As I was browsing through the arts and crafts section of my local Barnes & Noble, I noticed an irresistible new book appropriately titled, Cute Stuff, by Aranzi Aronzo.



It is a fun little instruction guide to creating your own bags, key rings, tissue cases, card holders, scarves, and appliques. The moment I picked up the book to leaf through it, I fell in love with Aranzi Aronzo's signature cartoon characters: little bunnies, turtles, monkies, and basically every other cute animal you can think of. These are the the cute little guys you can sew onto your pencil case or tote bag for a nice, personalized look.



The best part of it all is that the materials you need to make these customized accessories is fairly cheap. The basics are a needle, thread, fabric, felt, scissors, and glue.



As soon as I got my new Cute Book, I headed over to Michael's craft store to buy my materials. At only $0.20 a piece, I bought $2.00 worth of felt. I also got some embroidery thread and stuffing. My total for the day was less than $7. Not bad at all!



I rushed home to start my projects. The first thing I made from the book was the felt card holder. It was relatively easy to make. The hardest part was trying to hand-stitch in straight lines.











When I was done, I'll have to admit that I felt pretty proud of myself. I managed to make something that has yet to fall apart while sustaining only minimal injuries of accidentally poking myself with the needle. Plus, it's something I can actually use.











Recently, my wallet has been getting harder and harder to close because I have so many giftcards (I guess it's the standard present to get someone if you don't know what in the world to get them). Now, they all fit very neatly into my new little card holder.



I have even started to make a couple of my own designs. So far I have an owl, a penguin, and a hula girl plush doll. Thanks Aranzi Aronzo! (cue thumbs up, cheesy grin, and 90s infomercial theme song).