cute tips // laura from bugs and fishes

I just have to say that I feel pretty lucky to have encountered so many cute folks online. By that, I mean people who make cute things. But also, I think that people who make cute things can't help but be pretty cute themselves.

Take today's contributor for Cute Tips. Laura is the author of several super-cute books, and her site Bugs and Fishes documents her very cute life in England, while offering plenty of extra cute felt tutorials.

Here's her fantastic cute tip!



One easy way to make something cute is to make it tiny! Something so small you can hold it in the palm of your hand? Instantly adorable.

You can draw your own mini patterns, or use a photocopier to shrink an existing pattern to make a mini version of it. If you're shrinking a pattern, remember you might need to simplify some shapes or details to make them easier to cut or sew at the smaller size. You can do a lot with just a few stitches when you're making something small: add two seed beads and a row of tiny stitches and you've got a happy little face!



Felt is a great material to use for making small things. There's no need to worry about seam allowances or fabric fraying, you just cut and go. You can use any kind of felt but I use high quality synthetic felt or 100% wool felt for really teeny pieces.

Cutting out small felt pieces can be a bit fiddly, so take your time. My main tip for cutting small shapes is to buy a good quality pair of embroidery scissors. The small, narrow blades make it soooooo much easier to cut small pieces than using ordinary sewing scissors. I shared some more tips on my blog a while ago - make sure to read the comments as my readers shared some great tips of their own!



Thank you Laura! Tiny is always so very cute. I want to shrink everything!

A note to all my bloggy friends: Cute Tips contributors are generously sharing their cutest secrets with us. Be inspired by them, but please, please, please don't try to steal their style! Be your own cute self!