“My Crochet Animals” by Isabelle Kessedjian is a lovely book of crocheted animals. There are 12 different animals that are worked from standard patterns. Each has their unique little touch that makes them stand out from the others. In addition to the animals, there are 35 different pieces of adorable clothes and accessories.
It is important to note that the instructions are given in UK standards, so those who follow US standards will need to keep track of the changes that they need to make (notably, the UK double crochet is the US single crochet and that difference changes all the follow-on terms, too.) The author has included a very usable conversion chart in the book. I find keeping a conversion chart at hand and checking it every time I change stitch makes a world of difference.
The animals included are: bear, raccoon, fox, deer, wolf (this is really cute and has a zipper in it), koala, panda, three little pigs (chef, butcher, and junior chef), and Mummy rabbit and baby rabbit.
The accessories include many items, such as hat, shoes, sweater, pants, scarf and many more.
The directions and suggestions in the book are extremely well done, even to the point of explaining felting (this is done to the wolf to give it that lovely fuzzy look.) The author gives great written instructions and gives visual ones for certain items. I don’t think that the book is written for the absolute beginner and I would not suggest it to anyone as their very first crochet project. It would help to make a scarf and a hat first so that you can get some of the basic stitches in your head before tackling this book. I don’t think you will need to have advanced crochet skills but try something easy first and then move on to these.
I am looking forward to stitching each and every one of these adorable animals. This publishing company (David and Charles) puts out some of the most innovative craft titles I have come across in years. I just wish that they might consider putting the US terms in, too, alongside the UK terms.
