Monday, September 27, 2010

Review: Zombie Felties

Nicola Tedman & Sarah Skeate, 2010, Penguin Australia

As a bookseller by trade, I can confirm that instructional books on creating Felties - cute little dolls (generally finger-sized) made from felt - are the in thing at present with folks who enjoy handcrafts. That said, even as one of the True Believers in zombie pop-culture, I would not have predicted the publication of a book such as Zombie Felties. And yet, here it is. And, I have to say, it's lots of fun.

In addition to providing clear, idiot-proof instructions (fortunately for negatively-skilled folk like myself) for the creation of each of the sixteen zombie felties described herein, the authors of this book have been extremely creative in their approach to materials (looped red thread for spilling guts; pink sequins for exposed brains), as well as in the range of suggested figures, which include such gruesome delights as the Zombie Bunny, the Mexican-style Day of the Dead Zombie, the Classic Zombie, and the 'Thrilla' Zombie (guess who?).

At the risk of undermining my well-deserved reputation as a macho he-man (no laughing at the back, there!), I had a great deal of fun putting together my Zombie Pirate feltie, and the construction of the Zombie Surfer kept my zed-obsessed son occupied for several blissful hours during the current school-holiday period, which - in my book - makes Zombie Felties an absolute winner.

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