Sew Cute Toys

I have one word to describe most of the projects in this book – simplistic. There are some lovely patterns in this book, the projects are all well illustrated and very easy to follow mainly because instructions for construction are not too complicated, and the facial features require simple embroidery stitches with many faces following similar patterns. Also some patterns require a range of simple skills in sewing, embroidery and knitting and the Tips pages give all the details on how to tackle these skills as well as explaining all the tools and materials needed. The photos are lovely and clear so you know exactly what you’re working towards and the text is in a crisp clear font. The toys are grouped into four Sections of the book ranging from Toys for Young Children, Comfort Toys to Character Dolls. Character Dolls look to be aimed at older children or adults because I really liked the patterns on offer in this section. The way the faces are to be embroidered and the type of doll to be made are really delightful – Elegant Anna and Pretty Geisha are two dolls I am tempted to make for myself. There are some cute toys in the Toys for Young Children section and they are so simple to construct, for example the Little Elephant project is pretty much two pattern pieces sewn together, and this pattern doesn’t necessarily need to be enlarged. Which brings me to the one downside of this book. The majority of the pattern pieces drawn in the book need to be enlarged before starting on the project. The patterns call for enlargement from anywhere between 180% to 400% and if, like me, you have a simple home printer/copier without an enlargement functionality there are only two projects, the Baby Bear and the Bear Pyjama Bag, that can be made without enlargement. Unless, of course, you are happy to make the projects to the pattern sizes as drawn in the book, as I would be with the Little Elephant project. I think for 24 projects this book gives value for money but there may be an added cost in getting the pattern pieces enlarged. -- Juliet * Half Yard Sewing Club Member * I think this book has some sweet projects in that would make lovely gifts for kids. There is step by step written instructions which is ok but I would have loved pictures at each stage to make it easier to follow. I\'m also not a fan of have to copy the stencil & size up then print. I do prefer full size patterns I can just use, trace & use. Its just personal preference. The projects however are cute & will make some lovely gifts for children at Xmas & Birthday\'s. I did like the section with the instruction\'s & pictures showing how to cast on & pearl in the knitting section. I found that clear to understand. I would say as long as you don\'t mind printing all your patterns out then this is a great book to have as it has a lot of projects to get you going & they are so cute -- Pauline * Half Yard Sewing Club Member * Sew Cute Toys By Karine Thiboult. Published by Search press October 2023 This book was of great interest to me as a designer of ‘Memory Animals’ I just loved the front cover of the book, it made me immediately want to open the pages and find out what was behind that cover! The content page was well laid out and thoughtfully categorised, enabling you to find out from the start which were the best toys to make for babies through to adults. When making toys, especially for children, it is really useful to know what age group they are suitable for and more importantly how they are constructed, for safety reasons. This book helps with all those answers. Throughout the book there are some lovely pictures. They are clear, colourful and playful. On the slightly negative side I wasn’t so keen on there being no templates included in the book, with only diagrams to photocopy, which have to be enlarged and a seam allowance has to be added. This seems to me to make it unnecessarily complicated. They suggest these patterns then have to be transferred onto the material using carbon paper. I personally would rather make a template and then either draw around it with a heat erasable pen or pin it to the fabric and cut out as a possibly simpler method. On the instruction side I also find it easier seeing ‘how to’ photographs rather than just a diagram, but that’s just a personal preference. The actual toys in the book are beautiful but I wouldn’t suggest the book for complete beginners. Although each toy has been designated a level of competence for each pattern, which is a useful guide in choosing which pattern to work on, there are only five level ones (presumably for beginners) out of twenty five patterns, so it does appear geared to a more competent toy sewer. But having said that, I do like the hints and tips they add in the book, which are very handy for those trying toy making for the first time. I particularly liked the ‘Madame Unicorn’ and ‘Miss Cat’ and will certainly be giving those a try. At just under £13 this is well priced and if you are a toy maker a ‘must have’ in your collection of sewing books -- Sandi * Half Yard Sewing Club Member * Sew Cute Toys - Karine Thiboult Published by Search Press, October 2023 A lovely presented book on a nice quality paper with clear easy read guidance, bullet pointed for quick makes. Cute little thimble to show the experience level on each page and the size of the item. A nice large colour photograph of each toy followed by very clear sketches for make guidance. The book is suitable for any level and covers various techniques with guidance included and using minimal equipment. Easy copy patterns with few pieces. The first few pages has some useful tips for the knitting and embroidery skills required and good explanations on references in the book. A selection of 24 gifts to make are included from practical comfort toys and character dolls for young children to adults. They are all simple in design but look fun to make. Some cute little gifts, I think the Baby bear will be my first. -- Sandra * Half Yard Sewing Club Member * This book has a lovely colourful cover illustration showing some of the soft toys that can be sewn from the patterns. There are 24 different things to make for all ages from young children to adults.  Karine Thiboult the author provides some tips for making the toys at the beginning which is important to note and includes some instructions for the embroidery stitches and materials needed.   The illustrations throughout the book are clear and colourful of the finished toys but the instructions for making the items are quite brief and not illustrated which makes them hard to follow for beginners.   The templates almost all need to be considerably enlarged to be used and most people don’t have access to a copier or printer at home to be able to do this so I would say that is a negative point for me and I would have liked to see fold out full size templates in the back of the book. This alone will mean I will probably not make any of the toys.   The design of the toys however is different to any shop bought designs and not the typical soft toy characters so if you want to make something unique or different for your child then this is the book for that. I personally don’t think the toys are stereotypically ‘cute’ as the title suggests but more unusual.  Overall I would say this book is for a more experienced sewer who wants to create something different. -- Jax * Half Yard Sewing Club Member * A well laid out book and instructions with a fun variety of characters to make. It struck me that several of the patterns would work just as well as Christmas tree decorations if used without increasing sizes in printing. I'm making up fox at the moment but intend to make at least one of each pattern to send out to Ukraine in march on a donation convoy. -- Mrs. L. Lewis * Customer Review *