My first craft book!

It started with the crafty blogging. Then I took up sewing lessons. Then I made my first softie. And before you know it, last month I’d bought my first crafty book…Aranzi Aronzo's "Cute Things". Tiff has two previous Aranzi Aronzo books and like those, all the little craft projects are in Japanese. But the great thing about these books is they are all well illustrated with instructions. And most of the projects actually look simple and do-able, even for a beginner sewer like myself! Well, I guess we’ll see over time how simple they really are….

The patterns include little accessories for the Aranzi Aronzo animals, plus lots of other knick-knacks like key rings, simple bags, little zip purses, business card holders and tissue dispensers. Lots of the projects use felt which is nice to work with, since it doesn’t fray easily. Here is a selection from the book:

Some light reading:
Some simple bags:

Ready for business:

And this just cracks me up:

So all I need now is a sewing machine! I haven’t a clue what to buy…I am hoping to catch a bargain in the lead-up to Mother’s Day. And then the crafty monster can be unleashed from within…N