Do you know Susan Anderson? Of course you do. She is an incredibly prolific author and designer and all around fabulous woman. And Susan has a new book coming out this month. I have a copy for one of you! Susan's new book is called Topsy-Turvy Inside-Out Knit Toys. That's a mouthful! But a very cute mouthful.
What you can't tell about the book is that it has an interactive cover. You'll have to trust me on this. You pull a tab and the cover photo changes. Those pull tab books were always Julia's favorites. Adults obviously like them too.
Susan's specialty has been designing for kids. She is a mom to four kids and she makes the cutest things. She has a huge fan base and a blog that is very popular. She is great at social media and marketing. She has a very active Ravelry Group called Itty Bitty Knits. I just don't know how she does it all. I can't do it as well as Susan and I only have one child.
All the projects in the book have a theme - they are reversible. There are two different sides to each toy. That's where the genius it. Each project is made in two parts and then sewn together. The toy becomes interactive for kids but let's face it..... these are the kinds of toys lots of adults will love to play with - to tell stories to their children or grandchildren while playing with the toys. And I can see many adult knitters just making them for fun - because they are so darn cute, clever and fun!
There are many levels of difficulty. From an easy "Happy Mouse, Sad Mouse" to the Fox and the Hen - There are lovely photos of kids playing with each of the toys -
Each product shot is accompanied by an "action shot" of the toy flipping. Here is the Fox and the Hen.
I love this little "flower fairy." My niece Olivia would be all over this one.
How about the Chrysalis that turns into a Monarch Butterfly?
For Christmas Toy Knitting - look at the Snowman that turns into a Christmas tree -
I would have loved the two sided doll when I was a kid -
So as you can see, there is tons to experiment with in this book. Just by knitting any of these projects, you would learn so much.
The photography in this book is stunning. But the best thing is they haven't forgotten about the knitter who is going to want to make these projects. They are a bit fiddly. For everyone, there are all kinds of detail step by step photos and explanations of how to put the toys together. This really works. That alone will make you the knitter feel confident that you can make these super cute projects.
There are a total of 12 complete projects which means Susan designed
24 different sides of toys and then sewed them together so they reverse.
There are 17 step by step tutorials and there are a total of 225 color
photos. All for $17.95. What a great value.
And a cute video.....
And a cute video.....
So here is what I have for you today - one lucky winner will win a copy of Topsy Turvy Inside Out Knit Toys.
To enter, answer the following question in the Comments Section:
As a kid, my favorite toy was..... This can be a handmade toy or just something you remember that was special about your childhood.
Contest is closed - I'll pick a winner later on in the day today. Thanks everyone for entering.
The winner is Debbie who wrote: My favorite toys as a child were always "real life" baby dolls -- the Madame Alexander ones, and Thumbelina! I think this love fed my desire for a big family, which I'm happy to say has been met -- if you count four kids as a big family!
I would love this book! Thanks for hosting the giveaway.
I have emailed her and the book will go out when I receive her mailing address.
275 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 275 of 275As a kid, my favorite toy was my Barbie and Ken dolls! My earliest sewing began with making long skirts for Barbie.
What a darling book! Thanks for the giveaway.
KathS on Ravelry
One of my favorite toys as a child was a little red riding hood flip toy. How I'd love to knit a flip doll for a granddaughter!! Thanks for the chance to win!
My favorite toy was a doll that talked and it look like it was falling asleep, baby drowsy. Then my brother cut out the talk box.
ginsmom
My favorite toys were a stuffed monkey that carried around a plastic banana and a sad little doll that we called poor pitiful pearl. The doll had tears on her face and was such a sorrowful looking little thing. I just loved her.
Thank you for the chance to win a copy of Susans new book!
I'm a little embarrassed to admit this...But, it would have to be my Cabbage Patch Dolls. I had a couple and played with them all the time!
My favorite toy was Barbie.My Mother made the clothes for her. And i loved Brier horses.
My favorite was a stuffed panda bear. He was very thread worn when I grew up. I loved him to pieces.
One Christmas Santa brought me a Thumbalina doll, my older sister was now a teenager so my Mom repainted her doll cradle, made fresh linens and knitted several outfits for Thumbalina. 50 years later I still have most of the clothes, the cradle and my doll. Her Pebbles Flintstone curl was lost to the electric shears and her wind-up no longer works but she is still with me. Thanks for the pause to remember.
