Steiff Craftsmanship

Turning a Brand into a Legend

For a child’s toy design to be welcomed into the famous home of the Steiff family it must first receive the Steiff seal of approval - the famous trademark “Button in Ear”. The Steiff “Button in Ear” design may vary. A yellow tag attached to the Button indicates the toy is part of the current range. A white tag with red writing attached to the button is gifted to all the Steiff limited editions. And a white tag with black writing attached to the button is gifted to all the Steiff limited edition replica designs.

Original Collection

Every original Steiff animal shows with the world-famous trademark, the Steiff "Button in Ear", that it comes from the best house - and every Steiff teddy bear and Steiff animal proudly wears an ear tag as a distinguishing mark. The yellow Steiff ear tag with red lettering is well known to small and large Steiff friends: It shows that it is one of the many wonderful animals and Teddy bears from the wide, unlimited Steiff assortment - an unmistakable original from the famous traditional house.

Simply the Best Materials

Those wanting to create something special and unique of lasting value will need nothing less than the perfect materials. This not only applies to many other areas but especially to our Steiff manufacture, where we only use materials of the highest quality: for every Steiff animal, from head to paw. Starting with the thread, the filling material, buttons, eyes and accessories and right up to what is so characteristic for every Steiff animal: it’s “coat” or “fur”, which gives character and form to its appearance. So since 2009 we have been particularly happy to be able to call ourselves the world’s only manufacturer of stuffed toys with its own fabric factory.

Plush: fluffy, versatile, soft

Plush Steiff animals are fluffy and feel particularly soft and gentle. A special finishing technique gives Steiff’s knitted plush fabric a unique combination of soft feel and high durability. Plush can be used for a multitude of applications and its functionality makes it the ideal choice for the special demands of children’s sensitive skin.

Woven Faux Fur: cuddly, velvety, robust

Steiff animals made of faux fur feel real enough to be mistaken. Their velvety impression is created by a special, three-dimensional weaving technique in which the threads are worked vertically into the cotton. It is precisely this type of production that makes faux fur a very high-quality material, which is therefore very suitable for our particularly cuddly and unique cuddly toys.

Alpaca: soft, silky, opulent

Although the number of alpaca animals in the Steiff range has increased in recent years, the company discovered the material many years ago. Its resurgence in popularity is due to its wonderful feel and tremendous versatility. Alpaca can be used to create both soft Teddy bears and ultra-realistic animals.

Mohair: lustrous, shiny, sleek

This natural material from the wool of the angora goat is the classic Teddy bear material. In fact, it was used for the first Teddy bear ever created. The fiber is both beautiful and durable, which accounts for the amazing number of vintage. Steiff creations that appear today in superb condition.

100% cruelty-free mohair: Steiff only sources mohair from farms that are audited and operated according to the Responsible Mohair standard which puts the welfare and care of animals as paramount. Read more about the Responsible Mohair Standard here.