Unselfish sewing Simplicity 1082

I was able to spend last week in Baton Rouge, where my daughter and her family live.  There was a day that was deemed by them, "Too cold to go anywhere and do anything," so we decided to sew up this adorable Simplicity pattern, 1082

                

See what I mean?  It is darling!  Since we are still working on de-stashing we found these the two prints in my daughter's stash and all the other notions needed such as safety eyes, fiber fill, etc.  

If you've never sewn a three-D animal such as this I will give you some hints.

Cut and sew with precision.  All seam allowances are 1/4".  Any sloppiness will result in a finish that won't look as cute as it can.

Mark all the notches, dots, small and large circles as those are pretty integral in figuring out the design.

No matter how much fiber fill you have, you'll probably end up using more than your first estimation.  This guy takes a LOT to get him to look nice and plump and without lumps or bumps.  I probably should have used more but we didn't have any so we left her as is.

If you don't press as you sew, then don't create this guy.  Seams need pressed open flat so they look nice.  This type of attention to detail will also help you match seams easier as you are sewing.

Use a high-quality quilting cotton or fabric to make these.  I would believe a thin fabric won't hold the fiber fill as well and it will look lumpy.

Granddaughter Elaina actually gave this hippo an unsolicited kiss when we showed it to her!  I hope she cuddles with it a lot.  

This only took a few hours to make.  I enjoyed it and can't wait to make the flamingo and giraffe.

Thanks for reading!

Sue :)