Johalley on RAV
My favorite toys were Legos. I especially liked the castles and robin hood-esque themed ones.
As a child my favourite toy was my Cabbage Patch Doll - I had lots of adventures with her! Thanks so much for the giveaway!
My favorite was my doll 'Huggums'. She had a hard plastic head and a soft body. I don't remember her having any clothes and I cut her hair when I was very young. She was a doll only a mother could love!
My favorite toy was a walking doll. I took it a lot of places with me. When I got tired my Dad would carry it down the street for me.
My favorite toy was a Scooby Doo stuffed animal...
Thanks for the contest! Rav ID - julmurph
As a "girly girl", I loved my baby dolls. They were my absolute favorite!
Sonja
Ravelry ID - StarrGrams
Caneyforkdesigns@yahoo.com
My favorite toy as a child was my roller skates. I would spend hours making up routines to my 70s music on cassette tape. :0) thanks for the review and giveaway! I'm a big fan of Susan B Anderson and would love to have this book.
My favorite toys as a child were a baby doll, Mary Catherine, and a teddy bear, Merrily, who had on a little Christmas jacket.
My favorite toys as a child were always "real life" baby dolls -- the Madame Alexander ones, and Thumbelina! I think this love fed my desire for a big family, which I'm happy to say has been met -- if you count four kids as a big family!
I would love this book! Thanks for hosting the giveaway.
Debbie4 on Rav
mcsix at embarqmail dot com
Soft Dolly. A crocheted, heart-shaped doll made by my great aunt.
I especially loved my Little House on the Prairie Topsy-Turvy doll that my mom sewed for me in one day. One side was Laura looking all happy and the other side was Nelly with a grimace! It is one of the only things I have kept since my childhood.
My favorite toy was my bike! Not really a toy I guess, but I loved to ride everyday in good weather and I felt so free and independent...She was a white Schwinn with blue detailing, a basket and streamers on the handles. I named her "Bambi" after the Disney movie.
I loved my Carebear and my Cabbage Patch kid. I think I carried them everywhere with me! rav starrynight11
As a child my favorite toys were stuffed animals of all types. There was one that stood out - his name was Bernie Bernard and he had a pull-string and said silly things. When he broke, we wrote to the company (Hasbro, I think) and they replied and told us to send him in for repair. We did - and they never returned him!! They sent me a doll instead (no offense to doll lovers, I just REALLY wanted my Bernie back). Oh, the memories!! I also had a Topsy Turvy type of toy that the wife of one of my father's co-workers made. It was fabric and was Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. Of course, I loved the Wolf!! This book would be so much fun to have - I could knit things for my niece!! (DD and DS are too big for this type of thing now...)
I had a pink teddy bear, my absolute favorite. Still have him, he sits on s chair in my bedroom.
As a child I loved the Troll Dolls. I'd spend hours making clothes and houses out of shoe boxes for them. I created a little world for them and then I could carry them around in the shoe box. Although my barbies are long gone, I still have a Troll Doll!
My favorite toys were my American Girl dolls, and I had a teddy bear that had a yellow raincoat that I never slept without. Thanks for the giveaway opportunity!
My favorite toy was a Skipper doll that my Grandpa bought me and my Grandma made clothes and furniture for. Looking back I don't think it was so much the doll but that it involved my Grandparents which I loved so much. I hope when my Grandson is asked this question some day he'll say the same thing.
My favourite toy was my white plush teddy. I still have him more than 55 years later. Re-stuffed many times and now wearing a smart red waistcoat with teddy buttons to keep him warm, as he has become quite bald in places!
Pam
I loved Tinkertoys. Can't tell you how much time I spent trying to make a working umbrella. There are some still in the house from my own kids - maybe I should try again!
My sister was twelve years older than me. With her first paycheck when she graduated from high school she bought me a doll. She's a big hard plastic baby doll. Her name is Herman (I don't know, my father named her). She's missing toes on one foot and all of the toes on the other thanks to a chewing puppy. But I still have her.
