Crocheted Giraffe

I started this Crocheted Giraffe as soon as I finished a Crocheted Willendorf Venus May 18. This giraffe is the last on my list from Vanessa Mooncie's Crocheted Wild Animals Book. Did I save the best for last? I'm not sure. You be the judge. Tah-Dah! 

I snapped one photo before adding its spots, ossicones (horn-like protrusions on head) and eyes then took proper photos outside once I finished. This Crocheted Giraffe loved posing for photos ending our session with a showy bow.

It feels amazing to have finally finished all fourteen Crocheted Wild Animals ... a goal set over a year ago now. 

For this Crocheted Giraffe I followed Vanessa Mooncie's pattern changing only the suggested yarn and facial features. I used worsted weight yarn from my stash switching to light yellow once I ran out of golden yellow. For the face, I added contouring and stitched round eyes with lashes.

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with all fourteen DONE as listed below. 

Done:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo
10. Snake
11. Monkey
12. Fawn (aka Deer)
13. Chameleon
14. Giraffe

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Crocheted Chameleon

 

This one took forever to finish ... five months to be exact. 

It seems an eternity has passed since I started this Crocheted Chameleon the day after Christmas. Back then, I was spending most of my spare time rock climbing at The Junction with little time for crochet. We went to Cuba for two weeks in February like we usually do. We were home for just two weeks then my husband was off to Cuba yet again ...this time to lead a two-week bike tour. I had planned a trip to Toronto to visit friends for a weekend while he was away, so took a break from this chameleon to make a few dishcloths for gifts. Something less complicated is a welcome relief when working on a project like this. 

My husband returned from his bike tour in Cuba late on March 14, the day before covid-19 self-quarantine rules for travelers returning to Canada from "anywhere" came into effect. My husband planned to work from home. Unaware of the updated travel advisory, I went to work as usual but was sent home and instructed to stay home for two weeks watching for symptoms. We both had to self quarantine to ensure we did not expose anybody else to risk of infection. 

You might think I would have used my 'free' time wisely or at least productively. I did not. I wallowed. I watched Netflix and YouTube videos and generally fretted about the state of the world with covid-19 spreading everywhere. 

I could not believe how quickly our lives and routines were changing. I stopped crocheting while I mentally processed the craziness of covid-19. Never have I experienced anything even remotely like this. I felt stuck in a zombie apocalypse with invisible zombies ...not a fun place to be.

Over time, as I've slowly come to terms with covid-19 and our 'new normal', I picked up my hooks and started crocheting again. What can I do? Life goes on. I can complain or I can crochet. I choose to crochet. 

This Crocheted chameleon is the thirteenth I've completed from Vanessa Mooncie's Crocheted Wild Animals book. He was happy to pose for photos even though it was a little cold outside Mothers' Day weekend. 

I love how this chameleon changes colours. It's basically two chameleons in one that magically transforms by turning inside out through its mouth. Check out the photos below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

  

  

To make this Crocheted Chameleon, I followed Vanessa Mooncie's pattern as written changing only the suggested yarn. I used two 100 g balls of King Cole Drifter DK for baby yarn - one in Spearmint (greens) and one in Lilac Tints (purples). It was a complicated pattern to make with the inside-out colour changing trick, but totally worth the extra effort. 

I just love how this Crocheted Chameleon turned out ...inside out. 😁

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with the thirteen I've done so far listed below. 

Done:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo
10. Snake
11. Monkey
12. Fawn (aka Deer)
13. Chameleon

Not Done Yet:

• Giraffe

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Crocheted Fawn

This Crocheted Fawn is the twelfth thing I've made from Vanessa Mooncie's Crocheted Wild Animals book. I love how this fawn turned out worked in various shades of beige. He was happy to pose for photos in the cold. Take a look and let me know what you think of this little fawn. 

 

To make this Crocheted Fawn, I followed Vanessa's pattern as written except for adding two less spots to his back and substituting the suggested yarn. I used DK yarn from my stash in various shades of beige. As I ran out of one colour, I picked up another and kept going. 

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with the twelve I've done so far listed below. 

