Stuffed Giraffe

Despite my general fear of babies, I really love a good baby sewing project.  Baby projects are colorful and small and full of joy, so with no specific recipient in mind, I decided to try my hand at making a rudimentary stuffed animal.

I started with some remnant white fabric the I picked up at Joann and this embroidery pattern.

I transferred the image to my fabric with a quick pencil sketch right on the fabric (which is absolutely not the professional way to do it).

Using a few colors of embroidery floss and my embroidery hoop, I employed a simple back stitch, some satin stitching, and a French knot to bring my little giraffe to life. 

Then, I cut out the giraffe by creating a very simple silhouette that would be easy to sew around, leaving room for both my seam allowance and for some plushness.  I cut out a mirror image of my silhouette from some Eleanor Grosch Zoo Menagerie fabric for my backing. 

I then sewed my two pieces together, right sides facing, leaving a little gap at the bottom for inserting the stuffing.

Once this was done, I turned it right side out, stuffed it, and closed it all up with a slip stitch.  And here's my adorable little final product:

I'll probably be making more of these since the embroidery allows me to be creative without tethering me to my living room/sewing machine.  I'm looking forward to coming up with my own embroidery patterns and maybe using some trims.