Let Child's Own Studio Transform Your Kid's Drawing Into A Unique Plush Toy
Kids have an amazing capacity for creativity and their drawings are a great insight into their strange minds. Wendy Tsao decided to take her son's drawings and make them into an actual plush toy, or a "softie," and when her son reacted with incredibly excitement upon seeing his sketch come to life, she decided to create a business. Child's Own Studio was formed in 2007 and since, Wendy has custom made around 400 soft toys based on children's drawings, each one a unique and whimsical stamp of time in a kid's life.
"I am inspired by the child's drawing, a wonderful expression of childhood," says Wendy. Once a drawing is sent to her (she generally only works with kid's drawings, hand-drawn and colored), she figures out if she can create it. Sometimes she takes creative license with the piece, unless she's asked not to, but always tries to replicate the colors and details perfectly by using a wide range of fabrics (including cotton solids and prints, fleece, upholstery fabric, and flannels). The stuffing is 100 percent hypoallergenic polyester fiberfill. You can also send along additional information with the drawing as well, to give Wendy some background to work with.
Prices range between $90 and $140, depending on the amount of work that needs to be done. Considering she's only one person, there's a bit of a wait list and you can only submit a request when she announces she's ready to accept new clients. "On January 12, 2013, I posted an announcement on [my] website that I was ready to accept names and gave instructions on how to get on the wait list," she says. "In three hours, I received over 200 submissions, enough to keep me busy for more than a year."
Needless to say, you should subscribe to her website and keep an eye out for her 2014 wait list.
