Giraffe gathering

Another large scale restock, this time of giraffes.  This is the second most popular line of animals, and possibly my favourite.  They are also the most tricky to make of the animals.

Made from a  Funky Friends Factory pattern.

Crocodile hunting!

Here are two more of my newest design.  These have all sold, so more need to be cut and sewn - but the list of cutting and sewing seems to be growing faster than my ability to complete it!  Hopefully the summer holidays will provide me with time and space to make progress and rebuild my stock.  It is great to see how quickly these African animals are selling.

Made from a  Funky Friends Factory pattern.

Snakes alive!

Another new toy - this time a snake.

I'm interested to see how well these sell.  They are much easier and faster to make than the other Funky Friends Factory designs I have made, and will be priced accordingly. 
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/ 

Blue giraffe

I was dubious about using blue denim for the giraffes.  In fact, I intended to make them all from sand coloured fabric and paint true giraffe markings on them.  However, I tried one in denim and absolutely loved him.  I abandoned all ideas of sand colour and paint, and have gone over to making just denim giraffes.

So cute!
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/

Rosanna Rhino

Rosanna would really like to find a loving home, away from all the bully boys she currently shares a bag with!
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/

Sweet little teddy

These little teddies are very sweet, but I don't feel I will be making many of them - they are very fiddly to sew up, due to their size and the number of pieces!

Giraffe number two

Maybe this one should be Gerald - or Geraldine?  Of course, his / her owner may have their own name.

Rather funky, with the purple (yes it is purple) accents.
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/ 

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A Bowl full of Lemons  A Little Bird Told Me
 and

Two for the price of one!

Two more elephants for you.  I've lost count, now, of how many I have made and sold.
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Hippos yet again

These are the last three of my latest batch of hippos.  I particularly like the last one, with the pocket on the side.
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Roger Rhino

Please welcome the latest addition to the rhino clan.

There is a distant family connection with Reginald - you may notice the similarity in colouring!
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/ 
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More hippos

Here are two more versions of my "almost final" hippo.

Both have ears from the African fabric I was given - I am getting close to using it all up, sadly.

Shared at A Round Tuit.

Reginald Rhino

Reginald feels he is a cut above the other rhinos, with his grey body and black head.  Very smart!
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/ 

Different style hippo

This was one of my earlier attempts at a hippo.  I bought the pattern online and optimistically cut out five.  Having sewn the first, I then looked for a different pattern.  I'm not convinced this looks like a hippo, and the head has to be sewn on to the body by hand - very tricky and a lot of work to make it secure.  Maybe some buyers will like it more than I do!

Giraffe!

I have had to delay showing these as one was pre-ordered for a friend, as a surprise.  I bought this pattern from Funky Friends Factory, and absolutely love the results.  The patterns on the site are a little more intricate than others I have used, but the final results are amazing, and the patterns themselves come with really clear instructions.

The African fabric works really well for the accents here, and I love this little fellow.  Hope you do too.
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Hippo almost final version

I think this may actually be hippo version 4 or 5, but it is the one I am most satisfied with.

I have tried out numerous patterns.  This one was one of the first, but I have played around a lot with enlarging it.  The original was much too small to sew in denim, and I found the legs really fiddly and unsatisfying.  So I have amended the size (this one is still on the large size - 125% made it quite a hefty size, but very cuddly) adapted the legs to make them wider, and added the inner leg as part of the inside body section (all that for those of you who are interested).  I'm please with the final result, though I may still play around with the enlargement to see if I can come up with the ideal size.  I do have one lone hippo who is large enough to be a seat for a small child... that was the first one, enlarged to 200%.  I don't intend to make any more of that size!  See my "mega Hippo" post for the photos!

Meet Rebecca Rhino

Despite her aggressive stance and bright red ears, Rebecca is actually a sweetie.  Really!
Made from a Funky Friend Factory pattern: http://www.funkyfriendsfactory.com/ 

Mega hippo!

I have been struggling a bit to get the dimensions right for my hippos.  The initial pattern I used was quite small, which made it time consuming and fiddly to sew.  So I doubled the size ... and ended up with a hippo large enough to be a footstool!

Hmmm.... I'm sure he will sell, but I don't fancy cutting, sewing and stuffing (or transporting) more than one of this size.  So I have gone for a 125% increase on the original pattern, which is looking much more sensible!

Ronnie Rhino

I think I am going to have to find names for the rhinos.
This one can be Ronnie - for no better reason than it was the first R name I came up with - and is better than "Randy" which is the name given on the site selling the pattern!  (I'm sure Randy works well as a name in some cultures, but it definitely does not work in the UK!)

Like the elephants, the ears of these rhinos (and their tails) are made from African fabric.  Ronnie has a rather fearsome look, but he is actually very cuddly.  He is from a Funky Friends pattern - I thoroughly recommend these patterns; they are wonderful! 
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