sorry!



Here we see Franken-Tigger with Devilish Piglet on a felt door decoration that can be personalized.



Here we see Franken-Tigger, Devilish Piglet, Werewolf Pooh and Skeleton Eeyore as light-up decorations that you can put on your front porch.




Here we have a Cookie Jar with sound---and batteries are included! You know you need this.


Aren't you counting down the days until Halloween? Eeyore will help you, with this wooden calendar.

How about a candy basket with appliques of Werewolf Pooh, Devilish Piglet and Franken-Tigger (not shown)? This features "Candy corn print fabric lining and collapsible handle. Candy not included." Say what?!?!?


Here's a Pooh Halloween sweatshirt with a glow-in-the-dark moon. Roo is dressed as a clown and Rabbit is either a vampire or a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde type character.



It's an inflatable Franken-Tigger candy bowl! Candy NOT included, in case you wondered. Curses, foiled again!!


"Ahh-wooo, it's scary Pooh!" Werewolf Pooh is 13" tall. This is one of the best costumes Pooh has ever had in the different lines of Halloween merchandise.




This flashlight reflects Pooh! That's good to know if you are in a neighborhood with lots of dogs.



OK, here's a candy jar. Let me guess, the candy is NOT included, right? WRONG! This features "yummy candy corn taffy inside." Woo-hoo!!




All the famous actresses in Hollywood wear the Pooh Halloween Cardigan when they go out for a night on the town.*

*I made this up.



At the Disney Store in Walla Walla, Washington, a woman punched another lady in the face over the last Pooh Halloween Chambray Shirt. She went to prison, but she got her shirt!*

*I made this up, too.


The crown jewel of this collection could be the Pooh Halloween Snowglobe. "Pooh and Piglet are inside the snowglobe, while their pals parade around the base that rotates to the tune, "Winnie the Pooh." Jack o'lanterns on the base light up and flash." It's a Halloween extravaganza in snowglobe form!

I do not own any of the merchandise in this collection, but I think this is one of the coolest Winnie the Pooh Halloween lines I've seen. Maybe one day we'll see Franken-Tigger and Werewolf Pooh again.