You may have had a special toy—or, perhaps, dozens of special toys—growing up that you loved with all your heart, but—like Toy Story 3’s Andy—eventually you parted ways and you never thought about or wanted to buy toys again. But maybe you should. According to Pim Razenberg’s article “Where Do Stuffed Animals Come From?” toy figurines have been a universal aspect of human cultures for over two thousand years and stuffed animals (or “plushies”) have existed since the late nineteenth century. Like their wooden and clay ancestors, stuffed toys have global appeal and can be found practically everywhere on Earth—and, sometimes, in space. So, it is only natural that these cuddly cuties have made their way onto Instagram, a social media app that allows users to post photos and tag them with unique hashtags that they and other users can follow. This feature has allowed the Plushie Community to grow to over 20,000 accounts on Instagram, with #plushiecommunity alone having more than 360,000 posts. And it may surprise you to learn that the majority of their admins are adults, as proven by the results of @archer.and.friends’ 2020 Plushie Community survey, which found that 88% of respondents had some college education, and 33% said they have an advanced degree. The survey also indicated that people in the Plushie Community self-identify as introverted, creative, friendly, happy, and travel lovers. This introversion and creativity may explain why Archer’s admin found that 64% of respondents said their plushie definitely feels alive to them and 24% said it sometimes feels alive to them, while only 4% said they were unsure and 6% said it does not feel alive to them. Even if this raises some concerned eyebrows for you, even if you believe that the 88% of adults who responded in this survey sometimes believe their stuffed animal feels alive are out of their minds, every person can and should learn from these people because they embody the meaning of unconditional love, true friendship, and human decency.
In the midst of headlines like “Six Ways Social Media Negatively Affects Your Mental Health” and “Are Instagram and Other Social Media Bad for Your Teen’s Mental Health?” those in Instagram’s Plushie Community overwhelmingly share the perception that their time spent on the app positively impacts their mental health. @blabbyboy (who prefers to be called “Blabby” in this article), who lives in Melbourne, Australia and has been a part of the Plushie Community since July 2015, says, “The Plushie community reminds us that fundamentally, all hoomans (humans) have similar wants and needs, hopes and aspirations, regardless of where we live or were brought up. Many things transcend ethnicity, religion, culture and language. And the Plushie community seems to bring out the best in many of its hoomans. Joy, compassion, love, hope. And that’s a beautiful thing.” Similarly, @over_the_hump_with_humphrey (who prefers to be called “Humphrey” in this article), who lives in Minnesota, USA and has been a member of the Plushie Community since August 2019, says, “The community restores my faith in humanity.” @aventuras_de_pollo (run by admin Magdalena), who lives in Poland and has been a part of the Plushie Community since September 2019, echoes these sentiments: “In our community, everyone can feel that they are not alone, and although they have never known [each other,] they can feel that they are truly friends. No matter what nationality, color or religion you are—plushies love everyone.” Blabby and Magdalena highlight some of the reasons why members of this community may feel this way. Blabby recalls the time in 2017 when the community rallied and helped @pimpibear raise the funds to buy a portable generator after Hurricane Maria tore through Puerto Rico and Magdalena remembers the community’s support for one another during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says, “At the beginning (when everyone thought it would only take a moment) [we] invented a lot of games and [communicated] ideas on how to be safe. Later, when it all dragged on, we were our support. It took the heart[s] [of] most when friends lost a loved one and the whole community just cried and was together.” When an Instagram user knows that other users living half a world away that they may never meet will cheer for them during joyous moments and will mourn with them during times of loss, it becomes more and more difficult to believe that social media will destroy their mental health.
The Plushie Community has revived the lost art form of sending physical mail. Similar to having a pen pal, many people in the community build strong friendships with one another and choose to send post cards, birthday cards, or even whole boxes filled with gifts to their plushie friends. This phenomenon, called #plushiemail, has over 36,300 posts on Instagram and is a beloved topic to many in the community (for example, @over_the_hump_with_humphrey says that getting plushie mail makes her feel like she is “getting a hug from the world”.)
