It is a pleasure to introduce myself to you.
Before the teddy bears came in to my life I had no experience in handcrafts or skills in artwork.Until the early 90ties I was a hairdresser/stylist for many years and in a way creativity was sometimes needed to satisfy my customers.

As a bearmaker I started with Atelier Bear in Mind in 1992. In the early years my bears were only seen in small shows in the Netherlands and Belgium.

International recognition took several years and actually began in England. Soon I also traveled to Japan and the USA.

Usually I produce one-offs using the best quality of mohairs available. This means that in general I do not like to accept orders, although there should always be room to make an exception on this rule.

For myself it provides a nice feeling to work without pressure this way so I can concentrate on what I am doing and also have spare time to innovate.
Because of all this none of my bears are alike and at every show my whole collection consists mostly of recently produced work.

The moment when one of my bears is handed over to a customer gives me a lot of pleasure. Waiting for that happy smile and the satisfaction for myself that they really like my bear is always a nice experience.
I therefore like to meet my customers in person. Doing so you notice that love for a teddy bear means something very special and that it does not matter who you are and where you are at that particular moment.

Tineke Oostveen
Atelier Bear in Mind