I am always excited to see my toy patterns made up by other people because I get to see their fabric choices, colour preferences, imagination and personality poured into the pattern. I still find it fascinating that 2 people using the same toy pattern can create 2 toys that look completely different! Of course you can see they have both used the same Funky Friends Factory toy pattern but their finished toys are totally unique!
Does toy eye SIZE make a difference?
You might think the size of a toy’s eyes won’t make much difference, but it’s quite incredible that something as small as the size of the craft eyes…
has a very
BIG impact!
In the photos below you can see how the SAME toy pattern looks quite DIFFERENT when you use a different size toy eyes.
Take a look at the dinosaur eyes…
When I first designed my Timy T-Rex Dinosaur toy pattern I used 6mm beads for eyes my stuffed dinosaur.
Then I decided they were a bit small so I remade my toy prototype with 12mm (½ inch) cats eyes. I thought Timmy T-Rex looked pretty cool until….
…I saw the tattoo fabric T-Rex that Kylie from www.voodoorabbit.com.au made with EXTRA LARGE 18mm black craft eyes.
And puppy dog eyes…
When I made Puppy Dog Pete toy pattern I used size 12 mm black craft eyes. I thought he looked pretty cute until…
I saw the EXTRA BIG eyes that Kylie from voodoorabbit.com used for her Puppy Pete. I think the 18mm black craft eyes give him a really cute baby – look!
And different sized cat eyes…
When I first designed my Kitty Kate CAT toy pattern I used 9mm black craft eyes for her.
I liked the look of the Suncatcher Shimmer mint craft eyes for Kitty Kate CAT too…. They look smaller because they are not solid black BUT they are the same size.
Look how cute Kitty CAT Kate looks with the 18mm black craft eyes!!!!
I think they make her look like a very sweet SCAREDY CAT!
YOU get to choose what EYE size to use!
I will have a recommended size for eyes in ALL of my patterns. Take this as a guide but you can use any SIZE you like!
I wonder if you have tried using different sized eyes or would you like to try it?
. .
Till next time…
Happy Sewing,
Pauline
xxx 
So glad you got these craft eyes now. I hate the Spotlight ones!
Me too Sian!!!!!! 😀
Love this topic! If I have to choose between two different sets, I go with the bigger eyes. They really do make a difference. I love your scaredy cat, haha!
Thanks Stephanie! I have been using larger and larger eyes lately myself! I think they give the toy a more child-like look, more of a “baby-face”.
Oddly enough I was just deciding what eyes to order for my pink glitter/white fur honey bear I’m making when your timely email popped into my inbox😝 Thank you. I’m dying to try Kiri the Kiwi but thought I’d better see if I was capable of making the Teddy first! Delighted to be part of the Funky Friends fan club.
Hi Colleen… I am sure you can make Honey!!!! Take it slow and enjoy the process! 🙂
i have a question about eyes how do u get them even when placing on animals FACE? THANKS I love how the different eyes change the look and its great there are so many choices
Hi Shirleen, there are marks on the pattern pieces indicating where you should place the eyes. Mark the center of the eye marking on the fabric with a pencil, then use a tool like an awl to poke a hole. You can poke a hole in the paper pattern piece itself to make the center eye marking on the fabric under it, if needed. In each pattern with craft eyes there is a link to a blog post about how to insert them. Refer to the blog post for tips.