Done:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo
10. Snake
11. Monkey
12. Fawn (aka Deer)

Not Done Yet:

• Giraffe
• Chameleon

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Crocheted Monkey

This Crocheted Monkey is the eleventh I've completed from Vanessa Mooncie's Crocheted Wild Animals book. He was happy to pose outside for photos last weekend even though it was a little cold. Isn't he sweet?

 

 

 

To make this Crocheted Monkey, I followed Vanessa's pattern as written except for substituting the suggested yarn. I used the same dark brown and light beige yarn as I used for the snake. When I ran out of light beige I substituted a similar yet slightly lighter colour on the tummy and one foot. You can see the difference if you look closely.

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with the eleven I've done so far listed below. 

Done:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo
10. Snake
11. Monkey

Not Done Yet:

• Deer
• Giraffe
• Chameleon

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Crocheted Snake

I finished three more Crocheted Wild Animals from Vanessa Mooncie's book months ago and finally got around to taking photos of them this past weekend. Since each animal deserves special attention, I will share photos of each one in separate posts starting with the Crocheted Snake.

At first, I wasn't happy with my choice of yarn for this snake as it seemed a bit stiff. The body tended to fold instead of coiling smoothly as I imagined it should. Luckily, this problem resolved as the snake grew longer. This Crocheted Snake coils quite nicely around our banister now. 

Although not keen on cold, he reluctantly posed for a few photos outside as well. He's really rather cute and cuddly for a snake. Don't you think?

To make this Crocheted Snake, I followed Vanessa's pattern as written except for substituting the suggested yarn. I used worsted weight yarn from my stash in appropriate colours - cream, beige, dark brown plus a bit of pink for the mouth, red for the tongue and black for the eyes. 

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with the ten I've done so far listed below. 

Done:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo
10. Snake

Not Done Yet:

• Deer
• Monkey
• Giraffe
• Chameleon

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Crocheted Flamingo Photo Shoot

I finally finished #9 on my list from Vanessa Mooncie's Crocheted Wild Animals book last week. This one took a little longer for a few reasons. 

First, I started this flamingo then put it aside to make a birthday gift for our great nephew. I wrote about that gift - the Bumblebee Lovey Blanket here if you missed it. 

Once I finished the little lovey blanket, I returned to the flamingo but then got stuck on the tail feathers. I ended up watching YouTube videos showing how to work the crocodile stitch, which is similar to yet not exactly the same as these tail feathers. After a few false starts, I was pleased to finally 'get' it, but by then, our daughter and her family had arrived from Boulder. 

All crochet was put aside for their visit last week. Luckily I squeezed in enough uninterrupted crochet time to finish this flamingo one night last week after work. It was the night they stayed over at the cottage. I hoped our daughter who just so happens to be a talented photographer would be able to fit in a proper photo shoot for this flamingo before going home. 

I am pleased to tell you it happened on Saturday after lunch while the kids were busy playing in the basement ... a Crocheted Flamingo Photo Shoot. These photos are fabulous. Our daughter sent me 44 all together. It was difficult to decide which ones to exclude. In the end, I selected 31 showing different poses in different places. I know that's a lot, but I love them ALL. Take a look and let me know what you think.  

This flamingo is a gift for a friend at work. Her daughter who loves all things flamingo was due to have a baby girl June 29. I figured this flamingo would make a perfect baby gift for her.  

I found out later that Piper was well on her way while these photos were being taken. Piper arrived Saturday, June 6 at 1:44 p.m. weighing 7 lbs 7 oz ... healthy and alert. Talk about Divine Timing!! How cool is that?! 

Thanks to our daughter for taking these photos ... truly a treasure.

To make this flamingo, I followed Vanessa's pattern as written except for substituting the suggested yarn. I used DK yarn in appropriate colours. If you're interested, I described the yarn in more detail in this post titled "More Yarn". 

Here's the complete list of animals featured in the Crocheted Wild Animals book with the nine I've finished so far listed below. 

Finished:

1. Owl
2. Rabbit
3. Frog
4. Polar Bear
5. Lion
6. Fox
7. Elephant
8. Camel
9. Flamingo

Not Finished Yet:

• Deer
• Monkey
• Snake
• Giraffe
• Chameleon

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