@lizzy_lou_and_friends (who prefers her admins remain simply known as “Lizzy’s Mommy” and Mike), who lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA and has been a member of the community since October 2018, says that her “bearents” (parents) rarely send mail to any of their human friends, but they enjoy sending mail to the friends they have made in the Plushie Community. Lizzy’s Mommy says, “I love getting and sending plushie mail. It’s so nice to get a paw (hand) written note from a friend. It’s just so sweet that someone took the time to sit down and write a note.”
@teddybearlowieke (whose admin is Maria), who lives in Hoevenen, Belgium and has been a member of the community since April 2020, feels that plushie mail is far more special than regular human mail. Maria says that plushie mail typically has long, handwritten notes full of love and personalization or even drawings, whereas the cards she receives from people are “just signed with their names, no further words [. It is] very [impersonal,] like they want to get done with it as fast as possible. When we receive a card from that kind of people it goes straight in the [garbage] bin because for the people without plushies they send a card more as formality [. They probably think ‘It’s Christmas,] ok we will send a card[‘—]nothing personal, no love [,] no time [spent] to make something personal and [beautiful,]” but for every card she receives from a plushie friend, “we display them in the house, and we put them in albums or in our treasure box.” Maria also points out how the process of picking out mail or gifts to send to her plushie friends can be fun for the giver as well as the receiver, especially when tailoring a gift or card to fit the interests of her friend.
@les_aventures_de_duffy (whose admin prefers to be called Jeppe Von Autto), who lives near Paris, France and has been a member of the Plushie Community since December 2018, says he loves plushie mail because it allows him to engage with fellow photography lovers and with a community that he believes “shares [a] joy of living.” And members of the Plushie Community do not always communicate over mail or chat rooms: Sometimes they meet each other in real life.
In a #plushiemeeting or #plushiemeetup, two or more admins meet each other—along with their plushies—and spend time together. Meetings can last for a couple of minutes or for hours. @over_the_hump_with_humphrey and @gusio_pandzioszek (Gusia) met up for two-and-a-half hours for dinner and a walk under the starry sky of Krakow, Poland, and both agree it was a positive experience. “If you [had] asked me 2 years ago, ‘Hey, want to go meet a stranger you met [on] the Internet [in real life]?’ I would have said, ‘FLUFF NO!’” Humphrey says, “But now, after being part of this community [for so long], I can assure you I [would definitely] meet another plushie very soon!” Gusia, who joined the Plushie Community in 2018, says that on the day of their meeting, she felt “a bit insecure, but not because I was scared of meeting Humphrey, more because I had a very rough month health-wise and I was a bit afraid my body [would] fail me. . .But adrenaline kept me alive. The excitement of meeting a friend let me do things which I couldn’t do other days. Even my husband said it had really positive effect, and I ‘spread my wings’.” Gusia adds, “I honestly felt like [I was meeting] a friend. In a real life, me and Humphrey are from completely [different worlds]; we would have never connected or found each other. The Plushie Community gave us friendship, which I hope will last. The Plushie Community [gathers] sensitive, empathic people who want to spread love, regardless of their social status or what they do in their life. It is definitely not a coincidence in this community [there] are so many people [who have had] traumatic events or [chronic] [illnesses]. But because many of us had no easy path to where we are now, I think [we] developed [sensitivity] and [are not] judgmental to others. We understand [the] meaning of supporting each other; support from our plushies is also important and valid.”
And if you are still not quite on board with the idea of adults playing with their stuffed animals, guess what: They have a flag and have raised thousands of dollars for charity.
The Plushie Community flag was designed by @henrybear1708 and sports a black pawprint in the center of a white stripe in between a band of blue and green. @gruefflo (run by admin Mathias), who lives in Germany and has been a part of the Plushie Community since August 2018, created patches emblazoned with the Plushie Community flag and sold them to members of the community around the world, raising over $1,400 USD for charity.
In January 2020, during the fires that devastated Australia, @iknowthatitsdelicat, @65shaw.bear, @bubithebear, and @teddy.spaghetti_broosevelt formed @plushieaid. Admin of @iknowthatitsdelicat, Daniela, says that they formed Plushie Aid in January 2020 due to some concerns that arose within the members of the community. Daniela, who has been in the Plushie Community since 2018 and lives in Hamburg, Germany, says, “[Many in the community] talked about that topic a lot back then—especially [since we have many plushie friends living] in Australia. We wanted to help, but [worried—what can just one person do to help?] So we decided to ask the community for help…” The four set up a GoFundMe for Adelaide Koala and Wildlife Hospital in Brisbane, Australia, linked it in their bio, and raised over $5,000 USD in less than two months. “We are really proud of our community and friends,” she says. “After that we wanted to continue with other projects but since COVID [hit] us all hard we decided to step back. We don’t know yet what our next project will be or if there is another project at all. I guess we just wait and see.”
