This is my first Zebra using this pattern and I am really excited as I love this designers work and fell in love with the Zebra. My friend’s birthday was coming up and I knew she loved Zebras so it was the perfect time to get this pattern .

Here is a link to the pattern if you would like to buy it too. It’s from a designer called Aidie and Jellybean and in her Etsy shop she sells crochet patterns of her designs and the patterns already made by her, so if you don’t feel able to make one you can always buy one made by her (she ships worldwide).

•••Notes on the Pattern•••

I have followed the pattern to make this Zebra and over all it was easy to follow and I love the finished result. I did have a few problems doing the maine but I came up with a solution. I did start with the pattern and tried to do the maine the same way but I was struggling to get them in the correct place, it didn’t look right so I knew I needed to come up with another way. Other than this I DID add stuffing to the arms and legs, the designer does not do this. I only added a little stuffing though to fill the lower part of the legs and arms, this way when I join them to the body I still have a nice flat section to sew down. As a general rule I stuff 3/4 of the arms and legs and I only stuff lightly in these sections so not firm. I am also really glad I did the eyes the way she did as I love how it looks and it wasn’t actually too fiddly to do either. I really love this pattern and I’d highly recommend it.

How I did the maine/hair

I took a tip from making an amigurumi Dragon and Iaid down some slip stitches instead so I could work the maine into these. I did the shape on the pattern with slip stitches and then started working the hair/maine just like the pattern, only it was starting from the bottom of the inside line and working out. After completing the slip stitch guide I chained 7 and slip stitches into the second chain and worked down just like the pattern says. I then slip stitched into my guide slip stitch that was next to it and would then repeat with chain 7 and do just like the pattern.

Basically in terms of differences to the pattern it’s just a slip stitch into the guide I made with slip stitches. When I made the guide in slip stitches I generally kept to the same amount asked in terms of the hair/maine strands, occasionally it might include an extra one or two slip stitches just to get the guide shape like the photo but an extra few makes no difference to the finished result. After doing the last hair strand I used the yarn to secure it down, I decided it looked good to have the front hair strands from each row together so it’s why when I did the last strand I secured the yarn this way. I also secure the two yarn tails from making the slip stitch guide.

This way is easy to do and I highly recommend it as it gives a fantastic looking result as well as saving you time if anything. It’s easy to do I promise, just give it a go and you’ll find it’s intuitive. I also took photos as I did this for you to see, in fact when I made another Zebra after this one I took more photos of me doing this so you could see the steps even clearer, so if you do want to do this you might want to check out this project before starting as the extra photos might help.

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I don’t think there is much else to add as I am so happy with my first made Zebra. Oh I do my usual like with all amigurumi so I use tights/stockings inside the amigurumi pieces before adding stuffing. This way not only does it keep this amigurumi looking it’s best as no stuffing will ever seek through but it also makes it safer for young children should you want to give the finished Amigurumi to them. I also user yarn from my stash and I am so glad I did as it reminded me why I love this yarn and it has given such a lovely finish to this Zebra. Not only is this yarn soft but it also has a lovely sheen to it which added to the lovely finish I have. I’d definately use this yarn again for this pattern and I’d highly suggest it too!

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PLEASE NOTE: When I started this Zebra I was awaiting the yarn needed for the eyes and the smaller crochet hook to make them. This meant I left the eyes till the very last moment so it didn’t delay me making this Zebra. The date logged for finishing this project is when I finished this Zebra apart from the eyes as I felt this made sense, as otherwise I would of been logging more days that was just waiting for supplies to arrive.

24/04/2018 - Crochet eyes made with the new black lace yarn and 1mm hook. Now officially finished so marked as so but kept completed date as when I finished my Zebra apart from the eyes (felt that was more accurate given if I’d had the hook needed it would of been done that day too).

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Photos will include a few of the other Zebra I made after this one, as I thought it would be nice to see them together. Not only did I do their eyes at the same time (as I made the second Zebra when waiting for the supplies to arrive to do these eyes) but as they are also going to the same time I thought it would be nice. If you’d like to see or hear more about my second Zebra, my rainbow Zebra then here is a link to the Ravelry project page for it.

Good News Hazel got her belated birthday presents and loves both Zebra’s. This made me so happy as it was lovely to hear how much she loved what I made for her. She even did a post on the day they arrived, if you check out my Instagram account or Facebook page you’ll see the post as I re-grammed/re-post so you could see it too!

☆☆Blog Post coming soon, all about making these two Zebra’s. These were the highlight to April for me and I loved making them.☆☆