My favorite toys were the baby dolls. My sister and I played "house" for many hours. I would love to make the dolls from "Topsy Turvy Toys."
jmvennie@wisc.edu
My favorite toy was my doll house and my dolls. I remember that my sister had a reversible Little redhood doll. There was Little redhood, the wolf and, if you flip the wolf's cap, there was the grandma. I always found, even as a girl, how clever was that doll!
Catherine from Qc
Mine was a tiny thumbulina doll. My first knitting project was a yellow skirt with a big green button for her.
I loved the dollhouse that my dad made for me when I was a kid. He build it secretly in his garage workshop for Christmas!
I had a Chatty Cathy with a wardrobe. My mother made several outfits for her and she was well loved..
adodds@bresnan.net
As a child I had a serious case of scarlet fever. My mother knew my love of Alice in wonderland, so she gave me a Madame Alexander doll of Alice. I adored this doll... and over the years she fell into disrepair. Several years ago ~ on my 60th birthday, my lovely daughter recused Alice and had her restored to near perfect. I look at Alice daily and realize she represents a total circle of love within my family.
My favorite was always my cabbage patch dolls. Neighbourhood tea parties were the best!
My favorite toy was and still is the Raggedy-Ann doll that my grandma made me when I was a baby. At 36, she still sits lovingly on my bedside table.
knitterlydesigns on ravelry
We didn't have many toys, but my favorite one had to be the skateboard my brothers helped me make. We took wheels from roller skates and painted a 2x4 board silver. It was so fun...if only I'd known then I could have patented it and been able to afford all the yarn, books, and needles a person could ever want. ;-)
Thanks for having the contest!
I had this amazing Teddy Ruxpin and my strawberry shortcake doll!
My favorite thing although not a toy was the horned toads that were in the vacant lot next to my house. I loved to put them in different locations in my house and then listen to my Mom scream when she found them. I couldn't understand why she was so afraid of them.
Rav ID: knityid
Although we did have dolls, my sister and didn't do much with them. We preferred to dress our patient cat in the doll's clothes! A toy I do remember fondly was my Etch-a-Sketch.
Rav ID jamf
I love these! My girls (even though they are not so little anymore) would also love them!!!
My favorite toy when I was a kid was probably my Barbie. I used to spend hours making up their house out of things we had around our house. Chairs out of toilet paper rolls, beds out of scarves, etc.
My girls never played with dolls much... They used stuffed animals instead. Both girls have always LOVED animals!
Thanks for the contest!
Lesa
laspin@charter.net
My favorite toy was a Betsy Wetsy doll that my grandmothers hand sewed clothes for me even though she had only one hand.
My favorite toy was my doll's house. It had electricity and it was made of wood. I spent hours wallpapering the rooms with contact paper and making crocheted rugs for its inhabitants!
Mary Kate
pwitry@rcn.com
As a kid, my favorite toy was a Holly Hobby doll my mom made for me. I loved it! Thank you for the giveaway and peek in the book.
I had a pink lamb with a music box inside that played a sweet song. I listened to it well into my teens, for memory sake.
kanani on ravelry
My favorite toy was a kitchen cupboard my dad built for me. My mom painted it white and added some decals to the cupboard doors. It had both upper and lower cupboards and a counter top where many imaginary cups of tea and cookies were made....hehe.
Hi Kristin,
My alltime favorite was my roller skates. the metal kind that you had to have a special key to tighten them onto your sneakers. I would skate up and down the street with my best friend hand-in-hand all summer long.
Curlyblue62 on Ravelry
My favorite toy was my set of Tinkertoys. I liked building crazy things and then knocking them down.
I remember loving playing with Colorforms... not sure many of you will remember these little plastic sticky things. The set would have a theme like a farm,or jungle and you would place the plastic items in different positions. I remember loving Miss Cookies Kitchen Set. Wow, I was easily entertained.....
I had a knitting spool,my dad took a empty wooden spool of thread and put small nails around the top and I wound crochet thread from my grandma to knit,which were made into small rugs and other items. When I was 12 I learned to knit with knitting needles. I would like very much to win this book so I can make these reversible knitted toys. Carol
My favorite toy as a kid was a stuff pink kitty doll. It went with me everywhere and became a security blanket/toy. I still have it to this day, although it's too fragile to be played with anymore. It took quite a beating in its hay day.
