Natalie Coetsee has over 60 patterns of animals and she cleverly turns them into school memories; her Blazer pony recently caught our attention on social media.
Bloemfontein, South Africa (12 December 2023) – Another talented seamstress, Natalie Coetsee, has been making memory bears for Matric students wanting to turn their school blazers into a keepsake.
For many students, their school blazers will be placed in the cupboard and only looked at every few years. By turning the blazer into a bear, it can easily be displayed for one’s entire life.
Memory bears are a wonderful concept. They can be made to memorialise a loved one, to freeze a moment in time or to celebrate a favourite item of clothing or blanket that is no longer usable.
We have seen memory bears from around the world, each made for different reasons. We first heard of a memory bear for a little girl’s favourite blankie, which she was too old to carry around, so her mom had it turned into a bear for nighttime comfort. The second bear we heard about was a woman who had lost her husband; she turned his favourite shirt into a memory bear which was displayed alongside his urn.
We spoke to Natalie after seeing her school blazer animals on Facebook. We had been introduced to her pony pattern but she shared that she actually has around 60 different designs including a lion, sloth, hippo, bear, llama, octopus, dragon and more. So a person is bound to have a favourite animal they can select.
Natalie takes about two weeks to create a school blazer memory bear, working in the evenings after her full-time job. She carefully removes any special badges and scrolls, adding them to the final design of the animal.
You can see more of her creations or reach out here.
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