Teddy Bears were not attractive
Title of my review says it all. I wish I hadn't wasted the money. I won't ever make these fugly bears.
Outdated construction techniques, a couple pluses
Have you ever wandered into an estate sale or a thrift shop to pick up a handmade toy, crude yet obviously made with love? These bears remind me of those types of toys.
On the plus side, the crochet instructions for the loop stitch, the hook conversion chart, and the patterns for bear clothing are helpful. The shaggy bear is quite cute. I did get some ideas for my own projects from looking at how these were put together.
On the minus side, most of the bears are somewhat homely looking, and the construction techniques are outdated (book published 1984). Most of these patterns call for crocheting pieces which are stitched together like fabric, evidence of linear thinking which has been made obsolete by modern patterns which usually call for crocheting in spiral rounds (much easier for beginners and much less work). When I opened the book to begin the first pattern and read the instructions, I said "to heck with that" and made my first custom bear without any pattern whatsoever.
If you're a beginner looking for easy patterns to start making toys, I recommend searching on the Internet instead and not purchasing this book. If you're looking for "vintage" crochet bear patterns, this will give you a place to start. Otherwise I couldn't recommend this particular book.
Crocheting Teddy Bears
This was exactly what I was hoping for. Great crochet patterns for teddy bears, some look like crochet and others look like fantastic sewn ones. Complete instructions and a bonus was instructions for sewing clothes for the bears.
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