According to animator Dieter Mueller, “In animation the essence of a scene is often best captured in the initial rough drawings…” Visual artists often use sketches as preliminary studies for the final finished work of art. Sketches are done quickly, with less attention to detail and more to the spirit of the subject matter. Simply defined, a sketch is the outline or general delineation of anything. Sketches serve as rough drafts for what would eventually become a fully designed finished product.

Sketching is also a process which sets the artist to start thinking from a broader base, which may allow for more innovative, “out-of-the-box” concepts. A sketch is never a position of commitment; the artist has produced an idea on paper, but is still quite free to build on it or, to reject it. Sketching provides the freedom to venture with different methods and approaches. Because they are done quickly, sketches give the artist ample time to contemplate different ways to illustrate an idea.

A sketch is usually done very freely, and is a very effective and efficient means to communicate important ideas. By beginning with a sketch, an artist, animator, designer, etc, is able to express and explore a concept without being bogged down by measurements and logistics. The sketch is thus a tool to explore the heart’s desire.

Even a three-year old can produce a design with a sketch. Child’s Own Studio works from children’s sketches in each and every project. Some of these drawings made by children are indeed truly sketches with scratched out changes and scribbled messages for Child’s Own to take note. These drawings or sketches are effective and powerful enough to generate the soft toy making process and to yield a finished product. In this unique collaboration between artists (Child’s Own and child), the child provides a sketch that can only be described as a true expression of his heart’s desire.

Child’s Own enjoys the challenge of turning the sketch into a three-dimensional finished product that embodies the essence of the child’s drawing. I personally enjoy the children’s drawings and treat them with care, and when done, return them to the artist. The final product, based on a child’s sketch, is of course, meant to capture the spirit and essence of the child. This is what makes Child’s Own soft toys unique and more characterful than mass-produced store bought products. The power of the simple sketch is made very apparent by every hand crafted soft toy at Child’s Own.