Assembly Instructions for Little Bigfoot Hippo

Print off the free written pattern for the Little Bigfoot Hippo here




ASSEMBLY:
Some people find sewing amigurumis together a bit daunting. I used to as well, I used to dread sewing things together! I enjoy it now. The trick is to relax, don't hold things so tight. Let the yarn needle do all the work. Use pins to hold things in place, use lots of pins when you can. Always make sure you are happy with the placement of things BEFORE sewing. Take your time and always take breaks when you need them. Enjoy!

1) Flatten the foot before sewing any parts. Cut 2 yarn tails, about 12 inches long or so, the same color as the foot. Thread 1 strand of yarn with your yarn needle, bring one end through the middle circle of row 1 and out through the top of the foot, in between row 9 and 10, and then wrap the yarn over about 2 or 3 stitch holes and back down into the foot and out the middle circle, just a bit so that when you knot it off the knot doesn't pull through the circle.

Pull the yarn tails until you have flattened out the foot as pictured. Knot off and hide the yarn tails inside foot.
I borrowed the foot photos from another pattern of mine, the feet you made now will be much smaller than these one pictured.

2) Add toes using a strand of white yarn. Knot off one end then pull the knot through the center hole of row 1. Pierce the 5th row and pull the knot until it stops at the 5th row. Don't come through a stitch hole or the knot will just pull through it. Wrap around the 5th row 2 times then bring the yarn needle into the foot and over just a bit then wrap again, add as many toes as you want. The last time you wrap, on the last toe, knot off the yarn then hide the yarn tail inside the foot.

3a) Sew the legs on. For those with the sitting hippo: The flap of the leg should be fully under the belly. Sew both rows of flap to the body so that the flap is completely sewn in. The legs should fall freely downward when you hold the hippo up and sit easily when you put it down. Knot off and hide yarn tails inside body.

3b) For the standing hippo, pin the legs side by side first to make sure there's enough room for the 2nd one. Make sure to do this, the legs are quite big and it would be easy to sew one on and then not have enough room for the 2nd one. Remove one then sew the other in place. Sew the edge, all around the leg, to the body. Knot off anywhere when done and hide yarn tail inside body. Sew on 2nd leg.

4) Sew the arms on or about row 22 (or 2 rows under the start of the neck). Knot off and hide yarn tails inside body.
5) Sew the tail on. Knot off and hide yarn tail inside body.

6) Sew the muzzle on. Stuff and shape before pinning in place. Use lots of pins to hold it in place. The top edge should be on or about row 14 and the bottom edge on or about row 19. After you get a few holding stitches in, stop and make sure the muzzle is still centered. Take your time! Sew all the way around but leave a gap if you need to add more stuffing. Use a stuffing stick to stuff more in. Once done, sew up the remaining gap, knot off and hide yarn tail inside muzzle.

7) Sew the ears on. Sew them in line with the arms and fairly close together. One hippo has ears sewn in between the 2nd and 3rd row and the other hippo in between the 3rd and 4th row. Knot off when done and hide yarn tails inside head.

8) Add eye indents. This part is optional, they look fine without them. I added indents around the eyes by threading a strand of yarn from the front, right close to the eye through to the back in the neck area. You should have 4 strands of yarn in the back of the head when you're done. 2 pairs, one pair per eye. Pull the yarn strands slightly and knot off.

And you're done! You can now dress this hippo with overalls or a shirt and pair of pants.
Donations of any size are greatly appreciated and help keep the patterns free.

Copyright 2017 Author: Sharon Ojala - Amigurumi To Go  All rights reserved