Making your own bear can be a magical experience

I have a theory that in life you are either a hard doll personality or a creative soft toy lover.

As a child my firm favourite was a pink and white rabbit named Princess Jazzy. Eve and Hope also love all things soft and fluffy - Squishy, Woolly and Pom-Pom are all important members of our family.

Us gals, and one of Hope's best chums, Holly, were therefore beyond excitement at the thought of our appointment with the Build-A-Bear Workshop at Ocean Terminal, Edinburgh.

Bear builder Sophie, yes, that is the correct term, shows the vast array of furry friends on offer. Hope and Holly make a instinctive decision, Eve wavers, but then goes back to her original choice.

Sophie helps the girls awaken their bears by tickling them before heading over to the "stuff me" station. Sadly this is not an all-you-can-eat pit stop, but a pedal-operated bear-stuffing machine.

Sophie asks them to cuddle the bear to make sure their teddies are stuffed to perfection, neither too hard nor too soft. The girls are then allowed to refill the stuffing machine with white fluff, which is sucked up through the plastic tube.

I have an Augustus Gloop vision of trying to explain to Holly's mum that her daughter is now stuck in a giant fluff-filled cylinder, but thankfully we leave this stage safely.

We move on to the tricky business of selecting a heart and deciding whether or not to incorporate a sound into the teddy. Hope can't choose between a silk or ghoulish mechanically beating heart, so both are added with a rub, a wish then a kiss.

Holly adds an "I love you" sound message, as they are all out of "giggles". A barcode is placed inside each bear, so if lost and returned to a store, the owner can be traced.

The next step is choosing an outfit from the bewildering array on offer. There are items to suit all budgets, from accessories to ballgowns, pyjamas to uniforms. The girls get to dress up their teddies before naming them online. They are packed into their own bear box, complete with a birth certificate.

The experience is complete and with beaming smiles all round it is time to head home with our three new friends, Snowy, Sophie and Rocky.

Build-A-Bear Workshop Basic Furry Friends cost 9-19. Optional outfits and accessories, 1-13. A party for six or more starts from 9 per guest. Ocean Terminal, 0131-554 8377, 119 Princes Street, 0131-226 5780, www.buildabear.co.uk

This article was first published in The Scotsman, 2 April, 2011