“Dikki studio”

In March 2003 Jemma Kadzh opened her Dikki Studio – a studio for making small-sized mohair designer Teddy Bears meant to be collector’s items. It was the first and only studio of the kind in Russia. 


Jemma invited Anastasia Kuptsova, her first pupil, to work with her. The studio was located at the basement of an apartment building at the Sokol District of Moscow. Getting used and fitting in with each other took awhile. In the end, the two artists could have become an object of envy to many of their colleagues because Jemma and Anastasia arrived at perfect creative harmony. About 300 varieties of Teddy Bears (every variety ranging from 1 to 5 copies) were made by the artists during those two years at the Sokol studio. And all their Teddies eventually ended up in the private collections.

Many a time the Dikki designers found themselves on a flight of fancy while working on their creations. From 10-11 a.m. to 10-11 p.m. and up to 1 a.m. at times Nastya and Jemma were busy conjuring up new teddies. They worked practically 24/7. Their partnership was ideal. 


Just imagine: Jemma works on a pattern for a Teddy’s head while Nastya is making a body form or vice versa. Then Jemma starts embroidering a nose while Nastya sews on the eyes for a change. Their works were welcomed in all the art galleries of Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Extremely high requirements to the quality were the main credo of the designers. It is a collector’s Teddy, isn’t it? Needless to say, the creature’s life span should be longer than ours. 


In April 2004 Jemma and Nastya climbed the international stage by taking part in the “TEDDYBAR TOTAL” (Germany), which was the world’s biggest show to mark the 10th anniversary of collector’s Teddy Bears. The Dikki Studio exhibits caused quite a stir at the exhibition. The most common comment of the foreigners with regard to the Dikki Teddies was: “They are different, absolutely different from all the rest we saw at the exhibition.” As a result, seven of the Dikki Teddies were purchased by German collectors.


The studio became quite popular with the public in Moscow. Dozens showed up eager to learn the basics of making designer Teddies. Some came to order custom-made Teddies.

No doubt the studio in the apartment building basement was not the best place for dealing with scores of visitors. The designers had to toil night and day in a poorly lit room with other companies renting the space in close vicinity. Moreover, the rent for the basement had been on the rise from day one. All the above started taking a toll in the designers’ health and rapport. Jemma and Nastya decided to call it a day and close the studio in December 2004. Since then Jemma and Nastya have been going their own separate ways in terms of creative activity. The “Dikki Studio” brand has been reserved for Gemma Cadge and protected by the law.


No Dikki Teddy Bears have been made ever since. Nobody in Russia dared to open a similar studio so far. The “Dikki” studio was the unique – and remained inimitable. Last but not least: all those who have the Dikki Teddy Bears can proudly state that they own genuine collector’s Teddy Bears.