By Chie Hayano
Published by Vertical, Inc.

With the addition of Chie Hayano’s Cute Dogs: Craft Your Own Pooches and Cute Pups: Canine Friends and Accessories to Vertical’s various and plentiful Aranzi Aranzo offerings, lovers of tiny DIY crafts from Japan will find plenty to keep them sewing this holiday season. The premise—tiny patterns and quirky photo comics to introduce the mind-numbingly cutesy lineup of character patterns—may be somewhat old hat to Aranzo readers, but a notably higher skill requirement is sure to challenge even seasoned sewing vets. And therein may lie the primary problem with Cute Dogs and Cute Pups: the details are so microscopic, and the accessories so complex that many casual crafters will likely be left slightly perplexed by the impossibly small proportions.

This isn’t to say that Hayano’s tiny terriers aren’t a worthwhile endeavor; indeed, even the uninterested should give the book a flip through, if only to gawk in awe at the two-inch lifelike replicas of dogs that Hayano manages to conjure from felt and fasteners. The skill level required to match photo to reality, however, is a different story: even this reviewer managed to put together a serviceable sheep under the guidance of the Aranzo, but the resulting Husky from Cute Pups seemed more in line with an oddly colored pincushion. Perhaps most problematic of all, though, is the complex array of materials needed to maximize the experience of both Cute books—from eyelets, glass eyes, jewelry pliers, and mohair to stainless steel balls, simple felt and thread won’t cut it anymore, and may require another trip or two to the fabric store.

For the Etsy vet or sewing superstar, however, Cute Dogs and Cute Pups are a dizzying buffet of crafty options, with just about every common breed (and then some) detailed between the two volumes. While both offer essentially the same product in the same format, only Cute Pups is full color in its entirety, and the addition of an intricate and challenging accessories section make it the clear choice for the crafter picking between the two. That said, buyers and potential gift-givers are advised to give the skills of the intended user a thinking over before heading to the register; children or the less sewing-inclined may find the book an exercise in frustration rather than a fun weekend project.

While Cute Pups and Cute Dogs may not be as accessible as other Japanese craft book imports, their uniquely quirky contents nonetheless make them a worthwhile entry to an admittedly low volume craft niche. For the able and the willing, Hayano’s impossibly small patterns and thorough instructions will be irresistible. For the rest, well… like most fascinating displays, it’s likely look, but don’t touch.

Cute Dogs: Craft Your Own Pooches and Cute Pups: Canine Friends and Accessories are available now.

Review copies provided by the publisher.