are you thinking small right now?

how small?

pocket size small?

half pint small?

itsy bitsy maybe?

teeny weeny perhaps?

are you wondering why i am asking?

i am trying to get you in the right frame of mind to take a wee little peek inside a new craft book called…

MICROCRAFTS {tiny treasures to make and share}

the book was compiled by Margaret McGuire, Alicia Kachmar, Katie Hatz and Friends, and is published by QUIRK BOOKS.

as the name implies, the crafts  contained inside this not so small book are all tiny, some incredibly so. but while the projects themselves may be small stuff, the ideas and designs are anything but.

the book includes over two dozen projects, all complete with large color photos, complete easy to understand and follow instructions and all the patterns and templates you need to recreate these diminutive works of art.

and the ideas are clever; inspired small-scale creations that are unique, imaginative and whimsical.

here are some snippets from the book…

being a scrapbooker, these minature books captured my attention…

and this petite bunting looks fabulous on this cake, but would equally adorable draped across a papercrafted project…

and what dog lover wouldn’t love these little guys. or given the time of year, how cute would they look if they were hung from a Lilliputian sized Christmas tree?

these sweet little spool dolls would be a fun project to make with your kids. or again, thinking ahead to the holidays, you could make a whole set to gift your favorite little girl. or how about a set of angels to add to your decor, or maybe a nativity…

one of my favorite projects were these tiny hanging potted plant earrings; which were included in a section of the book called “Ideas for Modifying Microcrafts”, which is dedicated to providing alternate ideas or uses for some of the projects in the book…

as i was reading this book, i wondered if i had the patience to create any of these MICROCRAFTS. they were all more than a trifling cute, but they all looked so.. so.. well, they all looked SO TINY! wouldn’t that make them hard to do? after all, they had tee-ninsy bits and pieces. which meant that i’d have to cut, stitch, glue, handle and NOT lose all those mini specs!

i decided i ought to give a project a try and find out. how could i give you an honest review of the book if i hadn’t actually tried to make anything from it?

so, i flipped through again, and one project in particular caught my interest, this beautiful minature flower pocket pendant…

it’s a pretty, flower be-decked pendant on the front, with a itty, secret pocket that could hold a pebble-sized kangaroo on the back; perfect for tucking in a chiclet-sized photo, note or treasure.

my “creation” is not an exact copy; i wanted to put my own spin on it, so it is not half as fabulous as the one designed by Larissa Holland.

but i liked how it came out…

i started with ecru felt, and tinted it using Smooch Spritz to get a variety of colors instead of buying different colors of felt. i decided not to embroider the pieces, although i did love the vintage boho vibe the stitching gave the sample piece. and instead of machine stitching the pendant and pocket pieces together, i handstitched them with a whipstitch using baker’s twine. here are some closeup photos of the project…

i was surprised to find that the project was not only simple to do, but was relaxing to boot! the directions provided a way that made cutting out the pieces easy to do. in fact it wasn’t hard at all to cut out those minuscule pieces; all i needed was a sharp pair of scissors. i found the right tools – which are included in the supply list for each project – really do make the job easier. i also found it very theraputic to “work small”; carefully snipping, precisely tacking, taking minute stitches, all of it was very enjoyable. in under an hour, my little work of art was done, finished… ready to wear. to proudly show off and proclaim it mine, made with my own “not so clumsy after all” hands.

i look forward to trying my hand at making more MICROCRAFTS now that i know that i can indeed make them – and have fun doing it!

and the variety of crafts and mediums included in the book should appeal to a broad range of crafters, there is a little bit {haha} of everything in there: fabric, paper, metal, clay, yarn — cards, dolls, jewelry, accessories, decor — sewing, papercraft, embroidery, knitting, quilling and MORE!

and the authors were also thoughtful enough to provide diagrams, hints, techniques, resources, and much more than a thimble-full of other information to make recreating their designs as easy as pie. i found hints and ideas that i could take and apply to other crafts and projects as well.

so take a second, minute or ten to check out this book for yourself; you might find you like “thinking small”!