Rav ID: kellknit
My favourite toy was this handmade teddy from my aunt, which I got for Christmas when I was 8, it was made from a flower print fabric, and 3 embroidered dots on his face - which was his eyes and his nose, and a red ribbon around his neck.
He was presented in a little bad, and I would carry him around with me - the bag was to keep him 'safe' and it was his home.
I still have it, and I went abroad to study and brought him with me! But it has been an inspiration for me to create my own toys and I haven't stopped being "a child" I suppose...I will always love toys!
Wow that was a long time ago...I had a red wooden cradle that I loved...not sure what became of it....but I found a miniature version that I have for my Grandchildren when they visit.
I loved dolls, I had a Chrissy doll, and I still have a little cheap squeaky doll, named Baby Plumpie, that my grandma bought for me when I was about 2 years old, at the grocery store, because I loved it so much. That same grandma also made a Holly Hobbie cloth doll for me one year for Christmas, that I just loved.
Renae
salsathebugs1@yahoo.com
My favorite toy was my stuffed Snoopy, who was pretty well-dressed with army, Elvis and rain outfits. My little sister got sick all over him, and he had to go in the wash. He never looked the same after that, but I loved him anyway.
Thanks for the chance to win this lovely book!
Kathleen
Susan's topsy turveys are great! Would love a chance to win!
Rav ID Arrowfeather
Despite my love for my Barbies and other mass produced toys, my 2 favorite gifts ever was the big wooden dollhouse my father made when I was 8 (painted inside and outside, glass windows, carpets, fancy stairs); and when I was 7 my aunt and grandmother made an entire closetful of Barbie outfits (faux fur coat, lacy dresses, pants and skirts, even swimsuits). I wish I still had them, I think I'd still play with them. :-)
My favorite was a parrot that had a recorder in it. It would repeat what you say. I would love to win this and make them for my almost 3 year old. I love all things Susan has a hand in. I wish I had half of her talents.
Bingledue@Cinci.rr.com
Thank you Kristin for the opportunity to win this sweet book! My favorite toy were my Madame Alexander dolls, "Beth" from Little Women and "Sleeping Beauty". So sweet, still have them.
my favourite toys were always craft or art supplies and I remember the year I just knew I was going to make a rug big enough for the living room with my new corking tool!
One summer while staying with my Grandmother she made dolls out of corn husks and silk. Never remembered how she made them but I played with her all summer long and named her Hannah.
mmaaggiiee@hotmail.com
My absolute favorite toy was a little black lamb that had a music box inside that played "baa Baa Black Sheep"!!
I loved my Madame Alexander bride doll!
Mmontemayo@aol.com
My favorite toy as a kid was my American Girl doll. My sister and I would play with our dolls for hours on end and make all kinds of random things for them. I would SO LOVE to win that book! I have Susan B. Anderson's other books, and the reversible patterns in them are some of the ones I always have friends asking for when I ask what toys they'd like me to make for their kids.
I would love to win this book! So many wonderful patterns.
Marion
shawm@rogers.com
My favorite toy was a boy doll I called Jimmy. I also loved reading Nancy Drew and the Black Stallion Books.
I know I would love Susan Andersons new book.
Sharon
craftysbs@juno.com
My favorite toy was a record player that was a music box. You put a plastic record on the player that had little notches in the record and it would make the music box play a different tune for each record!
I had a teddy bear that was my constant companion and my all time beloved toy. That toy brings me joy just thinking about it now.
2 little soft fabric dolls, one with purple (!) hair and one with yellow hair :) i must have named them but can't recall their names. I recently flew the yellow haired doll with me to the US
My favorite toy was my doll Loes. A very strange, plastic doll with stupid hair. But she meant everything to me...
As a kid, my favorite toy was Legos! I loved building castles then making up stories for the little Lego people who lived in them.
My favorite was Clarence the Clown, which was a stuffed toe but with a rubber face. I still have him somewhere in the basement and he's 50+ years old.
wahoomerryf on Rav
My favorite were my barbies
My favourite toy was a Raggedy Anne doll that my mother made. That and a crocheted afghan from my grandma went everywhere with me. When the afghan wore out (as they do) my mother said I had to get rid of it or learn to crochet myself a new one....guess what happened :) Would love to win this book. The snowman/Christmas tree would be a huge hit for my little not-so-St. Nicholas.
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