Sunday 10 July 2016

The one with a very little giraffe

Teacher gifts.



The one thing I always leave until the last minute (and I should know better really - I am a teacher, after all).

Imagine my delight when the little one announces that I haven't made the giraffe I promised to make for her teacher. 



Despite having approximately a billion other things I should be doing, including working on 12 new projects for my next book* I decided to make a little giraffe. 
A very little giraffe.



* yes, I am writing a new crochet book. All is a bit secret at the mo, but I'll let you have some sneaky peaks soon.

If you have a last minute teacher-who-likes-giraffes gift to make, or just fancy your very own little giraffe, then here's the pattern in UK terms. (For US, dc is the same as sc and dc2tog is the same as sc2tog).

A Very Little Giraffe Pattern (UK)

Abbreviations:
ch = chain
sl st = slip stitch
dc = double crochet
dc2tog = double crochet 2 together**
sts = stitches
**to make the dc2tog stitch using the invisible decrease method:
Insert hook into the front loop of the first stitch.
Insert hook into the front loop of the second stitch (3 loops on hook).
Yarn over and pull yarn through the first two loops (2 loops on hook).
Yarn over and pull through both loops.

Finished size: 12cms (4 3/4 inches) tall

You will need:
Yarn and hook of your choice (any weight yarn and hook to match will work)
I used a 4 mm (US 6/G) hook and Rico Creative Cotton Aran in Vanilla (shade 62), Tangerine (shade 76) and Nougat (56) 
Toy stuffing
2 x 6mm eyes
Tapestry needle
Stitchmarker. Mark the first st of each round

Head
Stuff as you go.

In Vanilla
Rnd 1: 6dc in magic ring or 2dc, 6dc in 2nd st from hook (6 sts)
Rnd 2: 2 dc in each st around. (12 sts)
Rnds 3 - 4: dc 1 in each st around.
Change to Tangerine
Rnd 5: (dc 1, 2dc in next st) repeat around. (18 sts)
Rnds 6 - 8: dc 1 in each st around.
Rnd 9: (dc 1, dc2tog) repeat around. (12 sts)

Insert eyes between Rnds 5-6, 6 sts apart.
Rnd 10: dc2tog around. (6 sts)

Fasten off and sew closed.

Ears (make 2)

Rnd 1: 4dc in magic ring or 2dc, 4dc in 2nd st from hook (4 sts)
Rnd 2: (dc 1, 2dc in next st) repeat around. (6 sts)

Fasten off. Sew to head

Horns (ossicones)*** (make 2)

In Nougat
Ch 4, 
Row 1: sl st 3, beginning in 2nd ch from hook.
Fasten off. Sew to head.

*** a giraffe does not have horns, but ossicones. Both male and female giraffes have them. They are made from bone, but not attached to the skull, to avoid injury at birth. Males sometimes use their ossicones to fight. Educational fact. Retain as valuable information for use in random pub quiz someday.

Neck, body and legs ****
(Leave long tail at beginning for stitching to head and stuff as you go)
Ch 6, join with sl st to first ch.
Rnd 1: ch1 (doesn't count as st), 1dc in each st (6 sts) 
Now in continuous rounds
Rnds 2 - 5: 1dc in each st.
Rnd 6: (dc 1, 2dc in next st) X 2, dc 2. (8 sts)
Rnd 7: dc 2, (2dc in next st) X 3, dc 3. (11 sts)
Rnd 8: dc 3, (2dc in next st) X 4, dc 4. (15 sts)
Rnd 9: dc 4, (2dc in next st) X 6, dc 5. (21 sts)
Rnds 10 - 13: 1dc in each st.

Front leg
Rnd 14: dc 1, dc2tog, dc 4, then cross over to the other side (see pic) and dc 4 back to stitchmarker. (10 sts)







Rnd 15: dc2tog around. (5 sts).
Fasten off and sew closed.

Back leg
Rnd 14a: 1dc in each st around. (10 sts)



Rnd 15a: dc2tog around. (5 sts).
Fasten off and sew closed. 
Stitch between the legs to close the hole.




Use the long tail from the neck to stitch the head in place.

**** not anatomically correct - this giraffe only has 2 legs. And they're a bit short.

Tail
Make a knot in the yarn and stitch it into place. Separate the strands to create the tail.

Spots
Cut a variety of different sized spots of out brown felt and glue or stitch into place.





And that's it.
Job done, happy teacher (I hope)
Enjoy!

Sarah xxx



12 comments:

  1. Sarah what a sweet little pattern. Your daughter's teacher will love it!
    Lorna

    ReplyDelete
  2. Очень мило, спасибо.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Beautiful giraffe! Special thanks for the description!

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  4. Super cute, sure she will love it x

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  5. With April the Giraffe (Animal Adventure Park in New York) and her new baby, this pattern is right on time. I LOVE this. Giraffe's have always been my favorite and I am always looking for giraffe patterns. Thank you for this. It is absolutely adorable.

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  6. Dear Anna, thanky for the cute giraffe tutorial. Just one question: Do you start each round with a chain before the fist dc?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kim and Lara,
      I work in continuous rounds, so no slip stitch at the end of a round so no need for a ch1 at the beginning! Hope that clears things up!
      Kindest regards x

      Delete
  7. Hi! I made a mini version of this for my mom and she absolutely loved it, thank you for the pattern!
    I was wondering if it's alright to make these into keychains/brooches to sell?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So glad you like the pattern! Of course you can make them to sell - no problem at all x

      Delete

I'd love to hear from you, so leave a comment or ask a question and l'll reply to you right here.
Have a fab day.
Sarah Xx