This won't be as picture heavy or have an attached project as I've just got a new job and it's now eating away a large chunk of my time so today's basically it for this review unless I keep pushing it back. I hope you all can understand - I might make a plush to go along with this review later though, we'll see!
Today's review, for those who are unaware, is Stuffed Animals: From Concept to Construction by Abby Glassenberg. Right away I'm sure you can tell that there's something spectacular about this book - it's not Stuffed Animals: Here's a Bunch of Patterns and That's It, Go Make Them. It includes 16 projects and 52 lessons.
That's a big deal.
There are no other recent books of this sort to my knowledge. There's a focus on books with a set of patterns that you can use to make just a specific set of toys which, if you'd like, maybe you can modify or something. There is no focus on teaching you how to do it yourself. Maybe to reduce competition. It's a good thing, anyway, that Abby is very willing to share her knowledge both on her blog and in this new book.
Not only does she teach you how to use spheres to make a bumble bee, she gives you the pattern so that you can play with it, use the technique, and practice what you've just learned. If you haven't got any ideas for plush of your own, it's incredibly helpful to have.
This book is extraordinarily helpful and I honestly believe that everyone who is interested in creating plush work should own this book - it's as simple as that. The pictures sometimes aren't extraordinarily helpful but I'd rate this book at 11/10. It's just that fabulous. The techniques are helpful, the patterns are helpful, and I'm insanely biased because Abby is an awesome person and I've been following her blog for ages. I have been waiting for this book before I even knew it would exist.
If you have any questions about the book, feel free to ask away in the comments (but if I were you, I'd just buy it!).