Plushie Aid is not to be confused with @plushiesocceraid, run by @stormthewaverider (whose admin is Tom) with supervision from Tom’s mother, who prefers to be called “Pru’s Mum” in this article (she runs her own plushie account, @a_panda_called_pru), who live in York, UK and have been a member of the Plushie Community since August and March 2018, respectfully. Tom and Pru’s Mum founded Plushie Soccer Aid in 2019 and, although it does not raise money for charity, it does raise awareness for Soccer Aid, a British organization that has raised over $53,000,000 USD for United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund UK (UNICEF UK) since its inception in 2006. Plushie Soccer Aid is comprised of two virtual, imaginary soccer teams that compete in virtual, imaginary games, using Photoshop to create images of members of the Plushie Community engaged in the games. Plushie Soccer Aid even has its own cheer squad, headed by @missus.rei.panda. Plushie Soccer Aid perfectly embodies the spirit of the community: Connectivity through imagination united by hashtags.
Camp Hoop La Hooray, hosted by @honeygrovebears (whose admin is Elle) is another community event for charity. Elle, who lives in Texas, USA and has been a member of the Plushie Community since 2014, founded the annual, virtual summer camp in 2015. Camp Hoop La Hooray lasts four days and is run by volunteer, virtual camp counselors from the Plushie Community. The event is free to join, but since 2019 Elle has also encouraged donations to Texas Lions Camp, a real summer camp for children with special needs, by setting up a GoFundMe and also by selling plushie-sized T-shirts through @plushiewear (an online retail store that sells clothing for stuffed animals as well as old plushies that their admin finds in second-hand shops. I’ll expand on this business in a later article), a printable camper’s guide full of games and recipes and craft instructions, a post card, and one year an entire Camp Kit box filled with handmade sleeping bags, pennants, and other goodies. Through Camp Hoop La Hooray, Elle and Plushie Wear have raised over $1,400 USD for Texas Lions Camp. And it is not the only annual virtual event in the Plushie Community.
The Plushie Community sees numerous events, from art expos to proms, and weekly virtual gatherings, like potlucks and scavenger hunts. Those and more exciting topics to come will be revealed in three more articles to be released in October and November—because the plushie-lover love could not be contained in just one article!
Works Cited
“ITV Announces Soccer Aid for Unicef,” Endemolshine UK, February 27, 2018. https://www.endemolshineuk.com/itv-announces-soccer-aid-unicef/.
McFall-Johnson, Morgan. “SpaceX’s Historic Launch Hurled a Sequined Plush Dinosaur into Space with NASA Astronauts,” Business Insider, May 30, 2020. https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-launches-plush-dinosaur-into-space-with-nasa-astronauts-2020-5#:~:text=SpaceX’s%20historic%20launch%20hurled%20a%20sequined%20plush%20dinosaur%20into%20space%20with%20NASA%20astronauts&text=SpaceX%20launched%20two%20NASA%20astronauts,Dragon%20as%20it%20entered%20orbit.
Razenberg, Pim. “The Most Popular Plushies on Instagram,” The Bite-Sized Backpacker, October 3, 2020. https://www.thebitesizedbackpacker.com/stuffed-animals/the-most-popular-plushies-on-instagram/#:~:text=United%20by%20the%20Instagram%20account,their%20adventures%20with%20the%20world.
Razenberg, Pim. “Where Do Stuffed Animals Come From?” The Bite-Sized Backpacker, July 20, 2020. https://www.thebitesizedbackpacker.com/stuffed-animals/where-do-stuffed-animals-come-from/.
Special Thanks
Thank you: Blabby, Humphrey, Magdalena, Lizzy, Daniela, Maria, Guisa, Jeppe Von Autto, Mathias, Pru and Tom, Elle, and Plushie Wear for making this article possible. I truly value your friendship, cooperation, and support. Keep on being PAWsome!
Florida Gal Hal 