IKEA Turns Kids' Drawings Into Impossibly Cute Plush Toys To Benefit Education — PHOTOS

Now that my daughter is four years old, her drawings are starting to look like the actual objects and people she’s trying to create on paper. Kinda. OK, sometimes not at all. Still, at least they’re not just circles and lines anymore! That's something! I love seeing children’s art, whether produced by my offspring or someone else's. It shows what happens when boundless creativity is mixed with an ever-evolving perception of the world. Often, what results is funny, but also compelling and beautiful. That’s why, when I found out about IKEA's Soft Toys for Education campaign, which has been running for 12 years now, raising money for UNICEF and Save the Children, would involve plush toys designed from kids’ drawings, I was all over it.

While it's for a distinctly great cause, making toys from kids' art isn’t a brand new trend. In fact, one studio has been turning children’s drawing into plushies for nearly ten years, which is amazing. You can find dozens of Etsy shops that will turn your kid’s drawing into a stuffed toy now. What a time to be alive.

What I really dig about IKEA’s toys is that they have been mass produced (I know, that’s weird to say, but hear me out), for more than just one child to enjoy. The thing about these toys that’s amazing is how wonderfully appealing they are. Perhaps it’s their unusual designs, with long skinny necks and legs, or oversized, round bodies, but they just feel so child-friendly. And hey, they're from IKEA so you know they're not crazy expensive! I'm into all of it. 

Images: Courtesy of IKEA(10)