Dr Caz finds her life’s passion in bears with care

After a spontaneous trip to Portland and a four-day crash course in repairing and restoring neglected teddy bears, Winchelsea resident Carole Blake found her life’s passion and hasn’t looked back since. VINNIE VAN OORSCHOT learns more.

A FORMER marketing manager at Richmond and the Western Bulldogs in the AFL, Carole Blake and her friend Susanne arrived in the seaside town of Portland during a bye week in the 1990s.

The pair came across a store specialising in teddy bear repair.

“The canny lady said if you don’t mind hanging around for four days, I can send you on your way in doing something like this, so we did,” Blake said.

“After that, there was also a teddy bear shop in Moonee Ponds run by a lady named Marlene DiLorenzo, but she used to bring out artists from all over the world, and I used to attend a number of classes there.

“From then on I just kept doing it, then I conducted my first restoration for a girlfriend of mine back in the AFL whose dog had chewed her bear’s nose off – that was in the late ’90s.”

Blake, more commonly known as “Dr Caz” for her history of rehabilitating and rejuvenating deteriorated teddy bears, then began her business Caz Bare Bears and has restored more 50 bears in the past 20 years out of her Winchelsea residence.

“It’s a great feeling when people entrust something so close to their hearts to you,” Ms Blake said.

“It’s not always someone’s old teddy, sometimes it’s really important teddies that require an extra element focus and time, sometimes, rarely, it’s a different animal altogether.”

Blake said there had not been a bear she had not been able to restore, a byproduct of her process whenever commissioned by the public.

“The first step is always asking the owner what they want, it’s very rare that someone asks for their bear to look exactly like it was, because an old bear will never look brand new.

“Some of the main services I offer during the repairs include cleaning, fixing holes, which is almost always the case, de-infestation if there is any, eye fixing, or the replacement of paw pads.”

A CFA volunteer at Wurdale Fire Brigade in her spare time and a Geelong-based business owner during the week, Blake is always looking to refine her craft.

She said some of the world’s best teddy bear repairers maintained constant communication via a Facebook group.

“If I don’t recognise the type of bear I’m working on, or if I need to know what part of a bear I need to replace, this worldwide resource is the best way to do it.

“There’s no selling or transactions in the group, it’s purely for helping out other restorers with tips and processes.

“Some people are experts in parts identification, some people are experts in bear identification, but I tell you, I’ve learned just as much from this tool as from anything else.”

Among her collection of bears – most of which are available for purchase – only a few have a special place in Blake’s heart.

Her oldest bear, Peter, is an American stick bear and is estimated to be more than 100 years old.

The first bear she ever repaired, Grandma Bear, was the product of her initial visit to Portland.

A bear appropriately named #1 was the first bear ever designed and made by Blake – created in 2000, it still remains a valuable part of her collection.

Out of all her bears, Blake is especially proud of an unnamed teddy bear in a class held by legendary teddy bear artist Jennifer Laing.

On the first Sunday of every month at the Winchelsea Market, Caz Bare Bears has a stall at the Winchelsea Shire Hall where residents and visitors can look at some of her work or make an order.

Orders can also be made through email at [email protected] or by phone on 0416 029 873.

Caz Bare Bears can also be found on Facebook.