About the crochet pattern

Yarnacadabra’s Colorful Giraffe was originally designed in a completely different color scheme, which creates a truly stunning effect. As I mentioned in the introduction, I instantly fell in love with the overall look—the colors and the whole design just spoke to me. When it comes to the original giraffe's colors, only the head resembles a real giraffe. That’s where the magic begins: the rest of the body is an enchanting blend of blue and pink shades that work together beautifully. I really liked the original color combo—it was a tough decision—but in the end, I chose to make mine in more realistic giraffe colors, keeping only the striped scarf, which really gives this crocheted figure its unique personality.

Zsuzsa recommends the pattern for intermediate crocheters, but after working through it myself, I can confidently say that motivated beginners can definitely give it a try too. There’s so much technical knowledge to gain from this pattern—not only for beginners but also for more experienced crocheters—that it’s a great stepping stone for tackling other projects later on. The pattern is available in both English and Hungarian, which makes it even more accessible. I made my giraffe using one of my favorite yarns, Drops Paris, and for the colorful parts, I used leftover yarns like Scheepjes Cahlista and Amigurumi Retwisst. That way, I not only ended up with a lovely crochet toy, but I also used up some of my leftover “on-their-way-out” yarns. As the designer also suggests, it’s a perfect project for stash-busting. So if you’ve got little yarn balls piling up in your drawer, this is a great opportunity to put them to good use! My giraffe turned out to be 29 cm tall using thicker (aran/worsted) cotton yarn, while the designer’s version—made with thinner (sport weight) yarn—measures about 20 cm.

The part of the pattern that challenged me the most (in the best way!) was shaping the body from the legs and crocheting the bubbles. I had never made a toy using this technique before, which Zsuzsa showcases in the giraffe pattern, and I really love it! Although I think I might have slipped up somewhere, because I couldn’t quite get the legs and tummy to line up as perfectly proportioned as the designer’s version, I’m still very happy with the overall look. The pattern gives great tips for the color changes around the bubbles, which alone makes it worth getting! Admittedly, crocheting all those bubbles was tiring, but that’s more on me—I added an extra 1.5 rows of bubbles compared to the original pattern for my giraffe. I tried to place the bubbles evenly around the figure, similar to how they appear in the first three rows. The only other change I made was to start the color changes at the back of the striped (scarf) part, so they wouldn’t fall on the front of the toy.

Overall, I really loved the pattern, the technical crochet skills I gained from it, and our family finally got to welcome an adorable giraffe.